[FM 21] Arsenal - Still Waiting For Arteta's Tiki Taka!

[Clifton]

Hi

I'm doing well up to early December, only dropping two points away at Aston Villa.   4 points clear at the top, but the fixture list has been kind with all my matches against the other members of the so-called 'Big Six' at home.

I created some room in my bloated squad by selling Cedric, Socrates, Ozil and Mustafi but didn't bring anyone in in the summer transfer window.   The only area where I have concerns about quality cover (I intend to try and bring on the Arsenal youngsters) is in midfield.   

I try and keep injuries low by regular rotation, playing with an 'A' team in the league and a 'B" team in the cups.   An easy Europa League draw (Slovan Liberec, Rangers, RedStar Belgrade) helped with this.  The only area I am struggling with is midfield where I only have five real options for my three midfield slots.   To cut a long story short, I decided in the summer to bid for Lucas Leiva as a short term solution whilst waiting for Guendouzi and Torreira to return next season.   He was transfer listed for £3.8m and I did a deal to bring him in on a two year contract on £73k per week.   Then just before transfer deadline day I got cold feet (caused by the real life experience of bringing in elderly Brazilians on monstrous wages) and cancelled the deal.

I'm now thinking of reviving the deal (he has been available on loan, which would be even better) but wondered whether anyone had any experience of him in your teams?   His technicals are good, his mental exceptional, and his physicals dodgy -he is 33.   I am hoping excellent anticipation, positioning etc will compensate for lack of speed.   I would use him in the DM position as a Defensive Midfielder on Support in a 4-1-2-2-1 (or 4-3-3 as some have it).

 

[WillyBroadband]

27 minutes ago, Clifton said:

but wondered whether anyone had any experience of him in your teams?

I signed him on a similar deal on FM20 & he was very solid. I would go for it, mate. I like signing players like that. I nearly did the same with Sami Khedira in Jan window 2021 but changed my mind last min as his physicals are awful. 

[BrickCommo23]

10 hours ago, Harper said:

I have this habit of skipping through the first season. This save, I started with the 7 December start date from Brazil, and took over as if Arteta got sacked mid season. I usually do the late April Sweden date and holiday until the end of Arsenal’s season and take over after that.

In this case, I picked up with Arsenal in 6th place in the league, with a 4-4-3 record (loses to Liverpool, Burnley, and Newcastle). We were also top of the group with a 3-1-1 record, wins home to PSV, home and away to Sivasspor, a draw to Grenada, and a loss away to PSV.

That's an interesting idea - never thought of that one!

[RossoneriGunner]

Hoping to start my Arsenal save this evening or tomorrow.  Do players like Camavinga, Szoboszlai, Aouar etc get signed up by any clubs in the January transfer window or are they still at their clubs come summer?

[lomekian]

1 minute ago, RossoneriGunner said:

Hoping to start my Arsenal save this evening or tomorrow.  Do players like Camavinga, Szoboszlai, Aouar etc get signed up by any clubs in the January transfer window or are they still at their clubs come summer?

I bought Camavinga and Szoboszlai in January, so I don't know. Aouar is still in place.

One thing worth saying is that due to Covid finances, prices are a lot friendlier in the first window, so if you can get someone you like on the never never, then is a good time. Good luck shifting the deadwood (which obs needs to happen anyway due to squad numbers)

[RossoneriGunner]

Thanks for the heads up mate. I don't know if I will go straight for signings or wait. I want to start with the present squad...well I aint got any bl**ding choice really 🤣.... and see how things go for a while.

[meuwlenburg]

I’ve been lurking around this thread for a while now, looking for hints and tips about my beloved, ripping-out-my-heart-and-smashing-it to-the-ground, wonderful and woeful Arsenal.

I would like to raise the case of Teun Koopmeiners (AZ), as I’ve not seen anyone in here mention him. He was immense for me on FM20. I bought him as I left footed CB and then gradually moved him further up the pitch to become my captain and first-on-the-team-sheet-guy and mainstay cm.

He’s one hell of a pk taker and if I recall rightly, scored double figures in his first season as a cb, even though mainly from the spot.

I see a lot of you guys talking about who to play in that 4-3-3 cdm role, and I would strongly recommend him. He’s pretty cheap too 🙌🏻

 

[FMunderachiever]

 

1 hour ago, RossoneriGunner said:

Thanks for the heads up mate. I don't know if I will go straight for signings or wait. I want to start with the present squad...well I aint got any bl**ding choice really 🤣.... and see how things go for a while.

To be honest, i think players should start each game with the real squad, rather than making signings immediately. 

I think it adds more realism to at least start with Arsenal's real team and then gradually change the squad window by window.

Arsenals real life squad is pretty dire but i think with their "fm squad" youll be able to do quite well straight away anyway

[lomekian]

4 minutes ago, FMunderachiever said:

 

To be honest, i think players should start each game with the real squad, rather than making signings immediately. 

I think it adds more realism to at least start with Arsenal's real team and then gradually change the squad window by window.

Arsenals real life squad is pretty dire but i think with their "fm squad" youll be able to do quite well straight away anyway

On previous versions I've agreed, but on this one, there are just too many players who send my blood pressure up, and I'd prefer not to see their names!

[RossoneriGunner]

25 minutes ago, FMunderachiever said:

 

To be honest, i think players should start each game with the real squad, rather than making signings immediately. 

