[FM22] Matryoshka

[SixPointer]

Hope your feeling better Ben. It knocked me for a couple of days after new year horrible like!

great update. I’ve seen a lot of talk of the CM(a) being a great role I’ve been using the MEZ (A) and it’s probably my favourite role in the game. But for the system I want the 8’s being more central I think I may play around with the CM default roles 

[_Ben_]

2 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

A little bit of everything in this post, and some sock knocking off news! Commiserations and well wishes about a speedy recovery. It’s rough.

And back to impossibly unimportant other distractions, if you sold Vostrikov, would that mean needing two positions: forward and Mez? Does Vostrikov cause trouble at all? Maybe repositioning him is a better option, but will he perform as well there. Gah, it’s a position to decide and then committing to selling or keeping and following through.

Thanks! Yeah, it's been a pretty rough week or so now - just waiting to finally start testing negative again.

Yeah, I'm not sure about him...

• Too slow for a winger
• Not a Mezzala by trade
• Certainly not a traditional #10
• Not really a deep lying playmaker
• Couldn't really slot in as an inverted wing back

He's perfectly well behaved, happy and playing really well. Yet, I'm kind of at a loss about just what I want to do with him. He's certainly one of those players who (as he was already here when I moved) spent the start of his career not really being pushed to excel at any one area - and now he's kind of a jack of all trades. 

2 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Hope your feeling better Ben. It knocked me for a couple of days after new year horrible like!

great update. I’ve seen a lot of talk of the CM(a) being a great role I’ve been using the MEZ (A) and it’s probably my favourite role in the game. But for the system I want the 8’s being more central I think I may play around with the CM default roles 

I love both the CM(a) and Mez(a) this year. What I like the most about these roles is that they just play so differently with different types of players. That whole thing just makes the conceptualisation of building a style so unique - nobody else has Boris Babushkin and Vitaly Vostrikov in their team and, even if they had similar players or had just copied my tactic from a screenshot, won't get it to play out the same way as they also don't have a Kacoubi or Palma behind them.

I really like my Mezzalas to be a morph between an 8 and a 10. I think Babushkin's dribbling and agility lend himself more to be that kind of player so I'm really tempted to, in the long term (either at Ural or elsewhere) have one Mezzala made from a proper old school number 10 - basically Juan Roman Riquelme. As a long-time FM player, many people did it better in the game and he was also pretty good at it in real life, too! His driving runs would certainly be different and he'd link up with the forward in a very different way.

[danielgear]

Get better soon mate. Loving the updates as always

[Hootieleece]

I have been using a CM-D and CM-S tandem in my midfield and have found that with PI's and PPM's I can recreate more specialized roles. One Thing I have noticed as I use more "Generic" role is that team fluidity seems to go up and I notice players interchanging more to keep defensive shape.

 

Let's just say it: Covid S***S! Hope you get better....

I hope to read more about this great Russian save!

 

[Shrewnaldo]

Sorry to hear that you're sick, Ben. Hope you recover soon - or at least your symptoms improve.

Thanks for the tips re newGAN. I've given it a shot but the tool doesn't write anything into the config file for some reason so have posted on FM Base looking for some technical help.

Loving the recruitment post for the mezz - I really like the way that these stats focused posts single-out the type of player and the type of output that you're looking for. 

[davidmcain]

4 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

I have been using a CM-D and CM-S tandem in my midfield and have found that with PI's and PPM's I can recreate more specialized roles. One Thing I have noticed as I use more "Generic" role is that team fluidity seems to go up and I notice players interchanging more to keep defensive shape.

 

Let's just say it: Covid S***S! Hope you get better....

I hope to read more about this great Russian save!

 

Agree with this 100% - The more vanilla the roles, the more fluid the shape. Customising the PI's on Support players also aids fluidity from what I've seen

 

Also, get better @_Ben_ - love this thread. I don't comment much, but I'm enjoying the journey

[john1]

On 19/02/2022 at 13:15, _Ben_ said:

I completely agree. It was my first negotiation and they straight up accepted, which tells me I should have gone higher. However, he was already pretty unhappy at his wage demands so I didn't want to further that, particularly with us in such good collective spirits right now.

With Vostrikov not going, it does certainly open a door for him to play at a striker, definitely. I'll see how he gets on. Budunov, sadly, just isn't quite good enough for this level.

Eight foreign players and four training before 21st birthday, which I meet, with ease. The academy is certainly assisting with that part.

I have often lauded our youth intakes - but these are the second and third choice keepers that CSKA have, both of whom came through their academy:

  

They are both insane!

Now if we could get to that level...

It's frustrating when you get a good intakes but other clubs gets even better  

[john1]

Hope you get better soon Ben! @_Ben_

[_Ben_]

22 hours ago, danielgear said:

Get better soon mate. Loving the updates as always

Thanks Dan - now I’m able to focus and actually read (again - I hoped Covid would give me a chance to get through a growing pile of literature, but it hasn’t!) I will get back in your thread and have a deep read. 

