[FM22] Statman and Robins

[MattyLewis11]

👏 wow, what a few days you have had! Apologies as only just catching up due to being on a stag do.

The use of the in game stats is right up my street and I really like what you have done, specifically on this save due to the use of the skin etc. 

I will still no doubt have to re read this again in the morning to fully absorb it but the comments from yourself and a few others over the last few days have really been of top quality 👍

Bring on Ömür

[13th Man]

I think the 4-4-2 diamond is a good way to go. You can have an out and out striker always ready to run in behind while still, effectively, having your two #10s. Even better, one of those 10s will be dropping from the forward strata meaning he’ll probably either be pulling a defender out of position or be unmarked. 
I’m really enjoying having two strikers again these last two FM versions after years of 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3. I’m currently  using 3atb, but in my current save I went from a 3-4-3 to a 3-5-2, and the latter has been far more potent with an AF and DLF combo.

[Shrewnaldo]

35 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

The more I look at it, the more I'm thinking I just need to switch to a diamond and stick two up top.

With two 10s, shadow striker left and treq right:

 

And then with a diamond - treq at 10, poacher left, false 9 right

 

 

 

I had added the wrong video for the diamond. Now corrected

[Shrewnaldo]

14 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

👏 wow, what a few days you have had! Apologies as only just catching up due to being on a stag do.

The use of the in game stats is right up my street and I really like what you have done, specifically on this save due to the use of the skin etc. 

I will still no doubt have to re read this again in the morning to fully absorb it but the comments from yourself and a few others over the last few days have really been of top quality 👍

Bring on Ömür

Cheers Matty. Had quite a bit of playing time this weekend and absolutely loving the save so very easy to just get on and play

And completely agree on the level of comments and engagement. Really great stuff from all the commenters in the thread. Much appreciated

7 minutes ago, 13th Man said:

I think the 4-4-2 diamond is a good way to go. You can have an out and out striker always ready to run in behind while still, effectively, having your two #10s. Even better, one of those 10s will be dropping from the forward strata meaning he’ll probably either be pulling a defender out of position or be unmarked. 
I’m really enjoying having two strikers again these last two FM versions after years of 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3. I’m currently  using 3atb, but in my current save I went from a 3-4-3 to a 3-5-2, and the latter has been far more potent with an AF and DLF combo.

I hadn't really considered this but you're right. In effect, it is still two 10s. Which makes me feel a lot better as I keep wanting to maintain the original premise of playing that way.

[13th Man]

32 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Cheers Matty. Had quite a bit of playing time this weekend and absolutely loving the save so very easy to just get on and play

And completely agree on the level of comments and engagement. Really great stuff from all the commenters in the thread. Much appreciated

I hadn't really considered this but you're right. In effect, it is still two 10s. Which makes me feel a lot better as I keep wanting to maintain the original premise of playing that way.

Yeah, my DLF on support is really a #10. He pops up all over the place in midfield and links up exactly as you’d want a AM to. And when the ball is driven down the flanks or channels, his runs from deep can be great. 

[Sonic Youth]

It almost feels like your turning your 4-3-2-1 into a 4-1-2-1-2: though two forwards, 3 in the AMC spaces, the wingbacks/fullbacks getting up to support with the MC/DM covering 2 DC’s. Maybe 2-3-5 in attack still, but angling your players between the half spaces more. Lots more quick one-two passes and off the ball runs to get onto through balls. Not so many crosses from deep.

Interesting to see from your spreadsheet Messi, Ronaldo and Tadic all still doing the business at their ages in game.

[Shrewnaldo]

5 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

It almost feels like your turning your 4-3-2-1 into a 4-1-2-1-2: though two forwards, 3 in the AMC spaces, the wingbacks/fullbacks getting up to support with the MC/DM covering 2 DC’s. Maybe 2-3-5 in attack still, but angling your players between the half spaces more. Lots more quick one-two passes and off the ball runs to get onto through balls. Not so many crosses from deep.

Interesting to see from your spreadsheet Messi, Ronaldo and Tadic all still doing the business at their ages in game.

Very much so. What I find frustrating is that roles which play how I want in a front two, or in a single 10 system, play very differently when they're a lone striker, or single 10. I've always found this tactical interface very restrictive but not a lot I can do about it

[Shrewnaldo]

A new striker stat?

So inspired by the previous discussion on players who contribute high percentage of direct goal output to their team, I've been considering other stats or combinations of stats that might help to identify hidden gems.

One such stat is "xG per goal". Or essentially a way of quantifying how much a player has over-performed their xG. Now this does raise a question - does out-performing their xG imply that it's a short-term surge of form and that they'll soon return to mean? Or does it indicate a player who is statistically better than the average? Tough to say.

Either way, I've extracted data for all strikers in the loaded leagues and, with some very simple excel formulas, produced a table showing those players with the lowest Non-penalty xG per goal. Or in other words, the players who are most out-performing their xG. (filtered to players with at least 1500 minutes and 10 goals)

That throws up some interesting names, including the first Serbian and Croatian newgens to start making waves.