I think it adds more realism to at least start with Arsenal's real team and then gradually change the squad window by window.

Arsenals real life squad is pretty dire but i think with their "fm squad" youll be able to do quite well straight away anyway

 

20 minutes ago, lomekian said:

On previous versions I've agreed, but on this one, there are just too many players who send my blood pressure up, and I'd prefer not to see their names!

I've always played with the original squad and I know you can start FM21 on 27th June, which was the date the transfer window opened in 2020 and lasted till 5th October . The 20/21 season started on 12th September, so when you start the transfer window is open, I know you can turn it off.

[Clifton]

37 minutes ago, RossoneriGunner said:

 

 

1 hour ago, FMunderachiever said:

i think with their "fm squad" youll be able to do quite well straight away anyway

I agree that the 'FM Squad' is better than the real one.... but it is also a bloated squad that is going to have problems with squad registration as well as giving everyone enough game time.   So my compromise was to let four players go, but bring no one in.   Apart from anything else it gives you a chance to evaluate properly the players you have got.   Even with four leaving I am getting trouble from some players about their game time.   In the January window it will be 'one in - one out'.

[Harper]

Sigh

[WillyBroadband]

People would complain about bugs if they got as many red cards on the game as Arsenal IRL 

[lomekian]

2 minutes ago, WillyBroadband said:

People would complain about bugs if they got as many red cards on the game as Arsenal IRL 

Just like impact injuries 10 years ago...

[RossoneriGunner]

I've got faces, logo's, kits etc loaded but where are people getting their 'Trophies/cups' from. Thanks guys

 

Found them.....👍🏻

 

Edited December 17, 2020 by RossoneriGunner

[WillyBroadband]

1 hour ago, RossoneriGunner said:

I've got faces, logo's, kits etc loaded but where are people getting their 'Trophies/cups' from. Thanks guys

 

Found them.....👍🏻

 

You got the real name & Germany fix too, mate? 

[RossoneriGunner]

5 minutes ago, WillyBroadband said:

You got the real name & Germany fix too, mate? 

Yes thanks mate, it also changes Juventus name

[puffascruffowitz]

On 14/12/2020 at 02:49, WillyBroadband said:

Hi @lomekian when did you sell Willian & how much did you get? He's been ok for me so far but little injuries are frustrating - Nelson has been very good for me - he's playing as I loaned Pepe to Man United. 

Nelson is good but I'm wondering about selling him. His low determination along with a lot of other players we inherited - Pepe, Gabriel, Saliba, Willock all have fairly low determination. A few of my great youngsters determination is plummeting and I have to think it's that group that's doing it. 

[WillyBroadband]

3 minutes ago, puffascruffowitz said:

Nelson is good but I'm wondering about selling him. His low determination along with a lot of other players we inherited - Pepe, Gabriel, Saliba, Willock all have fairly low determination. A few of my great youngsters determination is plummeting and I have to think it's that group that's doing it. 

That's an interesting point, mate. I always think that Teamwork & Work Rate matter more... is exactly why I couldn't get rid of Pepe quick enough.

[lomekian]

6 minutes ago, puffascruffowitz said:

Nelson is good but I'm wondering about selling him. His low determination along with a lot of other players we inherited - Pepe, Gabriel, Saliba, Willock all have fairly low determination. A few of my great youngsters determination is plummeting and I have to think it's that group that's doing it. 

Yeah - first thing I did was bring in some aging emergency back ups with high determination. They complained a bit about not being registered, but let it go fairly quickly after a couple of cup games. Helped redress the balance of squad impact. Certainly new signings have to be elite talent if they have low determination

[DatGuyKiy]

After 10 seasons managing my beloved Gooners, I've decided I'm going to restart and have a career at Arsenal where I don't sign a single player, so I will have to rely on networking and youth recruitment, will update more on that as and when I reach certain landmarks.

 

In my 10 season career I won the following:-

Premier League x 5

Champions Cup x 2

League Cup x 3

FA Cup x 1

Community Shield x 2

Euro Super Cup x 2

 

Eddie Nketiah was the standout player for me, looking forward to how he progresses in my new save. In this save he broke the club record goalscorer and at the point of saving this career he has scored 201 goals in 300 games.

Overall Best 11:-

 

[Harper]

Well, yeah

 

[ozilthegunner]

4 hours ago, Harper said:

Well, yeah

 

In year 2 of my save, Arteta was just appointed as manager of Everton after they sacked Ancelotti... waiting for the first match-up

[arsenalthebest]

On 17/12/2020 at 08:27, RossoneriGunner said:

I've got faces, logo's, kits etc loaded but where are people getting their 'Trophies/cups' from. Thanks guys

 

Found them.....👍🏻

 

Where did you get you graphics & real name/ Germany fix from

 

Edited December 19, 2020 by arsenalthebest

[RossoneriGunner]

4 hours ago, arsenalthebest said:

Where did you get you graphics & real name/ Germany fix from

 

I downloaded them from sortitoutsi and go to FM21 Essentials on the right hand side     https://sortitoutsi.net/

Edited December 19, 2020 by RossoneriGunner

[Tee2]

April 2021

I’m asked to decide what to do with the players who will be out of contract at the end of the season. Apart from Kido Taylor-Hart, who deserves a new contract, I resolve to release them all, which wipes nearly half a million pounds from the wage budget in the summer. This includes the weekly £150,000 we will no longer have to pay David Luiz for his clownmanship, the small contribution we make to Sokratis’s salary and the rather more substantial one we are putting towards Mesut Ozil’s spends.

