Juan Román Riquelme

Signed him for my Norwich team in 2010 for 7.5million. What's the best way of getting the most out of him because so far he's been relatively average.

Screenshot, backgroundinformation about him please.

Isn't he about 32 at the start? Which would make him about 34 where you are?

I think we've found the problem.

He is 30 at the start, and really good. Give him a decent amount of creative freedom and a free role. Mixed -> direct passing, mixed long shots and put him on all freekicks and corners and pens

put him on all freekicks and corners and pens

What he said

There's not many players in FM09 with superb technical skills like Riquelme so you need to utilise him to his strengths. He's fairly lazy and doesn't help teammates out so it's best to play him in a packed midfield with teammates who can cover his ass if needed. He's really only effective in an AMC role.

Get him on inswinging corners aimed at the 6yard box with your best CB challenging GK and another CB at far post and you should see some benefits. Also stick him on inswinging free-kicks, he should whack a few in

Signed him for my Norwich team in 2010 for 7.5million. What's the best way of getting the most out of him because so far he's been relatively average.

He will not be as good phsically as he used to be but you can expect him to still be great technically. Aswell make sure you let him take corners, free kicks and penalties. He scores most of his goals from them!

Maybe try him as a playmaker as well...

He can be a wonderful play maker.

He will probably play better if you put "hold up ball", play maker and forward runs to rare or mixed. Also putting him as a play maker or free role.

Don't make him close down people and allow a fair degree of space. In the match engine, with these sort of stats, he will keep possesion for you and look for options. Works a treat.

Also DO NOT put all the midfield/attacking players to forward run often. Putting his team mates to mixed forward runs allows him to have more passing options without the need for him to break a sweat.

What he said

Get him on inswinging corners aimed at the 6yard box with your best CB challenging GK

Can't believe no one has put up a screenshot of Juan Román Riquelme

Anyway here's one;

Not mine (its lawds, I'm sure he won't mind though)

You will not find a better technical player on the game imo.

His mental stats are very good as well.

His mental stats are very good as well.

Indeed.

Also, imo, physical stats aren't that important for the way he plays. He doesn't run through players, he walks through them like Zidane used too.

the difference between him and zidane is zidane played well regardless of what team he played against and how his own team was set up whereas for riquelme to perform you have to design your team FULLY around him and try and control the tempo so he can utilise the ball rather than a situation where zidane would take the game by himself and dictate it alone. good ability, but not worth the hassle of changing everything just to get him to shine. far more worthwhile to get slightly less gifted players but with a far higher work rate and team work offering versatility.

I do agree. If Riquelme got his head right when he younger he would have been the best in the world, but he didn't.

Sorry, really should have given more info.

During the pre-season games and first few games of the season he was relatively average so I eventually told him to just play a free role with maximum creative freedom as part of a 4-5-1 defensive formation and he's perked up thankfully. Hopefully he can help me haul myself off the bottom of the league.

I signed him because all my scouts were falling over themselves to recommend him and as people have mentioned, despite his age his stats are crazy good. The stats posted by HoPey is what he was getting before I bought him and would quite like him to recreate them.

Should I perhaps sign another player to act as a foil for him or any other suggestions

Riquelme is a luxury player, but he's always excellent when he's roaming with high creative freedom. I have no doubt he can do a job for you still.

What role have you given him? A MCa/AMC role? Or a deep lying DM playmaker role?

AMC role, I thought it best to overload the opposite team with midfielders so I moved from a 4-4-2 to a 4-5-1 and then noticed that people on this thread had suggested the same thing so I'm quite happy with that.

I would give him high creativity obviously, forward runs mixed, run with ball rarely, through balls often, long shots often/mixed, cross ball I would set to mixed. I would set as playmaker and see if that works and give him very low closing down so he doesnt have to do too much work.