22 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

I have been using a CM-D and CM-S tandem in my midfield and have found that with PI's and PPM's I can recreate more specialized roles. One Thing I have noticed as I use more "Generic" role is that team fluidity seems to go up and I notice players interchanging more to keep defensive shape.

 

Absolutely love those ‘vanilla roles’ - especially in the early phases of tactical creation. 

Have not seen a difference in tactical familiarity with them though, so will keep an eye out!

21 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Sorry to hear that you're sick, Ben. Hope you recover soon - or at least your symptoms improve.

Thanks for the tips re newGAN. I've given it a shot but the tool doesn't write anything into the config file for some reason so have posted on FM Base looking for some technical help.

Loving the recruitment post for the mezz - I really like the way that these stats focused posts single-out the type of player and the type of output that you're looking for. 

Drop me a DM if you want a hand with it. I found it temperamental at the start but got there. 

I wasn’t looking to recruit, just look at those with similar numbers. As they hadn’t been scouted enough, I didn’t do an attribute comparison to show that Vostrikov is way outperforming his finishing ability, so looked at stats, instead. 

Certainly do want to try this role with a pure 10!

18 hours ago, davidmcain said:

Agree with this 100% - The more vanilla the roles, the more fluid the shape. Customising the PI's on Support players also aids fluidity from what I've seen

 

Also, get better @_Ben_ - love this thread. I don't comment much, but I'm enjoying the journey

Thanks so much!

Again - not seen more fluidity with those roles but I do love the wider berth if PI you can add (FB(au)) being the main one here and how then the real drivers for those roles are the traits. Very much fits with my ideology of tactical building. 
 

1 hour ago, john1 said:

It's frustrating when you get a good intakes but other clubs gets even better  

CSKA are, in every sense, the team we want to become. They are historically strong and have a great track record with their academy. We’ll get there or I’ll just join them!

[danielgear]

10 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

I will get back in your thread and have a deep read. 

Won’t be any more updates until the weekend as I’m away so a perfect time to catch up 

In regards to your tactic is there something you want to evolve to or are you prepared to adapt on the fly if a certain player comes through the ranks or is it very much this is the tactic and everyone has to adapt to fit it? 

[_Ben_]

4 hours ago, danielgear said:

In regards to your tactic is there something you want to evolve to or are you prepared to adapt on the fly if a certain player comes through the ranks or is it very much this is the tactic and everyone has to adapt to fit it? 

I'm absolutely not precious about the tactic and want it to develop into the best version of itself. I do, for realism sake (Pep wouldn't suddenly became this pragmatic Italian style coach overnight but likewise, he probably wouldn't go and sign Haaland and Kane without selling any of his current players and then play one up top) and also for my own sake, have an identity, or ideology, that I want to roughly stick by and that can be summarised into something like: organised, defensive play transitioning into vertical, fast paced offense. That is why my key metrics across the team are pretty much just Interceptions, Key Passes and Progressive play (although this one is stupidly hard to actually track across a whole team) and the key attributes are what they are. I went into a load of detail in the first post and this very much mimics my own coaching experiences as well as the style of football I enjoy watching and, actually, was fortunate to play a part in, even at a really really poor level some years ago.

The tactic then uses roles that I feel best compliment that and, fortunately, all the teams I've managed have really lent themselves to a 4-1-4-1 shape. But, I may come across a squad that really suits a three at the back or has two star strikers and, if/when I do, I will adapt.

Right now, I think a double Mez gets the best out of both the players I have and the system I have but when I had Mozambique winger Antonio, I only used one central runner together with him as a wide runner. Likewise, if Juan Roman Riquelme was to come through my intake, I may shift that 4-1-4-1 to a 4-4-1-1 to allow absolute freedom for my 10 and I'd re-adjust the midfield two, making at least one of them sit and hold. Even without changing players - I am flexible within the current squad. Right now, my inverted wing backs aren't the fastest, nor best crossers, so, if I felt I was getting beaten then, could easily move to WB(d), for example and create that cushion of three I really like, but just wider on the pitch.

 

[_Ben_]

(Mid) October 2032

I'm super settled here at Ural and I'm loving my time here. However, there are so many things that are now in place. We have training down to a tee, the recruitment process is up and running, we're financially becoming more and more settled. It's now part of the long game. This move to Krasnodar would let me start all of this over again, but on a massive scale.

All you've got to do is compare the clubs, with us on the right:

We're currently sixth and they're ninth in the league but, at the time of writing, we're separated by just two points so this isn't that drop down that I first envisaged when I considered Rubin or even Rostov. There's clearly an issue somewhere within their first team but this could be the team that I take over and spend ten years with - creating an absolute juggernaut. I could then, possibly, take this journey abroad and see how my tactical ideology and development style would fare in the biggest leagues.

