GIMN Posted January 20, 2023 Share Posted January 20, 2023 (edited) Monday 19th December As the dust settles on the Qatar World Cup, the streets and canals of Amsterdam are awash with orange. It's just over 12 hours since the Netherlands lifted the World Cup Trophy for the first time in their history, and the parties are only just getting started. Within minutes, the States General announced a national holiday for Monday, but judging by the jubilation and fervour seen across the country, one day might not be enough. It would be unfair to suggest this was a shock - this Netherlands team is brimming with quality - but beyond the most optimistic Oranje fan, they were definitely not considered amongst the favourites. Whether that was the apathy surrounding the return of Louis van Gaal for his 3rd stint in charge, the continuous questions as to who the starting keeper would be, or concerns about their best midfielders all suffering a torrid time at their respective clubs, this was meant to be a Netherlands side in transition. Maybe the adversity was just what they needed. Argentina were swept aside 4-0 in the quarter finals, Spain were sent packing after penalties in the semis, and Portugal could barely get a foothold in the final as Netherlands ran out 1-0 winners. While attention will, quite rightly, be on the Netherlands and their amazing journey to end their status as international football's eternal bridesmaid, for the rest of the nations today is Black Monday. The dissection of every minute of every game is well underway already. Post-mortems fill column inches in national papers, as journalists clamour amongst each other to point out every last failing. In a competition where only 1 team out of 32 can come away victorious, football is pronounced dead in the remaining 31. Despite winning the 3rd place play-off, the FFF announced the sacking of Didier Deschamps this morning. His counterpart in that game, Luis Enrique, had already tendered his resignation, showing that reaching the final 4 in football's greatest competition is simply not enough in this modern day and age. If a semi-final birth isn't considered enough, spare your thoughts for those that didn't even make it that far. Lionel Scaloni and Tite announced they were stepping away from Argentina and Brazil, respectively, before the tournament had reached it's conclusion. Serbia, Uruguay and Poland, similarly jettisoned their managers at the earliest opportunity. Against a background of brutal expectations, it is perhaps refreshing that Gareth Southgate and Roberto Martinez have kept their jobs despite 2nd round exits. So what now for those nations, sitting rudderless after the first ever winter World Cup? A lot has been said about the disruption caused to domestic leagues, but what will be the impact on conducting managerial searches whilst the season is mid-flow. International management has lost it's lustre in recent years. Once seen as the pinnacle of a manager's career, international football is being increasingly eschewed in favour of the money and acclaim brought by the major European leagues. It is perhaps telling that despite being often heralded as one of the greatest managers ever, Pep Guardiola's name has not been mentioned by a single Spanish journalist to be linked with the top job. Marcelo Bielsa, often namechecked as a major influence amongst football's elite, is currently without a job, and yet isn't considered the favourite for the Argentina job. That honour belongs to Ricardo La Volpe, who has spent most of his career managing in Mexico, and not held a job since 2019. Poland's attention is currently focused solely on international journeyman Dick Advocaat. Both managers have plenty of experience, but neither particular whet the appetite. Perhaps this is a response to a World Cup final where the combined age of the coaches was 149. La Volpe and Advocaat are both older than Louis van Gaal, and it's hard to imagine that either could be considered part of any long term strategy. It might not have worked for Argentina with Lionel Scaloni, but now more than ever is the time to find a coach with bold new ideas. It's been 17 years since Germany gambled on Joachim Low - a move that catapulted Die Nationalmannschaft back in to the conversation as one of the world's best. Can Argentina, Brazil, France or Spain show the same bravery as the DFB all those years ago? What's all this about, then? I'll be taking over as an international manager of one those nations, under the guise of a former player, using the same restrictions as all my saves: General Rules Attributes obscured using my "graphical attribute" skin which removes numbers and groups attributes as either Excellent, Good, Average or Poor Some pages, such as the attribute progress development graph, will be disabled Staff Hiring Rules Job Centre adverts/applications A custom shortlist of coaches who worked with the former player I choose to be The international job will essentially serve as a preface to when I take on a domestic job. Allowing me to build up an identity, and develop relationships, before diving into the game properly Edited April 21, 2023 by GIMN 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 20, 2023 Author Share Posted January 20, 2023 (edited) The Teams/Candidates (Alphabetical order) Argentina The challenge here is obvious. Even if Messi doesn't retire immediately, the likelihood of him being available by the next World Cup is surely somewhere near zero, so any long-term plan has to be without him. And how do you replace arguably the greatest player of all time. The emergence of Enzo Fernandez and Julian Alvarez certainly provide pieces to build around, and Lautaro Martinez seems to be a lot more reliable in FM than he was at the World Cup irl, but there are definitely a lot of questions about whether Argentina have the quality and depth to be competitive in the near future. The next World Cup will represent 40 years since they last lifted the trophy. The Argentinian Baddiel and Skinner are already