Hello, EastEnders enthusiasts! Isn't it a beautiful Spring morning? It's the perfect time to be outdoors, but if you're stuck inside waiting for a download, don't worry, I've got a treat for you.
Today, I'm excited to share with you an exclusive EastEnders Bundle. This special collection, which I've dubbed 'EE1985.1', includes the very first 38 episodes of the iconic series, spanning from February to June 1985. Each episode is in .mkv format for your viewing pleasure. Additionally, I've included a handy index card detailing the characters and marking their inaugural appearances. For access to this nostalgic treasure trove, simply send me a private message, and I'll provide you with the link to the Google Drive Zip File.
PLEASE NOTE: THE LINK WILL NOT BE POSTED HERE. YOU HAVE TO MESSAGE ME DIRECTLY TO RECEIVE THE LINK.
IT WILL BE AVAILABLE BETWEEN 9.00 am 19th MAY 2024 until 9.00 pm TONIGHT.
Dive into the joy and excitement! This collection, a labor of love, is not meant for profit. It's a treasure trove I've carefully built over time, and it's my pleasure to share this passion for the show with fellow enthusiasts.
https://preview.redd.it/wu3usnknac1d1.png?width=1468&format=png&auto=webp&s=c8b6e149ecc1df304792924eb36ce2b65596252f

Hi all! I apologize if this not appropriate in this forum but I thought it would be something you guys are interested in.
We are having an 80’s comics buying party on What it on Monday night, 7PM PST.
Random 80’s comics from our collection from VF to NM.
Hit the link & hit remind if it’s something you’re interested in! Hope to see some of you there :)
Ian

Well folks, the season is over, with the final whistle being blown on a 4-2 loss to Hoffenheim, and the remaining excitement now revolves around which manager will Bayern manage to pull in after the massive debacle this past season has been. There is much blame to go around, with Tuchel, many of the key players, and the supervisory board all failing in significant fashion as Bayern fall to third-place in the Bundesliga, and a very early exit in the Pokal in embarrassing fashion (though Bayern did manage to rally for a strong run in the Champions League).
Roberto de Zerbi in action.
At this point, Italian manager Roberto de Zerbi seems like the most likely candidate, which an announcement coming that he'll be leaving Brighton this season. However, some additional candidates remain available, as Erik ten Hag, Massimiliano Allegri, and some others are still out there and de Zerbi is not a lock to Bayern yet.
Ten Hag with Bayern II.
Either way, this post explores what I would largely do if the transfers were up to me at Bayern. While the specific manager does play a degree of importance in these decisions, part of this does extensively look at some options who could fit a number of schemes, styles, systems, tactics, and such. My slight preference is for Erik ten Hag, as I think his familiarity from Bayern II and his past success at Ajax would be easier to replicate at Bayern than it was at Manchester United, a club I find is more concerned with its branding than its footballing. But I think de Zerbi has a lot of potential, though I worry about whether Bayern's supervisory board would be willing to let de Zerbi do his own thing, and the lack of German is going to be a problem for that board. It's problematic that the board feels so much need to do things one way and operate in such a chaotic fashion, so whomever Bayern hires is likely going to be fighting an uphill battle.