I also want to pair this up with a couple of the other combination stats:

• Non-pen xG per shot - the thought being that players who are continually taking low quality shots, or a high volume of shots, are less indicative of a player who is simply efficient at putting away decent chances
• Percentage of team goals - the thought being that players who get more than 10 goals a game but aren't contributing a significant percentage of their team's goals, are more likely to be bit-part players in a dominant team than a single player who is performing above expectations

Adding those two filters in (non-pen xG per shot > 0.09, and % of team goals > 25%), leaves me with a more refined list. These are the top 38:

Two annoying things:

1. I had Anthony Elanga on trial last summer and decided against it

2. I let Saikou Janneh go to Hearts on a free because I didn't think he was Premier League quality (to be fair, he's not)

One player who immediately stands out is 18 year-old Danish newgen Nicolai Dupont - already with 2500 game minutes in the Danish top-tier and scoring 20 goals this season, over-performing his xG by nearly double. A closer look at his profile shows that his stats might be a little skewed by 5 goals in 3 cup games, but also that he's scored 6 in 11 in the Europa Conference. An interesting option to explore further.

Other really interesting looking options are Robert Bozenik at Feyenoord, Carlos Fernández at Lille and Artem Besedin at Braga.

But each of these players, on initial viewing, don't have one thing that I'm looking for this time round - pace. Sadly, there's no statistic that I can think of which indicates pace, but I decided to add a column back in and filter by those players who had completed at least 1.5 dribbles a game. I figured that the skill I'm looking for is the ability to beat a man - which comes with pace, agility and dribbling skill.

Doing so reduced the entire list 1694 strikers down to just 27, including some absolutely top-level strikers to validate my search filters.

The trick is going to be finding one of those who fancies a move to Ashton Gate.

[MattyLewis11]

How did you work out the non penalty xG - simply filter individuals xG and then penalties taken and then remove the pen xG value from their total xG value? 

I like the thought on adding the % of teams goals scored filter also, especially if you are looking for a striker who can handle the added weight/expectation of carrying the team  leading the line. 

I have only managed three individuals from your list (Alvarez, Adingra and Rodrigues) all from the role of IF as IMO they aren't the type of striker I like to lead the line. 

 

[_Ben_]

59 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

How did you work out the non penalty xG - simply filter individuals xG and then penalties taken and then remove the pen xG value from their total xG value? 

I've done this in the past with a simple xG - (0.76 x Penalties scored) as that is what I believe FM registers a penalty at.

2 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Non-pen xG per shot - the thought being that players who are continually taking low quality shots, or a high volume of shots, are less indicative of a player who is simply efficient at putting away decent chances

I've dabbled with this before, Shrew and I think it's really got some legs. I think there are so many simple calculations missing from here that we do ourselves (now, imagine a feature on FM whereby you could stipulate your own formulas - essentially going full Excel!) such as easy access to conversion rate. Now imagine that with non/Pen shot conversion rates taken across a broad spectrum of players without having to run things in Excel!

I must say though, I'm finding it much tougher to come up with these statistical metrics for defensive players and even creative players. I want to look at progressive passes, defensive actions and the like but I can't even access blocks on a player by player level nor forward passes without having to spend ages manually collating things!

[MattyLewis11]

11 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

I've done this in the past with a simple xG - (0.76 x Penalties scored) as that is what I believe FM registers a penalty at.

I am glad that @Shrewnaldo raised this as it was something I was thinking about the other day but then had a mind blank.

I also wish there was the option to see xG for and against for all results under the fixtures tab so you could track that over time rather than do it manually. 

I have made a few tactical tweaks and although it is easy to see how it has impacted xG it would be nice if that could be done with significantly less clicks. 

[Shrewnaldo]

1 hour ago, MattyLewis11 said:

How did you work out the non penalty xG - simply filter individuals xG and then penalties taken and then remove the pen xG value from their total xG value? 

I like the thought on adding the % of teams goals scored filter also, especially if you are looking for a striker who can handle the added weight/expectation of carrying the team  leading the line. 

I have only managed three individuals from your list (Alvarez, Adingra and Rodrigues) all from the role of IF as IMO they aren't the type of striker I like to lead the line. 

 

Ben nailed it. Just a case of multiplying the number of penalties taken by 0.84 to calculate the pen xG then subtracting it. Then remembering to delete the penalties from the total shots taken and the penalties scored from their goals column. Just a case of double checking a few times.

How was Adingra for you? Plan is to use them within a two - very much as the runner, with a DLF beside them being the traditional "big 9".

27 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

I've done this in the past with a simple xG - (0.76 x Penalties scored) as that is what I believe FM registers a penalty at.

I've dabbled with this before, Shrew and I think it's really got some legs. I think there are so many simple calculations missing from here that we do ourselves (now, imagine a feature on FM whereby you could stipulate your own formulas - essentially going full Excel!) such as easy access to conversion rate. Now imagine that with non/Pen shot conversion rates taken across a broad spectrum of players without having to run things in Excel!

I must say though, I'm finding it much tougher to come up with these statistical metrics for defensive players and even creative players. I want to look at progressive passes, defensive actions and the like but I can't even access blocks on a player by player level nor forward passes without having to spend ages manually collating things!

100% agree with this. So much easier to use the attacking stats - largely because there are more of them. In terms of creative players, I like to use the "chances created" stat rather than key passes or assists.

Did you see my tweet earlier about the table in the "Player" screen on tactics? That sort of stuff drives me mad

13 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

I am glad that @Shrewnaldo raised this as it was something I was thinking about the other day but then had a mind blank.

I also wish there was the option to see xG for and against for all results under the fixtures tab so you could track that over time rather than do it manually. 

