FM22: ¡Viva el Betis manque pierda!

[SteinkelssonFM]

I think it is fair to say that the southern Spanish region of Andalusia has played a pretty significant role in the country’s footballing history, hosting some of it’s most important moments.

In 1889 it was the birthplace of the first-ever club, Real Club Recreativo de Huelva. In 1890 it hosted the first-ever official match and in 1915 it hosted the first ever Seville derby between Sevilla FC and Real Betis Balompié.

Located along the west bank of the Guadalquivir river lies the neighbourhood of Triana, Triana and Betis go almost hand in hand. Betis is derived from Baetis, the Roman name for the city’s Guadalquivir river which flows through Seville and after which the Roman province was subsequently named.

The neighbourhood itself is also a source of great controversy, it is cited by many Béticos as the cause of an internal split at city rivals Sevilla which led to the formation of their own club in a dispute contested by their neighbours.

Betis are a fundamental part of the nation’s football fabric yet despite holding such a prominent role in the history of the Spanish game, Betis have only been crowned champions of Spain once (1935) and have lifted the Copa del Rey twice (1977 & 2005).

La Liga 2021/22

 

The above map shows where the teams within La Liga are situated across the peninsula. You will note that many are clustered together, this is due to Spain being made up of 17 autonomous communities.

Andalucia: Betis, Cadiz, Granada and Seville

Basque Country: Athletic Bilbao, Deportivo Alaves, Real Sociedad and Osasuna

Balearic Islands: Mallorca

Catalonia: Barcelona and Espanyol

Galicia: Celta Vigo

Madrid: Getafe, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Vallecano

Murcia: Elche

Valencia: Levante, Valencia and Villarreal

I will look to cover the objectives of the save in my next post, however given the fact that Seville sit 70 places above Betis in the UEFA Club Coefficients one of the objectives of the save will absolutely be to attempt to make Betis the leading club within Andalucia.

Why Los Verdiblancos?

Real Betis Balompié stand for Andalusia and Spain, from the club badge to the kit of which the colours of green and white hold reference to the Andalusian flag and the clubs origins/roots.

It is indisputable that there is a base for Betis to become a leading club in Spain and make a lasting, meaningful impact in European competition.

The Stadium — A stadium is the face a club wishes to present of itself, the home of Real Betis, Estadio Benito Villamarín — has undergone heavy refurbishment, with its 60,000 capacity making it the nation’s fourth-biggest stadium.

The Fanbase — Betis has a passionate fanbase and in the 2017/18 season, Betis broke the 50,000 barrier of season ticket sales for the first time in their history and increased this to over 55,000 the following year.

Betis also had the fourth-largest volume of ‘interactions’ across its social media pages (a key measurement for attracting sponsorship) in Spain, behind only Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid. Notably, they had over twice the numbers generated of the side next on the list: Valencia.

If the above infrastructure wasn’t enough, the club is also home to one of my all time favourite players, Joaquín Sánchez Rodríguez, simply known as Joaquín.

Joaquin would come to define Los Verdiblancos in the 21st century and establish himself as arguably the most emblematic player in the club’s distinguished history.

Despite recently turning 40 the Spaniard had no intentions of hanging up his boot during the pandemic. Joaquin stated “I would like to retire with the fans in the stands, as I want to invite football fans to attend my final match at the Estadio Benito Villamarin.”

It would be immense if Magnus Steinkelsson could provide Betis’ all-time record appearance holder with one last hurrah to close off his magnificent career.

The Club

The club vision and expectations set out the scene for the initial direction of the save. The board would like to play a brand of attacking football, something which lets face it we all look to implement within the game.

The second point is surrounding the development of players within the clubs youth system. I feel this culture has something more to do with the clubs financial position, rather than it’s reputation for developing talent from within, with only Joaquin and Rodri learning their trade from within Betis’ youth system (Quarry).

A twenty year payment plan has been set up with the state in order to repay the initial loan of £51m, when looking into the finance projection the balance is set to decrease year on year, hence the need to adhere with the five year plan of working within the wage budget.

The Squad

As with the start of any FM save, one of the first tasks you should conduct as a manager is a thorough squad analysis. This year I opted to deviate away from the A4 notepad and ranking of players per position (1st choice, 2nd choice and youth prospect) and followed a good friends (@THEFMACADEMY1) approach, which he has documented in his blog article How to Guide — Squad Analysis

Real Betis Squad Analysis

What did this analysis show me that the in-game squad comparison couldn’t?

50% of the squad (15/30) are big game players, breaking this down even further to my preferred starting eleven this percentage increases even higher to a whopping 73%.

I have a relatively short side who aren’t particularly good in the air, this will aid my tactic planning (which I will cover in a further blog), opting to defend wide to force the opponent through the middle.

