Manager: Abdi (Somalia)
Twitter name: @abdinw1
Since: 2010
Last season: 8th
Trophy cabinet: Canesten Combi Cup winner 2012/13
Sympathies: Arsenal
Darts music: The Trumpet Hornpipe
Outlook (on 24 September 2013): Spartak Mogadishu stunned the whole league in May when they lifted their first piece of the silverware, the Canesten Combi Cup. Not writing anything down and drinking heavily, the manager traditionally approached auctions with the gay abandon of an Al-Shabab shopping spree, and his reputation of firebrand was galvanised when he became the first manager to resign in the middle of an auction at the Emmanuel Olisadebe 2012 Euros. Attending last month’s all-dayer for the first time outside of Ramadan appeared to temper the Somali, and he even hooked some worthwhile players.
At the unveiling of the new squad at the club’s Spyglass Hill training facility, the manager admitted he felt slightly hornswoggled at the purchase of Glenn Murray, who’s been on crutches since May and will continue to be for some time. In Robert van Wolfswinkel, Marco van Ginkel and Johnny Heitinga, the manager has three players to feature in the national side for Holland, a country known throughout history for its maritime tradition. Hernandez, Lallana, Kolarov and Jaaskelainen all started the season in strong form.
Despite this Spartak are not managing to gel and slipping down the table with each passing week. In the Kenna there’s a very fine line between success or failure; between a white, sandy Caribbean island, a crate of rum and Keira Knightly, or five minutes in the upstairs room of a tavern with a toothless crone.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3nM2Ul4rLU&w=420&h=315]
(B) denotes forfeit player awarded under the Titus Bramble ruling.
| Jaaskelainen, J | WHM | £12m |
| Chiriches, V | TOT | £2.5m |
| Kolarov, A | MCY | £10m |
| Gabbidon, D | CRY | £3.5m |
| Olsson, J | WBA | £1m |
| Lallana, A | SOT | £12m |
| Cleverley, T | MUN | £7m |
| Hernandez, P | SWA | £15m |
| Barkley, R | EVE | £8.5m |
| van Wolfswinkel, R | NOR | £13m |
| Jones, K | CAR | £0.5m |
| £85m |
First transfer window – 5 October 2013
Starting budget: £12.5m, remaining budget: £1.5m, net loss £11m
| Out | In | ||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | Sold | Pos | Player | Team | Paid |
| DEF | Bramble, T | FAG | Free | DEF | Taylor, A | CAR | £0.5m |
| DEF | Heitinga, J | EVE | Free | DEF | Olsson, J | WBA | £1.0m |
| MID | Van Ginkel, M | CHE | Free | MID | Barkley, R | EVE | £8.5m |
| STR | Murray, G | CRY | Free | STR | Gayle, D | CHE | £0.5m |
| STR | Kone, A (released on a free) | EVE | £0.5m |
Second transfer window – 7 February 2014
| Out | In | ||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | Sold | Pos | Player | Team | Paid |
| DEF | Taylor, A | CAR | Free | DEF | Chiriches, V | TOT | £2.5m |
| DEF | Shotton, R | STO | Free | DEF | Gabbidon, D | CRY | £3.5m |
| STR | Gayle, D | CRY | £0.5m | STR | Jones, K | CAR | £0.5m |