April contains league fixtures against Manchester United and Liverpool; both are super significant given the race for the title. Get the results where it counts and we might be right in the mix. Fail and it’s probably over. Before any of that we are facing Wolverhampton Wanderers at home. Recognising their strengths we field a strong side and quickly carve out a 2-0 lead through the twin towers of Aubameyang and Pepe. At the break we’re completely on top. The visitors have done so little. They score via Fabio Silva in the fifty-fifth minute and suddenly things become interesting. The punted balls forward that have represented their first half attacks had an air of desperation about them. We can deal with these blunt strikes. But now they’re working the ball forward carefully and artfully, relying on their great dribbling and an imperious central midfield featuring Neves and Moutinho. Time for beautiful football to go out of the window as we aim to protect our advantage, and we do it. Just.

The Europa League has us travelling to the Ukraine to take on Shakhtar Donetsk. Against Leicester in the previous round we sneaked through via home goals and defending at their place. We opt for the same approach here, on the basis that the home side are about as good as we are, and we want to stop them from establishing a rhythm. It works until early in the second half when Taison nudges them ahead. I order the lads to play a more open game and bring on Ceballos for Xhaka (who’s done nothing). The Spaniard it is who equalises before the final whistle, a lovely effort as he cuts inside the D, spots a gap in the defence and places his shot. It’s nothing less than we deserve, and better still we’ve done it while resting some key players…

…Which is fortunate because we’re away to Manchester United next. There’s no need to big this one up. The Devils are leading the league and could go pretty much out of reach with a ninth straight win. Just to make things that bit harder Demiral earns a straight red card seventeen minutes in when he scythes into Cavani from behind. It’s a bad one; the Turk has no excuses, and we have little option but to set up defensively for the long seventy-something minutes that remain. United pour forward. They sense blood, and yet the defence stands firm and Leno enjoys the game of his life, the epitome of ‘none shall pass’. Shortly before half-time Auba volleys from close range at the end of a classic combination with Pepe, and we set about defending our unlikely lead. Late in the game and United win a penalty. Hmmm, thanks ref, and at Old Trafford as well. Daniel James steps up, but Leno keeps everything out and that includes the palming aside of his spot-kick. Somehow, despite facing eighteen shots (against three of our own), we’ve pulled off an incredible rearguard victory. Talk about parking the bus.

Back in Europa Land and we put on a disciplined and clinical show in dispatching Shakhtar 2-0. After absorbing some early pressure from the visitors Saka shoots us in front, and then Willian finds the net after a desperate penalty area scramble late on to seal the victory. Demiral makes up for his dismissal against United by ending it named as Man of the Match, which underlines how solid we are at the back. The semi-final will give us the chance to extend our good run over the red half of Manchester. Playing them five times sounds like at least two head-to-heads too many.

We’re off to Wembley at the weekend for our FA Cup semi-final date with destiny, and Southampton. Of some concern is the fact that some teams are playing in the league, a few now three fixtures further along than we are. The games are stacking up. The Saints are in lower mid-table but they’ll be a tough nut to crack. With Liverpool next I can’t even put out my best eleven. Ward-Prowse causes us some problems and we need to keep a careful eye on Ings’s forays, yet it’s a straightforward 2-0 victory as Lacazette and Cook do the honours. Things turn in our favour at some point in the second half when we introduce the Ox for Xhaka (again, not good) and the midfielder turns on the style against his old team. The Ox has been a hero for us; money well spent. With each passing match and another bang average showing, Xhaka on the other hand is falling out of favour very quickly.

Little time to pause for breath because we’re hosting Liverpool in midweek. The press pack make a big deal of the fact that we have lost to the Pool on each of the three occasions we have played them, and I’m haunted by it also. Okay, they probably are the best side in the division, hell maybe even the world, but have we been paying them too much respect? Now that we are drawn into the title race this has become a must-win affair. So we take off the brakes, play positively rather than cautiously and win 3-0. Pepe is the orchestrator. He scores two and causes problems for Robertson throughout, forcing the full-back to pay attention to his defensive duties rather than support the attack. Auba gets our third and otherwise it’s a good all-round performance from the boys. I’m impressed with our defenders. They blunt the visitor’s forward-thinking spark and stop them from finding any foothold in the game. By the time the mist has cleared we are top of the table, with a match in hand on our rivals.

Our good form complements Manchester United’s downturn perfectly when we travel to Old Trafford in the semi-final of the Europa League. Our 2-0 victory shouldn’t really be allowed to happen, but the home team do themselves no favours when Greenwood gets himself sent off. We’re a goal up via Vinicius at that point. Aubameyang adds a second, and our man advantage gives us the licence to shut the door after the break and see out the win.

Things look good, but it ain’t over. There are still seven league games to complete in May, involving a couple of weeks where we will need to work through six fixtures. Expect heavy rotation, wrapping players in cotton wool, calling on all my resources, and hoping to god that we don’t blow it now.