preparing a rousing indie-rock song for the occasion. Could Andrés D'Alessandro be the man to take the reigns? Whilst it might prove impossible to replace Lionel Messi on the pitch, perhaps the answer is to hire a left-footed dimunitive attacking midfielder as manager. Once seen as an heir to Diego Maradonna, D'Alessandro's career never quite panned out as expected, and he only made 28 appearances for La Albiceleste. Argentina clearly have an affinity for hiring former players who had a loan spell in England where they played 13 matches, and stylistically he definitely fits the profile expected for the reigning Copa America champions. This is, however, probably the least likely option. It's hard to imagine Argentina would turn to another inexperienced manager given the in-game result of a Quarter Final exit. Brazil The biggest disappointment of the four, Brazil were ceremoniously knocked out in the 2nd round by Portugal. In many respects this is a very attractive job. Thiago Silva is the only player likely to be retired by the next World Cup, and whilst Neymar will be 34 by then, who wouldn't want to have him at your disposal. The full-back position looks weak, and central midfield looks a little light on depth, but there is more than enough attacking options to be an exciting proposition. But who could be the right man for the job... Enter Emerson Ferreira da Rosa, more commonly known as just Emerson. The former Juventus, Real Madrid and Milan midfielder definitely has international pedigree, having represented Brazil on 73 occasions. Brazil have a penchant for defensive midfielders as managers, with the Tite and Dunga both fitting a similar mould in their playing days. Emerson was definitely a little more refined than his predecessors, however, so I imagine that he wouldn't be seen as quite as pragmatic and surely that would only be a good thing for a Brazilian side bristling with attacking talent. France This feels like the poisoned chalice of the lot. Whilst the other managers stepped down, France sacked Didier Deschamps for finishing 3rd. Whilst it's good to have high standards, that feels a little harsh. On the flip side, however, this is a very talented team. The opportunity to manage Mbappe is probably worth it alone. Kounde, Upamecano, Hernandez (both), Tchouameni, Camavinga and Nkunku give France a core that can be relied on for years to come. In fact, when you look at it like that, you can kind of understand Deschamps being given the boot. Griezmann is perhaps the elder statesmen of the team, and he's only 31 - he'll definitely be around for the next Euros if not the World Cup. Maybe the French Stewart Lee is waiting in the wings? Jeremy Toulalan might seem like an odd choice, but he feels like a good fit here. The heartbeat of the Lyon side that dominated French football in the late 2000s, Toulalan was technically gifted, intelligent and, by most accounts, humble. He was also at the centre of the French team's player strike during the 2010 World Cup, a sign of his ability to put player welfare at the heart of his agenda. In the modern era, he could be the perfect tonic to the more disciplined approach that Deschamps took, and vital for bringing out the best of an otherwise talented squad. Spain Spain, incredibly, did not concede a goal until their 3rd place playoff match. Defeat on penalties after a 0-0 draw against Netherlands saw them fall at the final hurdle, and it's probably reasonable that their fans can feel a little hard done by. It is perhaps surprising that Luis Enrique stepped down in those circumstances. This was surely Busquets, Ramos and Azpilicueta's swansong for the national team, but otherwise most of the squad will be available for the Euros in 18 months time. There aren't many international teams with as strong an identity as Spain, and the challenge here will be to try and bring in a more pragmatic approach. Almost the exact opposite of the other team's in this list. Pedri and Gavi are as potentially exciting a midfield-duo as any nation can offer. And that can mean only one person. Andrés Iniesta hasn't technically retired, but with Japanese Leagues not-licensed, it means he isn't available in the game world, and I can't think of anyone more appropriate to see through the rise of the talented Barca youngsters on the international stage. Iniesta doesn't really need an introduction in the same way as the other former-players, but I do want to point out that he is a man of many nicknames, my favourite being El Caballero Pálido (the Pale Knight). Spain also feels like the country that might be most likely to give an inexperienced manager a shot, having recently promoted Luis de la Fuente from the U21 set up in real life. Edited January 20, 2023 by GIMN 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 20, 2023 Author Share Posted January 20, 2023 (edited) We turn to the wheel of fate to make our decision for us... ...Spain it is. Andrés Iniesta dusts off his best suit, ready to take his first steps into the world of management. To those on the outside, this might have seemed like a move from left field, but the RFEF were clear on what they wanted to do. Spain has an identity. If they were to abandon that now, they'd be undoing all the work that's been in place for the last 20 years. Sure, an unproven coach is a risk, but there are very few players who have embodied Spanish football quite like Iniesta. His unmatched technical prowess, his intelligence, his understanding of the meaning of teamwork. At 38-years old, the "next step" had been on his mind for a while. The timing and the fit was perfect. To say it had been on his mind for a while, was an understatement. Over the years, Iniesta had amassed a contact book filled with luminaries of the Spanish domestic game. Within minutes, he'd assembled a whole backroom staff, built exclusively from former teammates and coaches. It is far from orthodox. Jordi Melero comes in as Assistant Manager, despite having not worked in a coaching capacity for 13 years, when he was at