Defense

Bayern's future keeper, Nubel (left) and current keeper, Neuer (right).
Let's start off with the goalkeeper position, a spot that Bayern are largely set at. Right now, Bayern is set at that spot, as Manuel Neuer continues to be an elite goalkeeper even at 38-years old. And while the Bavarians have Sven Ulreich as the immediate backup keeper, Alexander Nübel is the long-term successor being eyed and groomed for the role, recently extending his contract at Bayern, though he remains loaned out to Stuttgart. Then of course there's also Daniel Peretz, a 23-year old keeper that Bayern added this past season. He seems likely to head out to a club such as RSC Anderlecht for a loan period for awhile this summer. In the meantime, Bayern might have Johannes Schenk back from Muenster to fill that third keeper on the roster, or he might get loaned back out once more. Overall, Bayern appear to be in really good shape for the goalkeeper spot, with Neuer continuing to lock things down for another season or so, before probably passing the torch over to Nübel in 2025 or 2026.
Shifting to the centre-back position, Bayern right now seem to have a good deal of interest in adding another big time centre-back, with rumored links of varying degrees to Ronald Araujo and Virgil van Dijk. This would likely mean that at least one current centre-back would need to be sold, as Bayern have a decent enough set of four starting caliber CBs on the roster, headlined by Matthijs de Ligt, but also including Kim Min-jae, Eric Dier, and Dayot Upamecano. My guess would be that if any departs, Upamecano is the most likely, given his inconsistent play and limited role in the lineup these days. De Ligt is the leader of the backline and has had some terrific outings as of late. Min-jae was a big time signing this past summer from Napoli, but has had some bumps along the way adjusting to life in Germany, and meshing into the current defensive system, which is quite hectic from the frequency of errors committed as a whole. Min-jae was excellent at Napoli and so it would not be too difficult to project him returning to that level of form after additional time in Bavaria.
Eric Dier was brought in as a late in the window depth addition, but so far has become a very solid add, starting a good number of matches alongside de Ligt. And whether he projects to start or is a rotational player next year, Bayern have already triggered an option to keep him next season. He's a solid piece to the puzzle overall, capable of giving them some veteran experience, and another Englishman alongside Harry Kane.
If Bayern did opt to sell Upamecano, then they reasonably could take a look at some other options to add into the mix. The top end of options here probably starts with discussing Ronald Araújo further, a 25-year old Uruguayan star for FC Barcelona. He's been a long desired prospect for the Bavarians, but he'd cost a pretty penny no doubt, as some have projected it could be upwards of 100 million € to acquire the talented CB. That's a big price tag, especially after Bayern spent almost €60 million last summer to bring in Min-jae.
Riccardo Calafiori in action for Bologna.
Should de Zerbi take the Bayern job, it's already been rumored that he has some targets in mind, namely Bologna center-back Riccardo Calafiori, a 21-year old Italian talent who can also handle some duties at left-back. He's been excellent this past year under Thiago Matta, and could fill a very valuable role for Bayern, competing with Min-Jae and Dier for the starting position next to Matthijs de Ligt. He also happens to be a left-footed defender, something Bayern have been lacking there as of late.