 

[Tee2]

May 2021

Here’s the deal. We have already qualified for the Champions League and thereby met the Arsenal board’s vision for the season. Sir Chips and his buddies are happy. Now though, we are in the driving seat for the title with none of the big teams left to face. That’s the good part. The issue is the sheer number of fixtures remaining. Seven league games, an FA Cup final against Leicester City, also the second leg of our Europa League tie with United and then a possible final in which to complete the campaign. A total of ten playing occasions between now and the end. A two-day gap between matches on some occasions. Everything is there to play for, but with so much football still to play might we burn out before the end?

2 May – we’re off to Elland Road to take on Leeds United, possibly the trickiest of the remaining league games. On paper, at least. Under Bielsa, the Whites looked as though they were heading towards good things again, but he’s left for Manchester City and they now have Mircea Lucescu in charge. The former Dynamo Kyiv manager favours a defensive approach, which plays into our favour as we’re invited to attack them again and again. Partey puts us ahead early, and we add two more through Vinicius and Aubameyang in the second half when the game becomes more open. The home side are restricted to a single off-target shot. It’s almost the perfect game from us.

4 May – Fulham at home. A heavily rotated line-up is named for what ought to be a more straightforward challenge, and another 3-0 victory. Strikes from Demiral and Lacazette bisect Willian’s penalty, as the Cottagers set up to put men behind the ball and limit the damage, and they happily concede possession also. Their attacking pair of Lookman and Mitrovic are made to look remote and cut off as our defenders keep them entirely under wraps. Jack Wilshere has a great game for us in midfield, teasing Fulham endlessly with his passing, which maybe says as much about the opposition as it does Jackie.

6 May – at the Emirates again, and this time we’re entertaining Manchester United in what should be a Europa League tie where the hard work has already been done. We are three ahead at the break thanks to Oxlade-Chamberlain, Pepe and Aubameyang. In the second half, United suddenly remember what’s on the line and take the game to us. Diallo scores a couple of quick goals as the visitors pile on the pressure, and we spend the closing stages defending our lead. It’s far too late for them, as we win 5-2 on aggregate and look forward to the final at the Energa Gdansk in Poland. Our opponents will be yet another Premier League side, the so far disappointing Manchester City. We have a great record against them this season.

8 May – a trip to the resolutely mid-table Southampton. This ought to be a comfortable game, but as it is the home side defend like dogs to keep us out. Jan Bednarek plays the game of his life at the back and Fraser Forster deals with everything we throw at him. On their wing Theo Walcott has that whiff of ‘old player scoring’ as he forces Kolasinac to defend hard and often. Somehow the Serb fails to get a booking in this one, which normally suggests he hasn’t done a lot. An otherwise bad-tempered game threatens to dribble out towards a 0-0 draw, but in injury time the Ox gets a break, sails past Walker-Peters and crosses unselfishly for Auba, who only has to slot the ball home and never cocks up chances of this sort. Phew.

11 May – we’re hosting Brighton and Hove Albion. This lot beat us earlier in the season and we owe them. Bellerin scores early and late strikes from Aubameyang (from the penalty spot) and Willian seal the deal, but this isn’t straightforward. Brighton produce more work for our defence to do than some of the more illustrious units we’ve played, and Lacazette does precisely nothing before Auba comes on to at least give us a spark in attack. Saka and Willock are the Gunner heroes who spark our 3-0 victory here; great to see homegrown players being invested in our fortunes.

13 May – at home again; this time it’s Everton. I name a strong line-up against a good team and one that sets out to keep us at bay. For a long time it works, but two second half goals from Pepe hand us a 2-0 victory. Otherwise, we’re wasteful in attack. We have twenty-five shots against a Toffees side that frankly looks as though they are already on their holidays. Pickford does his acrobatic thing however, and the win becomes harder fought than it really needs to be.

15 May – one more win will hand the league title to us, but before that there’s the little matter of the FA Cup final. We’re taking on Leicester City, a good opponent but it could have been a lot harder and they do us a favour in the twelfth minute when Ndidi is red carded for the sort of challenge on Pepe that wouldn’t look out of place in a Sam Peckinpah Western. His dismissal defines the match. Pepe and Aubameyang score to win the contest 2-0. Willock has one ruled out for an arguable offside, and Partey plays a titanic game in defensive midfield. The Foxes offer little. By the end it’s Ndidi – the one player who looked committed and up for a fight, albeit exhibiting it in a dangerous way – who comes out of it with any credit.

19 May – with the league crown on the line we’re off on our longest journey within England to face Newcastle United at the Sports Direct Arena. Potentially facing relegation, the Barcodes have to see themselves over the line but this isn’t the time to do it. They fail to register a shot on target as we run out 2-0 winners. Partey scores early. Lacazette adds a second late and otherwise we stop the opposition from causing any problems for Leno in goal. Xhaka plays, safely anonymously, while Pepe and Vinicius earn the plaudits for keeping the Geordies busy in defence. We’ve won the Premier League!

23 May – suddenly there’s nothing left to play for in the league finale at Leicester City. I resolve to save my stars for the Europa League final and field a second eleven, and it’s perhaps the irrelevance of this one coupled with sheer fatigue that allows the Foxes to rack up a 3-2 win. The side we beat at Wembley puts in the sort of performance that reminds us they should be taken seriously. Cengiz Under and a wonderful Tielemans shot put them 2-0 up. Maitland-Niles finds a response, but Vardinho’s effort places them back into a commanding lead. Chambers heads in a Nelson corner late in the game, and we think we’ve equalised deep in injury time via Vinicius, only for the goal to be ruled out for what is revealed to be a clear offside. Ah well. I can’t be too upset after the heroics we have produced recently.