Girona. In the years between, however, Melero has garnered a reputation as one of the game's premier analysts. There isn't a man, nor woman, in this world who can rival Jordi's tactical knowledge. Likewise Jordi Roura's most recent role was as a Recruitment Analyst at Barcelona. David Villa and Javier Saviola can certainly bank on a reputation earned over stellar playing careers, but little is known of their coaching nous. Then there's the elephant in the room. It should be no surprise that the coaching set-up has a heavy Barcelona lilt. In fact, it is almost exclusively developed in Barcelona. Spanish partisanship has often been blamed for the national team's failings in recent years, and the news of Iniesta's backroom team is surely only going to stoke those fires. Does the RREF even realise there are 19 other teams in La Liga? Edited January 21, 2023 by GIMN 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 20, 2023 Author Share Posted January 20, 2023 (edited) Tactical Identity “I hate tiki-taka. Tiki-taka means passing the ball for the sake of it, with no clear intention. And it's pointless.” -- Pep Guardiola By the time the 2024 European Championships comes round, it will be 12 years since Spain have won an international tournament. It will also be 12 years since Guardiola left Barcelona. Whilst we are all aware that correlation is not causation, it does appear that the greater the distance between Guardiola and members of the Spain squad, the further away the team seems to be from the principles of positional play which made the tiki-taka approach so effective. Does that mean tiki-taka is dead? It has been largely used as a derisory term in recent years for possession without purpose, but for me possession is not just about scoring. Possession is a defensive tool, allowing us to control the flow of the game, and keep the opposition away from our goal. Possession is a game management tool, allowing us to tire the opposition whilst conserving our own energy. Possession is a psychological tool, allowing us to impose our will on - and frustrate - our opponents. Tournament football is frenetic. Players have relatively little time together compared to domestic football, and yet they are expected to play a lot of games in quick succession. The conditions are far from ideal for building a fluid, cohesive attacking unit. Possession, without positional play, is a defensive foundation that will serve us well with the players at our disposal. That is not a repudiation of positional play; the principles of which will be important for us in our attacking phases, merely just a recognition that we need to be comfortable with being patient and asserting control. “Provoke the proximity of the maximum number of opposition players around the ball. Recuperate the ball imminently when lost in spaces where we are united.”-- Oscar Moreno Pressing is not a modern invention, but there is no denying that persistent, co-ordinated pressing has featured heavily in the last decade. In a possession heavy approach, with players in close proximity, we will be well positioning to execute the counter-press. In the same way that our attacking phases help to provide a defensive foundation, our defensive/transitional phases need to support our attacking foundation. We cannot dominate possession if we are happy to concede it when the opposition has the ball. We want to swallow our opponents. “Do you know how Barcelona win the ball back so quickly? It’s because they don’t have to run back more than 10 metres as they never pass the ball more than 10 metres.” -- Johan Cruyff It is important to understand how attacking responsibilities will impact our defensive structure. I don't want to restrict us quite to the extreme proposed by Cruyff. There is a time for verticality, and whilst I want to promote close interplay, we need to be aware of opportunities to push the ball forward when the opportunity arises. What we can't do, however, is pour forward with abandon. Wingbacks bombing up and down the flanks all game long are going to tire quickly. Midfielders breaking past the striker whilst the ball is at the feet of our goalkeeper is just a waste of energy. Here's where positional play is important. We need to look at progressing the ball methodically, and find ways to play between the lines as much as possible. “There’s numerical, positional, and qualitative superiority. Not all 1 vs. 1’s are a situation of equality” -- Paco Seirul-Lo We need to pick and chose our approach based on the challenge facing us. We don't want to just focus on positional depth between lines or finding overloads. We have some incredible players at our disposal, and we need to give the players the opportunities to make the most of favourable 1v1 matchups. I would even go so far as to say that if we can isolate our best player against a weakness, positional and numerical superiority becomes a second-thought. All things considered, there are certain principles I want us to stick to: Dominate possession, exhibiting patience with the ball Have confidence to play within tight spaces Prioritise players with intelligence, trusting in their qualities Is that just pretentious waffle? Yeah, probably. So what does that mean in practice? It's early days, and whilst I have a loose idea of the players that might form my first squad, there's a lot to to still be decided. We do, however, have an idea of the skeleton of what we're trying to do. Shorter passing, build up from the back, encourage players to take on their man. Counter-press, but don't play too high to be vulnerable to the counter. You'll notice that 4 players are missing. Our goal will be to field the 5 most suitable players available to fill the 5 vertical channels in possession. We know the front 3 will be a part of that 5, with 2 others joining them, from the missing positions. The other 2 spots will be responsible for the support roles alongside the defensive midfielder. The defenders will be defenders. Subsequently, no roles are set in stone either. I