Some more middle tier options that peak the interest could be Kevin Danso, a 25-year Austrian CB playing for RC Lens in France. He spent a handful of seasons at Augsburg, and so has a good deal of Bundesliga experience and 100 appearances for Les Sang et Or these past three seasons. He's projected to cost about €25 million, so a much cheaper option that could fit well. Another mid-tier option could be Maxence Lacroix, currently in the Bundesliga at Wolfsburg. He's valued at about €20 million, and is a very strong and menacing presence on the backline, still 24-years old. He did get cooked a couple of times against Bayern, which probably harms some appeal there for some, but week-to-week he's been a quality player for Wolfsburg. The third name I'd mention here is Feyenoord's Dávid Hancko, a 26-year old Slovakian talent. He's a smart, savvy defender, and also provides some versatility between centre-back and left-back, which could be quite useful going forward. Oh and I'd be remiss to not mention German national Malick Thiaw, currently at Milan, as another promising option there.
The other option is to go with a younger, less established talent, someone like Armel Bella-Kotchap, who landed on Bayern's transfer rumor threads a good deal in the winter circuit as they were searching for some defensive help.
At left- and right-back, Bayern are in another similar spot where they might be fine, as the Bavarians have a deep rotation of capable options, but positional versatility, injuries, and inconsistent play have caused varying levels of upheaval. Let's start with this one -- if Bayern's new manager is able to convince Joshua Kimmich to remain as a right back, that would be one of the biggest wins they could manage. Kimmich is an elite player at the position, and while he's certainly a high caliber midfielder as well, I think he's best at right back. Whether that's likely or not, is a to-be-determined piece, but it should absolutely a conversation a new manager has with Kimmich.
While Bayern has kept its contract offer on the table for Alphonso Davies, I must admit, whether this is a popular position or not, I would not be a huge fan of Davies remaining with the club at this point. Part of this is because it very much appears as though Davies largely checked out of the season, instead letting all the plotting of a Real Madrid move occupy his headspace, leading to some very uninspired performance. Essentially, I hate to put it so bluntly, but I have been unable to really see it any differently despite my best desires to, it really looks like Davies quit on his team midway through the year, dreaming of Madrid. Whether Madrid come in with an offer at this point or not remains to be seen, but I would look for a way to remove Davies. As much as he offers a lot of potential, any new project for Bayern is going to require players who are bought in to making it happen once against in München, and I just cannot see that happening with Davies at this point.
Behind him, we've seen some excellent play down the stretch from Raphaël Guerreiro and Noussair Mazraoui, tag teaming duties at left-back and left wing to various degrees. I think if Kimmich is willing to man the right-back position, then a trio of Mazraoui, Guerreiro, and promising youngsters like Frans Krätzig and Adam Aznou would be sufficient.
Milan's Theo Hernandez, potentially Bayern's new left-back.
Bayern have been linked, however, with major moves such as AC Milan's Theo Hernandez, a world class player with elite pace and ability. They've also apparently looked into hijacking a potential reunion of Ian Maatsen and Borussia Dortmund, as the Chelsea-owned talent was quite good in Dortmund on loan. BVB would like to get Maatsen permenantly, though Bayern could pull a heist there. I think Bayern could also look at some other German options, such as 27-year old Stuttgart left-back Maximillian Mittelstädt, who recently broke out to the tune of some national team call-ups lately, or perhaps emerging youngster Luca Netz, who looked very promising at Borussia Mönchengladbach this past season.
And then the final note here, but Bayern are likely set with their right-back room, as Joshua Kimmich, Noussair Mazraoui, Josip Stanišić, and Sacha Boey are all on the team. However, there have been rumors that Bayern are interested in Leverkusen's Dutch phenomenon there, Jeremie Frimpong. While he plays as a very forward-oriented RWB, he's a very prolific player outright, with tons of big moments for Leverkusen this past season and a big part of their success.

