[FM23] Passing the IJ Test

[Lestri]

I'd been tempted to see how a F9 would go, especially with one of your AMs on attack duty. However I'd go with @_Ben_ as a default.

[danielgear]

I don’t disagree with the others but CF-A for me. Similar reasoning about the support roles but he will play those players in more via holding up at times whilst also spearheading the attack. I don’t think a AF would be a bad choice either. 

[uroszila]

I would agree with AF (a) but before that I would try to play the PF (a). He will be operating similar as an AF, but he will put more pressure on the opposition defense and rush the central defenders to make quicker decisions. This could be especially effective against lesser teams in your league.

[Shrewnaldo]

Thanks for all the suggestions, @SixPointer @_Ben_ @MattyLewis11 @phnompenhandy @Lestri @danielgear @uroszila

Much appreciated and I don't disagree with anything proposed. I think my own thoughts are probably closest to Dan and uroszila. Ordinarily, I'd probably go with the AF for basically the reasons that Ben has articulated, but I want to push myself away from my usual style of play a little and try those "somethings different" that I moaned about earlier.

So instead I want to go with a proper battering ram of a striker, someone who just uses sheer physicality to disrupt the defence, hold up the play, bring others into the game and get on the end of crosses. Whilst I could still do this by using a big unit at AF, I'm going to pair it with a suitable role - I hadn't thought about Complete Forward but will certainly consider it alongside the Pressing Forward and Target Forward, all on Attack Duty.

We have a lot of technically adept players, but have increasingly become a taller side with recent acquisitions and the desire to maximise set pieces, so this fits into that idea too. As well as sheer size, I'll be looking for Aggression and Work Rate, plus Stamina to wear down defenders. I've been trying it with the strikers currently available, and had some success with Jizz Hornkamp (no, really) but it might well be an area for investment in the summer.

I'll also be looking for a pair of wingbacls (my previous options having been more suited to the inverted role) and at least one more centre back, given the move to a system that uses 3. I think we're pretty well covered elsewhere, but more on that later.

[Shrewnaldo]

Major changes

I'm actually quite far on from the last update. Having had a lot of fun just playing whilst recovering from COVID, I've completed our maiden season in the Eredivisie AND the summer of recruitment that followed. Per previous posts, the first season was pretty successful in terms of results. Considering we were a newly promoted side, predicted to finish dead last and with players that would struggle to get into most B teams, being the only promoted side to survive - and comfortably at that - can only be a good thing.

Whilst Feyenoord broke Ajax's grip on the title, it was very much the usual suspects clear of the rest. Only Utrecht had a surprisingly poor campaign - indeed were lucky to escape the drop having been bottom after week 16 - and essentially swapped places with Emmen who were unlucky to miss out on Europe. We were also flirting with a Europa Conference spot for a while, before a poor run of form through March and April saw us slump back to a satisfyingly mundane mid-table slot.

That poor run of form came as we stumbled in back-to-back games against Utrecht, off the back of their new manager bounce, followed by PSV, Heerenveen and Ajax. We never recovered from the collapse in morale but had put enough points on the board already that it ultimately didn't matter. Many of those points had come through January and February when, as alluded to above, we'd made a wholesale switch of tactic - ditching the oh-so-boring 4-3-3 and going with something much more interesting.

The initial impetus for the switch was a continued concern over our defensive frailties. The 4-3-3 was failing at all the defensive tactics - it was no longer able to use possession as a defensive tactic, with teams pressing the life out of the regista and IWBs; it was no longer able to restrict the opposition to low quality chances with those high turnovers providing a free run at exposed centre backs; and we were conceding a whole bunch at set pieces with improved delivery from more esteemed opponents.

And then starting regista Anwar Bensabouh, the absolute lynchpin of the team, tore his knee ligaments and would miss 2 months of the season. That presented an opportunity to rip it up and build a tactic from the back forwards. I decided to go with a low block, using 3 centre backs and a double DM screen then, hopefully, playing quickly through the lines to a pair of 10s that would play as close to our 9 as possible and create the chances. So rather than 4-1-4-1 out of possession and 2-3-5 in it, we were moving to 5-box-1 in defence, and 3-2-5 going forward.

Against teams of our level, it worked a treat and only really fell apart once the morale fell off a cliff. But there was enough in games like this to convince me to keep with it going forward.

