Arrigo Sacchi's 4-4-2 (Very Fluid)

That's interesting. I'm guessing you would need a very complete player to fulfill that role? By the looks of it Bernardo Silva is quite complete though. What PPMs does he have?

Bernardo Silva has gets into opposition area, stops play and runs with the ball.

Odegaard performed exactly the same role in my Ajax team. Works very well with the movement of a complete forward ahead of them.

I wish more people would consider everything like you have for your systems. I like the 4411, you could offset the two and get even more interesting variations in attack

I wish more people would consider everything like you have for your systems. I like the 4411, you could offset the two and get even more interesting variations in attack

Absolutely. One of my favourite things about the 4-4-1-1 formation is different variations you get in attack.

I'm currently using this with Liverpool on FM11 and it works an absolute treat, even with players that aren't perfectly suited.

Absolutely. One of my favourite things about the 4-4-1-1 formation is different variations you get in attack.

I'm using a counter attacking offset 4-4-1-1 with Aston Villa and getting pretty good results. Currently 8th in the league and managed a 1-0 win vs Man City and away draws vs Man U and Chelsea. I'm loving the AM(A) role. Grealish has 5 goals, 2 assists and 3 PoM in 13 games and is 6th in the league in average rating. He drops deep into midfield during buildup but makes great forward runs into the box while attacking.

I'm currently using this with Liverpool on FM11 and it works an absolute treat, even with players that aren't perfectly suited.

Great - glad to hear it. Tactics like this should always work regardless of any particular game version or patch. We're not trying any exploits of taking advantage of anything particularly fancy within the match engine. We're simply giving talented players a template in which to play their best football.

I'm using a counter attacking offset 4-4-1-1 with Aston Villa and getting pretty good results. Currently 8th in the league and managed a 1-0 win vs Man City and away draws vs Man U and Chelsea. I'm loving the AM(A) role. Grealish has 5 goals, 2 assists and 3 PoM in 13 games and is 6th in the league in average rating. He drops deep into midfield during buildup but makes great forward runs into the box while attacking.

Yea AM(A) is a great role. I think a lot of people get caught up wanting a playmaker and then entering the murky world of Trequartista vs Enganche vs AP(A) vs AP(S) and neglect the simple roles.

I think what I love most about this, and there is a lot to admire, is that whilst you go really in-depth about the tactic and everything that it involves, it is actually very simple.

I think what I love most about this, and there is a lot to admire, is that whilst you go really in-depth about the tactic and everything that it involves, it is actually very simple.

Thank you very much.

Playing football is very simple, but playing simple football is the hardest thing there is. - Johan Cruyff

Thank you very much.

I totally agree with Earnie this is a great tactical post and simple. I am actually using this and some information from another post that Ozil did in the Arsenal Guide to help me develop my tactic. If anyone is a Arsenal fan or just loves playing with Arsenal then I would recommend you go and check out Ozil's guide in the Arsenal Thread on Good Players and Team Guide.

All I can say is keep doing what you do because the game has become a bit manageable now with the information you have given me so far.

Awesome tactical setup here Ö-zil! I've started my carreer with OM few weeks ago after I've read your piece on sisportcentre. In general, I adore Sacchi's idea and I'm trying to implement it within my squad.

First season I've ended up 2nd with same pts as PSG but lesser GD. Also, I've got beaten against ManCity in Europa League final. All in all, it was great first season. Amazing thing is, as few people said, that this tactical setup provides great amount of chances and players pick up the best one judging on situation or their intelligence.

Maybe the only problem is a lot of yellow cards, but it can be decreased by playing less aggressive. Although, I don't mind because I like more aggressive approach.

I want to point out player only 21 yrs old who carried the squad through whole season.

http://imgur.com/IHCYEmO

Awesome tactical setup here Ö-zil! I've started my carreer with OM few weeks ago after I've read your piece on sisportcentre. In general, I adore Sacchi's idea and I'm trying to implement it within my squad.

First season I've ended up 2nd with same pts as PSG but lesser GD. Also, I've got beaten against ManCity in Europa League final. All in all, it was great first season. Amazing thing is, as few people said, that this tactical setup provides great amount of chances and players pick up the best one judging on situation or their intelligence.

Maybe the only problem is a lot of yellow cards, but it can be decreased by playing less aggressive. Although, I don't mind because I like more aggressive approach.

I want to point out player only 21 yrs old who carried the squad through whole season.

http://imgur.com/IHCYEmO

Fantastic. Nice work!