Edgar at 193cm (6’3") is the tallest player within my side and despite his average attributes and a 2.5 star current ability, he is someone who I could look to call from if the opponent is providing an aerial threat.

The analysis also goes a long way to aiding what player roles I should look to use by taking a deep dive into the player traits.

Looking at the negatives, I am carrying a few players (Ruiz, Bartra, Guardado, Canales and Ruibal) who are injury prone.

Key Players

We all know the importance of a solid spine and the players identified below should absolutely make the difference between a successful season and a failure.

Victor Ruiz

Despite being 32 years of age, the Spaniard is fundamental to the possession based football which I am looking to implement at Betis.

Why? Tom Worville from The Athletic wrote an excellent piece back in September 2020 which explained why left-footed centre-backs are so in demand.

In summary the benefits surrounded improved passing angles and trajectories, which impacted metrics such as passes into the final third and progressive passes.

Making the left-right combination essential for teams that are hyper-focused on building out from defence.

Source: The Athletic

Ruiz is the only left-footed centre-back within the first team squad, therefore making him a key player.

Guido Rodriguez

Signed from America in Mexico back in 2019/20, Steinkelsson will look to Guido to protect the defensive line from breaking attackers by closing them down (Anticipation 16, Tackling 18, Positioning 17 and Work Rate 15). He will also look to hold onto the ball to relieve the defensive unit after periods of sustained pressure (First Touch 15 and Decisions)

Nabil Fekir

At 27-years of age the Frenchman is entering his prime and will be the catalyst to igniting the side in the final third. Fekir will operate from the role of an attacking midfielder, allowing him the freedom to operate higher up the pitch and use his technical skills to fashion chances for himself and others (Technique 17, Dribbling 16, Passing 16, Flair 16 and Vision 16).

 

I hope the first part of my FM22 main save introduction has left you with a taster of what is to come, my next post leading up to the main release date and start of the save will cover tactics, squad depth and the save objectives.

I also have a Discord channel if people are keen to discuss all things FM, we have a great community within the channel and always welcome new additions.

I hope you all enjoy following the save as much as I intend to do so playing!

Edited October 30, 2021 by MattyLewis11

[RogerC]

Good stuff, keen to keep reading.

[karanhsingh]

Nice choice of club! Will be following. Betis have too long been the smaller club in their city. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

Thanks @karanhsingh I hope I can do them justice over the duration of the save.

[Ewan0404]

Good choice of club. 

I had an enjoyable save with them in fm19. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

Thanks @Ewan0404 did you manage to win any silverware with them? 

[Ewan0404]

I won the Spanish cup in the 2nd season and was consistently bouncing between 4th and 8th for the first 5 seasons. 

They are a club with a lot of potential and the massive stadium definitely helps. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

I hope you follow along @Ewan0404 will be good to see how my save compares 

[DefinitelyTaylor]

Great introductory post. Looking forward to what is to come!

[Hootieleece]

Liking this....I enjoy following careers at "Sleeping Giants"....whatever the country!

I'm guessing you have a two year window before Real Madrid brings in Mbappe or Haalland!

Also interested on your take on possesion based football for a team with a lack of height! Since I tend to like to have tall players in my teams (5'10/175cm or taller) and still try to play Vertical Tiki-Taka.

[SteinkelssonFM]

@DefinitelyTaylor I hope you follow for the duration.

 

@Hootieleece appreciated, given the fact that Betis haven't secured UCL football since 2005/06 I think this has to be the first milestone to achieve. 

In relation to my take on possession based football with a team that lack in height...betis balompié is the name of the club which translates to foot-ball. The game is played with your feet and I intend to keep it that way haha. 

 

[SixPointer]

The statman! Looking forward to your take on possession football!

[SteinkelssonFM]

41 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

The statman! Looking forward to your take on possession football!

Appreciated mate, working on the next part of the intro prior to getting the save kicked off when the main release drops! 

[SteinkelssonFM]

It is the first duty of a new coach to decide upon a ‘game model’ — a way of playing — that he wants his team to follow.

Like all saves I will be starting with the initial transfer window disabled and therefore needed to gain a good understanding of the current players at my disposal. I covered the initial phase of the squad analysis in my opening blog ¡Viva el Betis manque pierda!

Why you might ask…well there are several factors which can influence the way a team plays: the capabilities of the players already at the club; the desire of the board; the culture of the club; the demands of the fans; and the culture of the country and opposition teams.

In this post I will attempt to break these down for Betis to create the initial tactic, we will then create a squad depth visual before finishing up with the save objectives.

The game model

The capabilities of the players already at the club

Ok so we should all be familiar with both current and potential ability, each are scored out of 200 with current ability largely determining how good a player is on the pitch. Whilst potential ability acts as a limit to the individuals current ability and is typically the maximum rating the player can reach.