Thoughts?

[john1]

Huge, huge difference between 2 clubs. Personally, I would go for Krasnodar as you could probably develop better players there.

[Novem9]

I almost sure I wrote before you need join to Krasnodar.

Go to the bulls! 

p.s. get well soon , Ben!

[danielgear]

50 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

(Mid) October 2032

I'm super settled here at Ural and I'm loving my time here. However, there are so many things that are now in place. We have training down to a tee, the recruitment process is up and running, we're financially becoming more and more settled. It's now part of the long game. This move to Krasnodar would let me start all of this over again, but on a massive scale.

All you've got to do is compare the clubs, with us on the right:

We're currently sixth and they're ninth in the league but, at the time of writing, we're separated by just two points so this isn't that drop down that I first envisaged when I considered Rubin or even Rostov. There's clearly an issue somewhere within their first team but this could be the team that I take over and spend ten years with - creating an absolute juggernaut. I could then, possibly, take this journey abroad and see how my tactical ideology and development style would fare in the biggest leagues.

Thoughts?

No brainer for me, Make the move. The years it’ll take you to get Ural up to same standard as them off the pitch could be spent building Krasnodar, you’ll probably find when you get there  that it doesn’t take you that long to get them ahead of Ural in terms of playing squad and they’re much better suited for a full assault on the top teams, title and Europe (at least one of the Europa’s) 

[danielgear]

2 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

I'm absolutely not precious about the tactic and want it to develop into the best version of itself. I do, for realism sake (Pep wouldn't suddenly became this pragmatic Italian style coach overnight but likewise, he probably wouldn't go and sign Haaland and Kane without selling any of his current players and then play one up top) and also for my own sake, have an identity, or ideology, that I want to roughly stick by and that can be summarised into something like: organised, defensive play transitioning into vertical, fast paced offense. That is why my key metrics across the team are pretty much just Interceptions, Key Passes and Progressive play (although this one is stupidly hard to actually track across a whole team) and the key attributes are what they are. I went into a load of detail in the first post and this very much mimics my own coaching experiences as well as the style of football I enjoy watching and, actually, was fortunate to play a part in, even at a really really poor level some years ago.

The tactic then uses roles that I feel best compliment that and, fortunately, all the teams I've managed have really lent themselves to a 4-1-4-1 shape. But, I may come across a squad that really suits a three at the back or has two star strikers and, if/when I do, I will adapt.

Right now, I think a double Mez gets the best out of both the players I have and the system I have but when I had Mozambique winger Antonio, I only used one central runner together with him as a wide runner. Likewise, if Juan Roman Riquelme was to come through my intake, I may shift that 4-1-4-1 to a 4-4-1-1 to allow absolute freedom for my 10 and I'd re-adjust the midfield two, making at least one of them sit and hold. Even without changing players - I am flexible within the current squad. Right now, my inverted wing backs aren't the fastest, nor best crossers, so, if I felt I was getting beaten then, could easily move to WB(d), for example and create that cushion of three I really like, but just wider on the pitch.

 

I think this is the best way to be, it also offers an extra challenge as even tweaking the 4141 opens up issues, If you do make the move to Krasnodar it would be interesting to see if they fit into your 4141 or if you go down a different route. What formation have they been playing with? 

[SixPointer]

I think you’ve more than earned you right to take the job. With everything in place you’ll leave URAL in good stead, and then begin a huge revolution and take Russia then Europe by storm with a club outside Moscow and Zenit. I feel it opens up an all new and intriguing chapter.  

[_Ben_]

2 hours ago, john1 said:

Huge, huge difference between 2 clubs. Personally, I would go for Krasnodar as you could probably develop better players there.

Absolutely! I didn't actually realise they were that big. A completely empty trophy cabinet though...

1 hour ago, Novem9 said:

I almost sure I wrote before you need join to Krasnodar.

Go to the bulls! 

Knew you'd like this deal! Got to actually see their manager get sacked first though.

1 hour ago, danielgear said:

No brainer for me, Make the move. The years it’ll take you to get Ural up to same standard as them off the pitch could be spent building Krasnodar, you’ll probably find when you get there  that it doesn’t take you that long to get them ahead of Ural in terms of playing squad and they’re much better suited for a full assault on the top teams, title and Europe (at least one of the Europa’s) 

I think this is the best way to be, it also offers an extra challenge as even tweaking the 4141 opens up issues, If you do make the move to Krasnodar it would be interesting to see if they fit into your 4141 or if you go down a different route. What formation have they been playing with? 

I agree. There is just a much higher starting point with Krasnodar. They've been playing a 4-3-3 which does pretty easily translate into my 4-1-4-1 to be fair. Not got a proper look at the players yet as I'm saving that for if/when I get an interview.