I have made a few tactical tweaks and although it is easy to see how it has impacted xG it would be nice if that could be done with significantly less clicks. 

Also 100% agree with this. There should just be loads of data that you can add to your own scattergraphs and tables to produce custom metrics. Even custom octagons, which I've seen a few people, including Ben, do in the past. More stats, more customisation, more fun

[MattyLewis11]

15 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

How was Adingra for you?

He was great, although never made it as a starting option as had Kamaldeen still with me at FCN.

He certainly could run, he was rapid...used to use him often from the bench late on in the game and he'd cause havoc. 

Still think there are better options on your list though. However, like you said will be interesting to see how many of them are keen on the move itself. 

[RogerC]

So much useful info in one place! The past 2 days I've also been toying around with excel 'filters' and have also done the NpxG calculations (before actually reading it here). I had opted to use the Shots/Goals & Shots on Target / Goals metrics as a mean to identify the quality of finishing. xG / Shot is probably an even better option, I will give it a try!

In terms of defending, I have, for now worked out 'Defensive Actions' (Tackle attempts, Interception + fouls) per 90. I want to somehow compare it to conceded team goals just like you said with goals scored vs team goals to see if the player is scoring all the teams goals or if he is just scoring because the team is over-performing.

Great read!

[Shrewnaldo]

35 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

He was great, although never made it as a starting option as had Kamaldeen still with me at FCN.

He certainly could run, he was rapid...used to use him often from the bench late on in the game and he'd cause havoc. 

Still think there are better options on your list though. However, like you said will be interesting to see how many of them are keen on the move itself. 

Thanks. I'm really struggling to find the right player. I want it to be someone who the stats have pointed me at, but who also has the required pace and who my scouts are keen on. At the moment, I'm not finding that so am most likely to stick with Tyrese Campbell as the poacher.

8 minutes ago, RogerC said:

So much useful info in one place! The past 2 days I've also been toying around with excel 'filters' and have also done the NpxG calculations (before actually reading it here). I had opted to use the Shots/Goals & Shots on Target / Goals metrics as a mean to identify the quality of finishing. xG / Shot is probably an even better option, I will give it a try!

In terms of defending, I have, for now worked out 'Defensive Actions' (Tackle attempts, Interception + fouls) per 90. I want to somehow compare it to conceded team goals just like you said with goals scored vs team goals to see if the player is scoring all the teams goals or if he is just scoring because the team is over-performing.

Great read!

Thanks. Nice idea on the defensive actions. I think Ben does something similar.

What would be great is if you could include an "average team possession" column in the stats. That'd help us adjust the defensive actions for teams who do more or less defending than the average. 

[Shrewnaldo]

Enzo was a runner-up for signing of the season - so good call all who recommended him of the four registas

[SixPointer]

I really can’t keep up with all these new stats ideas, right now as someone who’s not great with excel, (in-fact that’s me probably giving myself to much praise and useless) it’s further convinces me that you should be approach SI with some of these ideas to make it more accessible in the actual game to people. Stats is a huge part of modern football and the data hub was huge but you and a few others taking it to a new level.

So once again I champion you to make the difference 

[_Ben_]

9 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Ben nailed it. Just a case of multiplying the number of penalties taken by 0.84 to calculate the pen xG then subtracting it. Then remembering to delete the penalties from the total shots taken and the penalties scored from their goals column. Just a case of double checking a few times.

I had it down at 0.76 in my head so will check my numbers and formulae again tonight! Also might have forgotten to remove it from the shots value, too. 

9 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

In terms of creative players, I like to use the "chances created" stat rather than key passes or assists.

Did you see my tweet earlier about the table in the "Player" screen on tactics? That sort of stuff drives me mad

Absolutely agree on this. With an assist, the metric becomes out of the control of that player and on to the scorer. I’d wish for xA but that’s clearly not a priority right now. 

Yes - saw your tweet and, yes, I did know that it was broken. Just another one of those little things. I have a panel on my profile that splits up performances by position and it seems to be pretty secure. Doesn’t have the depth of those (only AR and maybe goals if I remember). I can see if I can work that into your skin for you, If it’d help?

9 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Even custom octagons, which I've seen a few people, including Ben, do in the past. More stats, more customisation, more fun

I’ve tracked most things to be fair! Tracked xG vs xGA rolling average over 50+ games but, in game, it’s only shown as a one game or tabular metric. How can you use that to show peaks and troughs in your performances?

Again - I keep harping on about pass length/direction. I tracked, for half a season, the individual length (short/mid/long) and direction (forwards/sideways/backwards) of my defenders and compared that to key passes/90 to see which was the ‘best fit’ for a ball recycler, who could start attacks. I shouldn’t have to do all of that manually!

8 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Nice idea on the defensive actions. I think Ben does something similar.

What would be great is if you could include an "average team possession" column in the stats. That'd help us adjust the defensive actions for teams who do more or less defending than the average. 

Just can’t settle on what I want! How is an aerial challenge different from a header? Why can’t I include blocks? I also definitely think the team possession is a manual input and don’t even get me started on how that differs when you have a league on full detail vs not! @RogerC - I look forward to seeing what you can do and will keep an eye out on your thread!