A mid-match injury to my AMC forced me to experiment with using a second striker instead of an AM. I changed the S already in the side from a CF(s) to a P, using the new S as the CF(s). Seemed to work well, and I found that I could use Rashidi's "high block" as part of some aggressive defensive play, but I dialed team shape down to "fluid" and mentality to "counter" (I was holding a 1 goal lead against Liverpool at the time). I liked it enough to try it again in future matches.

Just wondering if you tried a 4-4-2 before settling on a 4-4-1-1.

A mid-match injury to my AMC forced me to experiment with using a second striker instead of an AM. I changed the S already in the side from a CF(s) to a P, using the new S as the CF(s). Seemed to work well, and I found that I could use Rashidi's "high block" as part of some aggressive defensive play, but I dialed team shape down to "fluid" and mentality to "counter" (I was holding a 1 goal lead against Liverpool at the time). I liked it enough to try it again in future matches.

Just wondering if you tried a 4-4-2 before settling on a 4-4-1-1.

Yes a 4-4-2 can certainly work. For me, it's been less of an option because I haven't had the right players. The beauty of a 4-4-1-1 is that you can play an out-and-out playmaker in the 'Number 10' role and having a player transition between attack and midfield is very effective.

I am not familiar with Rashidi's High Block - please could you provide a link? I imagine a high defensive line and high closing down but it'd be interesting to see what else he has to say!

It's Part 5 of his stickied Bust the Net thread. Just click on the link in the first post.

High defensive line and both forwards set on high close down and tackle harder.

I've managed to convert my Reading FC team that finished 19th in the championship to this very fluid shape. Currently we sit 4th in the table. While it is still early in the season, the signs are promising.

I left out the attacking preferences, and just went for the shape and mentality TIs (Much More Closing Down, Much Higher Defensive Line, Tight Marking, Prevent GK Dist. and Offside Trap - these set up a 'High-Block' aka pressing).

I think the key to my success is having a very good central defender who suits the tactic (Michael Hector) and a very good Attacking Midfielder who is perfectly suited to the role and will only grow into it further (Josh Barrett).

It has reaffirmed my enjoyment of the game, and I have adapted your youth development philosophy from the Ajax thread to great success so far.

Thank you for restoring enjoyment and allowing me to find a reason to play FM and neglect every other aspect of life!

Well done. That's fantastic.

If you have a second, I'd be really interested to see a scheenshot of the squad with the attribute template above? There have been a few questions about using this with clubs outside of the traditional 'elite' so I'd be interested to see what level your Reading team is at in terms of key attributes. May be useful for a lot of people.

Edit: for the sake of clarity, I am talking about this template:

Sorry to write this but yr idea of Sacchi's Milan has a big error. That Milan was like a 'swiss clock' with full of schemes and with no space for improvisation or high creativity. Every players had a duty and all worked with schemes trained more and more times in training sessions. You can trust me...i saw that fantastic team many times in San Siro (including that wonderful match Milan - Real Madrid 5-0). Further in defense it was a 4-4-2 team but in attack it becomes a sort of diamond formation. Donadoni was a right midfielder that in attack went also in center between midfield and attack lines; Colombo was a dm that in some times moved to right flank using the space opened by Donadoni for a bad surprise for the defenders. Ancelotti and Rijkard were defend playmaker. At left side played Evani like a real wing. In attack Gullit acted like a forward all over the pitch and Van Basten like an attacker near penalty's area. The team played high on the pitch, with extreme use of offside trap, compact and all the players moved with coordination with a very little space for improvisations. It could appear like an offensive team but instead it was a good balanced shape based on a good acted defense shape.

Wow, that must have been a pretty cool experience to be at the San Siro in those days!

Why don't you have a go at putting your thoughts down on the tactics creator? I'd be interested to see what you come up with as you clearly know the team very well.

9 wins, a draw and just the one defeat so far using this with Cardiff in 1st season.

Transfer funds are always tight but managed to pick up a decent BPD on a free, Flavio Ferreira. He's injury prone so only on a short term contract, and also bought Tom Carroll from Spurs for just £1.5m as they didn't want him any more.

Both are suited to the tactic and have the required attributes to make it work, especially Carroll.

We are 15pts clear at the top of the table in January so promotion is virtually guaranteed.

Will hopefully be given about £30m by the board if/when we go up.

That should be plenty but the right players might not come cheap so will just have to make sure I use it wisely.

Congratulations, pal.

I'd say you'll be scouting around Eastern Europe a lot next season - they seem to have lots of very well-rounded players available at a reasonable budget.

Thanks for the tip

I'm currently looking at a few British players but am struggling to find good fullbacks so might have to go abroad.