38 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

I think you’ve more than earned you right to take the job. With everything in place you’ll leave URAL in good stead, and then begin a huge revolution and take Russia then Europe by storm with a club outside Moscow and Zenit. I feel it opens up an all new and intriguing chapter.  

Absolutely. I think the words 'huge revolution' and 'taking Europe by storm' are probably not the most appropriate though, right now!

[Novem9]

The most beautiful stadium in the country! It is a pity that it did not take part in the World Cup, because. too small (35k seats)

 

[Shrewnaldo]

I'm going to echo the general consensus here and support the move to Krasnodar, should you get the chance. It feels like it'd be a logical part of the story / narrative and, like Dan says, it'd take you quite a few seasons to bridge the gap you can leap just by moving clubs. 

[Sonic Youth]

Did Krasnodor’s manager say anything in the media after that article about you wanting his job?

I think Krasnodar would be a good move. How far from Ural is it?

Would you look to any of Ural’s players and staff if you do?

[Novem9]

3 часа назад, Sonic Youth сказал:

How far from Ural is it?

Krasnodar is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai. This is the same area where Sochi located. Ben definetilly like this place  
This city is not on the coast, 3 hours drive for Black sea:

Btw Krasnodar has local rival with Rostov, South Derby

[_Ben_]

10 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

I'm going to echo the general consensus here and support the move to Krasnodar, should you get the chance. It feels like it'd be a logical part of the story / narrative and, like Dan says, it'd take you quite a few seasons to bridge the gap you can leap just by moving clubs. 

Absolutely. The end goal for this save is certainly Krasnodar or CSKA, here, for me. Krasnodar being outside of Moscow and CSKA being the Moscow side that we can identify most with in terms of their aims.

4 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Did Krasnodor’s manager say anything in the media after that article about you wanting his job?

I think Krasnodar would be a good move. How far from Ural is it?

Would you look to any of Ural’s players and staff if you do?

No, nothing I saw.

Sadly, they've moved back to stable now but we play them next and a win will put some pressure back on. Their manager only took over at the start of the season so I wouldn't expect a huge backlash from the board, just yet anyway.

I'd try and take as many staff as I could - particularly the scouting team that I've assembled but never really like to take players with me, certainly not from the first team anyway.

7 minutes ago, Novem9 said:

This is the same area where Sochi located. Ben definetilly like this place  

I certainly do! The manager is also from Krasnodar Krai too so it'll be somewhat of a homecoming. Mashuk, Anji, Sochi and Krasnodar fill those big southern Russian spots with a little excursion to Yekaterinburg too!

[_Ben_]

October 2032

Four more games as we nearly reach the half way stage of the season, and find ourselves, once again, in a really strong position. There's no stopping the runaway leaders here and, despite Zenit's interesting transfer policy and poor performance in Europe, they're such a tough side to face in the domestic game.

We've very much overtaken Rubin and Rostov now and it's really Krasnodar that I'm aiming for - if I want to stay outside of Moscow on this journey. Obviously I posted a link to the job, but that has since returned to being stable. However, for the team predicted to finish third this season, there surely will not be a huge window for them to turn their fortunes round. However, until that opportunity arises, my focus is solely on Ural and doing the best I can with what I have got. 

On that note of doing the best with what I have - I must say that we've not really moved forward this season and, largely, that was to be expected. We've not been able to really strengthen the team due to financial constraints so I'd expect us to, hopefully, hold our position from last season, which is what we have done.

A tough game to take against CSKA as we were, arguably, the better side. They've got that little bit of quality that we just don't have and punished us twice, scoring from low xG attempts. It's, again, a promising performance, which certainly shows our improvement against the historical big sides. We very nearly recorded back to back defeats, going 2-0 down to my old club, Sochi, inside twelve minutes. It was, of course, my old signing, Paraschiv, who scored twice for them and led the line much better than he ever did in the second tier. We allowed them to pepper our goal with long range, low quality shots but, to our credit, really turned it around in the fifteen or so minutes before half time. It shows that I'm able to motivate the side well and we don't lie down, even when things aren't going our way. We dominated into the second half too and should have scored considerably ore against the worst team in the league. We salvaged a late draw in a drab display against Alania, with substitute Luiz netting his first for the club. I gave him a start against Rubin and the young Mezzala-in-training netted again as we dominated, producing our best result of the month. Keffel continued his strong start at the club with his second of the season, too.

---

Things are progressing nicely and we're on course to finish with around the same number of points as we did last season.

[SteinkelssonFM]

13 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

They've been playing a 4-3-3 which does pretty easily translate into my 4-1-4-1 to be fair.

I think given that their set up is so closely aligned with your go to 4-1-4-1 paired with the fact that you originally pinpointed the club as a potential final destination means that the stars have aligned! 