Yes, we scored from a corner and a penalty, but in truth we dominated this game from start to finish and restricted Emmen to 6 shots with an average xG of under 0.05 each. But most pleasingly, we had also improved on our attacking output from the 4-3-3 - with 92 final third passes to our opponents 38, we were getting the ball into the right areas with our possession, something that we'd struggled to do even when winning the Eerste Divisie using the 4-3-3. Picking a random winning game from last season as a counter-example, in a 3-0 home win against De Graafschap when we'd had 58% possession and 52% ball share, we'd had only 33 final third passes compared to our opponents 45. Both can obviously be effective, but I'm really enjoying this shift of attacking emphasis.

Looking forward, the move to the 3-4-3 (as I'll call it) left us short in certain areas. The obvious one was at wingback where we'd previously been using players suited to an inverted role, not marauding down the line as I now wanted them to do. We'd also need another centre back given the move to starting with 3 but most desperately we needed a 9. I'd wanted to give the likes of Smit a chance in the big league but they just aren't good enough to score regular goals at this level. Smit scored at 0.34 goals per 90 - maybe good enough for back-up, but not a starter.

Per my previous post, I really want my 9 to be a proper battering ram of a striker - sheer physicality and work rate getting him in the face of defenders, pulling them out of position, bodying them, using pace to get away from them and, ultimately, finishing. For a team of our level, that's a big ask to find and I made it the number 1 priority of our summer recruitment - eventually smashing the club transfer record to bring in Sydney van Hooijdonk from Nimes.

Mostly as understudy to Moussa Koné in a mid-table Ligue 2 side, van Hooijdonk had scored at 0.8 goals per 90, taking over 5 shots per game and hitting the target 57% of the time. Those are some mightily impressive numbers. He'd also had a loan spell at Heerenveen in 2022/23 where, for a side that narrowly avoided relegation, he'd taken over 3 shots per game, hit the target 48% of the time and scored at 0.47 goals per 90. Plus he'd won 60% of his aerial challenges which, for a striker, is genuinely impressive.

At £6kpw and a £600k fee, he's a big financial gamble for us but that 9 role is so important that I felt it worth the risk. It also continues a theme for us which has been sheer size. I've really looked to prioritise height and physicality with our signing. Jesús Castillo 6'1" signed in January to replace the injured Bensabouh and play as one of the 6s; Luka Dajcer 6'1" was signed from relegated Cibalia in Croatia and able to cover centre back or 6 with a combination of phenomenal defensive statistics and passing ability; Momo 6'4" from Burgos as a back-up centre-back having won 90% of his aerial challenges and having a similar passing range to the Croatian.

Meanwhile Enzo Barrenchea 6'1" can play with 6 or 10, having been on loan at Den Bosch last season from Juventus. That loan season means he's already adept at Dutch and gave him 2894 minutes of game time to convince me that the Juve youngster had what it takes to step up - combining chance creation from his deep role (0.31 chances created per 90 having not taken set pieces), with impressive defensive statistics. (let's not talk about panic loan van de Pavert)

My biggest concerns are at wingback. I just haven't been able to source the statistical output I wanted to fit our budget. I was pretty pleased to sign Petar Cirkovic from IMT Novi Beograd, relegated from the Serbian top tier. An 81% tackle success ratio whilst making 2.36 tackles per game put him in the top 5 of the longlist I'd created, whilst he was putting in a ridiculous amount of crosses (8.9 per 90) and hitting the target with 18% of them; creating a chance at a rate of 0.22 per 90. Combined with his player trait, he was a clear standout. 

The only problem is that the game thinks he's good enough for only Eerste Divisie level. And whilst I've decided to ignore that in favour of the stats, I'm concerned that this is a gamble that will backfire.

But at least we had a gamble to take. On the other flank, we have nothing. I was left testing the free transfer market and judging players based on their performances in our pre-season friendlies. Off the back of that, I was really very keen on Tomás Wiesner, once of Sparta Prague then Cosenza. Sadly, he decided to move to Norway and join Brann instead. The other option I really liked was Kyle Duncan, once of NY Red Bulls and Oostende, but he just won't lower his wage demands and remains without a club.

As an emergency measure, I'm using Jizz Hornkamp at right wingback and I'm thinking I'll just go with him on the right and Cirkovic on the left for this season. We should be aiming for the European playoffs but so long as we stay up again, I should get enough cash next summer to invest in a couple of proper quality wingbacks. For me, that should round off the team nicely as I feel we have decent quality elsewhere. The likes of van Hooijdonk and Castillo have added to the really successful transfers of last year.