Try searching using an attribute filter, rather than positional. For example, I regularly find that a good ball-winning midfielder has the attributes required to play in the combative, supporting fullback role whilst a winger with good work ethic could be trained defensively and play the attacking wing back role.

Yes, already doing that

I'm searching using the attributes as shown above in a few of your posts, tweaked a little bit depending on what exactly I'm after at the time.

I am finding plenty of central players, mainly in midfield, but fewer wingers, fullbacks and strikers.

Will probably look at retraining a player's position like you suggest.

Congratulations, pal.

I'd say you'll be scouting around Eastern Europe a lot next season - they seem to have lots of very well-rounded players available at a reasonable budget.

Don't forget Scandinavia and South America. They also have plenty of cheap talent.

Hi Ozil and earnie

What do you use for opposition instruction cause I m confused with that. Sometimes it work with it sometimes no. Its so frustrating...and in game when i need a goal I switch to attack but I never score. Maybe I missed something. If you can give me some advice how you play in match.

Thanks for reading me.

Congratulations, pal.

I'd say you'll be scouting around Eastern Europe a lot next season - they seem to have lots of very well-rounded players available at a reasonable budget.

Well handled, Sir.

First of all, I'd like to thank you for your time in creating this thread and sharing your ideas with usOzil. I've struggled with FM16 since the start. I've always had an idea of how I wanted my team to play but could never really translate it through the tactics, and as such I've not managed a team or played a save where I've enjoyed it. I read this whole thread last night quite late, and I thought "Hey, wait, this is literally how I want my team to play". I couldn't even wait until the next day to play and I was up until around 4am trying to breeze through my first season with Liverpool. Admittedly, the squad you possess is far greater than the current crop of Liverpool players, and so I know there's going to be a year or two of transition which I'm fine with.

The current cop of players suited to the tactic: Moreno, Clyne, Henderson, Coutinho

I would literally say that over time everyone else is going to be surplus to requirements. Lucas, Sakho, Ibe, Sturridge etc can all do jobs for now but there's far better players out there. However, with a starting budget of £17M it's important that I sell to invest in the squad.

Surplus to requirements from the start were: Jose Enrique, Dejan Lovren, Benteke, Emre Can (mentally weak), Tiago Ilori. This brought in a total of £58m.

Very happy with these dealings. The competition for that CF(S) position was too fierce. Origi, Ings & Sturridge well ahead in the pecking order IMO. So, in terms of investments there's been a few additions to the squad, either to fit in straight away or to "mould" in to the tactic through development.

Gabriel Barbosa, Mammana, Martin Odegaard, Thiago Maia, Jorge, Rajkovic. A combined spend of £53m. Shrewd dealings if you ask me.

*I've decided to opt against the high defensive line, as my CB's have below average pace and because Mammana is young, his anticipation & positioning are fairly low which means I kept on getting done by high balls.

6th March, 2016 and this is my strongest XI. I am currently second in the league, 9 points behind leaders Manchester City. Through to the EURO Cup 2nd Knockout rounds and about to play Southampton in the FA Cup 6th round. I've conceded the least in the league (23) so far with a below par defense, so defensively it's solid but going forward, it's not the best - I put this down to the lack of quality in certain areas.

So, whatever happens from now until the end of the season I'd say it is, and is going to be a successful season. Certain areas I need to improve next season and players I will be targetting:

Goalkeeper: Rulli will be coming in, who will then work closely with Rajkovic.

Central Defender: Romagnoli is my #1 target to partner Mammana.

Wide Midfielder: Ruven Neves is my #2 target, but not for this position. Maia will be moving to the WM(A) (will need to retrain) and Neves will be playing in the DLP(D) position.

Winger: Not too sure who to sign here yet, but Firmino is not an out and out winger.

So, a few more players to get in before I can start working on turning them in to a real, real force. So happy with this save in just a short space of time.

Brilliant - I am glad to hear you're enjoying it.

You've got some outstanding wingbacks there. I'd recommend thinking about using two WB(A)s and letting them provide your width. This would allow you to play your winger differently - of have an extra man in midfield, defence or attack.

As long as you keep the formation balanced, you can use any formation - that's part of the point I've been trying to make.

Don't forget Scandinavia and South America. They also have plenty of cheap talent.

I've found a comparatively large number of Portuguese players with these skills so looks like that's the way I'm going to go.

Brilliant - I am glad to hear you're enjoying it.

You've got some outstanding wingbacks there. I'd recommend thinking about using two WB(A)s and letting them provide your width. This would allow you to play your winger differently - of have an extra man in midfield, defence or attack.