Both of these are estimated in game by coaches and scouts and are presented in the form of star ratings. It is important to be aware that perceived current ability star ratings, for both your own players and those at other clubs, are shown relative to the perceived current ability of your squad as a whole.

Star ratings

Taking a look at the first-team squad at Betis, six out of the initial 30 man squad hold a current ability of four stars whilst two other individuals (Rodri and Juan Miranda) are perceived to hold significantly high ceilings.

Again a point to consider when considering potential ability is that this rating is based mostly on a players age and perceived current ability. Therefor a younger player would be considered to have more time left to improve their current ability over say a 25 year old teammate and therefore influence the rating.

This is not to say that star-ratings are the be-all and end-all, I am certain that many of you reading this today have had previous experience of three star players performing to a greater level than others with higher star ratings.

 

The squad comparison, which sits under the Squad Menu>Analyst Report is as good a place as any to assess the capabilities of the players within the squad, it is from here that we can break down the units (Defence, Midfield and Attack) and compare their attributes against the league average, providing the manager with a flavour of what his/her players can and can not do.

Defence comparison

First up looking at the defence we need to establish if the defensive unit have the ability to support a high line (pace, acceleration and tackling) or a deeper defence (positioning, marking, heading and jumping).

Looking at the above I think it is fair to say that we have a pretty solid defence with most attributes above the league average. I think the attributes favour a lower defensive line, so we will look to implement a mid-block which should favour the more organisational attributes over the dynamic ones.

Midfield comparison

Moving onto the midfield you will note that the only three attributes which are above average are passing, vision and technique. These three are the gold standard of a possession based game, therefore we will look to play shorter passing in order to starve the opposition of the ball.

Attacking comparison

Lastly, a look at the forwards shows that although the strikers are quick over a long distance they lack explosive acceleration. The attacking unit have exceptional long shots (shoot on sight) and movement is bang on the league average. Our heading and jumping are better than our finishing which leads me to think that a floated cross could well be the best option of delivery.

The desire of the board

Managerial history

Real Betis have had no fewer than 11 managerial changes since the club last achieved a top four finish in La Liga back in 2004/05, under Lorenzo Serra Ferrer.

Despite Angel Haro’s initial targets for the club (covered in my previous post), the Betis Chairman and his entourage of advisors certainly aren’t hesitant to pull the plug on the Manager if things aren’t going to plan.

This could well be a quick save if I can’t steer Betis to at least a mid-table finish if historic trends have anything to go by.

The Boards desire

The board’s only demand which we will need to convert into our tactic is to play attacking football. Let’s face it, this is what I’d imagine most FM players are looking to implement within their saves (especially top tier saves).

The culture of the club

In order to assess the culture of the club I have opted to analyse the mental attributes of the side. For me, often when looking to implement a DNA within a squad I often select a few key mental attributes which in turn form the foundation of what all recruitment is built upon.

Drilling down into the squads mental attributes should give me a good idea of not only the character of individuals but oversight on what team instructions could work well.

Betis mental attributes

The following attributes are those which have averaged the highest when analysing the first eleven.

Anticipation: How well a player can predict the movements and actions of his team and opposition players.

Composure: How unaffected a player is by mental pressure when making a decision or performing an action.

Concentration: How unaffected a player is by lost focus when making a decision.

Decisions: How well a player can evaluate the options he is aware of and choose which action to perform, when to perform it and how to perform it.

Teamwork: how closely a player follows his tactical instructions and how aware he is of the positions and movements of his teammates.

These highlighted mental attributes certainly solidify that our players have the mental capacity to implement a possession based game, although due to the high level of anticipation, passing into space will be selected to ensure individuals do not shy away from playing through balls.

There are also quite a few individuals within the side which possess a good level of flair, for this reason I am going to allow players to be more expressive, allowing them to play their natural game and deviate away from the game model. (If you got it, flaunt it!)

 

Taking the attributes away from the equation you might have noted that the average age of the squad sits at 30 years of age.

I found a nice quote from The European Game: The Secrets of European Football Success by Daniel Fieldsend.

Italian clubs see older players as a luxury to be savoured. Their experience is viewed as an intangible, essential for team-building.

Those of you who have followed my FM saves before will know how much I enjoy a young squad. However, this sentence speaks volumes and age is no doubt a factor which I will need to incorporate into this save as I look to lean upon the experience gained through past failures/successes in order to break into the top four and beyond.

The demands of the fans

Manquepierda is the cornerstone of Betis, it’s an acceptance of the difficulty of life and the idea that no matter what happens, you’ll always get up.

This isn’t a matter of putting a positive spin on defeat — it’s a statement of love. An acceptance that no matter how badly one is doing in life they will never abandon the club.