[RogerC]

1 hour ago, _Ben_ said:

Just can’t settle on what I want! How is an aerial challenge different from a header? Why can’t I include blocks? I also definitely think the team possession is a manual input and don’t even get me started on how that differs when you have a league on full detail vs not! @RogerC - I look forward to seeing what you can do and will keep an eye out on your thread!

Are you talking about the 'Aerial Challenges/90' vs the 'Headers W/90'?

After testing some columns on excel I have found that Aerial Challenges/90 is actually the 'Header Attempts' column (which is total total Header attempts) divided by mins played (mins/90). You get the same result.

So we effectively have total and per 90 metrics: 

1. Header Attempts (total), Headers (won, total), Header % (Win ratio of former two)
2. Aerial Challenges/90 (Hdr Attempts/90) and Headers Won/90

In conclusion (IMHO), the stats are currently kind of a mess and it wouldn't take much effort to improve them vastly. Taking over the thread, sorry Shrewnaldo. 

[Shrewnaldo]

1 hour ago, RogerC said:

Taking over the thread, sorry Shrewnaldo. 

Absolutely no issue whatsoever. Love these sorts of discussions 

[Matty Aqua]

I've more into this save than I am my own!.

Def some good inspiration here!. feel like i've learned a few things!

Fantastic thread!

[SixPointer]

4 hours ago, Matty Aqua said:

I've more into this save than I am my own!.

Def some good inspiration here!. feel like i've learned a few things!

Fantastic thread!

Im going to second this shout!

[13th Man]

I’m going to have to second @SixPointerwith both his admission of being useless with stats, but also how much I’d love to have the type of stuff you’re doing available in the data hub. I’ve tried some of your concepts a bit in the past, such as looking at players over performing on struggling sides, but I also have to go by things like average rating which is an unreliable stat (my DLP and DLF are both only so-so with average ratings, but are both absolutely crucial to the way the side plays). Point is, great stuff and I wish I could just use some of your stats and filters…

[Shrewnaldo]

6 hours ago, Matty Aqua said:

I've more into this save than I am my own!.

Def some good inspiration here!. feel like i've learned a few things!

Fantastic thread!

 

2 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Im going to second this shout!

 

38 minutes ago, 13th Man said:

I’m going to have to second @SixPointerwith both his admission of being useless with stats, but also how much I’d love to have the type of stuff you’re doing available in the data hub. I’ve tried some of your concepts a bit in the past, such as looking at players over performing on struggling sides, but I also have to go by things like average rating which is an unreliable stat (my DLP and DLF are both only so-so with average ratings, but are both absolutely crucial to the way the side plays). Point is, great stuff and I wish I could just use some of your stats and filters…

Thanks all, really very kind. Have to say that I'm loving the save, but also the feedback and interaction on here, with ideas getting bounced back and forth, really helps.

And @13th Man, I'm very happy to provide any of the filters and views if anyone wants to ask for specific ones?

[Shrewnaldo]

11 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

Again - I keep harping on about pass length/direction. I tracked, for half a season, the individual length (short/mid/long) and direction (forwards/sideways/backwards) of my defenders and compared that to key passes/90 to see which was the ‘best fit’ for a ball recycler, who could start attacks

Forgot to respond to this. Have you found this bugged at all? When I look at individual games, it seems like the numbers never add up, i.e. forwards + sideways + backwards =/= total passes. Have you come across that?

[Shrewnaldo]

24/25 Season Update and 2025 summer transfers

An ultimately frustrating season as we secured a second consecutive 11th place finish

Frustrating because, at one point, we were within touching distance of 7th and a European spot. Ultimately, our lack of goals cost us again as we could only marginally improve on the 41 we'd scored the previous year. And that profligacy would also cost us in the cups - going out in the Carabao 2nd Round to Brentford 1-0. The worst result, though, came in the FA Cup, losing 4-2 to Shrewsbury when back-up 'keeper Etienne Green decided to concede 4 from 5 shots and promptly consigned himself to the bin. Literally. He'll never play for me again.

Also lol at Wolves.

So frustrating but probably not that bad. The AI continues to think of us as relegation fodder - which more than likely continues to restrict our transfer options. I've talked quite a bit above about how I've gone about finding targets but, particularly at striker, most of those identified had no interest in joining. Nevertheless, we had a bit of business to get through - prompted partially by the move to two up top, and partially through losing a handful of squad members.

Vyner and Massengo were original squad members who we've basically outgrown. Whilst Danilo got VERY upset that we hadn't played him in the right position / role and so I basically chucked him out. Reiss Nelson, the biggest departure, had a release clause of £40m to teams in the Champions League, so when Liverpool (who didn't qualify last season) offered me more than that, I felt that I had to accept. In truth, it fit quite nicely with that change to the diamond as we had too many 10s already and Reiss had only shown any sort of quality in fits and starts.

By that point, we'd already done the vast majority of our business. Last summer we'd unexpectedly lost Nicolas Seiwald to Leverkusen. Although Josh Brownhill had been signed only as a temporary replacement, he performed so well that I decided to stick with him. But at 29, and with the other first choice ballwinner being the 31 year-old Roberto Gagliardini, I needed options at the very least. Dinamo Zagreb's Kristijan Jakic was an ideal back-up option, having consistently topped the tackling charts in Croatia despite playing for a side that dominates.

The primary signing in the middle of the park, however, was Wilfred Ndidi.