Chindris, Meisl and Ledezma in particular were great. and really justifying the stats-led approach.

The last relevant news is that the board is improving both the training facilities (currently below average) and expanding the stadium. The latter will take us from 3300 seats to 6125. Until February we'll play at de Vlotter, the ground of amateur side ADO '20 who, rather embarrassingly, have a bigger stadium than us.

Which I guess underlines just how small this club is and how much of a challenge the recruitment is. We were given £890k transfer budget and our annual salary, at £2.67m, is still just 66% of the next lowest team (Go Ahead Eagles) and 3.8% of Ajax's. Indeed, despite what I think is some pretty handy summer recruitment, we're still predicted to finish dead last and, at 1000/1, have double the odds of Go Ahead, predicted to finish 17th. But I'm going to ignore all that because I genuinely think this squad has a very decent shout at a top-half finish.

 

 

Edited November 25, 2022 by Shrewnaldo

[SteinkelssonFM]

Cracking update Shrew, hope you have made a full recovery now.

What a great first season in the Eredivisie, if you can turn some of those draws into wins in season two you will be flying. 

Looking at those outputs for van Hooijdonk, as long as his supply line is firing I have no doubts he will be a success. 

As for Ledezma, what a season so many contributions...out of interest how did he fit into the system and where did he make the most impact? 

[Shrewnaldo]

6 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Cracking update Shrew, hope you have made a full recovery now.

What a great first season in the Eredivisie, if you can turn some of those draws into wins in season two you will be flying. 

Looking at those outputs for van Hooijdonk, as long as his supply line is firing I have no doubts he will be a success. 

As for Ledezma, what a season so many contributions...out of interest how did he fit into the system and where did he make the most impact? 

Thanks. We haven't really taken your advice about those draws...

But you can see that you're right about van Hooijdonk, he's hit the ground running in spectacular style.

Ledezma was an interesting one. He didn't really get started as an 8 in the 4-3-3. He didn't seem to get on the ball enough and his creative output was very poor. After the switch to 3-4-3, I was considering using him as one of the 6s, looking to play through the lines with his passing range. But instead I went with him as one of the 10s - the one who drops off and tries to get on the ball whilst the other 10 looks to break beyond and support the 9. This has suited him really well and he's had a number of assists pulling into that half-space in support of the wingback then picking a pass or in-swinging cross towards the back post. Plus his set pieces have been great - both scoring and delivering. Been really happy with him.

[nielsvg99]

Very interesting thread! I am doing a similar save with PEC Zwolle right now, i love the challenge and spending hours looking at stats.

Could you possibly share your views/filters? They look great

[Shrewnaldo]

9 minutes ago, nielsvg99 said:

Very interesting thread! I am doing a similar save with PEC Zwolle right now, i love the challenge and spending hours looking at stats.

Could you possibly share your views/filters? They look great

No worries, I've attached the ones I have to this post.

General View, Offensive Stats View, Defensive Stats View and Training view are for the squad screen. Anything with "scouting" in it is for, you guessed it, the scouting screen (Players > Players in Range), and anything with "shortlist" is for the shortlist.

Shrew's Defensive Stats View.fmf Shrew's General View.fmf Shrew's Offensive Stats View.fmf Shrew's Scouting - 9.fmf Shrew's Scouting - Attacking Stats.fmf Shrew's Scouting - Defensive Stats.fmf Shrew's Scouting - GK Stats.fmf Shrew's Scouting - Wingbacks.fmf Shrew's Shortlist - Defensive Stats.fmf Shrew's Shortlist View.fmf Shrew's Training View.fmf

[SixPointer]

The tactical switch has worked wonders! I think it’s a very good formation this year due to how pivots are playing. I’ve ended up at the same conclusion after a ropey start with a single pivot I switched to a double and it’s made things a lot smoother especially as I look to transition quickly. 
 

If big Sydney is half as good as he was in my Dutch save last year I think he will be something of a coup for you!

[Matty Aqua]

Some incredible names in this save  - Sydney van Hooijdonk and Jizz Hornkamp!  

Petar Cirkovic has some good stats he must be playing way above his 'attributes' if the game only recognises him as a 2nd division player.

How long did you scout him?, and are your scouts decent quality?