am keen to incorporate a wide Trequartista, something @MattyLewis11 has done to great effect in his Villarreal save. Whilst my approach intends to be different, I am a big fan of the idea of instructing them to Hold Up Ball. We have a lot of creative attacking midfielders at our disposal, and the Trequartista is a particularly interesting role as not only is it a ball-magnet, but there are no hard-coded width instructions (Stay Wider, Cut Inside With Ball, etc...), making it a very adaptive role. Squad Composition Before talking about how we're assessing the squad, it is probably important to explain the "Graphical Attribute" approach, and the differences being made for this save. Rather than seeing a numerical value between 1-20, attributes are grouped as blocks of colour representing Poor, Average, Good and Excellent ability in those areas. A key is below: Normally, I'd play with each group being an equal size (1-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20), but for this save, we'll be squashing things up at the top. This will help us identify those who are truly elite in some areas, whilst also adding a much larger degree of uncertainty when it comes to average attributes. So, onto the squad, and perhaps the biggest headline to how I'll be approaching this. I am not here to develop the next generation. I want the best players to execute our game plan. If that means Sergio Ramos is my best option to start every game, even if there's a risk he'll retire on the eve of the European Championships, then so be it. As an international manager, I can not impact a young player's development enough to significantly change his value to the squad. That doesn't mean that young players won't get opportunities, it just means that they have to earn that opportunity. Moreover, club form does not necessarily impact a national team call up. Controversial, I know, but if I have a player that I know will perform for me in the role that I need, that holds considerable value. Of course, it will take a while for me to establish who those players are that I can trust, so these next few months are likely to be players' best chance of earning a shot. That said, if you can get yourselves on the fringes of the squad, you've always got a chance of earning a place through performances. How will I determine players worthy of a call up before then, I hear you ask? Let's start with attributes. Given the tactical principles, there are certain attributes I am going to prioritise above others. Some might refer to this as the DNA. Although, when I've seen that mentioned in the past, there's usually been a greater focus on mental attributes. For me, however, the following are key: First Touch Technique Passing Decisions If we want to dominate possession, we need players who are capable in the above areas. I could have the best striker in the world, but if he can't control the ball, he has no value in my system. It's a bit draconian, sure, but I'm happy to be an ideologue. Beyond that, we will be taking a more statistical approach. Whilst I've said that club form doesn't automatically mean you'll get a call up, it is worth pointing out that reputation alone is not enough. We are only 14 games into the domestic season at this point, so for the first few weeks, I'll attend some games, until we've got at least half a season under our belt to start diving deeper into player performance. Edited January 21, 2023 by GIMN 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AM23 Posted January 20, 2023 Share Posted January 20, 2023 Very well written first post! Gets me interested before the FM part has even started 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 20, 2023 Author Share Posted January 20, 2023 1 hour ago, AM23 said: Very well written first post! Gets me interested before the FM part has even started Thank you. I'm happy to admit it's far too pretentious, but hey, it's important to have as much fun as possible. Also, great profile pic! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagain Posted January 21, 2023 Share Posted January 21, 2023 (edited) Nice start. I thought it was going to be a Dutch save when I saw the first pic. Either the Oranje themselves or a Dutch league team. I like the idea to progress on from a Dutch won World Cup. If you do as well as you did with Uthongathi it'll be a continental and World double. Good luck. Edited January 21, 2023 by anagain 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 21, 2023 Author Share Posted January 21, 2023 16 hours ago, anagain said: Nice start. I thought it was going to be a Dutch save when I saw the first pic. Either the Oranje themselves or a Dutch league team. I like the idea to progress on from a Dutch won World Cup. If you do as well as you did with Uthongathi it'll be a continental and World double. Good luck. The hands of fate have been kind, and I've taken on the Spain job (which is the one I wanted most). Whilst it was nice to cover the World Cup to frame the save, there's something quite nice about being able to manage from the perspective of someone whose own career has been directly impacted by Louis van Gaal. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagain Posted January 22, 2023 Share Posted January 22, 2023 4 hours ago, GIMN said: The hands of fate have been kind, and I've taken on the Spain job (which is the one I wanted most). Whilst it was nice to cover the World Cup to frame the save, there's something quite nice about being able to manage from the perspective of someone whose own career has been directly impacted by Louis van Gaal. Viva España! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 22, 2023 Author Share Posted January 22, 2023 Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics It's now late January - 2 months to go until our opening European Championship qualifiers against Romania and Latvia. La Liga has finally reached the half way point, and we can comfortable that there's a reasonable amount of data we can use to start identifying players that might help propel us back to the top of the international rankings. Statistics aren't the be all, end all, but they will serve as a valuable tool to ensure that we are focussing our scouting efforts in the right places. Whilst I've been making the most of the privilege that comes with being the national team manager to attend some high profile games, it has largely been without purpose. FM23 provides us with a whole load of new statistics to look it, which is great, but it can also be overwhelming. A large part of today has been spent trying to identify which data points are useful to us and how best to use them to identify those possible hidden gems. So let's have a look at our options at the base of midfield: We identified 3 key priorities to how we are going to set up, and used this to inform how we want to manipulate the statistics available: Dominate possession, exhibiting patience with the ball Have confidence to play within tight spaces Prioritise players with intelligence, trusting in their qualities On the left we have a breakdown of a player's passing tendencies - how often the pass safe, how often they progress the ball, etc... On the right, we have turnover differential - how often they win possession compared to how often they lose it. In the middle we have key pass frequency with bubbles indicator quality of chances (xA per key pass), and tackle frequency with bubbles indicating fouling tendency (fouls per tackle attempt). It's a lot of information, but from here I can get a good feel for a player's game intelligence - their ability to progress the ball safely, to know when to commit to the challenge, and to be able to make that final pass. From here we've been able to filter it down to 8 candidates. Sure, a number of these players would have already been in consideration. Nobody would be surprised to see Rodri or Thiago's name in there. Whilst Busquets and Koke are known quantities despite their advancing ages. There are a couple of players who might not have been at the forefront of my thoughts, however. Campana, Parejo and Vencedor are all interesting players who each offer something a little different. I'm very keen to attend some of their games to see if they pass the eye test. In total we have 81 players now added to the National Pool, which is arguable a little on the small side. That suits me. Fewer players should hopefully mean we'll be able to scout all prospective call ups thoroughly, including those "established" players we might have otherwise given less priority to as they are known quantities. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Ben_ Posted January 22, 2023 Share Posted January 22, 2023 This is, as I’d expect, amazing. Had kind of hoped you’d end up in Argentina, giving you a slightly different route through club football but know you’ll do Spain justice. Love that you’ve got your data driven hat on, even for the elite level! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 2 hours ago, _Ben_ said: This is, as I’d expect, amazing. Had kind of hoped you’d end up in Argentina, giving you a slightly different route through club football but know you’ll do Spain justice. Love that you’ve got your data driven hat on, even for the elite level! I think, if anything, it shows that I'm not used to managing quite at the elite level. Looks like my first squad might have a few players who could be considered a bit too hipster for most people's liking. Take Unai Vencedor, for example. He is definitely not as good as Rodri, attribute wise, and he's a little bit behind him in statistical output, too. But the fact that it's so close in output, and he has nowhere near the profile of his Man City counterpart, I am finding myself endearing to him as time goes by. It certainly helps that he's performed well in both Bilbao games I've watched since he came to my attention, one of which was against Real Madrid. Then there's Toni Martinez, who is looking like a quite a player for Porto. Whilst Vencedor is, at least, currently part of the national youth setup and so his selection might not be completely out of left field, Martinez is a late bloomer who struggled in La Liga 2 only 4 years ago. He's also got the 3rd most key passes per 90, 3rd most tackle attempts per 90, 3rd highest tackle completion percentage, 2nd highest interceptions per 90 out of all Spanish strikers who have played at least 500 minutes this season. He's also scored 14 goals already this season, including in the Champions League. There's a very real chance that he keeps Alvaro Morata out of the squad. (Also, any excuse to get a use out of these player cards) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 The time is finally upon us...we get to name our first squad. I suggested I might be a bit left-field, and I think in that respect, I've delivered. David De Gea, Kepa Arrizabalega, Dani Carvajal, Nacho, Cezar Azpilicueta, Jordi Alba, Marc Cucurella, Koke, Carlos Soler, Pablo Sarabia, Ferran Torres, Pedro and Alvaro Morata all miss out. 4 player could be in line for their debut. Another 5 have only single digit international appearances. If we don't brush Romania and Latvia aside comprehensively, I'm gonna be in for a grilling. Without further ado, I present Andrés Iniesta's first Spain squad: Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards I didn't mention Jose Marsà in the last post, but there's a good chance he will start at left-back for us. He is definitely a centre-back first, but he impressed playing as a wing-back in the Sporting games that I attended, and allows us to be more conservative on that side whilst the RB is likely to have the freedom to bomb forward. I had intended to add a hybrid right-back/centre-back instead of Bellerín, but he's been in irrepressible form of late and can provide us with pace which is otherwise lacking in this squad. Deulofeu is the one player I'm sad to have not found a place for, and the pressure is definitely on Olmo, Fornals and Fati to take whatever opportunities they get during these games. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 Romania (Home) - European Championship Qualifier Our European Championship Qualifying campaign is under way, and as alluded to in the previous post, Jose Marsà is given his debut at left back. Rodri, Thiago and Pedri form the midfield three, with Thiago the roaming playmaker, expected to link up often with Oyarzábal on the right, who is deployed as a Trequartista. Despite his desire to cut inside, Ansu Fati will be expected to play as a regular winger, giving us width on the left hand side. Not something I plan on doing always, but I've pooled together a handful of highlights from the game, as there were some really pleasing moments where we showed our ability to both stretch the play and move the ball in tight spaces. There is definitely an element of "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" here. We moved the ball well, and created a number of good chances, but were repeatedly profligate in front of goal. We had to rely on a penalty to open the scoring. Ramos stepping up to become Spain's oldest goalscorer at 36 years and 359 days old. It came moments after Oyarzaábal has been denied by a point-blank block after a nice 15-pass move. Moreno was denied on a number of occasions, most notably in the 46th minute, as a beautiful move between Thiago and Pedri sent the Villarreal man through on goal. Nita saved brilliantly, but Moreno should be scoring there. He did get his goal eventually, sweeping in a beautiful first time finish after Fornals slid him in. A deserved and comfortable 2-0 win. If you remove the penalty from the equation, we created 2.7 xG from 20 shots, whilst barely giving Romania a chance. Their deep 3-4-3 formation made it difficult, but Bellerin and Fati did a fantastic job of giving us width to stretch them and create space inside. Latvia (Away) - European Championship Qualifier With only 72 hours between games, and no option to rest players, we made a few changes. Torres, Gayà, Fornals and Fabián came in for Ramos, Marsà, Oyarzábal and Fati, which saw Pedri move into the wide Trequartista role, whilst Fabián was given a more conservative midfield role to allow Gayà the opportunity to get forward. Torrid rain and an unsurprisingly defensive 4-2-3-1 from Latvia, made for less than ideal conditions. We moved the ball well in the first half, with Moreno spurning a couple of great opportunities from close. We looked to play with more width as the half wore on. Gayà's run down the left was squared back to Rodri, who took aim from 25-yards and fired an absolute rocket into the top corner to give us the lead just before the break. Within a minute of the restart, Moreno had doubled our lead. A deep ball from Pedri caught the Latvian defence flat-footed, and Moreno was able to get to the ball before Legzdins; the Latvian goalkeeper colliding with his centre-back and leaving an empty net for Moreno to roll the ball in. On the hour the game was over. Thiago set Porro free down the right-flank, and his cut back was met on the volley by Pedri. Legzdins got his hand on it, but the ball spun into the air and was easily headed in by Moreno for his 3rd goal of the international break. An injury to Thiago gave Vencedor his debut. Can't really get too carried away with wins over Romania and Latvia, but it's job done so far. We did a better job against Latvia of dominating possession, although that is largely because they're formation made it easier for us to put them under pressure and turn the ball over. Most pleasingly, we managed 0.13 non-penalty xG per shot, showing that we weren't just creating chances, but creating decent quality chances across both games. Simón has yet to make a save. There's now a 3-month wait until our next game. A Nations League semi-final against France, the team that beat us in the 3rd placed play-off in the World Cup. The other teams in the competition are World Cup winners Netherlands and World Cup absentees Italy. It is fair to say that's going to be a tougher test. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 I know this is in the video linked, but I just can't stop thinking about one particular passage of play. It is "only" Romania, but this is a perfect encapsulation of what we are trying to do. It starts with us stretching the width, showing our willingness to go longer when the opportunity presents itself. It wasn't a hopeful long ball forward, there was space clear down that flank. There wasn't anything on, so we showed patience, recycling the ball and baiting the midfield out. Then we showed the bravery to play in tight spaces, moving the ball quickly through the lines to create a chance that Moreno should've scored. 16 passes in total. Look at it. Its so beautiful! 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Ben_ Posted January 24, 2023 Share Posted January 24, 2023 Your writing style never ceases to get me invested, deeply, in your saves! A good - albeit expected - start to your tenure. Can’t wait to see your approach when it comes to bringing through younger players and acting upon seasonal stats to identify new players to utilise. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted January 26, 2023 Share Posted January 26, 2023 Marvellous stuff. Some of the best reading I’ve done on here in while! Hooked me right from the get go! Following along! Hows the tactical system looking after the first two games? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 26, 2023 Author Share Posted January 26, 2023 (edited) On 24/01/2023 at 08:54, _Ben_ said: Your writing style never ceases to get me invested, deeply, in your saves! A good - albeit expected - start to your tenure. Can’t wait to see your approach when it comes to bringing through younger players and acting upon seasonal stats to identify new players to utilise. I'm intrigued to see how that develops, too. With competitions like the Nation's League, there's fewer friendlies for experimentation, so if player's prove that they're able to perform to a high level in my system, it's going to be difficult to unseat them. Realistically, only Ramos and Busquets are likely to have retired by the time the next World Cup comes around, so there's a really good opportunity for those that make the first few squads to cement their place going forward. Season-to-season variance in performance stats, means that I expect a lot of surprising players will at least earn call ups, even if it is to just sit on the peripheries. But also, as we get more data, we'll also be able to identify those who can sustain performance over longer periods of time. It could potentially shrink the pool. 1 hour ago, SixPointer said: Marvellous stuff. Some of the best reading I’ve done on here in while! Hooked me right from the get go! Following along! Hows the tactical system looking after the first two games? I got a new PC yesterday and I haven't transferred any of the files over yet. In fact for the purpose of the following screenshot, I just went and downloaded my own skin. Which felt odd. This is an approximation* of what we used against Romania. Fati (W) and Bellerín (WB) providing the width, whilst Pedri (MEZ) and Oyarzàbal (T) occupied the half spaces. Thiago (RPM) played wherever the hell he wanted to. Marsà (FB) was instructed to sit narrower and hold position which saw him kinda float between being part of either a back 3 or a midfield 3. Structurally, it's a little looser than I originally expected I would go for. I would normally prefer an IWB at LB and a CAR at RCM, as I feel this would create a much more established 2-3-5 shape in possession. Thiago is a really good player, though, and I wanted to give him a little bit more creative licence, especially as we expected Romania to be very defensive. I'm a big fan of the carrilero role in general, but I have to say I was impressed with Thiago. Whether it comes down to the player, the tactic or the role, I was very encouraged by Thiago's positioning. His support distance was absolutely on point, almost always being available for whoever is in possession. Some slight tweaks for Latvia - with Gaya (WB) now providing the width on the left, and Fornals (IW) responsible for the half space. We also started the game playing a little narrower, as I felt we could overload Latvia's 4-2-3-1 with Thiago (RPM), Fornals and Pedri (T) in those central areas. Incidentally, I was wrong about that, and we improved after I reverted back to normal width at about the 30 minute mark. Despite being away, it was a bigger win, more possession and Latvia didn't have a shot. Yet, I thought we looked more fluid against Romania. I feel we're a lot more secure when we only have 1 of our full-backs pushing forwards, even if the defensive aspects can be covered by someone else. I also thought that our interplay was better against Romania, with much better positional staggering to help us methodically progress the ball through the lines. It is, of course, early days. Neither Romania or Latvia were a challenge, and there's only so much we can take away from games like these. I suppose that is ultimately the challenge that international football presents. With Greece and Finland the other teams in the group, it's going to be hard to truly gauge how suited we are for tournament football until that moment comes around. Thankfully the Nation's League will provide sterner competition, and that game/those games are going to be absolutely key to refining the system. *I say approximation, because I've just created a save so I can recreate from memory what we did. I think it's right, I'll confirm in due course. Edited January 26, 2023 by GIMN 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted January 27, 2023 Share Posted January 27, 2023 22 hours ago, GIMN said: I'm intrigued to see how that develops, too. With competitions like the Nation's League, there's fewer friendlies for experimentation, so if player's prove that they're able to perform to a high level in my system, it's going to be difficult to unseat them. Realistically, only Ramos and Busquets are likely to have retired by the time the next World Cup comes around, so there's a really good opportunity for those that make the first few squads to cement their place going forward. Season-to-season variance in performance stats, means that I expect a lot of surprising players will at least earn call ups, even if it is to just sit on the peripheries. But also, as we get more data, we'll also be able to identify those who can sustain performance over longer periods of time. It could potentially shrink the pool. I got a new PC yesterday and I haven't transferred any of the files over yet. In fact for the purpose of the following screenshot, I just went and downloaded my own skin. Which felt odd. This is an approximation* of what we used against Romania. Fati (W) and Bellerín (WB) providing the width, whilst Pedri (MEZ) and Oyarzàbal (T) occupied the half spaces. Thiago (RPM) played wherever the hell he wanted to. Marsà (FB) was instructed to sit narrower and hold position which saw him kinda float between being part of either a back 3 or a midfield 3. Structurally, it's a little looser than I originally expected I would go for. I would normally prefer an IWB at LB and a CAR at RCM, as I feel this would create a much more established 2-3-5 shape in possession. Thiago is a really good player, though, and I wanted to give him a little bit more creative licence, especially as we expected Romania to be very defensive. I'm a big fan of the carrilero role in general, but I have to say I was impressed with Thiago. Whether it comes down to the player, the tactic or the role, I was very encouraged by Thiago's positioning. His support distance was absolutely on point, almost always being available for whoever is in possession. Some slight tweaks for Latvia - with Gaya (WB) now providing the width on the left, and Fornals (IW) responsible for the half space. We also started the game playing a little narrower, as I felt we could overload Latvia's 4-2-3-1 with Thiago (RPM), Fornals and