This statement speaks volumes, it goes to show just how closely the club has links with Andalusia, a land which has gone through periods of suffering throughout the years . The people of Andalusia have shown they are robust enough to overcome their defeats and problems, they are hard-working people.

The culture of the country and opposition teams.

Rather than look to assess La Liga as a whole, I have opted to take a closer look at La Furia Roja, the Spanish national football team.

La Furia Roja mental attributes

Comparing our mental attributes to those of the players selected by Luis Enrique you will notice that there is a correlation. Both squads posses the highest average in Anticipation and Teamwork, with the national side also having a greater emphasis on Determination (makes sense) and Work-rate.

Composure, concentration and decisions are all ranked as the second highest attributes, which shows that there is synergy between the culture of Betis and that of La Furia Roja.

This puts Betis in a good position for future selection (form depending) as in theory we wouldn’t be attempting to fit a round peg into a square hole.

The tactic

The game model

once a game model is decided upon by the coach (tick), inspiration for training sessions is drawn from flaws in matches. Therefore what I am attempting to say is that this by no means is the finished article. We will look to assess the weaknesses month on month, schedule training to make marginal gains, if the same cracks appear then player roles will be reviewed.

Save Objectives

Like any long-term save I have sat down and thought hard about some objectives for the save. Like most of you who will be reading this, playing FM for me just isn’t enough and therefore the following objectives will add an additional challenge, hopefully aiding longevity.

1. Secure Betis a return to Europe’s top club competition the UCL.

‘If you want football’s finest fruit, you grow your own.’ The job of a manager should be to blood new players into the first team every season.

2. Promote a minimum of two youth players into the first team each season.

What a club needs is a strong league with regular windfalls, allowing them to reinvest in their facilities. They must be able to offer competitive wages and regular silverware to entice players to stay.

3. Remove the clubs finances from being in the red, improving its financial health and securing in the future.
4. Secure Betis their first piece of silverware since 2005.
5. Win the Pichichi.

Real Betis’ Joaquin becomes sixth player ever to reach 600 La Liga games

6. Develop a new club legend.

7. Become the best team in Andalusia.

Edited November 2, 2021 by SteinkelssonFM

[Hootieleece]

Ambitious, but I think it is do able.

[SteinkelssonFM]

@Hootieleece you will note the objectives progress in terms of difficulty. 

They also are linked to the two aspects of the game which I enjoy the most, data analysis/recruitment and development. 

[SixPointer]

Really like your first draft system! Attacking but with out throwing too many at it. Calculated stuff. As always your depth of research and analysis is incredible and inspiring  

[SteinkelssonFM]

13 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

Really like your first draft system! Attacking but with out throwing too many at it. Calculated stuff. As always your depth of research and analysis is incredible and inspiring  

Appreciated mate, I hope you follow this one through the duration. In terms of the tactic...I am yet to even play a game of FM22 as wanted to fly blind in prep for the 9th. 

I have never used an AP placed in the wide channel and it's a role which I don't think many others have used from there either. 

Definitely going to need to work out some KPIs for the key roles as I think without setting a benchmark this system could potentially lack a little cutting edge. 

Saying that I do believe it is the best given the players I have at my disposal

[SixPointer]

3 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Appreciated mate, I hope you follow this one through the duration. In terms of the tactic...I am yet to even play a game of FM22 as wanted to fly blind in prep for the 9th. 

I have never used an AP placed in the wide channel and it's a role which I don't think many others have used from there either. 

Definitely going to need to work out some KPIs for the key roles as I think without setting a benchmark this system could potentially lack a little cutting edge. 

Saying that I do believe it is the best given the players I have at my disposal

I used a AP wide around FM18! Or whenever the mezzala was first introduced. I found the two caused havoc together! 
 

I’m like yourself doing my homework on the beta before the 9th when I’ll start the save!! I’ll probably write a little intro Monday/Tuesday but I’d do well to have as much analysis as yourself 

[13th Man]

Have to agree - excellent analysis. Should be a fun save.

Like the look of the tactic, especially interested in seeing how the possession instructions work with the pass into space and shoot on sight TIs. I really like that - be patient out of the back but then take chances when they come. 

I tried a wide AP in FM19 in a 4-3-3, but ended up changing it to a IF(s). Strangely found he played more as an AP (lots of assists) more effectively than when actually assigned the role of AP - and also scored more.  Depends on the player, tactic, etc of course and I see no reason why it won’t work for you here.

Edited October 31, 2021 by 13th Man

[SteinkelssonFM]

5 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Have to agree - excellent analysis. Should be a fun save.

Like the look of the tactic, especially interested in seeing how the possession instructions work with the pass into space and shoot on sight TIs. I really like that - be patient out of the back but then take chances when they come. 