Midfield

Do not for this one, while the no. 10 position is classified as a midfield position, I am including it in attack, with this one more just focused on the no. 6 and no. 8 roles in the midfield.
Pavlovic had a breakout season in Bavaria.
Bayern's midfield is going to need a major reshuffle. The two most certain pieces to be kept around are emerging youngster Aleksandar Pavlović, an academy talent who has worked his way up to being a go-to starter late into the season, and Konrad Laimer, who is valuable due to his versatility, intensity, and toughness. Kimmich, we'll touch on more below, but in the mean time, one of the major questions for any midfield duo at Bayern is going to be who departs and how things align? I think the one guy probably on the outside looking in is going to be Leon Goretzka. He's had his moments, some ups and downs, but right now figures as the odd man out for assorted reasons, namely the need for more defensive help in the midfield. Goretzka would have a market too if Bayern opted to move forward without him, with teams such as Juventus, Manchester United, and West Ham all having interest over the past year. Unknown. I'd lean towards a departure, even if only because Kimmich in the midfield is a better overall asset, and Bayern would need to free up some funds to acquire a better midfield partner than Goretzka provides.
Then of course there is 29-year old Joshua Kimmich. Mentioned him earlier as ideally slotting in at right back for Bayern going forward, but he's also proven to be quite capable in the midfield. He's excellent at dictating the play going forward, with timely, precise passes, and an aggressive demeanor. He's not terribly reliable as a no. 6, and some of this was the source of the rift between Kimmich and Tuchel earlier this summer, where he and Tuchel were somewhat publicly feuding over whether or not Kimmich could handle that role. Ultimately, I do think Kimmich is better as more of a no. 8, with a more defensive-oriented type of player brought in to compliment him. I think in that role, Kimmich can be wildly successful for Bayern in the remaining years of his career, but a long-term extension is needed at this point. As I've said earlier, I would prefer to keep Kimmich as a right-back, but I am quite content keeping him in the midfield if Bayern can find that no. 6.
Everton's Amadou Onana is a tempting target for Bayern.
And speaking of the need for a defensively minded midfielder... I do believe there is one genuinely excellent option there, with Everton's Amadou Onana available. Onana is a Senegalese-born Belgian national, and came up playing in Germany, with time at Hoffenheim II and Hamburger SV. Thus, he's fluent in German and could integrate to life in München quite easily. He's a very disruptive defensive stopper, with excellent ability to make tackles, halt offensive build-ups, and then quickly turn and push the ball forward for his side to go on the counteroffensive. He's an ideal fit for the system, able to help turn defense into offense in a hurry. Another one for the no. 6 that's been mentioned for Bayern is Adam Wharton, currently at Crystal Palace. The 20-year old English midfielder had an excellent season this past year.
The other one that I would anticipate being a priority if we see ten Hag taking over is a ramped up pursuit of Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong, a fellow Dutchman who was at Ajax under ten Hag for awhile. De Jong's had some injuries issues plaguing him lately, but when he's on, he's an excellent possession-oriented central midfielder, bringing a very well-rounded game as well that includes some noteworthy capacity with dribbling, defense, and passing as well. De Jong also has a notable history/connection with Bayern's Matthijs de Ligt, which makes it seem more feasible that he'd integrate well into the team. In many ways, I think de Jong probably only makes sense as a replacement for Kimmich if he were to depart.
Additionally, while he has been mentioned more as a Tuchel target than anything else, Fulham's Joao Palhinha is an intriguing option as a defensive midfielder. He's an elite tackler and defender in the middle of the defensive half, and shows some solid ability to distribute the ball and lead the build-up. Personally, I think Palhinha is the ideal partner in the midfield to be paired with Aleksandar Pavlovic, whereas Onana next to Kimmich is more preferable there. So some options based on how Bayern wants to set-up. And one other name that could pop up here is Mats Wieffer, currently at Feyenoord, a central figure to Arne Slot's success there. A 24-year old Dutch midfielder, Wieffer has been an excellent option in Slot's midfield, and it seems likely he'll be pursued by Liverpool with Slot taking over there, but Bayern could perhaps try to hijack it.
While at this point, I think Bayern would probably add Onana or Palhinha, maybe de Jong if Kimmich leaves, and then call it a day with Konrad Laimer and Aleksandar Pavlovic there as well, with Kimmich maybe even splitting some time between right-back and midfield throughout the season, there could be room for more players to be added. For some additional depth in the midfield, I think Bayern would do well to go after former academy player Angelo Stiller, who appeared in almost 30 matches this past season for third-place Stuttgart. The 23-year old is an excellent passer, able to distribute the ball forward with precision and anticipation. He'd be a nice reunion for Bayern as well, as he's also born and raised in München, and was added to the national team roster for the EUROs. However, I think Stiller's probably one that Bayern does not really need at this point, though if additional midfield help becomes a need (say perhaps next winter), then he's one to continue monitoring. One other name here would be OGC Nice's Khéphren Thuram, a talented 23-year old midfielder who is quite cheap considering his talent. His brother played for several years at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Another younger option I'd love to add to the roster here would be 17-year old Sverre Nypan, a Norwegian midfielder who currently plays in-country with Rosenborg BK. I admittedly don't know much about Nypan personally, but am going off of something from I read earlier about Ten Hag and United already monitoring his progress. He'd be a nice piece to add to the mix with other young midfielders like Zovrenek and Wanner coming through the ranks. However, I think a loan for at least one of them would be worthwhile.