As long as you keep the formation balanced, you can use any formation - that's part of the point I've been trying to make.

I wouldn't say Clyne is as adventurous at going forward as Moreno & Jorge, and Flanagan certainly isn't so I don't think that's a realistic opportunity at the minute. Unless I retrain Jorge to play on the right, however he's primarily left footed so I'm not sure if this would be an issue in FM?

EDIT: Also, I wondered if you put much emphasis on set pieces? Attacking & defending, or do you leave them default?

I wouldn't say Clyne is as adventurous at going forward as Moreno & Jorge, and Flanagan certainly isn't so I don't think that's a realistic opportunity at the minute. Unless I retrain Jorge to play on the right, however he's primarily left footed so I'm not sure if this would be an issue in FM?

EDIT: Also, I wondered if you put much emphasis on set pieces? Attacking & defending, or do you leave them default?

Oh really? I'd have expected Clyne to be good going forward.

Yea Jorge is definitely left side. Being wrong footed would mess up your width and the inverted fullback doesn't really work.

Oh really? I'd have expected Clyne to be good going forward.

Yea Jorge is definitely left side. Being wrong footed would mess up your width and the inverted fullback doesn't really work.

I think I was looking at it from a cautious POV, but no, you are right, Clyne could definitely do a job there. I'll trial Clyne as WB(A) in home games (Ibe's pace is useful away from home) and convert the W(A) to a WM(A) with the PI's of an IF(A).

First of all, I'd like to thank you for your time in creating this thread and sharing your ideas with usOzil. I've struggled with FM16 since the start. I've always had an idea of how I wanted my team to play but could never really translate it through the tactics, and as such I've not managed a team or played a save where I've enjoyed it. I read this whole thread last night quite late, and I thought "Hey, wait, this is literally how I want my team to play". I couldn't even wait until the next day to play and I was up until around 4am trying to breeze through my first season with Liverpool. Admittedly, the squad you possess is far greater than the current crop of Liverpool players, and so I know there's going to be a year or two of transition which I'm fine with.

The current cop of players suited to the tactic: Moreno, Clyne, Henderson, Coutinho

I would literally say that over time everyone else is going to be surplus to requirements. Lucas, Sakho, Ibe, Sturridge etc can all do jobs for now but there's far better players out there. However, with a starting budget of £17M it's important that I sell to invest in the squad.

Surplus to requirements from the start were: Jose Enrique, Dejan Lovren, Benteke, Emre Can (mentally weak), Tiago Ilori. This brought in a total of £58m.

Very happy with these dealings. The competition for that CF(S) position was too fierce. Origi, Ings & Sturridge well ahead in the pecking order IMO. So, in terms of investments there's been a few additions to the squad, either to fit in straight away or to "mould" in to the tactic through development.

Gabriel Barbosa, Mammana, Martin Odegaard, Thiago Maia, Jorge, Rajkovic. A combined spend of £53m. Shrewd dealings if you ask me.

*I've decided to opt against the high defensive line, as my CB's have below average pace and because Mammana is young, his anticipation & positioning are fairly low which means I kept on getting done by high balls.

6th March, 2016 and this is my strongest XI. I am currently second in the league, 9 points behind leaders Manchester City. Through to the EURO Cup 2nd Knockout rounds and about to play Southampton in the FA Cup 6th round. I've conceded the least in the league (23) so far with a below par defense, so defensively it's solid but going forward, it's not the best - I put this down to the lack of quality in certain areas.

So, whatever happens from now until the end of the season I'd say it is, and is going to be a successful season. Certain areas I need to improve next season and players I will be targetting:

Goalkeeper: Rulli will be coming in, who will then work closely with Rajkovic.

Central Defender: Romagnoli is my #1 target to partner Mammana.

Wide Midfielder: Ruven Neves is my #2 target, but not for this position. Maia will be moving to the WM(A) (will need to retrain) and Neves will be playing in the DLP(D) position.

Winger: Not too sure who to sign here yet, but Firmino is not an out and out winger.

So, a few more players to get in before I can start working on turning them in to a real, real force. So happy with this save in just a short space of time.

I don't think you need Neves to be honest. Maia is equally good IMO/experience. For the winger position, have you used Ibe and how has he done? Other options are Guedes and Zivkovic obviously. Dele Alli for CM perhaps. For ML try Grealish.

I don't think you need Neves to be honest. Maia is equally good IMO/experience. For the winger position, have you used Ibe and how has he done? Other options are Guedes and Zivkovic obviously. Dele Alli for CM perhaps. For ML try Grealish.