26 May – I’ve saved the stars for this, the Europa League final against Bielsa’s Manchester City in Poland. It’s a frustrating occasion. We tally an xG of 1.26 against the opposition’s 0.29, but they find the breakthrough when Fernandinho nods them in front, and it’s a lead they never give up. For our part, the silky football gives way to niggly fouls and bookings. Pepe tries to produce the spark for us, but Xhaka is predictably awful and at least on this occasion he isn’t the only one as Tierney is given the run-around ceaselessly by Raheem Sterling. It’s an underwhelming end to the campaign, but I am able to put it down to tiredness. The boys have spilled their life blood for the cause in May, raised their game again and again, and there’s always a price to pay. Perhaps the leggy performance here, when there’s so little left in the tank, is a simple reflection of our fatigue levels.

All the same, if I was offered the league and FA Cup at the start of the year then I would absolutely have taken them. Arsenal are a work in progress. We’re a mixture of good players, plucky youngsters and some who are ripe for the culling – looking at you, Granit Xhaka – and to finish with these honours, not to mention two additional cup final appearances, represents a fantastic season. Bernd Leno has played in each game. That’s a total of sixty-five appearances, crammed in between mid-September and now. There’s been a lot to do, and as the players slink off to play in a European international tournament or off to Dubai, they are left with my order that they will have to do it all over again in the new campaign.

 

[samiam]

Hello everyone! Been lurking here for a while so figured I’d put pen to paper...

2020/2021 Recap

Boy do I feel for Arteta, this squad is not very good… I tried to keep things relatively and turned transfers off in the first window and the board didn’t give me any money in January (I’m playing on FMT). Only January transfers were Mustafi to OL for $15M and brought in Ox on loan after Ceballos went back to Real following an injury.

I focused on playing deep (due to slow defenders and midfielders) and breaking on the counter (with our fast attackers). Flipped between a 523, 442, and my preferred 433 with some success and some failures. Managed to just eek out a UCL spot by beating Chelsea and Tottenham to 4^th place by 2 points. Although I went out pretty early in the FA Cup and Euro League.

2021/2021

My focus going into the 2^nd season was the following:

1.       Transition to a more athletic, mobile, tenacious, and hardworking 433/41221. I find the 433 allows for the most variation of attacking movement and defensive styles; and want to make this my go-to formation.

• In comes Castrovilli for $29M to be my CM on Attack Duty to rotate with Willock. I had considered other attacking midfielders, but he was the most cost-effective and I love his ability to drive forward with the ball and strong mentals.
• In comes Mikel Merino for $55M to be my B2B midfielder. While I would love for Partey to be my B2B in my 433, he just didn’t perform there in the first season, so we are going to give him a run as a DLP in the DM spot and see how he does. Given the below capture early in the window I felt that I could allow my midfield to be more creative, and shifting Partey down to the DM slot gives me more passing range in that spot.
• In comes Demiral to provide the steel at the back. He is not my preferred style of CB (I generally like BPD’s behind more aggressive midfielders who press hard and do the grunt work), but when he requested to leave Juve I had to launch a bid and got him for $55M. This allows me to get rid of Chambers for $28M to Atalanta and Mavropanos to Porto for $10M.
• Out goes Xhaka ($24M) as he just doesn’t have the mobility I am looking for. I considered keeping him after the Demiral capture (since he would have an aggressive CB behind him) but with Partey, Elneny (who performed well for me last year) and Torreira all able to play the DM spot I felt comfortable moving him on.

2.       Get younger - Out goes Cedric ($15M to Newcastle) and Kolasinac to OL ($10M). Leno also leaves to Chelsea for $34M after I can’t let Tottenham have Onana for only $42M... Onana is also my preferred aggressive Sweeper Keeper which will work perfectly when we play a more aggressive high line against weaker teams. I also bought in a backup goalkeeper on the cheap to improve upon Runarsson.

3.       Trim the wage bill – Out goes Luiz, Sokratis, and Ozil; all on frees. I also avoided picking up some players on the cheap/free whose wages were higher than I would have preferred.

4.       Avoid letting contracts expire - Out goes Guendouzi for $23M to Hertha. Really pushed to get  Lacazette and AMN out the door but just couldn’t get any bidders. Very disappointing. I was hoping to re-train ESR as an attacking right wing back, but am now reconsidering that given my inability to move AMN on…

 

My base tactic will be a fluid-counterattacking 433 to utilize the speed of my front three - Saka, Auba/Nketiah, and Pepe. My second tactic is more of a high-pressing/possession and movement oriented tactic with Saka dropped to WB and Nelson coming in as as an IW.

Fortunately I was handed an easy UCL Group of Porto, Krasnodar, and Malmo. I wouldn’t want to be in Group H of Liverpool, Athletico, Benfica, and Milan…

 

First Tactic

 

[Harper]

Don’t look now, but Fulham are two points behind us, IRL. Burnley have two games in hand and are four point behind. With a win, Brighton overtakes us on GD to push us down to 16th.

I’ve generally avoided hyperbolic relegation talk, but math don’t lie. Brighton play Sheffield tomorrow.