I tried a wide AP in FM19 in a 4-3-3, but ended up changing it to a IF(s). Strangely found he played more as an AP (lots of assists) more effectively than when actually assigned the role of AP - and also scored more.  Depends on the player, tactic, etc of course and I see no reason why it won’t work for you here.

I am trying to replicate a bit of what Pellegrini has achieved with the squad this season. Betis boast the 6th highest possession and the 2nd highest passes in La Liga whilst have had the second highest shot figure along with leading in terms of through balls. 

Glad to hear that you have had some joy with a wide AP, I am hoping Canales can do well in this role and will set a benchmark in terms of KPIs later in the thread, his will revolve around through balls. 

[karanhsingh]

I really like the list of objectives! best of luck!

[SteinkelssonFM]

Thanks @karanhsingh if I can achieve half it will be a successful save. 

[Matt_1979]

Great stuff as always Matty. Roll on the 9th!!

[abulezz]

Great intro into the save - can't wait to read more. 

[john1]

Loving the depth of writing into this  I was also going to pick Betis but went for Saint-Étienne.

Can't wait for this!

[Matt_1979]

56 minutes ago, john1 said:

Loving the depth of writing into this  I was also going to pick Betis but went for Saint-Étienne.

Can't wait for this!

Can’t beat the green and white 

[SteinkelssonFM]

20 hours ago, Matt_1979 said:

Great stuff as always Matty. Roll on the 9th!!

Mate I'm counting down the days like a child at Christmas! 

20 hours ago, john1 said:

Loving the depth of writing into this  I was also going to pick Betis but went for Saint-Étienne.

Can't wait for this!

A French save, I spent a large bulk of FM21 with OGC Nice and thoroughly enjoyed it! I wish you all the best for your save and hope you enjoy this thread as it progresses

20 hours ago, abulezz said:

Great intro into the save - can't wait to read more. 

Thanks for taking the time to get up to speed with the save. Two intro's hopefully has set the scene. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

Investing in potential 

I have again drawn inspiration for this post from the book, The European Game: The Secrets of European Football Success and the chapter surrounding Financial Investment in Potential Growth (FIPG). 

This term is defined as 'a refusal to spend beyond ones means, whilst ensuring profit can be made'. All clubs are able to partake in the process of investing in potential and seeing as I have four days to spare until the full release of FM22 I thought it would be interesting to delve into the depths of other La Liga sides to provide examples of where they sit on the hierarchy of wealth pyramid in comparison to Betis.

Given the state of the finances within the club 

1. Super Clubs - Starting at the top (definitely the most easiest of places) the duty of the super-club is to make expensive purchases and record debt in the pursuit of success. These clubs are least likely to invest in potential and choose instead to purchase ready-made stars. 

Barcelona despite being on the verge of bankruptcy (1.35bn euro) and Real Madrid with their history of signing Galacticos certainly are the duo of super-clubs from La Liga. Looking at the sides transfer activity over the past five seasons both clubs have made a net loss (Barcelona  -£186m and Madrid -£4m).

However, this doesn't tell the full story and only when scrolling through their transfer history on Transfermarkt it is clear to see how both clubs not only have a history of completing big money signings (Barcelona £108m for Antoine Griezmann, £74m for Luis Suarez and £121m for Philippe Coutinho / Madrid £103.5m for Eden Hazard and £84m for Cristiano Ronaldo and £90m for Gareth Bale) , but recruit players who are proven in terms of their current ability with the view to continue to keep the club within the list of Europe's elite. 

 

 

2. Major Achievers - Atletico sit on the threshold of becoming a super club as the 13th most valuable club in the world, as ranked by Deloitte in 2021. FIPG allows poorer clubs to become wealthy over time and therefore more likely to triumph. Sevilla are a great example of this as they have become the most frequent winners of the Europa League with the mastermind behind the success Monchi, the Director of Football. 

If you are keen to replicate Sevilla's recruitment model in FM, please have a read of my piece, Monchi Masterclass - Removing the luck factor from recruitment.

Over the last ten years Sevilla have sold a range of their star players to the super-clubs, four players to Barcelona(Clement Lenglet, Ivan Rakitic, Aleix Vidal and Luuk de Jong) along with three to PSG (Grzegorz Krychowiak, Pablo Sarabia and Sergio Rico). Whilst Atletico have seen talents such as Rodri and Sergio Aguero move to Manchester City along with Griezmann to Barcelona and Diego Costa and Filipe Luis to Chelsea. 

3. Mid-tier Achievers - The mid-tier achievers, these clubs have shown their ability to secure signings from super-clubs, often individuals who are surplus to requirements - offering a second home and the chance to re-build their reputations. Great examples of this are Giovani Lo Celso move from PSG to Betis, Rodi's move from Villarreal to Atletico

Other players have used the mid-tier sides to build their reputation prior to making the next step up the pyramid e.g. Samu Castillejo using Villarreal to springboard his services to AC Milan whilst Andre Gomes used Valencia as his stopping point to Barcelona from Benfica. 