I was hoping to have Neves in the DLP position, and Maia in the CM position. I think with the right training for Maia in particular this could work. Ibe has been decent, lacks the necessary mental / physical attributes ATM though. Definitely has a future in this position. I also have Grujic to come in, who could work well in the ML position.

Great thread this is very attractive and you give me a very big desire to play like this, sorry i'm not speak english very well.

I'm testing your tactic with Granada end Deportivo but i can't win, i understand it's impossible to win everytime but in this game for me it's impossible to have one cleen sheet. My defensors are idiots they have a simple solution at 1-2 meters and they choose to put the ball at de winger or Amc at 10 meters.

The left winger stay everytime on the line. He never propose solution on the midfield and he never work for defense he stay up to the midfield line and don't press anyone

And to finish my CF don't push higher to the offside line like u

Thank you for reading my post and sorry for my english

O-zil to the Arsenal!,

I am loving your Sacchi interpretation and having a great time implementing the tactic, plus recruiting/training the right players to get the best out of the system with Grimsby Town in Conference National. In fact, depending on the opposition formation (I like to tinker to get a defensive shape that gives me 1 spare man at the back, an even match up in midfield - including a point either forwards/backwards to mould my players into the shape of the opposition triangle in a midfield 3, if they use one - while leaving the opposition with their own spare man in their defence), I use a combination of the 4-3-3 (Ajax), 3-4-3 (Ajax) or this recent 4-4-2 (Milan) that you've been generous enough to share with us.

Lately, I've been focusing a lot on player development, PPMs and most recently on optimising the preferred foot of my players, depending on the direction I would like them to turn/direct their passes during our passages of play on the field. I feel as though my tinkering/trial & error has helped and I've now got combinations that I am rather happy with for almost all positions within the various tactical frameworks.

The one position I've felt a bit unsure about was the Complete Forward (Support) in the 4-4-2 Sacchi version. Having experimented with both a left-footed and right-footed player (both good all round players for the level I am at, with similar sorts of attributes), I can see advantages to both (and the odd disadvantage in certain phases of play) and was wondering if you had your own preference for either a left-footed or right-footed player in this particular role? I noticed you had Berardi (left-footed) in your Milan save but wasn't sure if this was by design due to his preferred foot or due to his class in other areas.

When the CF(S) drops to the right of the lop-sided diamond that develops on the left, I can see the benefit of him being left-footed when he faces towards his own midfield with his back to goal as he can turn and play a through ball to his left to those players and particularly the on-rushing left wingback. It tends to create an overload on the left whereby a simple pass back to the DLP can create a switch in play to the right with a through ball out to the right winger who is often sitting in a lot of free space. I like these sorts of overloads and fast switches of play. This is one example of where I like the CF(S) having a strong left foot. The only issue I find with this is that if he makes his run into the box in the same STCR-type channel, using his left foot to connect with left wing crosses can often see those shots skewed wide of the right-hand upright.

Since I am testing with lower league players (albeit very good and league-leading for their level), I was wondering if perhaps you had noticed any trends yourself with better players that I am perhaps not seeing with the squad I have available? Do you see any benefits at all, arising from using a player in this Complete Forward (Support) role that seemingly works better when that individual has a strong preference for one foot or the other? This could help me significantly with future squad building as I set about continuing my team's ongoing development (I intend to take this Grimsby team all the way to the CL Final so I am thinking very long-term!).

Thanks, and keep up the marvelous work! Your FM interpretations of real life tactics really are second to none! You clearly have an excellent brain for translating what you see on TV/in the stadium into the match engine. It's a delight to see it play out and to experiment with your principles by applying them to other various shapes (I've been working on 4-2-4 Wide as I've been allocated this in the "community formation challenge" and I personally love aggressive, attacking wingers). I'm enjoying it immensely so thank you once again!

A solid summer of business for me then, but first of all let me tell you how last season (and my first) went.

We finished 2nd, a huge over-achievement in my opinion. We missed out by 6 points, which unfortunately equated to just 3 draws. We conceded 29, the fewest in the league but then only scored 58. 7 teams scored more, including Swansea, Watford & Everton, so there was clearly work to be done here.

We were knocked out of the EURO Cup Qtr Final by Fenerbahce, losing 3-2 on aggregate. Skrtel was at fault, mishitting a backpass which allowed Nani in to score. I say Skrtel was at fault, but really we should have wrapped up the game at home instead of drawing 1-1.

We actually won the FA Cup, winning 2-0 to Derby at Wembley. Our run was fairly easy though, we overcame Chelsea, Swansea, City, Southampton and then Ipswich.