[RossoneriGunner]

3 minutes ago, Harper said:

Don’t look now, but Fulham are two points behind us, IRL. Burnley have two games in hand and are four point behind. With a win, Brighton overtakes us on GD to push us down to 16th.

I’ve generally avoided hyperbolic relegation talk, but math don’t lie. Brighton play Sheffield tomorrow.

And our next league game is Chelsea @ The Emirates

[Harper]

3 minutes ago, RossoneriGunner said:

And our next league game is Chelsea @ The Emirates

And then some relegation 6-pointers on the road.

Graham Potter has had our number and I expect WBA to be on a new manager bounce.

[RossoneriGunner]

Well if anyone can lose to WBA, we can. In all my years as an Arsenal supporter (60yrs) I never ever thought I would be talking about Arsenal as relegation candidates.

I have thought that IF we get relegated, would Kroenke sell up and leave, because he won't be getting the revenue coming in.

[Harper]

8 minutes ago, RossoneriGunner said:

Well if anyone can lose to WBA, we can. In all my years as an Arsenal supporter (60yrs) I never ever thought I would be talking about Arsenal as relegation candidates.

I have thought that IF we get relegated, would Kroenke sell up and leave, because he won't be getting the revenue coming in.

If he does, I’d expect he’d separate the stadium from the club. Sell the team and keep the real estate.

Edited December 19, 2020 by Harper

[RossoneriGunner]

2 minutes ago, Harper said:

If he does, I’d expect he’d separate the stadium from the club. Sell the team and keep the real estate.

That idea frightens the **** out of me just thinking about it. I dont think that would ever happen as there are people out there who want to buy Arsenal and prevent that ever happening.

[lomekian]

Well, despite some question marks, my first season went almost as well as conceivably possible. In all honesty I think the game is unrealistically easy as a human manager.

Won every trophy without too much difficulty. The league was an absolute cakewalk with 37 wins and 1 draw (in the penultimate game of the season against Palace). Was very lucky to beat Liverpool and Chelsea, but won most games by 2 goals or more. Auba tore it up as both IF/A and AF/A (and even as PF/A) and Pepe won player of the year...hot and cold as hell, but occasionally won games single handedly. Just as his form was dropping off a cliff and I was thinking of dropping him, he got 8 goals and 2 assists in 2 games!

Elsewhere Ramsey really improved my midfield, even as a B2B mid, and Dom Sz (sadly gone to Germany IRL) was astonishingly good at AM after his arrival in Jan. Almost a goal a game and almost an assist a game. Was great in the big games too. Partey was totally unspectacular, but the team was just better in it as a DLP.

In defence, Hector and Tierney were both excellent, particularly the latter, and Gabriel is top draw. He and Stones formed a brilliant partnership, playing a high line and progressing the ball well.

The kids dominated the Europa League with Nketiah, Nelson, Saka and eventually Smith Rowe consistently brilliant. AMN didn't start all that much, but probably played 50 games.

Beat Inter in the EL final (after a very easy run). I actually started the game, and got a phone call, so was 2-0 up at H/T and have no idea what happened! Finished 2-0

Fa Cup final - fairly comfortable 3-0 victory against an injury riddled Man U, even having played a fair few reserves.

League Cup Final - Much tighter game 3-2 against Man U again. Slightly lucky tbh

I didn't think my tactics were anything clever, but they proved incredibly effective - with a very attacking 4-2-3-1 and more circumspect 4-1-2-2-1 being my only choices. For some reason I very rarely came up against a real deep block, so it made the pace in the front line so much more effective.
 

And of course always in FM (as in real life, but inflated), a great season inflates the value of your players in the market.

After a bit of a bidding war, Man U felt that after spending nearly £100m on midfielders, spunking £80m on Lacazette was the move they needed to make. That was a swift click YES!

Equally Chelsea thought spending £40m on Elneny would be wise....

Dortmund also took another midfielder off my hands, Torreira, for £40m, and Cedric went for £25m (along with some reserves and kids for another £15-20m all in).

____________

After such a first season, I had to think of a way of keeping things interesting, so even though I got the no Brexit mod, I thought I'd try to get a homegrown squad, with exceptions only for elite level players or existing non HG players in the squad that I like!

So in came: Lewis Cook from Bournemouth for £20m to replace Elneny, Zaha for for £36m & Marcus Edwards for £12.5m (with a view to flogging Pepe at the end of season 2) & Grealish for £52m. Currently in talks for Ruben Loftus Cheek for £23m.  Trying to work out who my other short and medium term HG targets should be, bearing in mind the existing kids at the club and the fact I brought Stones & Ramsey in.

Need to thin things out. Poor old MIlik arrived on a Bosman, but will be sold as soon as I can because my priorities and game objectives have changed.

Not gone into too much detail here, as I suspect the next couple of seasons with a more HG squad will be more interesting

 

[RossoneriGunner]

15 minutes ago, lomekian said:

Well, despite some question marks, my first season went almost as well as conceivably possible. In all honesty I think the game is unrealistically easy as a human manager.

Won every trophy without too much difficulty. The league was an absolute cakewalk with 37 wins and 1 draw (in the penultimate game of the season against Palace). Was very lucky to beat Liverpool and Chelsea, but won most games by 2 goals or more. Auba tore it up as both IF/A and AF/A (and even as PF/A) and Pepe won player of the year...hot and cold as hell, but occasionally won games single handedly. Just as his form was dropping off a cliff and I was thinking of dropping him, he got 8 goals and 2 assists in 2 games!