The fact that the club also sits outside of both Moscow and Zenit is also a nice touch, I know it's not set in stone as of yet. However, I feel that like others, it should be.

[SixPointer]

31 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

October 2032

Four more games as we nearly reach the half way stage of the season, and find ourselves, once again, in a really strong position. There's no stopping the runaway leaders here and, despite Zenit's interesting transfer policy and poor performance in Europe, they're such a tough side to face in the domestic game.

We've very much overtaken Rubin and Rostov now and it's really Krasnodar that I'm aiming for - if I want to stay outside of Moscow on this journey. Obviously I posted a link to the job, but that has since returned to being stable. However, for the team predicted to finish third this season, there surely will not be a huge window for them to turn their fortunes round. However, until that opportunity arises, my focus is solely on Ural and doing the best I can with what I have got. 

On that note of doing the best with what I have - I must say that we've not really moved forward this season and, largely, that was to be expected. We've not been able to really strengthen the team due to financial constraints so I'd expect us to, hopefully, hold our position from last season, which is what we have done.

A tough game to take against CSKA as we were, arguably, the better side. They've got that little bit of quality that we just don't have and punished us twice, scoring from low xG attempts. It's, again, a promising performance, which certainly shows our improvement against the historical big sides. We very nearly recorded back to back defeats, going 2-0 down to my old club, Sochi, inside twelve minutes. It was, of course, my old signing, Paraschiv, who scored twice for them and led the line much better than he ever did in the second tier. We allowed them to pepper our goal with long range, low quality shots but, to our credit, really turned it around in the fifteen or so minutes before half time. It shows that I'm able to motivate the side well and we don't lie down, even when things aren't going our way. We dominated into the second half too and should have scored considerably ore against the worst team in the league. We salvaged a late draw in a drab display against Alania, with substitute Luiz netting his first for the club. I gave him a start against Rubin and the young Mezzala-in-training netted again as we dominated, producing our best result of the month. Keffel continued his strong start at the club with his second of the season, too.

---

Things are progressing nicely and we're on course to finish with around the same number of points as we did last season.

Really tough on to swallow against CSKA as your created chances. Fantastic comeback as well in the Sochi game, massive character considering that you had just been beaten in a game you deserved more from. Would be easy for there heads to drop as the second goal went in but fighting spirit prevails. 

[_Ben_]

5 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

I think given that their set up is so closely aligned with your go to 4-1-4-1 paired with the fact that you originally pinpointed the club as a potential final destination means that the stars have aligned! 

The fact that the club also sits outside of both Moscow and Zenit is also a nice touch, I know it's not set in stone as of yet. However, I feel that like others, it should be.

I think the time is coming...

[_Ben_]

November 2032

Not the most exciting of months...

But, we've done it again. Four more points added to the tally against Moscow teams and we held Krasnodar, the much talked about team that are, on paper, significantly bigger than we are. Granted, we rode our luck - saving a ninetieth minute penalty and getting the rub of the green with one chalked off seconds afterwards - but we secured a good point on the road.

---

Just looking at their job advert excites me...

I'm going for it!

[_Ben_]

December 2032

Negotiations...

So, I had the interview and attended it, stipulating that I wanted a pretty big budget for moving my staff over - mainly the recruitment team...

I was well rewarded...

I've analysed and moved over the staff that I want to take with me, including firing all the recruitment team and taking all of mine with me and removing all of the U19 staff, as my plan will be to work with the -2 side, as I've done here at Ural.

---

The contract screen is fantastic:

These three are an exact match of what I want to be playing, and...

The five year plan of the best youth academy is certainly something I can get my teeth into.

There's steady progress wanted from the board, which, whilst is something I haven't been able to necessarily achieve here at Ural, shows that the club is hungry for success.

And backed financially, too...

That budget is nearly 10x the size of the one I have at Ural. This club could be everything I could ask for, and more!

[SixPointer]

If you get it will you tweaking your philosophy to suit a bigger club and play the attacking football the board demands. 

[RogerC]

1 hour ago, _Ben_ said:

Just looking at their job advert excites me...

I'm going for it!

58 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

December 2032

Negotiations...

So, I had the interview and attended it, stipulating that I wanted a pretty big budget for moving my staff over - mainly the recruitment team...

I was well rewarded...

I've analysed and moved over the staff that I want to take with me, including firing all the recruitment team and taking all of mine with me and removing all of the U19 staff, as my plan will be to work with the -2 side, as I've done here at Ural.

---

The contract screen is fantastic:

These three are an exact match of what I want to be playing, and...

The five year plan of the best youth academy is certainly something I can get my teeth into.

There's steady progress wanted from the board, which, whilst is something I haven't been able to necessarily achieve here at Ural, shows that the club is hungry for success.

And backed financially, too...

That budget is nearly 10x the size of the one I have at Ural. This club could be everything I could ask for, and more!