Leicester had been on the slide since we made it to the Prem and it was little surprise when they were relegated last term - leading to quite the fire sale. £330m worth of talent has left the King Power including James Maddison to Brighton, Youri Tielemans to Newcastle, Kelechi Iheanacho to Bournemouth and James Justin to Real Madrid. But I'm convinced we got the best deal - just £14m for a player of Ndidi's undoubted quality and who was still turning out an impressive statistical output despite being relegated.

With Chris Smalling retiring, we also needed a 4th centre back option. Greiml, Bailly and Komar have all been excellent so I wanted someone who would be happy just to rotate. A few seasons ago we looked at Adam Webster but decided against him because of his poor tackling statistics. Perhaps through luck, perhaps through experience, his statistics in this area have improved since and it seemed like a sensible move to bring him back to Ashton Gate, also helping us with our domestic requirements.

I also signed a new 'keeper, Swede Andreas Linde, to compete with Batalla; and some cover at fullback in the shape of Jeremy Ngakia, once of West Ham, Watford and, most recently, Palace.

Disappointingly, having spent an awful lot of time looking through statistics for strikers across the world, I just couldn't find one that fit the bill perfectly. Those options who had low xG/goal and shots per goal tended to be bigger, targetman type strikers and I was very much looking for a pacy poacher. In the end, I decided that none of the potential transfers were any better than Tyrese Campbell, who we'd signed last year, and that I'd just give the former Stoke man his chance. Whilst he didn't have the best of first seasons, there were promising signs - matching his xG, getting away a very decent 3.32 shots per 90 and being surprisingly creative with 0.69 (nice) key passes per 90.

All of which leaves us looking at a base system and strongest XI something like this:

The one major downside to the move from two 10s and one 9, to a one-two configuration, is that the single remaining 10 tends to restrict the regista's space. In the double-10 system, Le Fée would stride forward and split them, getting on the ball in the opposition final third more often than not. Now, he tends to sit a bit deeper, discouraged from progressing quite so high due to the 10 operating more centrally.

This, though, is a happy trade-off for the increased attacking threat that having two 9s gives us. And some of the football is just great. Besides, perhaps due to the Personal Instructions applied, perhaps due to his traits, Le Fée still supports the front three and indeed delivers exactly the sort of through ball that I was looking for when I described the intention of the role, about four hundred pages back. I absolutely love passes like this.

 

And it's not been the only pleasing aspect of the tactic. Some frustrations remain - like SI making it impossible to have wingbacks who sit as high as WB(A) but remember that it's humanly possible to cross from anywhere other than within 3 yards of the byline - but definitely an improvement on the front three. I've run out of storage space for adding more videos of the interplay, so I'll have to post some more later but some of the interplay between the front 3 in particular is sumptuous.

With luck, that additional firepower will push us into the European spaces and a decent cup run. With the newgens starting to arrive, I can feel the end of this save approaching - maybe another 3 or 4 seasons away. So it'd be nice to make real progression before that.

[Sonic Youth]

Nice interplay. Le Fee’s pass, his driving run and the rotation of your front three is very sumptuous (to steal your word)!

I noticed that the wide left player in the video replay stuck out wide. Is that your left wingback who stopped getting forward halfway into the opposition’s half (I think your left MC stopped getting forward just after the halfway line)? Was that what you were meaning about where wingbacks end up sitting? If so, there’s a lot of space ahead and too the right available to use.

[13th Man]

Like the look of the new tactic - I think it’ll give you the play you’re looking for. It is too bad about the regista and WBs. My WBs get forward all the time but they are in the WB strata (3atb) which surely pushes their mentality. Still, overall I think it looks like you’ll get nice interplay and balance.

On the filters, i appreciate the offer and I might just take you up on that! I’ll have to look back and see which ones might suit what I’m looking for…

[Matty Aqua]

13 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

 

 

Thanks all, really very kind. Have to say that I'm loving the save, but also the feedback and interaction on here, with ideas getting bounced back and forth, really helps.

And @13th Man, I'm very happy to provide any of the filters and views if anyone wants to ask for specific ones?

I'll definitely be interested in the views your using!, possible to upload them to the steam workshop?

[Shrewnaldo]

8 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Nice interplay. Le Fee’s pass, his driving run and the rotation of your front three is very sumptuous (to steal your word)!

I noticed that the wide left player in the video replay stuck out wide. Is that your left wingback who stopped getting forward halfway into the opposition’s half (I think your left MC stopped getting forward just after the halfway line)? Was that what you were meaning about where wingbacks end up sitting? If so, there’s a lot of space ahead and too the right available to use.

Aye, you see how he just halts his run as he's about to enter the final third? I just want him to keep pushing into that space. They just tend to sit about 5-10 yards deeper than WB(A). But that whole "cross from byline" being hard-coded in is very annoying. Richards, our left back, also has suitable traits to encourage him to get forward more, but it's not quite as good as the standard WB(A) positioning. I guess it's just my frustrations with how restrictive the tactics system is.

 

3 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Like the look of the new tactic - I think it’ll give you the play you’re looking for. It is too bad about the regista and WBs. My WBs get forward all the time but they are in the WB strata (3atb) which surely pushes their mentality. Still, overall I think it looks like you’ll get nice interplay and balance.

On the filters, i appreciate the offer and I might just take you up on that! I’ll have to look back and see which ones might suit what I’m looking for…

2 hours ago, Matty Aqua said:

I'll definitely be interested in the views your using!, possible to upload them to the steam workshop?