Real Sociedad have seen the likes of Diego Llorente use the club to stabilise his career after being sold by Real Madrid prior to his £18m move to Leeds. Alexander Isak will no doubt be the next layer to move up the pyramid and the return to a super club after he signed from Dortmund at 19-years of age after he was surplus to requirements. 

 

4. Marginal Achievers - a transfer approach which offers consistent marginal gains to allow for reinvestment in both facilities and better players, a club with a long-term strategy.

After watching Six Dreams on amazon Prime it was clear to see that both Levante and Mallorca have a long-term marketing strategy with the goal to reinvest monies to improve the clubs facilities and scout the market to sign individuals to help maintain their status as a La Liga club.

 

5. Youth Developers - a club which has a clear pathway for youngsters into the first-team, if a player is sold on an academy talent is able to emerge and fill his place. The collective is more important than any individual cog.

The history of 'Los Leones' is incredibly unique given the desire of other top European clubs to spend astronomical amounts on talent from all over the world. Athletic Bilbao have built there legacy by trusting in local talent, the clubs motto of "Con cantera y aficion, no hace falta importacion" translates to "with home-grown talent and local support, there's no need for imports. 

The side lead the line in terms of former academy players within the first team in La Liga with 17, the second placed clubs Real Sociedad and Barcelona both have 13. 

With a little more focus on Betis for FM purposes, the below image shows where the majority of signings have come from over the past 10 years, note that despite the large volumes of players the values of the deals aren't excessive. Betis is broke! The largest fee paid was £25m to Espanyol for the services of Borja Iglesias. whilst other deals were to bring in aged/experienced professionals such as Pezzella, Joaquin and Juan Vargas from Florence.

Looking at the departures, you will note that the deals have been agreed with those both below and above Betis in the pyramid. Many have been completed with little return on investment which again is no doubt as to why the clubs financial health isn't in the strongest position.

There is no doubt that recruitment in this save will be a challenge, it will be my aim to strengthen Betis' position as a mid-tier achiever prior to looking to advance them to a major achiever through my data driven approach to recruitment. 

[Matt_1979]

Excellent stuff matty. 

[Chris_ANZFM]

An interesting read there mate! Interesting to see the league broken down like this. Sure most of us FM players can pop themselves somewhere on that pyramid too. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

16 minutes ago, Chris_ANZFM said:

An interesting read there mate! Interesting to see the league broken down like this. Sure most of us FM players can pop themselves somewhere on that pyramid too. 

Thanks Chris, yes absolutely like most things I expect we all classify teams in certain ways but this model is something which I feel captures it in a good way.

Given the situation at Barcelona I wonder if they will shift to turn their attentions back to La Masia and prioritise development now over big money signings? 

10 hours ago, Matt_1979 said:

Excellent stuff matty. 

As always mate, appreciate your time to read and comment, where would you position Girona for your save? 

[Matt_1979]

18 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Thanks Chris, yes absolutely like most things I expect we all classify teams in certain ways but this model is something which I feel captures it in a good way.

Given the situation at Barcelona I wonder if they will shift to turn their attentions back to La Masia and prioritise development now over big money signings? 

As always mate, appreciate your time to read and comment, where would you position Girona for your save? 

Create another segment at the bottom called: “only sign players on free contracts” and you’re about there 😂

[SteinkelssonFM]

Absolutely buzzing to get this save started tomorrow, I can't wait to make my own opinion of FM22 after reading so many comments about the ME and of course the Data Hub. 

[SixPointer]

3 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Absolutely buzzing to get this save started tomorrow, I can't wait to make my own opinion of FM22 after reading so many comments about the ME and of course the Data Hub. 

Couldn’t agree more!! 

[Reifi]

Loving the data shown here, always a pleasure to see something like this! 100% keeping note of this for my save!

[SteinkelssonFM]

Thanks @Reifi I will hopefully complete pre-season fixtures and then update the thread with my initial thoughts on the tactic before heading into the competitive fixtures. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

Pre-season

After opting to not play FM22 during the BETA stage, the announcement of an early release with Miles pressing the RED button at HQ was music to my ears! From that point until now I have managed to optimise the database of use (c100k players) spanning across 24 nations, carry out the usual pre click 'continue' tasks (staff recruitment, squad analysis, training schedules, individual position training etc) all in record time! Let's ignore the fact that all of these I pretty much completed during the BETA in order to hit the ground (save) running. 

 

For those of you who will ask, this is the detail within the save and below the moment we have all been waiting for;

Given the fact that I would be looking to establish a possession based game with Betis, despite the lack of a DLP (a role which I have often relied upon in order to play a possession based game) the first port 0f call was to attempt to improve the clubs coaching team. With three additional slots available I wanted to ensure that a decent possession (Technical) coach was initially signed in order to attempt to transmit my game model to the playing staff.