All this looks like dreams for Zakharov!

[danielgear]

The right decision Ben and best of luck. 

[danielgear]

1 hour ago, _Ben_ said:

I've analysed and moved over the staff

Having done one club only saves for years now I’ve not seen this (or if I have it was years ago) it’s a nice touch from the game. 

[_Ben_]

1 hour ago, danielgear said:

Having done one club only saves for years now I’ve not seen this (or if I have it was years ago) it’s a nice touch from the game. 

I know. Having never moved jobs before FM21, I was unaware too. The new backroom setup has a normal feeling about it...

[_Ben_]

December 2032

It is time...

Before I introduce the Krasnodar squad and take a deep dive into everything I want to achieve there, it's really important that I share just how much I enjoyed my time at Ural. 2 years and 150 days, a promotion, sixty-seven wins and some absolutely fantastic groundwork put in place. From Babushkin, to Petrenko, Prutov and Matveev, I've developed young players from the academy and brought them into the first team - the reason why I brought HoYD Ivan Melnik with me. I stabilised the club financially and created a scouting and recruiting network that allowed me to pick up some really solid and undervalued player - again, no surprise to find out that I've brought all of the recruitment team with me, even if they are here for the short term now I can attract better players.

I've spent a lot of time reading and learning about Yekaterinburg whilst playing as Ural and it seems like an absolutely lovely part of the world. I've certainly got a soft spot for their orange kits and easy-to-please fans. It's quite a hard goodbye, but I'm coming home...

From Pyatigorsk, to Makhachkala, to Sochi, Yekaterinburg and now back home to Krasnodar. A mere 266km from Ryzdvyany, the birth place of Zakharov, Krasnodar is pretty much 'home' and where I want to settle and build an empire. From the contract screen, shown above, this is just the perfect place for me to develop as a tactical manager but also create the best youth academy in the country and develop the next young Russian superstars that will help overturn the recent slump in their performances.

With some new kits, see below, and a thorough backroom re-shuffle, we're in. It's now the winter break so I have seventy odd days to put into place all of the things I want to do before aiming t finish in the top 5 or winning the cup. The board want Europe. I've seen that they can be quick to make a decision, sacking a manager inside four months, so I don't want to mess them around!

[danielgear]

@_Ben_ how have your former clubs all done since you left? One thing I’ve always found with FM (again years ago) is they never continued building the foundations I laid when I moved on. Just curious as to how the AI have done in your absence. 

[_Ben_]

1 minute ago, danielgear said:

@_Ben_ how have your former clubs all done since you left? One thing I’ve always found with FM (again years ago) is they never continued building the foundations I laid when I moved on. Just curious as to how the AI have done in your absence. 

I always get sad when I look at this!

Mashuk - done nothing since I left in 2027

Anji - finished third in the season that I decided to move on to Sochi! Just been relegated to the third tier though:

Sochi - I was sacked after finishing fifth but they've finally realised their dream of competing in the RPL again. Sadly, it'll only last a season!

[Sonic Youth]

Krasnodar signed sealed and revolving door…?

That’s a lot of staff exchange. Comprehensive was the word I read. Hopefully that’s the backroom staff sorted.

Onto the playing squad!

it will be curious to see which of your ex-players at Ural leave now you’ve left. Especially those whose contracts were needing renewal.

[danielgear]

1 minute ago, _Ben_ said:

I always get sad when I look at this!

Mashuk - done nothing since I left in 2027

Anji - finished third in the season that I decided to move on to Sochi! Just been relegated to the third tier though:

Sochi - I was sacked after finishing fifth but they've finally realised their dream of competing in the RPL again. Sadly, it'll only last a season!

Such a shame, obviously not every club has continued success when a manager moves on but you’d like to think 1 of the 3 would have, I suppose Sochi improved getting promoted, hopefully they can get themselves back up again at the first time of trying next season. 

[RogerC]

Do you feel you will look for any of th players from Ural? Maybe a youngster?

[_Ben_]

December 2032

Now, a brief chance to look at the squad. I'll certainly want two or three windows in order to really get the house in order, with particular consideration to the massive wage bill. Whilst we are considered rich, and have nearly £50m in the bank, we're predicted to lose £30m this season with that amount being what we spend on wages. It's a much bigger starting point and we have so many opportunities to make money but we need solid foundations to do this from.

Here is the squad:

In Samoshnikov and Capaldo, we'll be trimming £280k pcm off our wage bill alone, with the latter pining for a move back to Argentina - one that I'll certainly agree to. There's a number of players earning a lot of money who will be moved on - Styles (although potentially a good inverted wing back), Mighten, Hlynsson and even club icon Biancone are just not the right player for a team that will be formed around the young, up and coming talent that is here. We have one of Russia's top keepers in Prokhorov, from the academy, too and also have some other young talent in Roganov, Fomchenko and Dijoev - all of whom can be moulded to what I want. Sadly, the presence of academy talent, goalkeeper aside, is poor and this is something I'll be working on certainly.