So all in all, not a bad season by any means, but as stated in the previous post we needed to make huge changes this season.

Transfer In: Rulli, Matip, Romagnoli, Manea, Guedes, Vallejo & Cook - all for a combined £114m.

Transfers Out: Sturridge, Lallana, Ings, Mignolet, Augustinsson, Wisdom, Balotelli, Sakho, Allen - all for a combined £128.

So, going in to any game with my strongest squad this season looks like this:

I can't imagine I'll be making any more immediate signings for the next 2-3 years, with my main focus now being on developing this team. I'm excited to see how good they can actually get. I'll keep you updated. Cheers once again, Ozil.

O-zil to the Arsenal!,

I am loving your Sacchi interpretation and having a great time implementing the tactic, plus recruiting/training the right players to get the best out of the system with Grimsby Town in Conference National. In fact, depending on the opposition formation (I like to tinker to get a defensive shape that gives me 1 spare man at the back, an even match up in midfield - including a point either forwards/backwards to mould my players into the shape of the opposition triangle in a midfield 3, if they use one - while leaving the opposition with their own spare man in their defence), I use a combination of the 4-3-3 (Ajax), 3-4-3 (Ajax) or this recent 4-4-2 (Milan) that you've been generous enough to share with us.

Lately, I've been focusing a lot on player development, PPMs and most recently on optimising the preferred foot of my players, depending on the direction I would like them to turn/direct their passes during our passages of play on the field. I feel as though my tinkering/trial & error has helped and I've now got combinations that I am rather happy with for almost all positions within the various tactical frameworks.

The one position I've felt a bit unsure about was the Complete Forward (Support) in the 4-4-2 Sacchi version. Having experimented with both a left-footed and right-footed player (both good all round players for the level I am at, with similar sorts of attributes), I can see advantages to both (and the odd disadvantage in certain phases of play) and was wondering if you had your own preference for either a left-footed or right-footed player in this particular role? I noticed you had Berardi (left-footed) in your Milan save but wasn't sure if this was by design due to his preferred foot or due to his class in other areas.

When the CF(S) drops to the right of the lop-sided diamond that develops on the left, I can see the benefit of him being left-footed when he faces towards his own midfield with his back to goal as he can turn and play a through ball to his left to those players and particularly the on-rushing left wingback. It tends to create an overload on the left whereby a simple pass back to the DLP can create a switch in play to the right with a through ball out to the right winger who is often sitting in a lot of free space. I like these sorts of overloads and fast switches of play. This is one example of where I like the CF(S) having a strong left foot. The only issue I find with this is that if he makes his run into the box in the same STCR-type channel, using his left foot to connect with left wing crosses can often see those shots skewed wide of the right-hand upright.

Since I am testing with lower league players (albeit very good and league-leading for their level), I was wondering if perhaps you had noticed any trends yourself with better players that I am perhaps not seeing with the squad I have available? Do you see any benefits at all, arising from using a player in this Complete Forward (Support) role that seemingly works better when that individual has a strong preference for one foot or the other? This could help me significantly with future squad building as I set about continuing my team's ongoing development (I intend to take this Grimsby team all the way to the CL Final so I am thinking very long-term!).

Thanks, and keep up the marvelous work! Your FM interpretations of real life tactics really are second to none! You clearly have an excellent brain for translating what you see on TV/in the stadium into the match engine. It's a delight to see it play out and to experiment with your principles by applying them to other various shapes (I've been working on 4-2-4 Wide as I've been allocated this in the "community formation challenge" and I personally love aggressive, attacking wingers). I'm enjoying it immensely so thank you once again!

Thank you. You're very welcome.

I would have a fairly strong preference towards a two-footed player and no preference between a right or left footed player. That said, I would not accept being two footed covering a lack of intelligence, movement, technical ability or work ethic.

At least with a 4-2-4 the decision has already been made for you about pressing!

A solid summer of business for me then, but first of all let me tell you how last season (and my first) went.

We finished 2nd, a huge over-achievement in my opinion. We missed out by 6 points, which unfortunately equated to just 3 draws. We conceded 29, the fewest in the league but then only scored 58. 7 teams scored more, including Swansea, Watford & Everton, so there was clearly work to be done here.

We were knocked out of the EURO Cup Qtr Final by Fenerbahce, losing 3-2 on aggregate. Skrtel was at fault, mishitting a backpass which allowed Nani in to score. I say Skrtel was at fault, but really we should have wrapped up the game at home instead of drawing 1-1.

We actually won the FA Cup, winning 2-0 to Derby at Wembley. Our run was fairly easy though, we overcame Chelsea, Swansea, City, Southampton and then Ipswich.