[Matheus.almeida]

Hey man! I've been watching your save and it's very good! Enjoy your Skin, the stars makes everything more realistic. I've been trying to implement this game style in my saves for some time now. I know it has the original skin of the stars but I really like the details and interfaces of the Tato Skin. I can merge the stars with WTCS5 but with Skin Tato I couldn't. Could you make this skin available to me?

[Shrewnaldo]

5 hours ago, Matty Aqua said:

Some incredible names in this save  - Sydney van Hooijdonk and Jizz Hornkamp!  

Petar Cirkovic has some good stats he must be playing way above his 'attributes' if the game only recognises him as a 2nd division player.

How long did you scout him?, and are your scouts decent quality?

It's not just my scouts, but my coaches too. He started really poorly but his attacking output recently has been much better.

Sadly, I think he's just not going to end up being a mistake. Comparing him to my other option at left wingback, the stats tell a story:

• Jonathan Mulder
  • Headers won - 81%
  • Tackles won - 79%
  • Blocks per 90 - 0.64
  • Clearances per 90 - 0.92
  • Interceptions per 90 - 3.76
  • Pressures per 90 - 17.32
  • Progressive passes per 90 - 2.29
  • Team conceded per 90 - 1.28
  • Chances created per 90 - 0.37
  • xA per 90 - 0.12
  • Dribbles per 90 - 1.28
  • Crosses per 90 - 3.3
  • Cross success - 5%
• Petar Cirkovic
  • Headers won - 48%
  • Tackles won - 70%
  • Blocks per 90 - 0.15
  • Clearances per 90 - 0.77
  • Interceptions per 90 - 3.01
  • Pressures per 90 - 17.95
  • Progressive passes per 90 - 2.77
  • Team conceded per 90 - 1.85
  • Chances created per 90 - 0.15
  • xA per 90 - 0.16
  • Dribbles per 90 - 2.39
  • Crosses per 90 - 5.47
  • Cross success - 21%

Cirkovic is *much* the better attacking wingback. His cross success is *four times* that of Mulder and he creates much more from them... BUT he doesn't create as much overall because Mulder's other abilities are better and crucially that team conceded per 90 stat just highlights that Cirkovic is a clear liability at the back. Shame but I think it's clear he's not a long-term option

5 hours ago, Matheus.almeida said:

Hey man! I've been watching your save and it's very good! Enjoy your Skin, the stars makes everything more realistic. I've been trying to implement this game style in my saves for some time now. I know it has the original skin of the stars but I really like the details and interfaces of the Tato Skin. I can merge the stars with WTCS5 but with Skin Tato I couldn't. Could you make this skin available to me?

Hey Matheus. Sorry but I can't share it. Rensie helped me out with the skin and I'm afraid he's not sharing it publicly. However, there are a couple of options with the stars etc that you could look at. Try this one or this one.

[Shrewnaldo]

Absolute disaster. 21 goals in 27 starts (no pens). Disaster

[Matty Aqua]

1 hour ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Absolute disaster. 21 goals in 27 starts (no pens). Disaster

Just standard FM isn't it!...

[SixPointer]

7 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Absolute disaster. 21 goals in 27 starts (no pens). Disaster

Criminal!! I though he was a real coup! Nightmare shrew!!!!

[SteinkelssonFM]

On 28/11/2022 at 21:32, Shrewnaldo said:

Absolute disaster. 21 goals in 27 starts (no pens). Disaster

Sickening blow for you there mate. Roll on the next update. 

[danielgear]

On 28/11/2022 at 21:32, Shrewnaldo said:

Absolute disaster. 21 goals in 27 starts (no pens). Disaster

The FM curse 

[Chris_ANZFM]

Thankfully it’s been a very quiet afternoon at work today and it’s allowed to read right the way through this. 
 

One has done a fantastic job so far. I really enjoy the depth you go into to explain your thoughts/decisions. Really one of my favourite things about FM Blogs. 
 

 

[Shrewnaldo]

On 08/12/2022 at 01:47, Chris_ANZFM said:

Thankfully it’s been a very quiet afternoon at work today and it’s allowed to read right the way through this. 
 

One has done a fantastic job so far. I really enjoy the depth you go into to explain your thoughts/decisions. Really one of my favourite things about FM Blogs. 
 

 

Cheers Chris, one is most pleased

I'm actually well on with the game. I had a bit of a meh spell where I wasn't playing for a couple of days but I'm back on it now and another season ahead of when I last updated. Just lost the writing bug a bit. Something about this time of year - totally off my reading too.