Elsewhere Ramsey really improved my midfield, even as a B2B mid, and Dom Sz (sadly gone to Germany IRL) was astonishingly good at AM after his arrival in Jan. Almost a goal a game and almost an assist a game. Was great in the big games too. Partey was totally unspectacular, but the team was just better in it as a DLP.

In defence, Hector and Tierney were both excellent, particularly the latter, and Gabriel is top draw. He and Stones formed a brilliant partnership, playing a high line and progressing the ball well.

The kids dominated the Europa League with Nketiah, Nelson, Saka and eventually Smith Rowe consistently brilliant. AMN didn't start all that much, but probably played 50 games.

Beat Inter in the EL final (after a very easy run). I actually started the game, and got a phone call, so was 2-0 up at H/T and have no idea what happened! Finished 2-0

Fa Cup final - fairly comfortable 3-0 victory against an injury riddled Man U, even having played a fair few reserves.

League Cup Final - Much tighter game 3-2 against Man U again. Slightly lucky tbh

I didn't think my tactics were anything clever, but they proved incredibly effective - with a very attacking 4-2-3-1 and more circumspect 4-1-2-2-1 being my only choices. For some reason I very rarely came up against a real deep block, so it made the pace in the front line so much more effective.
 

And of course always in FM (as in real life, but inflated), a great season inflates the value of your players in the market.

After a bit of a bidding war, Man U felt that after spending nearly £100m on midfielders, spunking £80m on Lacazette was the move they needed to make. That was a swift click YES!

Equally Chelsea thought spending £40m on Elneny would be wise....

Dortmund also took another midfielder off my hands, Torreira, for £40m, and Cedric went for £25m (along with some reserves and kids for another £15-20m all in).

____________

After such a first season, I had to think of a way of keeping things interesting, so even though I got the no Brexit mod, I thought I'd try to get a homegrown squad, with exceptions only for elite level players or existing non HG players in the squad that I like!

So in came: Lewis Cook from Bournemouth for £20m to replace Elneny, Zaha for for £36m & Marcus Edwards for £12.5m (with a view to flogging Pepe at the end of season 2) & Grealish for £52m. Currently in talks for Ruben Loftus Cheek for £23m.  Trying to work out who my other short and medium term HG targets should be, bearing in mind the existing kids at the club and the fact I brought Stones & Ramsey in.

Need to thin things out. Poor old MIlik arrived on a Bosman, but will be sold as soon as I can because my priorities and game objectives have changed.

Not gone into too much detail here, as I suspect the next couple of seasons with a more HG squad will be more interesting

 

Nice write up 👍🏼. Back in the day I used to go through a season unbeaten and then get bored with it.  The time we used the WM formation and I went 2 seasons without losing a game 'The Double, Double Invincibles' lol. Then you look at having a team of players under 21 or only 3* players or buying players from the Championship only, but I like your idea of a HG team, that could be interesting.

Edited December 19, 2020 by RossoneriGunner

[hasdgfas]

2023/24 Season Review

Competitions:

An ok season. Second straight league title, but not as easy as last season. Also won the Carabao Cup, but Manchester City were too much in the Champions League and FA Cup Quarterfinals.

Transfers:

Yes, I've hit the point in my saves when I make small purchases of young players for the future and just let them develop instead of buying established stars. Lopes is a strong-looking midfielder, while Shiryaev will be fighting for the backup GK position behind Leno. Edouard was a January Season 1 purchase who did well in that season to oust Lacazette, but after acquiring Milik on a Bosman, he just couldn't keep up. Offloaded him for a nice ~16 million profit. I kept Cedric around much longer than expected, but he was a very serviceable backup. Once he hit a year left on his contract though, it was time for him to move on. Turner was an academy player who was never going to make it.

FIRST TEAM SQUAD:

Nketiah is really coming along nicely. He and Milik are both fantastic strikers and will rotate in and out depending on who is in form. Pepe continues to be the first name on the teamsheet, but he was injured a lot this season. Frimpong and Runarsson are on their way out on frees. I'm expecting quite a bit of additional movement(movement out, at least) this offseason. I have a few players I want to get into the first team, and a few who are underperforming that I'm going to try to offload.

[hasdgfas]

Well, I'll be offloading more players than I thought, as apparently I didn't play my youth players enough for my promise, so a bunch of my players are throwing tantrums

[hasdgfas]

A couple additional big moves before the Transfer screen rolled over to the new season:

Aarons is a player I've had my eye on for a bit, and when Norwich transfer-listed him, I figured it was time to pick him up. He's going to rotate with Bellerin and be the long-term replacement.

Holding has been great, but wanted a new challenge, and I wasn't going to stand in his way. Yeah, he went to Chelsea, but 54 million is not a price I'm going to reject for a player who wants to leave.

Bowen underperformed since being brought in, and it was time for him to give way to younger players. 22 Million rising to 35 million is quite acceptable, and a small profit after the 20 million price to bring him in.