So all in all, not a bad season by any means, but as stated in the previous post we needed to make huge changes this season.

Transfer In: Rulli, Matip, Romagnoli, Manea, Guedes, Vallejo & Cook - all for a combined £114m.

Transfers Out: Sturridge, Lallana, Ings, Mignolet, Augustinsson, Wisdom, Balotelli, Sakho, Allen - all for a combined £128.

So, going in to any game with my strongest squad this season looks like this:

I can't imagine I'll be making any more immediate signings for the next 2-3 years, with my main focus now being on developing this team. I'm excited to see how good they can actually get. I'll keep you updated. Cheers once again, Ozil.

Fantastic. I'm actually interested to see what Klopp does in the transfer window this year as I suspect, if he does well, Liverpool's squad will be very good for this kind of system on next season's FM.

Ozil I am going to try and replicate this with Arsenal. I have another Arsenal save going which I am trying to recreate the Invincibles. The save is going well but it is difficult to find the right players to make it all fit together. I am a fan of high pressing football so this could be a nice challenge for me. Also I have signed Granit Xhaka to play as my DLP Defend and he will paired with Ramsey when I playing lesser teams or at home. When I am playing the big teams away or at home then Coquelin comes in the midfield. I am trying to sign Laporta and Jorge also. I think with these signings I should be able to play the Sacchi system with Arsenal. What do you think.

Also do you have any advice on team and individual training that would help with this system. I see you gave a example in the Invincible thread on what training you use for that system. I was just wondering if you had any advice for the Sacchi system.

Ozil I am going to try and replicate this with Arsenal. I have another Arsenal save going which I am trying to recreate the Invincibles. The save is going well but it is difficult to find the right players to make it all fit together. I am a fan of high pressing football so this could be a nice challenge for me. Also I have signed Granit Xhaka to play as my DLP Defend and he will paired with Ramsey when I playing lesser teams or at home. When I am playing the big teams away or at home then Coquelin comes in the midfield. I am trying to sign Laporta and Jorge also. I think with these signings I should be able to play the Sacchi system with Arsenal. What do you think.

Also do you have any advice on team and individual training that would help with this system. I see you gave a example in the Invincible thread on what training you use for that system. I was just wondering if you had any advice for the Sacchi system.

Word of advice: Do not let your team morale drop.

In order to make this work, I use low / medium team training and 2 days rest (pre- & post-match) combined with individual routines and team focus on teamwork. Most of the time my first team condition is ~90-95%. Higher in weeks with one game and at the lower after say 2 games per week for 2-3 weeks.

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This was something you replied to ages ago, and i meant to come back and ask about it, but never got round to it hope you dont mind a delayed question!

If you use the "rest day before" and "rest day after" training, and given that your a club clearly going all the way in Europe, do you not find that your players will basically never train? Given that you dont train on the day of a match, a typical week would be:

Sat - Game / No training

Sun - Day after / No training

Mon - Training

Tues - Day before / no training

Wed - Game / No training

Thurs - Day after / No training

Fri - Day before / No training

So in a week with a midweek fixture, of which there will be quite a lot i assume, your players on train for 1 day? Does that not have any impact for you on development, or are they so developed as players that it matters little, plus your tactic is totally familiar etc?

This was something you replied to ages ago, and i meant to come back and ask about it, but never got round to it hope you dont mind a delayed question!

If you use the "rest day before" and "rest day after" training, and given that your a club clearly going all the way in Europe, do you not find that your players will basically never train? Given that you dont train on the day of a match, a typical week would be:

Sat - Game / No training

Sun - Day after / No training

Mon - Training

Tues - Day before / no training

Wed - Game / No training

Thurs - Day after / No training

Fri - Day before / No training

So in a week with a midweek fixture, of which there will be quite a lot i assume, your players on train for 1 day? Does that not have any impact for you on development, or are they so developed as players that it matters little, plus your tactic is totally familiar etc?

I'll be honest with you - I'm no expert on training. These questions are probably far better aimed at someone like Cleon.

You're correct about my training. Very little training when there is two games per week, which I am aware of. It's the only way I can see to have players play two games per week and still have condition of 90-95%. I'll play the same XI when fit in the league and Champions League, then use youngsters in the cups. Key players will play about 50 games per season plus internationals.

My training prioritizes player condition, minimizing injuries and squad cohesion over improving attributes. Attributes improve via individual training and game time.

At Ajax, I only used one rest day because the league didn't require a full first XI so I could use youngsters. At Ajax I used a squad of approximately 22 and had a first team and a development team - full of either tutors or players who had come through the development system and were competing for the first team.