Dennis the "Non-Flying Dutchman" is the man I have opted to put my faith in, his appointment comes from outside of the realms of the beautifully produced 5 star coaching staff publication which they create each year. Dennis was brought up through Ajax's world famous youth academy and was managed by Johan Cruyff, he not only brings a wealth of experience into the dressing room but also boasts a 'perfectionist' personality. 

I do hope he is willing to work for his 3.2k per week as he will no doubt be shocked to find out that my initial schedule will focus heavily on 'Attacking patient', Ball retention etc.

There is still plenty to do off-the-field with most training areas sitting on three to three and a half starts, Possession leads the way the only area which currently boasts four stars in both tactical and technical.

Pre-Season Results

A pretty decent pre-season for Betis, we managed to arrange a few friendlies against teams (Real Sporting and Wydad Casablanca) who were touring near our pre-season camp of Jerez de la Frontera which is located within Andalusia.  This ensured that I could rotate the players thoroughly, providing sufficient exposure to match intensity for the majority of the squad. At face value, looking purely at the scorers you will note that we have been pretty reliant on our DLF whether that be Borja or Willian . 

The relative low level of reputation opponent in the early stages of this block of fixtures allowed me to integrate some of the youth into the set-up to establish which players might be the lucky ones who will secure first-team debuts. (keeping the objective in mind).

The sides ability to hold onto the ball has been refreshing, especially considering we had 58% of the ball against Liverpool and 57% against Manchester United. Yes a large volume of this was not in their attacking-third but remember Rome was not built in a day and neither was Seville.

I have taken the pass map from the Liverpool game which shows a decent shape, there are plenty of triangles available to see without the use of a microscope which again emphasises that we are on the right track. I would most certainly look to see a few more diagonal lines in the box between the CD and DM, this will improve I hope when have improved our confidence on the ball. Canales (10) as the advanced playmaker looked to only have one outlet, a back pass to the supporting WB. 

This was a worry for me given the fact that initially I opted to field two DM's in the double pivot (support and defend) I therefore have already been a little trigger happy in terms of the tactic and have changed one DM to a VOL (attack) as I am hoping this role will provide a better link as we transition from defence to attack. 

The opening few fixtures from La Liga which I will have to navigate through can be seen above. I will look to provide you with an update on the save after these have been completed, hopefully by which time we will have discovered our fate in the Europa League. 

 

Edited November 10, 2021 by SteinkelssonFM

[Matt_1979]

Excellent start Matty. It’ll be interesting to see how the SV does. Someone with a good engine should provide passing outlets the length of the pitch. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

2 hours ago, Matt_1979 said:

Excellent start Matty. It’ll be interesting to see how the SV does. Someone with a good engine should provide passing outlets the length of the pitch. 

Thanks mate, bit of a round peg in a square whole at the moment in terms of Rodriguez playing the role as he is lacking in stamina. I would also like for him to have better long shots and off the ball for a heightened influence in the final third. 

[Matt_1979]

3 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Thanks mate, bit of a round peg in a square whole at the moment in terms of Rodriguez playing the role as he is lacking in stamina. I would also like for him to have better long shots and off the ball for a heightened influence in the final third. 

He should do the job until you can get someone else in if the role fits the tactic. Maybe set him to shoot less. 

[Chris_ANZFM]

Ah normal service has resumed. Very excited that this is proper underway. 
 

some promising signs early on, very much looking forward to watching this develop in the coming seasons. 

[SteinkelssonFM]

I would have to say that I did have initial concerns over this formation, although pre-season has shown that maybe I should have been a little more optimistic! 

Happy to be able to get some game time in, it was pretty painful watching everyone else have fun during the BETA stage! 

Thanks for commenting @Chris_ANZFM

[Hootieleece]

Stamina is an important attribute this year. My team isn't great in that department and it shows in giving up late goals. Since we press!

Also, I would suggest being more selective with your OI's because the old "press everyone and man mark 3-4" doesn't quite work anymore.

The important thing is to man mark playmakers and other suppliers.

[SteinkelssonFM]

Thanks for the heads up @Hootieleecein relation to the OI's surrounding pressing. 

Stamina isn't an attribute which we have in abundance due to the aged squad.

Do you switch your without the ball TI's throughout the game to press heavily in periods rather than consistently? 

[Hootieleece]

13 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Thanks for the heads up @Hootieleecein relation to the OI's surrounding pressing. 

Stamina isn't an attribute which we have in abundance due to the aged squad.

Do you switch your without the ball TI's throughout the game to press heavily in periods rather than consistently? 

I am still working out how to go about it, but I have an aging squad as well with many players over 30.