[bigman]

Quick update

Second in the league behind the juggernaught of Liverpool. Can’t see myself stopping them. I beat west game 4-1 after these pics, auba bagged four in one game. He’s a beast. Having issues with my left backs being injured, definitely an area to strengthen in the summer. Aour has been great as a lw playmaker or an advanced playmaker in the middle, but I definitely am going to keep pursuing camavinga. He’s relatively unsettled, just need more budget

 

hopefully xhaka and el neney are going and I can get fees for guendouzi and torreira 

holding is also transfer listed. Ahmed box I came in for a low fee. 
 

drew 2-2 away to PSV in my first leg of the Europe ko stage, Malen is a beast 

[bigman]

10 hours ago, hasdgfas said:

A couple additional big moves before the Transfer screen rolled over to the new season:

Aarons is a player I've had my eye on for a bit, and when Norwich transfer-listed him, I figured it was time to pick him up. He's going to rotate with Bellerin and be the long-term replacement.

Holding has been great, but wanted a new challenge, and I wasn't going to stand in his way. Yeah, he went to Chelsea, but 54 million is not a price I'm going to reject for a player who wants to leave.

Bowen underperformed since being brought in, and it was time for him to give way to younger players. 22 Million rising to 35 million is quite acceptable, and a small profit after the 20 million price to bring him in.

Jesus, 54 million for holding? That could go a long way towards an upamecano or someone of that Calibur 

[Tee2]

29 minutes ago, bigman said:

Jesus, 54 million for holding? That could go a long way towards an upamecano or someone of that Calibur 

I was thinking the same! Mind you, I rate the guy, perhaps not to the tune of £54 million but I think he definitely adds something.

[RossoneriGunner]

53 minutes ago, bigman said:

Jesus, 54 million for holding? That could go a long way towards an upamecano or someone of that Calibur 

Of all the CB mentioned, no one has said about buying Upamecano or Koulibaly, is that because of the cost ?

[lomekian]

13 hours ago, RossoneriGunner said:

Nice write up 👍🏼. Back in the day I used to go through a season unbeaten and then get bored with it.  The time we used the WM formation and I went 2 seasons without losing a game 'The Double, Double Invincibles' lol. Then you look at having a team of players under 21 or only 3* players or buying players from the Championship only, but I like your idea of a HG team, that could be interesting.

Yeah - my idea is to spend 21/22 trying to fatten the geese that are Partey, Pepe etc to generate the finds to replace Auba. Going to allow myself to keep anyone 'foreign' who gets HG status.

In goal and at centre-forward I may allow myself non HG players simply because English goalies aren't much kop (and I just got Donnaruma on a bosman), and because the best young English strikers seem to have ludicrous prices. Depends how the kids do backing Auba up this year.

Other than that, I will only allow myself non HG players if 1) they are u21 and I'm trying to get them HG status OR if the are one of the top 2/3 players in the world in their position and I can get them comparatively cheaply.

If that gets too easy, then it will be full Brexit!

[bigman]

10 minutes ago, lomekian said:

Yeah - my idea is to spend 21/22 trying to fatten the geese that are Partey, Pepe etc to generate the finds to replace Auba. Going to allow myself to keep anyone 'foreign' who gets HG status.

In goal and at centre-forward I may allow myself non HG players simply because English goalies aren't much kop (and I just got Donnaruma on a bosman), and because the best young English strikers seem to have ludicrous prices. Depends how the kids do backing Auba up this year.

Other than that, I will only allow myself non HG players if 1) they are u21 and I'm trying to get them HG status OR if the are one of the top 2/3 players in the world in their position and I can get them comparatively cheaply.

If that gets too easy, then it will be full Brexit!

did u use your own tactic or did u download one? Sounds like the game is too easy for u. Can u show the roles in your tactics and instructions etc? 

[VP.]

Palace are a bit crap

[lomekian]

21 minutes ago, bigman said:

did u use your own tactic or did u download one? Sounds like the game is too easy for u. Can u show the roles in your tactics and instructions etc? 

My less offensive tactic was just the first thing I put in without any thought to be honest. Gegenpressing 23221 with IF/A on each flank, PF up front, DLP (D), MEZ (A) and either DLP (S) or BBM in midfield, with a WB (A) on the right and WB (S) on the left.

Then just tweaked for the strengths of individuals - so if hector at RWB - cross from byline, if Cedric - cross from deep. Took me about 5 mins

My more offensive formation is a 4-2-3-1, with WB(s) at full back, DLP (S) & BBM in midfield, one flank has a winger the other an IF/A or IW/A depending on who's picked. AM-A. CF is just a simple AF A. All about high line, high tempo, counter pressing. Lots of overlaps, lots of crosses...mostly everything just untouched. Again, some instructions slightly tweaked for indiviudals, but not a lot. Took a bit longer to get right defensive line and cross types etc, but still quite simple

[hasdgfas]

5 hours ago, bigman said:

Jesus, 54 million for holding? That could go a long way towards an upamecano or someone of that Calibur

He performed incredibly well for me in the save and was well-worth the 54 million. I wanted 60, but wasn't going to turn down 54. As I mentioned in the post, I've hit the point where I'm just trying to buy youth players and promote from within rather than buy new ones. His replacement(who I picked up on a free):

 

[VP.]

End of season 5, sadly no trophies this year. Asked the board for a new stadium earlier in the season as nearly every match is a sell out but never heard anything back. I'm also going back in for Mbappe this summer...

 

[VP.]

IDIOTS