I play him DMC with high CF FWR often LS often TB often and let him do his thing really, he is having an amazing season for me got nearly 40 gls from DMC

Someone i know said the first rule of FM is dont sign Riqueleme not matter the technical stats his physical are just know good, but as i see it he is fantastic and is a really good technically player, signed on my Man Utd game where he's been quite good

hes fantastic, play him as an attacking mid with a lone striker in front, give high high creative freedom, attempt long shots often and get him on freekicks

he single handedly took my man city team to the title in first season

bought him for a season at everton and had 37 assists in 25 games... set up most of yobo's 29 goals lol

At what age does he stop being effective?

At what age does he stop being effective?

Depends on the level he's playing in tbh

For premier league, I'd expect around 35-36. Will get slower though.

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=120257

Take a look in that thread to see how to get Riquelme to perform well.

He is practically the main reason I won the first season PRM , FA Cup and EURO cap on my Spur.

Has anyone tried to train him to play left midfield? How long does it take?

hed be wasted there and burn out as stamina is lowish

He can be a wonderful play maker.

He will probably play better if you put "hold up ball", play maker and forward runs to rare or mixed. Also putting him as a play maker or free role.

Don't make him close down people and allow a fair degree of space. In the match engine, with these sort of stats, he will keep possesion for you and look for options. Works a treat.

Also DO NOT put all the midfield/attacking players to forward run often. Putting his team mates to mixed forward runs allows him to have more passing options without the need for him to break a sweat.

Im not sure about putting him on hold up ball, especially when he dwells on it.

Gutted, Rikki is nearly 35 in my game and he is starting to get injured all the time and him physical stats are deteriorating! He won World Footballer of the year the previous 2 seasons!

I had a 4-4-2 set up with one MC given attacking and one defensive instructions. Played Riquelme as the attacking player but on the tactics screen dragged him to the DMC position so he was basically playing like a deep-lying playmaker with an enforcer (in my case Veloso) in front of him. Bought him the time and space that with his physical stats he would sometimes be struggling for when played as an AMC.

It was quite a successful experiment. He made a surprisingly good job of mopping up loose balls and setting the attack going again. Got a decent rating but didn't contribute that many goals or assists BUT he was involved in just about every attack. Just setting the players up to make the crosses or the final ball.

Try this if you have a tough central midfield player to position in front of him.

Set as playmaker with free role and high creativity.

Just started playing him again, he is actually 34 and still setting up goals. Pity about the pen he missed tho

I played him as a MC, with a DMC behind him to do the dirty work. Also 2 wingers, an AMC and striker in front of him, so he can get those brilliant passes to somebody. Passing set to mixed, FWR mixed, RWB mixed or high, long shots low (he kept shooting, but not scoring), and set as playmaker and targetman, to get those balls to him.

I wanted him to stay low, with a lot of players in front of him and a lot of space in front.

He scored 0.75 goals per game, 0.5 assists.

amazing player, i am managing boca and he is god 25 games, 32 goals and 11 assists..!

What a player! End of First season where I played him as MC(a) in my own 442 alongside Battaglia in MC(d).

43 Goals, 32 Assists and an average rating of 7.7 over 53 games

I dont think I have ever had anyone play so well in all the years I have been playing this

ATM im boca juniors and he was on fire he scored 25 goals and set up bout 20 goals aswell and i play him at AMC very good player.

Thinking about signing him for my Napoli team at the end of season 1 , How much would he set me back ?

i bet he has low adapability which means if you are struggling it mgiht take him 3 seasons to fit in.

if not then i suggest a 4-5-1 or 4-2-3-1 with him as AMC mid mentality forward runs mixed 14 creativity with through balls high

forza-about 12mil

One of my all time favourite FM players. 61 goals and 70 assists in 3 seasons! I played him as a MC(a) at the begining but, as he got older, I played him at AMC.(his stamina is not so good)

he has always been one of those players that i have always wanted to manage, but i have always gone for a younger option( hamsik, veloso or moutinho etc), but going on what people have said in this thread, for most teams, it seems that if you sign riquelme, base your tactic around him, he will score pretty much a goal a game and bring awesome success?

I must say, i am thinking about starting a game just to try him:) what team in the EPL do you think he would best suit in season 1? (that he would go to)

Why not be Boca instead george777?