Right now, I am trying the Waste time TI when I have a lead since my team generally has more of the ball. 

I generally still press Suppliers, and Man Mark as well any Leading Assisters, but I am only pressing and marking about 5-6 players instead of everyone.

 

[SteinkelssonFM]

August 2021

The first competitive fixture as Manager of Betis would see me face Athletic Club, a club whose form has deteriorated in the recent years since Ernesto Valverde’s departure, the Basque outfit finished the 20/21 La Liga campaign in 10th place. 

Selection for this fixture was straight forward, picking the strongest side possible with the view to securing the victory. I am a firm believer that the result from the opening league fixture can often set the tone for the season ahead, this is speaking from experience as a now seasoned rugby player. 

I also believe that every dog has their day, you shouldn’t walk into any fixture expecting to win! Players need to not run the risk of going through the motions, the message was clear from the pre-match interview, we were out to secure the result. 

Athletic Club - Joaquin opened the scoring in the 13th minute after Alex Moreno hit a low cross across the six yard box which somehow found the veteran at the far post who tapped the ball into an empty net (0.64 xG).   A few minutes later Borja Iglesias played the role of the DLF to perfection, dropping into zone 14 pulling a defender with him from the defensive line. This created space for Joaquin to attack and the winger needed no second invitation as he used every last drop of his 13 acceleration before calmly slotting the ball past the keeper.

Joaquin clearly wanted to mark becoming Betis’ record holder (Oldest Player) with a special performance and moments later he earned the match ball after receiving the ball again from Iglesias from outside the box and driving past his man and dispatching his shot. 

26 minutes in Fekir added the fourth at which point I quite simply couldn’t contain my excitement and fired across a screen-shot to MATT. Joaquin provided the assist from a corner to Iglesias after 46 minutes, fortunately for Athletic club no further goals were scored in what simply was an exceptional performance from Betis and the old boy Sanchez.

Rayo Vallecano - We travelled to the capital for the next game and opted to only bring in tow new faces to the starting eleven. Pezzella was drafted in for Victor Ruiz whilst Victor Camarasa slid in for Guido Rodriguez who picked up a bruised thigh during training.

Thankfully Camarasa rewarded us with his selection by opening the scoring after three minutes, the early goal put Rayo under pressure from the off and forced them to come onto Betis. A brace from Borja secured all three points for Betis before Guardiola scored a consolation for the home side, the scoring was rounded off by Juanmi who entered the action at the break.

Getafe - Entering into the Getafe match I opted to make wholesale changes as we have 19 players within the first-team set-up that express their expectations to be either a regular starter or important player over the next five matches.

The above can be found under the Squad menu>Players tab> Playing time view.

There is a need to attempt to keep individuals happy, especially in this initial phase whilst I establish exactly who I can rely on in terms of outputs and consistency.

Above is an image which shows our shots from the first half of the Getafe game, a match which at the break we were being held. The visual may appear to be pleasing but when watching the match it was clear to see that if changes wouldn't have been made we probably wouldn't have scored if the game lasted 180 minutes. 

This forced the introduction of individuals which I have already established as being key (Borja, Bellerin, Bartra) whilst Camarasa was rewarded after his previous performance.

The above shows how the xG story spiked in the second period, when looking at the analytical data, key passes in particular, it was clear to see that the changes impacted the game. We had a greater success in relation to chance creation from within the final third from both wide channels. The key to unlocking a well organised Getafe defence was getting outside them and putting them under pressure in the air. 

After making it three wins on the bounce Borja was rewarded to his fine start to the season as he collected the POM accolade. The Spaniard rewarding his new manager with seven goal contributions (five goals, two assists) after trusting him to lead the line despite the acquisition of Jose. 

 

The Europa League

The group is going to be a challenge to say the least! 

I will continue to provide a monthly update on the save and will start to draw upon some of the in-game per 90 metrics either in the next update or the one after as we look to explore who are the best performers in the team for certain roles. we can discuss setting KPI's for metrics which are deemed as being key to success, using these as a benchmark for both selection and of course future recruitment plans. 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 12, 2021 by SteinkelssonFM

[Matt_1979]

You had me at “KPIs for metrics”. 🤤

[SteinkelssonFM]

I think around the 10 game mark is far enough into the save to have a solid baseline and enough rotation.

I can also share at that point a few of the early reports that my scouts have identified from around the globe. 

21 minutes ago, Matt_1979 said:

You had me at “KPIs for metrics”. 🤤

 

[Hootieleece]

Players are especially whiny about playing time this version, do make your changes in playing time but also keep the group dynamics in mind. Try and make sure you don't really tamper with Team Leaders or Highly influential otherwise you might end up with a player revolt!

Also, players and their Agents when they talk about the changes are much more threatening and argumentative.

A Good Captain and Vice-Captain are a godsend this year.