Attack

Simons has been electric this past season at RB Leipzig.
Looking at the no. 10 role for Bayern, I have some questions. Jamal Musiala is an exceptional talent, and at only 21 years old, Bayern need to be doing everything in their power to extend him and make him the central figure of the club in the years to come. But, as far as position goes, he's very versatile and that allows for Bayern to get very creative in how they configure their attack alongside him. And while Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz is a top target for the 2025 transfer window for Bayern, I do tend to agree with take from Complexes on Twitter, that Wirtz probably follows Alonso to Madrid in 2025, and thus I'd be very much in favor of Bayern opting to add Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig this summer. This isn't to say Bayern should abandon its pursuit of Wirtz, but rather that I'd say that Bayern should pursue Simons this summer and be quite happy/content to land him, lest they risk going 0-2 on both if Wirtz does indeed land with Madrid next summer.
The thing I love most about pairing Simons and Musiala together is the versatility and creativity. While both tend to occupy a spot more frequently as a central attacking midfielder, Musiala has played a decent amount of time on the left wing and Simons has also played over as a right wing. Add in Bayern's current right winger, Leroy Sané, also showing some versatility between right wing and occasionally cutting in and operating centrally, and you have the recipe for a versatile, ever changing, flexible attack that can advance the ball. Overall, I think Simons addition into Bayern's attack would unlock a new level of effectiveness for the incoming regime.
The other one to mention here is Schalke academy product Assan Ouédraogo. At just 18-years old, Ouédraogo has already landed on the monitor of Bayern and RB Leipzig, and the two clubs appear to be battling for his signature. A move to acquire Ouédraogo and then loan him back out for more experience, whether back to Schalke or moving him up to the Bundesliga, would seem to be a solid plan for the Bavarian giants to see if Ouédraogo could become a long-term fixture in their lineup. If a move for Ouédraogo falls through, another young attacking midfield with immense promise that I think Bayern should look at is 16-year old Polish midfielder Jakob Adkonis, currently at Legia Warsaw. He'd definitely be a development piece long-term, but the upside is very high.
Then looking at the wing spots, Bayern are in an interesting spot. Jamal Musiala and Thomas Müller have interchangeably slotted in as attacking midfield types with the ability to spell time out on the wings. Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman are both very talented options there, but suffer from a lack of reliability with their frequent injuries.
Fuhrich is a very solid player who could be a strong add for Bayern.
This section thus deals with a lot of ifs. I think Bayern could theoretically look at it and say Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman, Jamal Musiala, Thomas Müller and then maybe some Mathys Tel, as well another who can play wing at a good level, and be content. But, if they choose to sell one of Gnabry or Coman, which I think they should, Bayern could be in the hunt for a replacement there. They've already been linked with German international talent Chris Führich. He has been very good for Stuttgart this past season, and would only cost Bayern a fraction of some bigger names. At 26-years old, Führich could still give Bayern a solid run of play, and has shown some versatility to alternate sides or even drop into the midfield as required. He's a steady and solid player, not a superstar by any means, but could serve as a valuable rotational piece if Bayern do move on from Coman or Gnabry.
Another option would be the speedy Nico Williams, a 21-year old Spanish winger playing for Athletic Bilbao. He's going to be in the very expensive price tag range, but with his combination of potential, production thus far, and excitement, he could be well worth the cost. Another younger option here, and a more affordable one, would be Brajan Gruda, a 19-year right-side winger playing for Mainz. He infamously had the jersey swap photo already with Thomas Müller and seems like a rising talent with 27 appearances for Mainz. While Gruda statistically hasn't had much production thus far, at just 19-years old, he's given some very promising performances against the likes of Bayern and Dortmund as well while getting acclimated to life in the Bundesliga.
If Bayern continues to play Tel more as a winger than a true no. 9 striker, which I think is also the correct call, then Bayern are going to need to be in search of a strong replacement for Eric Chuopo-Maxim after this season, a genuine backup to Harry Kane. There are two routes they can go which is to either find a youngster who could theoretically take over for Kane in 2-3 years (as most of the reports indicated he'd probably want to return to the Premier League before the end of his career to chase the all-time EPL goal record), or a veteran looking to milk the last couple of years out of their career and be a part of a championship squad. If Bayern go the youngster route, two names that stick out are Leipzig's Benjamin Šeško, a towering 20-year old Slovenian who has looked really sharp in Leipzig spelling Lois Openda. Sesko would likely cost a pretty penny, but if Bayern are willing to pay it, I think they should make that move. If they want a more budget friendly option than perhaps angling for Hoffenheim's recent DFB call-up, Maximillian Beier as a promising up-and-comer could be in the cards. Beier scored against Bayern in the final match of the season. Not as young, but Wolfsburg's Jonas Wind, a 25-year old Danish talent, could perhaps fit nicely, as he can also operate as a second striker and produced 11 goals in the Bundesliga this past season.
If Bayern want a veteran option, Serhou Guirassy has been a player that Bayern are already linked to. He's also got some interest from Dortmund and Tottenham as of late. While Guirassy is a fun player, and a talented one, as he was second in the Bundesliga in terms of goals scored, I don't think that he should be a significant priority for Bayern, as they need to allocate funds to other positions before coming around to landing a backup striker to Harry Kane. And since we've mentioned significant versatility for a lot of others, both Mathys Tel and Thomas Müller could certainly be able to fill in situationally, though if there's a major injury to Kane that becomes more problematic.
Personally, the move I think is much more likely is finding a veteran striker on a lower level squad who might be interest in chasing some titles with a bigger club. Bayern added Chuopo-Maxim as a 31-year old, albeit from PSG rather than a smaller club, but I do think it's a decent example of a reasonable move Bayern can make to shore up their depth without breaking out too much spending. Two names I think really intrigue in this kind of mold are Hoffenheim's Andrej Kramarić, a 32-year old Croatian forward who scored 15 goals this past season for Die Kraichgauer, including a hat trick against Bayern in the season finale as well. The other one is Tim Kleindienst, a 28-year old German who has played largely in the 2. Bundesliga but has spent a few seasons in the top league at Heidenheim and Freiburg during his career. He had an excellent showing in Heidenheim's upset win over Bayern earlier this season, netting himself a brace, two of his twelve total goals this season. Both are veteran, experienced strikers with some capacity, but might be open to a diminished role behind Harry Kane in order to potentially get some bigger opportunities with Bayern's pedigree.

Final Squad Planning

Now, time to prioritize.