Here they are with a bit more detail:

Prokhorov is insane and, potentially, better than the two CSKA keepers. It's a travesty that his passing ability isn't being utilised here and I'll look to build the team around him for many years to come. Kosarevskiy is a decent backup but I'd like a better player here at some point in the future.

Svoboda is the top rated player here but certainly not the ball playing type that I want nor a long term option. Avramchuk doesn't offer much more in that sense and there certainly is a lot to do in terms of developing this part of the team. In the short term though, they'll both need to keep up the high number of interceptions and ensure that their tackle rates move closer to, or above, that 90% marker.

Lots of players here and I quite like the idea of moving Callum Styles (I read about this lad: he's from Bury and plays for Barnsley right now but is eligible for Ukraine through grandparents) to an IWB, opposite Msomi outside of Biancone. Whilst they're not the ideal players - it allows me to get my stronger players on to the pitch at the same time. I'm not sure I actually rate any of the other players but, again, I'm toying with moving Ivlev to the left inverted wing back, making way for a more flair player ahead of him.

We're not really sold for Mezzala type players except for ex-Ajax youth player Hlynsson who I think could actually be a world class Mezzala - given that Technique, First Touch, Off the Ball and Agility. He'll likely pair Kolosov, who reminds me a little bit of Vostrkiov from Ural but there isn't too much depth behind that. Ivlev already looks to be either an IWB or the wide playmaker, in the short term - although, that role is subject to chance should the players necessitate it to.

Mighten is a high earner who isn't that good but there will need to be some kind of performances from him in order for me to be able to sell him on. Djioev looks to be a promising winger but will be needed to fill up up front probably...

Because, somehow, we only have one forward. He's not a great goalscorer, either!

---

A strange squad. Certainly one that you know that been put together by AI management. There's areas of over-population, but also areas of under population with some strange dealings made. That's part of the joy of this, though!

Edited February 28, 2022 by _Ben_

[_Ben_]

46 minutes ago, Sonic Youth said:

That’s a lot of staff exchange. Comprehensive was the word I read. Hopefully that’s the backroom staff sorted.

Onto the playing squad!

it will be curious to see which of your ex-players at Ural leave now you’ve left. Especially those whose contracts were needing renewal.

It's not entirely finished but it's a start. The recruitment department was a right mess, judging by their attributes. To have the best squad, we need the best backroom too, which is an ongoing process.

I hope Ural don't fall apart but I can't see them holding on to their really strong academy players, sadly.

44 minutes ago, danielgear said:

Such a shame, obviously not every club has continued success when a manager moves on but you’d like to think 1 of the 3 would have, I suppose Sochi improved getting promoted, hopefully they can get themselves back up again at the first time of trying next season. 

Yeah - they got there in the end. Most importantly, I've bucked the trend of it being a managerial graveyard!

22 minutes ago, RogerC said:

Do you feel you will look for any of th players from Ural? Maybe a youngster?

I don't really like going back to my old teams, certainly not so quickly, anyway. As you can see, there's a lot of gaps within the squad but this will never be recruitment for the sake of it!

[_Ben_]

December 2032

My plan is to do this as a stream of consciousness as I progress through the month...

I was able to take £63k p/w (£1,512,000 over the course of his contract and a comparison to the £1.8m for actually terminating it) off the wage bill by allowing Capaldo to leave. Just to ensure minimal financial loss, I sold a clause for Yerokhin to actually allow this to cost just a couple of hundred thousand pound upfront and save me a fair bit over the course of the season. It pulls the projection up, too.

---

Scouts are back out and doing the exact same as I had instructed at Ural. We're looking for young talent in Russia, 18-20 year olds from South America and then just trying to gather a pool from across Europe. I'll need to actually build a scouting database here before delving deeper into the finer parts.

---

Nothing better than coming across a youngster like Sakheishvili when going through the youth teams. I love the Flair, First Touch and Technique. I was also able to find Maxim Skylar, who could, potentially, do a job as a backup that would allow me to move on Samoshnikov, freeing up another £600k before his contract ends.

Whilst the wage bill will almost certainly increase and will definitely need to in order for us to fully challenge - moving on these players and the likes of Styles and Mighten in future is something I look forward to doing in order for the initial stabilisation of this project.

---

So much more to get to grips with here at Krasnodar. I'm impressed with the potential that this club has but feel that the prospects, certainly, are somewhat of a step down from Ural. However - the overall quality of the squad is pretty good and I certainly fancy us to be able to hit the ground running and do pretty well.

[Hootieleece]

Building a scouting Base is what I need to do......I am playing Germany (Hertha) and need to overthrow Bayern. How do you set up your scouts?