Maybe I can just zip my entire "Views" folder and upload it here?

[Tom14]

That would be great if you could do that. I've already stolen the squad view that you had on the first page - apart from that I can't find the key headers won column to add.

Been following this thread without ever posting so thought I'd better give some major kudos. It's so engaging and interesting and like a few others have pointed out it's given me a whole new perspective on how to play the game. Being more aware of the stats has really opened the game up for me and it's something I'm paying lots of attention to now in my own save so thanks for this thread.

[Shrewnaldo]

7 minutes ago, brookie1402 said:

That would be great if you could do that. I've already stolen the squad view that you had on the first page - apart from that I can't find the key headers won column to add.

Been following this thread without ever posting so thought I'd better give some major kudos. It's so engaging and interesting and like a few others have pointed out it's given me a whole new perspective on how to play the game. Being more aware of the stats has really opened the game up for me and it's something I'm paying lots of attention to now in my own save so thanks for this thread.

Thanks, I really appreciate the feedback. I'll try to upload the views later today when I'm back on.

[Matty Aqua]

48 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Maybe I can just zip my entire "Views" folder and upload it here?

Whatever is easiest for you!

[Jazzbobification]

13 minutes ago, Matty Aqua said:

Whatever is easiest for you!

That'd be fab!

[SixPointer]

New tactic looks good. If you find the number 10 is hampering the Regista could potentially try a TREQ and his roaming should take him out of the ten and see him pick up nice pockets of space. It would be quite the midfield diamond a Regista at the base and a treq at the peak with two destroyers. It actually gives me a feeling to try it. 

[Shrewnaldo]

1 hour ago, SixPointer said:

New tactic looks good. If you find the number 10 is hampering the Regista could potentially try a TREQ and his roaming should take him out of the ten and see him pick up nice pockets of space. It would be quite the midfield diamond a Regista at the base and a treq at the peak with two destroyers. It actually gives me a feeling to try it. 

I've actually given the AM(A) the "roams from position" PI in an effort to try that same thing - plus license to dribble and play more through balls. It's working out pretty well so far and becomes a front four diamond with the regista, 10 and two 9s then the wingbacks holding the width. Really is turning out some great football.

[Shrewnaldo]

Ok, so here is a RAR file with my custom views. There are basically four types:

• Shrew's SOMETHING view - this will probably be a squad view
• Shrew's Tactics View - obviously for the tactics screen
• Search - SOMETHING - these are for the Player Search screen
• Scouting - SOMETHING - these are for the Shortlist screens because apparently you can't use the same views for this and the Player Search screen

@Sonic Youth @13th Man @Jazzbobification @brookie1402 @Matty Aqua

Let me know if there's anything else you had in mind that I haven't included.

Views.rar

[ifinnem]

Can you fix the WB problem by having them on automatic so it allows you to control all the PIs with less locked?

[Matty Aqua]

17 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Ok, so here is a RAR file with my custom views. There are basically four types:

• Shrew's SOMETHING view - this will probably be a squad view
• Shrew's Tactics View - obviously for the tactics screen
• Search - SOMETHING - these are for the Player Search screen
• Scouting - SOMETHING - these are for the Shortlist screens because apparently you can't use the same views for this and the Player Search screen

@Sonic Youth @13th Man @Jazzbobification @brookie1402 @Matty Aqua

Let me know if there's anything else you had in mind that I haven't included.

Views.rar 246.51 kB · 12 downloads

Thank you!

[Shrewnaldo]

19 hours ago, ifinnem said:

Can you fix the WB problem by having them on automatic so it allows you to control all the PIs with less locked?

Interesting. I'd completely forgotten automatic roles existed because I never use them. I thought they just had the variable mentality to match your overall team mentality? I didn't realise they had additional PI options. Do the PIs not get over-ridden anyway if your team mentality drives the automatic role into a duty with conflicting instructions?

9 hours ago, Matty Aqua said:

Thank you!

No problem. Just let me know if you want anything else.

[ifinnem]

I’ve nor used the automatic much either but I believe “bust the net” has a video talking about how you could go this route to get specific behavior from WBs. Since you’re on positive I’m sure they will get forward enough and you can tweak with PIs. Worth a try maybe.

[13th Man]

Many thanks!  I'll have to check these out.

[Shrewnaldo]

I just wanted to provide a brief update as I am conscious that I haven't posted much in the last week or so. This is largely because I've been having quite a fun time playing through this season and, primarily, haven't needed to engage in much of the way of recruitment or analysis.

We've reached the Carabao Cup semis for the second time, being knocked out by a Manchester club for the second time. Man City walloped us two seasons ago and, whilst it was a little closer here, we were never really in with much hope after a 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford in the first leg. Man Utd, as you can see from the league table, are ridiculously good in my save and look set to win a fourth consecutive league title.

They head a front 3 that are miles clear of everyone else, with Liverpool lagging a little behind and then the rest of us - very much a distance chasing pack. We're set to take European spot through our league performance, if not the cup but was looking even better earlier in the season. Up until early December, we were very much within the leading pack but then came a Morale Manager special. Pumped 6-0 at home by Man City, we went on a run that would see us win just one league game until 28th February. Having to play 10 matches in January didn't help, particularly when three of them were against the all-conquering Red Devils.