• Top priority for me would be figuring out what Joshua Kimmich is going to do. I'd still love to extend him, and ideally keep him at right-back which he's indicated he's open to. Besides, Kimmich's non-stop motor, stamina, and intensity make him well suited to being a highly versatile piece, so someone who starts at right-back every week, but can easily spell others in the midfield throughout the season. That's the top priority.
• Next one is figuring out who goes. In this exercise I am going to go ahead and move forward with the idea that I would sell the following players:
  • Midfielder Leon Goretzka
  • Winger Serge Gnabry
  • Defender Dayot Upamecano
  • Left-Back Alphonso Davies
• I could certainly be talked into selling some others, like Kingsley Coman, Kim Min-jae, or Noussair Mazaraoui, maybe even Leroy Sane if the contract talks don't prove fruitful. In this scenario, let's just say Kimmich is set to take on the right-back role, and thus we facilitate a departure for Noussair Mazraoui who still is in a stage in his career where he could command a bigger role at plenty of other quality clubs. With Kimmich and Stanisic taking on the roles there, the right back spot remains set.
• Before we even think about what the team needs, I'd see what Bayern can make happen to bring in PSG's Xavi Simons into the lineup, ideally a loan with an option to buy afterwards, though PSG seems reluctant to sell, and thus it's probably only a loan on the table. I'd still be fine with a one-year loan, as it'd set Bayern up to see about integrating him for one season and then either pursue and land Florian Wirtz next summer, or at that point revisit a purchase with PSG.
• After that, Bayern's defense needs better shape. They've had some rough stretches lately, and while the backline has shown some shakiness, I think adding a true no. 6 to command more of the structure and steadiness there is ideal. I would prioritize a pursuit of Everton's Amadou Onana, as his time in Germany suggests he'll be able to integrate into the team quite easily. Palhinha would be my backup option.
• Next up is the left-back role, and I'd be glad to see them make a big signing here, going for Theo Hernandez, whom it already sounds like they've been back-channeling with to facilitate something. He's a world class player who should fit just about any manager. After him, I think my next choices would be Maatsen and then Mittelstadt, though at that point, I would just as soon not sell Mazraoui and let him take over at left-back. But if they can move Davies, get Theo, then I am estatic.
• I'd want another CB option here with Upamecano on the way out. If it's de Zerbi as the manager, Riccardo Calafiori seems like a no brainer for him to add, though Kevin Danso would be a fun choice as well, as both play similar styles.
• For a striker behind Harry Kane, I'd make a push for Hoffenheim's Maximillian Beier. He's a very talented younger player, and Bayern can use him behind Kane and then he has the pace and speed to contribute as an additional versatile forward.
• With Gnabry out, the right wing needs some solidifying. Even though Sane is the starter, it would be nice to have further options there, so we'll go ahead and target Stuttgart's Chris Führich to join Bayern. Again, versatile and can be an excellent piece for Bayern.
• After that, it's youth stacking time, as I'd push to add both Assan Ouédraogo and Brajan Gruda, though probably with the desire to send both out on loan for another season or so. The priority is towards Assan, but either would be a very fun add.

Additions:

Position	Player	Former Club	Valuation*
MID	Amadou Onana	Everton	€50.00m
MID	Xavi Simons	PSG	Loan
LB	Theo Hernández	AC Milan	€60.00m
CB	Riccardo Calafiori	Bologna	€25.00m
ST	Maximillian Beier	Hoffenheim	€24.00m
RW	Chris Führich	Stuttgart	€23.50m
MID	Assan Ouédraogo	Schalke	€15.00m
RW	Brajan Gruda	Mainz	€9.00m

*- number listed is the value projected for the player on Transfermarkt for the sake of consistency.**- my preference here would be to facilitate a loan with an option to buy for Simons.
And of course, that means a number of players need to depart. Here's ultimately who I'd move on from:

Position	Player	Any Where In Mind?	Valuation*
MID	Leon Goretzka	Juventus	€30.00m
RW	Serge Gnabry		€45.00m
CB	Dayot Upamecano		€50.00m
LB	Alphonso Davies	Real Madrid	€60.00m
RB	Noussair Mazraoui		€30.00m

Again, just using the Transfermarkt values for consistency on these. This would lead to pretty much net zero spending if only these values were used. The reality of it probably becomes that Bayern would end up shelling out more than they'd get back, as I know, just off the top of my head, that with Davies contract where it's at, it's likely he wouldn't command as much as the valuation indicates. So overall, it's a spot where if Bayern can sell some of these guys for bigger figures, they can make multiple changes to the squad to revamp it.