I also need to get more young German players because everyone is talking about my "Mercenary Army" in the Press,

 

[SixPointer]

Ben do you plan to raid Ural for some of the gems you had developed? Or even some of the first teamers? 

[_Ben_]

11 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

Building a scouting Base is what I need to do......I am playing Germany (Hertha) and need to overthrow Bayern. How do you set up your scouts?

I also need to get more young German players because everyone is talking about my "Mercenary Army" in the Press,

 

My plan is to build a successful playing time pathway from the academy all the way through to the first team. Now, given that Russian's can't move abroad until they're 18 and, likewise, non-Russian's cannot sign until then - the focus that two of them have is to look for Russian's between 15 and 18 with high potential. In Germany, that's different because you can sign players from within the EU before they turn 18. I then want to look at South America as a) it fits in with the board objective to sign players who can be sold on for profit and b) also fits nicely with something Russian has been doing for years. I also think that the flair and technical ability of these South American's, combined with the tactical nous and fitness of the Russian players is a nice mix! I then have scouts out and about to just watch matches and find players and uncover their attributes. I can then go on to use my statistical analysis tools to further spot hidden and undervalued gems.

3 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Ben do you plan to raid Ural for some of the gems you had developed? Or even some of the first teamers? 

Nope. They're property of Ural and, as much as I'd love the likes of Palma, I don't want to weaken them in an unrealistic away. Just something that has never sat right with me.

[_Ben_]

(Early) January 2033

I've been having a really detailed look at this squad and trying to plan out my next moves in a financially sound but also progressive way. Even though I split the players up into their best positions, as judged by my assistant, a further look has seen some movements in roles and ideas that I want to try out. I still haven't played a competitive match (in fact, the players are still actually on holiday!) so this is very much preliminary. Below are the first and (where possible) second option for each position in the 4-1-4-1 as, luckily, the players available very much suit this shape:

Yellow are players that will be retrained to fit my needs based on their suitability for these roles and red players are those with contracts expiring in the next eighteen months.

---

First up, I decided to cash in on Michael Svoboda, getting £500k from Fenerbache for his services. I needed to do that quickly before his contract became unprotected as I wanted to move him on now rather than lose him for a free. It's not the cost upfront that I cared about but the £69,000 per week that he's taking from the club. Whilst Alvaro Carillo isn't the answer, when compared with Svoboda, he's, at least, able to provide us with a little more of a ball playing option. I was then also able to move Samoshnikov on for a free transfer, again, freeing up £24,000 per week.

This has allowed me to, already, bring the wage bill down from a total contribution of £910,095 per week to a much more respectable £738,612 per week. 

The next step is to sort out those players now entering their final year and a half. Whilst Hlynsson is a massive earner, his ability and age means that he's not really an issue for me in terms of keeping him. After all, I can't and don't want to, just sell on everyone and be left with no team that will need rebuilding at, probably, a pretty hefty cost. However, the four players, below, are all the wrong side of 30 and are going to cost me an excruciating sum between now and June 2034, when their deals expire:

Planning ahead, we are quite lucky that, actually, I am in a position whereby Podymov could directly replace Biancone and Ivlev could directly replace Style - leaving me just some right wingers, although I'd probably get Djioev to move back to his favoured side. Both Carillo and Hlynsson have one-year extensions that I'm likely to give to them and then, realistically, my job is to tie down Ivlev and Fomchenko as two, young, Russian lads.

---

With every deeper look at the team, I am beginning to see that the AI had got them to not a million miles away from a squad that can run smoothly and make progress on and off the pitch!

[Sonic Youth]

1 hour ago, _Ben_ said:

With every deeper look at the team, I am beginning to see that the AI had got them to not a million miles away from a squad that can run smoothly and make progress on and off the pitch!

Are you giving the AI credit? Maybe there was inbuilt succession planning for end of contract, where as a human manager can shift them on earlier if desired.

Squad seems to be fairly organised the way you noted down your actions. It’s good this is occurring during the mid season break.

[danielgear]

6 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

(Early) January 2033

Yellow are players that will be retrained to fit my needs based on their suitability for these roles and red players are those with contracts expiring in the next eighteen months.

Regarding Ivlev and Fomchenko, if they won’t agree to new contracts will you still retrain them? 
It’s interesting to see so many out of contract within 18 months it should give you the flexibility to naturally overhaul the squad if you feel that’s needed. 

Which player do you like the look of in the squad? And are any international players?

[SteinkelssonFM]

9 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

red players are those with contracts expiring in the next eighteen months.

As my fellow Bristolian said, you have quite a few players who have their contracts expiring in the next 18 months. Given that some of these could well not fit your style of play, I would say this is a good thing as you can give the side a bit of a facelift and look to remove some of the deadwood with a specific focus on those drawing down too much monies (like the four you have identified).