At Milan & Arsenal - despite minimal training, player development didn't suffer. In the Arsenal thread, look at the attribute development for Jorge, Martial etc. For me, game time is significantly more important than training. Individual training is primarily shaping the attributes.

One thing I don't know is whether rest days apply to players outside of the matchday squad. If so, they've really got their feet up - having a rest before and after watching a game from the stands, and being paid outrageous sums to do so - when you say it like that, it's outrageous they moan so much!!

I know you reiterated the importance of having players who fit within the "Complete Footballer" attributes in this thread, but I didn't quite realise the impact it has on the tactic if this isn't the case, especially positioning, which with the high D-line & pressing is so, so important.

Yes. It's highly inadvisable to play without the right players.

You've giving high creative freedom across the team so if your players aren't intelligent or good on the ball they'll do stupid things. Also you're pressing hard so if they're not fit or willing then it will leave gaps.

In defence, a lack of positioning or pace will be a nightmare.

Yes. It's highly inadvisable to play without the right players.

You've giving high creative freedom across the team so if your players aren't intelligent or good on the ball they'll do stupid things. Also you're pressing hard so if they're not fit or willing then it will leave gaps.

In defence, a lack of positioning or pace will be a nightmare.

Ozil I think the Sacchi tactic would be better a choice for my Arsenal side. The Invincibles tactic is great but it requires specific players to make it work. I do not think there is a Henry or Pires type player in FM 16. Cazorla comes close to Pires and Martial only really has Henry's pace. Trying to find players to replicate the Invincibles is very hard. I am thinking of buying Granit Xhaka to play in DLP D position. Either Coquelin or Ramsey will be his midfield partner depending on the opposition. At home against weak opposition I will go with Ramsey and against tough opposition at home or away Coquelin will play.

I like playing with a DLP D in Central Midfield because if he has the right attributes and PPM they can control the game from deep. Think Gundogan at Dortmund to me he is the ideal player for the DLP D position in the Sacchi system.

I think what I need at Arsenal is a good Defender and DLP and this system can be quite dangerous. I have some money to spend in my first season so I will look at who I can bring in.

Do you have any advice on other areas that need updating to make this system work for Arsenal.

If anyone is looking for a quick, fun game using these principles, the current England squad is actually a great fit thanks to the styles of Klopp and Pochettino. It works like a charm.

[video=youtube;RJqimlFcJsM]

Please click 'play' as you read

EURO 2016 CHAMPIONSHIP

The Squad

Tactics

I used a couple of different formations, all with the same playing style. The difference was primarily width, bodies in midfield or defensive cover.

Rooney really struggled to get in, but if he was going to play..

Mistake in the screenshot - Rooney was an AM(A)

Highlight of the Championship

My favourite thing about this has been playing with an out-and-out strike partnership for the first time in YEARS and it was fantastic. I forgot how much fun it was!

The Kane / Vardy partnership is perfect. You've got pace, power, arial threat and huge work rate. Kane is a 9.5 - half way between a classic striker and a 10. Vardy is an out and out scorer. They can score any type of goal and the rest of the team is set up to provide a diverse range of assists.

Jamie Vardy is having a party!

If anyone is looking for a quick, fun game using these principles, the current England squad is actually a great fit thanks to the styles of Klopp and Pochettino. It works like a charm.

[video=youtube;RJqimlFcJsM]

Please click 'play' as you read

EURO 2016 CHAMPIONSHIP

The Squad

Tactics

I used a couple of different formations, all with the same playing style. The difference was primarily width, bodies in midfield or defensive cover.

Rooney really struggled to get in, but if he was going to play..

Mistake in the screenshot - Rooney was an AM(A)

Highlight of the Championship

My favourite thing about this has been playing with an out-and-out strike partnership for the first time in YEARS and it was fantastic. I forgot how much fun it was!

The Kane / Vardy partnership is perfect. You've got pace, power, arial threat and huge work rate. Kane is a 9.5 - half way between a classic striker and a 10. Vardy is an out and out scorer. They can score any type of goal and the rest of the team is set up to provide a diverse range of assists.

Jamie Vardy is having a party!

Ozil you are using Wilshire has a RPM coukd i ask why you chose that role for him. I always thought you do not like your CM to roam from position.

Just experimenting in this case. Wilshere is my most complete player and I wanted him in a playmaker role - attracting the ball - and moving all over the pitch. Wouldn't do it without Dier covering behind him.

Worked well.

Lallana as a W(A) and Sterling as a WM(A) too. Interesting.