Bayern Munich "Depth Chart" 2024-2025 Season

Harry Kane (left), and Joshua Kimmich (right front) are major pieces for Bayern's chances at a turnaround.
The idea of a "depth chart" isn't used in international football as much as it is in other sports, namely American football. However, think it's a useful organizational tool to get a feel for roughly what the squad would look like headed into this next season. The bolded names are the ones I'd most want in an ideal starting XI, and then the rotation and depth players would also see various minutes based on how far into the Champions League, Pokal, and other competitions that Bayern goes through, or injuries require.

Position	Starter	Rotation	Depth
Goalkeeper	Manuel Neuer	Sven Ulreich	Johannes Schenk
Left Back	Theo Hernández	Raphaël Guerreiro	Adam Aznou
Centre Back	Riccardo Calafiori	Eric Dier	Tarik Buchmann
Centre Back	Matthijs de Ligt	Kim Min-Jae	- - -
Right Back	Joshua Kimmich	Josip Stanišić	Sacha Boey
Defensive Midfield	Amadou Onana	Konrad Laimer	Noel Aseko Nkili
Central Midfield	Aleksandar Pavlović	(Joshua Kimmich)	Lovro Zvonarek
Attacking Midfield	Xavi Simons*	Thomas Müller	Arijon Ibrahimović
Left Wing	Jamal Musiala	Kingsley Coman	Yusuf Kabadayı
Striker	Harry Kane	Maximillian Beier	- - -
Right Wing	Leroy Sané	Mathys Tel	Bryan Zaragoza

And this sets up fairly well for the 2025 summer transfer window, as Bayern can aim to bring in Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz, and either shift Musiala over to the left wing, where I personally think he has the highest potential, or find ways to integrate both together more centrally.
Loans

Position	Player	Club
GK	Daniel Peretz	R.S.C. Anderlecht (Belgium)
MID	Paul Wanner	Lower Bundesliga.
LB	Frans Krätzig	Austria Wien
MID	Assan Ouédraogo	Schalke

Could also maybe throw in a loan move for Zaragoza depending on how things shape out there. Feel bad for him. Not much opportunity for the guy lately.
Probably plenty of other good options, and I'm sure there's some parts that'll happen quite differently than projected, but this would be my ideal outcome for Bayern at this stage in the process. It's been a rough process so far, but think there's still lots of potential for Bayern with a revamped and refreshed squad.

During an open public day at Victory Day Park near Moscow, the Russian armed forces displayed a captured American Abrams M1A1 Main Battle Tank (MBT), which the United States donated to the Ukrainian Army as part of the support provided following the invasion by Russian troops in February 2022. Read full Defense News at this link https://armyrecognition.com/news/army-news/army-news-2024/captured-us-abrams-m1a1-tank-of-ukrainian-army-displayed-by-russia-at-victory-day-park-near-moscow
During an open public day at the Victory Day Park near Moscow, the Russian armed forces displayed the Ukrainian army's captured American Abrams M1A1 Main Battle Tank. (Picture source Vitaly Kuzmin)

I've done a lot of DD on FDEV and tracked them for years.
FDEV specialises in creating CMS games like Planet Zoo, Jurrasic World Evolution, Planet Coaster. This is where they are best and what their engine is based on. They use the Cobra game engine which was built in house by FDEV which means they don't pay fee's to Unreal Engine or Unity.
This works out well because it's easy to build more CMS games when the underlying engine is specifically made for this.
Their SP rocketed after COVID and plummeted recently before starting the rise again.
The main points are:

• Management destroyed major shareholder value by 'de-worsifying' revenue streams into unrelated games, see F1 manager, Realms of Ruin (a hilariously bad flop), frontier foundry publishing, etc. They wanted a similar success to Fifa games cash cow and paid a huge licensing fee for the f1 title. While this title is similar to a CMS game it was poorly executed and too niche for most players with a lot of features missing. It also meant they had to rush each year to build the new game.

This meant they had to do huge impairments due to massive losses and terrible ROIC. You can see the cashflow of each game in this IR presentation call: https://www.frontier.co.uk/investors/fy24-interim-financial-results-presentation
And presentation here: https://frontier-drupal.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/production/frontier-corp/s3fs-public/frontier-fy24-interim-results-presentation.pdf
See slide 13 & 14.

• In recent updates management has realised their mistake and done a complete 180 and is back to focusing on their CMS core games only. This is the best thing and why I am bullish.
• The risk recently was that poor performance would continue and they would have to raise equity due to low cash. This is no longer a risk given the better than expected performance update (due to Planet Zoo console release).