Indeed squad depth is more of an issue for us than first team quality. I reckon our first choice XI would give all but the top 3 a decent game toe-to-toe. But the drop off to the second string is quite steep and we'll need to deepen the quality in the squad if and when we qualify for Europe. And with any luck that will come with some silverware - a stuttering FA Cup run requiring replays against Championship Swansea and relegation-bound Bournemouth; before thumping European challengers Newcastle and a Wolves side struggling to bounce back to the Premier League. Our trip to Wembley then brought the same result as our last, the playoff final, as we defeated a moderately resurgent Spurs 1-0. 

Hopefully we've timed our uptick in form well as we seek to close out the season with strong performances in the league so we get European football regardless of the cup final.

[SmashtonGate84]

This is immense, just caught up on this as I have been focused on my City save and been busy with life. Like you, I managed to get promoted up to the EPL via the Play-Off's, basically won the last 6 games of the season and then comprehensively beat the Play-Off teams.

 

I have just hit the season break for the World Cup, in my first season in the EPL. I had started out playing a 4-4-1-1 Counter attack formation, but switched back to my 4-4-2 Wingplay/Counter which has been working well, went on a 6 game winning streak but just lost to City and Eveton. Sitting mid table. I also signed Tyrese Campbell, scouts recommended him and Stoke got relegated. I should survive this year I would imagine. Great to see how you are going. 

[Shrewnaldo]

5 minutes ago, SmashtonGate84 said:

This is immense, just caught up on this as I have been focused on my City save and been busy with life. Like you, I managed to get promoted up to the EPL via the Play-Off's, basically won the last 6 games of the season and then comprehensively beat the Play-Off teams.

 

I have just hit the season break for the World Cup, in my first season in the EPL. I had started out playing a 4-4-1-1 Counter attack formation, but switched back to my 4-4-2 Wingplay/Counter which has been working well, went on a 6 game winning streak but just lost to City and Eveton. Sitting mid table. I also signed Tyrese Campbell, scouts recommended him and Stoke got relegated. I should survive this year I would imagine. Great to see how you are going. 

Ah that's great, sounds like you're doing really well

How was Tyrese been for you? He suffered in his first season for being played in a non-suitable role, but since switching to the two up top he's really excelled in the poacher role.

[Sonic Youth]

2 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

I just wanted to provide a brief update as I am conscious that I haven't posted much in the last week or so. This is largely because I've been having quite a fun time playing through this season and, primarily, haven't needed to engage in much of the way of recruitment or analysis.

We've reached the Carabao Cup semis for the second time, being knocked out by a Manchester club for the second time. Man City walloped us two seasons ago and, whilst it was a little closer here, we were never really in with much hope after a 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford in the first leg. Man Utd, as you can see from the league table, are ridiculously good in my save and look set to win a fourth consecutive league title.

They head a front 3 that are miles clear of everyone else, with Liverpool lagging a little behind and then the rest of us - very much a distance chasing pack. We're set to take European spot through our league performance, if not the cup but was looking even better earlier in the season. Up until early December, we were very much within the leading pack but then came a Morale Manager special. Pumped 6-0 at home by Man City, we went on a run that would see us win just one league game until 28th February. Having to play 10 matches in January didn't help, particularly when three of them were against the all-conquering Red Devils.

Indeed squad depth is more of an issue for us than first team quality. I reckon our first choice XI would give all but the top 3 a decent game toe-to-toe. But the drop off to the second string is quite steep and we'll need to deepen the quality in the squad if and when we qualify for Europe. And with any luck that will come with some silverware - a stuttering FA Cup run requiring replays against Championship Swansea and relegation-bound Bournemouth; before thumping European challengers Newcastle and a Wolves side struggling to bounce back to the Premier League. Our trip to Wembley then brought the same result as our last, the playoff final, as we defeated a moderately resurgent Spurs 1-0. 

Hopefully we've timed our uptick in form well as we seek to close out the season with strong performances in the league so we get European football regardless of the cup final.

Look at that table position, and all the cup stages made (fingers crossed for the FA Cup!). It’s all a testament to your work on recruitment how strong your first team is, as wet as how you’ve also worked on your approach tactically as well since promoting to the Premier League 

Still much to play for in the last games of the season 

[SmashtonGate84]

6 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Ah that's great, sounds like you're doing really well

How was Tyrese been for you? He suffered in his first season for being played in a non-suitable role, but since switching to the two up top he's really excelled in the poacher role.

Don't think he is doing too badly, he had a couple of poor games but for the most part has been going alright.

Wells is as wasteful as ever

[Shrewnaldo]

20 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Look at that table position, and all the cup stages made (fingers crossed for the FA Cup!). It’s all a testament to your work on recruitment how strong your first team is, as wet as how you’ve also worked on your approach tactically as well since promoting to the Premier League 

Still much to play for in the last games of the season 

If I was to put it down to one factor, I'd say it was the switch to a front two. Our defence hasn't that much but the additional goal threat from having that striker actually play on the shoulder has opened up all sorts of possibilities for us.

15 hours ago, SmashtonGate84 said:

Don't think he is doing too badly, he had a couple of poor games but for the most part has been going alright.

Wells is as wasteful as ever

That's a decent return for his first, and your, first season in the Prem. Can only improve with time. Frankly, I'm surprised you've held onto Wells and haven't got rid already!

[Shrewnaldo]

A stream of season 5 consciousness

A mixed bag to end the season. We secured Europa League football through the league rather comfortably, hitting 60 points and a 6th place finish. Sadly, however, we were comfortably beaten by Arsenal in the FA Cup Final.

This rather neatly encapsulated our season where I really felt we were competitive against everyone except the top three - who are miles clear of everyone else. 5 of our 10 league defeats came against the top 3, including all 3 of our home defeats. It's also worth noting that 7 of our 12 league draws came between December and February when we suffered from a lack of quality in depth and a massive dose of fixture congestion. If anything, European football is only going to exacerbate that problem so it's rather obvious that we really need to deepen the squad over the summer.

There's a lot going on in that screenshot but it's my "effectiveness view", ordered by those players who have had the most minutes over the season. You'll perhaps see three unexpected additions - January signings Benjamin White (£15.25m from Arsenal); Tom Davies (£8.75m from Everton); and Joe Gelhardt (£11.75m from Leeds). Three English options to help with squad registration, the latter two are very much back-ups but White was intended as a replacement for Leo Greiml, who was the subject of significant big club interest. No bid for Greiml ever materialised, however, and the two have gone on to become my first-choice centre-half pairing, with the Austrian signing a new long-term contract in April.

We've also moved quickly to secure Rico Henry from relegated Bournemouth, the former Brentford man destined to provide quality back-up to Omar Richards.

But in truth, I'm really quite happy with the options that we have across the squad and it's now a case of simply trying to find that unexpected gem who can exceed the ability that we've managed to gather to date.

There have been one or two areas where I've felt like an improvement is necessary. For example, in goal where we'd seen a number of poor performances and a high number conceded. But Linde, our first-choice 'keeper, is third on the Expected Goals Prevented chart, whilst our back-up Batalla was 9th, despite playing only 6 league matches. So what does that tell you?

I've said before that goalie stats are difficult to interpret, or trust, in Football Manager but Linde is also third on the actual save percentage table with an impressive 81% and  for most of the season I've been very pleased with our defensive performance. I'm very conscious that the goals against column, and therefore all of our defensive stats, is skewed by a handful of shocking performances and heavy defeats - 6-0 at home to Man City being the standout but also conceding 4to Man Utd and Newcastle, and 3 to Liverpool and Arsenal during that horrendous run of games through December and January.

So if a top-class 'keeper suddenly becomes available then perhaps I'll move but I'm relatively happy with Linde. Similarly at 10, where Abdülkadir Ömür has been a disappointment, but perhaps only in comparison to the outstanding Alex Scott. 

Aside from Tyreeq, Scott is the only remaining OG from the Robins' starting squad and has absolutely stamped his presence upon the team this season. Outperforming his xG to become our second highest scorer with 11, whilst also chipping in 11 assists and create a mightily impressive 0.63 chances per game, his direct running both on- and off-the-ball has made him first-choice for the 10 spot. Abdülkadir, by contrast, has slightly underperformed his xG to end with 8 goals and just the 3 assists - but still creating a very creditable 0.49 chances per game. Were it not for the Turk's £42.5m price tag, he'd be considered a successful back-up. But that money does make me wince,

The most likely areas for first-team improvement is in the middle of the park where I will likely need another top-class ball-winner, and right back. Ndidi and Gagliardini are brilliant and have performed phenomenally all season. 3.30 and 2.72 tackles per game is huge for central midfielders and I absolutely love watching them harry the opposition midfield endlessly throughout matches. Both Brownhill and Davies are capable back-ups but a third option of quality is definitely required, not least as Gagliardini is now 32.

And at right-back, Ethan Laird is great, but both injury prone and incapable of lasting 90 minutes. Tyreeq, Davies, Ngakia, Bailly and White have all deputised at right-back throughout the season but we could really do with another option that has genuine offensive output.

And perhaps to end on a sad note, Saša Kalajdžić looks set to become no more than a bit part player. He simply doesn't fit our system anymore

With the two up top, Tyrese Campbell has firmly ensconced himself in the poacher role - using his pace and finishing ability to get in behind the defence and far exceed his xG. And whilst Bätzner's scoring output has been very poor - including both a 24-game and 14-game goal drought - his creativity has been exceptional, producing just under 1 clear cut chance per 90 minutes, putting him on a par with the likes of Bukayo Saka and Kevin De Bruyne as the league's most effective creative players.

Sasa is neither quick nor especially creative, but perhaps the biggest problem is that he just isn't able to produce high quality chances:

• Campbell - 0.13xG/shot
• Bätzner - 0.13xG/shot
• Kalajdžić - 0.09xG/shot
• Gelhardt - too small sample

I suspect this is a function of his lack of acceleration to get away from a marker, and the team's propensity to throw it into the box for the 6'7" guy. With headers being treated as such low xG chances in FM, this leads to stats such as the above. Sasa is, nevertheless, club captain and I'd like to keep him around as a squad option. It just remains to be seen whether he'll be happy with the reduced playing time, particularly if I bring in another creative striker - one who can perhaps combine Bätzner's eye for a pass with a sight of goal every once in a while.

Another busy summer beckons.

[SmashtonGate84]

1 hour ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Frankly, I'm surprised you've held onto Wells and haven't got rid already!

He is going in the bin this year, as I am sure you experienced I had a lot of players wanting new contracts and had an unhappy team at the start of the season.