Here's my actual and projections based on their upcoming games:
https://preview.redd.it/c2uyxi0xj61d1.png?width=1215&format=png&auto=webp&s=0c770978468119872afcef3aa95245798e707764
You can see they are releasing a new CMS game in 25, 26, 27 FY. The above projections ONLY take into account the announced new games, NOT any DLC or back catalogue sales. My below DCF revenue projections however do take into account all of this.
Imo the market hasn't fully priced in this turn around, partly due to the huge outflows currently in the UK stock market (which looks set to change once rates come down).
I've modelled my DCF based on the assumptions below:

• Jurrasic World 3, Planet Zoo 2 and Planet Coaster 2 will sell well like the originals did.
• Management will continue to focus ONLY on CMS games and stop the bs they did in the past of trying other games and publishing which. If this is the case then their ROIC will go up a lot back to 2019 levels.
• £350m in year 10 assumes 2 CMS games + DLC a year. I'm not 100% sure if 2 CMS games a year is possible due to the potential for cannibalisation of sales. However even with a lower year 10 revenue target they are still worth at least £5 a share.
• PlanetZoo is a massively popular game within this CMS genre and has really good shelf life. See the PlanetZoo subreddit for example.
• Management incentives seem okay, they earned 0 bonus in 2022, 2023 due to the terrible performance which is correct.

https://preview.redd.it/kv6jao4ik61d1.png?width=2192&format=png&auto=webp&s=b4f0b1acfc2198b5148b1858b397a262c125e759
https://preview.redd.it/9u0filsal61d1.png?width=2192&format=png&auto=webp&s=a7fdfc2ed86579ba2bf134799d25d692f8674189
Risks:

• Jurrasic World 4 movie is set to release in 2025. If this is cancelled or delayed it will massively hurt Jurrasic World Evolution 3 sales.
• Jurrasic Survival game is set to come out later this FY, this has a different target market for users HOWEVER it's the same IP which means if it gets delayed and comes out closer to Jurrasic World Evolution 3 CMS game then it can cannibalise sales.
• Poor execution on new games. If the new games are not as rated as highly as the previous CMS games then this massively affects sales (less so for Jurrasic World Evolution 3 due to the IP).
• If management goes back to non-CMS games and other stuff then the ROIC goes back down and so do the margins and the above DCF is redundant.
• Losing talent due to their huge stock prices drops and management fuckups (see their recent glassdoor review). See this comment here where I address it: https://www.reddit.com/ValueInvesting/comments/1cuwluf/comment/l4mb4eh/

I believe the above risks are quite low, my main concern is on execution and how good they deliver on the games.
Disclaimer: I own a lot of FDEV shares.
https://preview.redd.it/8xw3zjrfl61d1.png?width=2192&format=png&auto=webp&s=89d018bbc976fddbc36a57be514372f5fb849048
EDIT:
They actually got a new CEO in 2022 which I should have added to my thesis and this is part of the reason why they are going back to CMS games (which is correct).
Their new CEO is a software developer and was previously cheif creative officer. He seems like the perfect person who understands their core users as he oversaw planet zoo stuff.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonnywatts/?originalSubdomain=uk
This is another sign that management are going to focus on all the correct CMS games.
Here's an excerpt from their trading update:

As explained in the Business Update in November, Frontier's move to diversify its game portfolio, including through third-party publishing and entering new genres, has not delivered the anticipated success. As a result, the Company has refocussed on CMS games which have delivered more predictable and recurring returns through Frontier's expertise and leadership in that genre.

EDIT x2:
F124 is not in my thesis, the reason they are releasing another 1 this year even though the last 2 failed is because they spent a huge amount on the license for f1 so an incremental cost to a new release is not a big deal I think.
See slide 14 on the presentation link above. You can see that it's a immediate downward trend on cash flow until FY22 release and then an upward bump on FY23 release.
So incremental games don't require huge cash flows to produce I think. See my comment here: https://www.reddit.com/F1Managecomments/1cto7d3/comment/l4pjhhn/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
I was expecting F124 to do poor or neutral however there are some positive signs that it will do much better than F23.
Check out the positive comments here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rgcAgP1xZE
It looks like F124 has worse reviews/reactions than F124 Manager so far which is good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHhtgVd4HAY
I'd expect around £6m in sales from FY 24 in the first 6 months, £2m more than FY 23 given the positive improvements year on year and lower price of £30 instead of £55 AAA price.