Pedri (T) in those central areas. Incidentally, I was wrong about that, and we improved after I reverted back to normal width at about the 30 minute mark. Despite being away, it was a bigger win, more possession and Latvia didn't have a shot. Yet, I thought we looked more fluid against Romania. I feel we're a lot more secure when we only have 1 of our full-backs pushing forwards, even if the defensive aspects can be covered by someone else. I also thought that our interplay was better against Romania, with much better positional staggering to help us methodically progress the ball through the lines. It is, of course, early days. Neither Romania or Latvia were a challenge, and there's only so much we can take away from games like these. I suppose that is ultimately the challenge that international football presents. With Greece and Finland the other teams in the group, it's going to be hard to truly gauge how suited we are for tournament football until that moment comes around. Thankfully the Nation's League will provide sterner competition, and that game/those games are going to be absolutely key to refining the system. *I say approximation, because I've just created a save so I can recreate from memory what we did. I think it's right, I'll confirm in due course. Like the thinking behind it. The use of highly creative players all woven in nicely should stop play being stale, like Spain can be at times in real life. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 27, 2023 Author Share Posted January 27, 2023 With our Nation's League game against France on the horizon, I plan to take advantage of how International Football allows you to be more flexible with your squad. Outside of the major tournaments, I'm rarely going to be picking a squad for more than 2 matches. That allows me to hyperfocus on the challenges those games will provide, and pick a squad appropriately. There's always the risk of alienating players by dropping them, but if the tactical matchup requires it, then needs must. So, why am I saying this? Well...there's the small matter of some fella named Kylian Mbappe. France hired Bruno Genesio to replace Didier Deschamps, and he prefers a 4-4-2 formation, and his 2 games in charge so far have seen him deploy Mbappe as the left-sided striker. Keen to protect against his threat, I am less likely to want to select an attacking wing-back on that flank. Similar to how I deployed Marsà against Romania, I want to have a hybrid right-back/centre-back this time around. Using the same approach as before, I've identified 3 players to look at in more detail in the last few weeks ahead of the squad selection deadline. Right Back Elustondo was unlucky to miss out on my first squad. He's impressed this season, splitting his time between centre-back and right-back, and boasts the 2nd best pass completion amongst right backs, and 4th best turnover differential at +9.15 per game. He is 1 place ahead on both metrics of Mingueza who, like Elustondo, has been deployed in a variety of positions over the course of the season. The first game I watched of his, he played at DM and finished the game with 2 assists. Garcia is probably the least likely option here - he's played fewer minutes, and all exclusively as a centre-back. That said, he is arguably the better of the three players technically and, from that perspective, he might be a better fit for what we want to do. As we are likely to flip our setup, this also means that we're likely to move whoever plays as a Trequartista over to the left. Fati and Olmo have both picked up injuries, and whilst they should be available by the time comes round, they aren't likely to be match fit. Subsequently, the 2nd main area of focus will be players who can play on the right flank. Winger As above, Deulofeu could consider himself unfortunate to not have been called up previously, and despite having the lowest average rating of the 3 contenders, he is probably my preferred option. Over 5% of his passes are open-play key passes, whilst a further 3% are set-piece key passes, setting him far apart from most other players in consideration. Furthermore, he's a viable option to play as a central striker and outperforming his xG. Sarabia and Pino are probably on the outside looking in - Sarabia as the safe, known option, and Pino as the wildcard. Neither are as explosive as Deulofeu, but Pino's 2.11 dribbles per game is very inviting. These are obviously not the only considerations, and we're still applying the same approach throughout the squad, but these are the key battles to look out for. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 Decisions made. Squad Finalised. Controversy Reigns. Pedro Porro and Sergio Busquets dropped. Jose Marsà, Luis Alberto and Ansu Fati all miss out due to injury/lack of match fitness. In alphabetical order (by position): Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards Elustondo & Mingueza get the call. With both capable as centre-backs, this gives us a bit more depth at the back, which we might need with 2 games in quick succession. Elustondo is slated to start against France. Marsà's injury opens the door for Sporting Gijon's Javi Galán - who comes in just behind Gayà in the progressive passes, pass accuracy and turnover differential, so should be a more than adequate backup. Luis Alberto's injury, sees us list Fornals as a midfielder rather than a forward. Up front, we go with both Deulofeu and Yeremy, whilst Martínez keeps his place as Moreno's backup. Olmo is unlikely to feature, yet again, as he gets back to match fitness, but he's in the squad to offer us some left-footedness should Oyarzábal pick up an injury. The plan is to go with a flipped version of the tactic we used against Romania. Gayà will provide the width on the left, whilst Elustondo tucks inside. Fearful of Mbappe's pace, Pau Torres is looking likely to start over Ramos alongside Laporte. Oyarzábal will switch over the left to reprise the Trequartista role, whilst I'm still undecided as to which of Deulofeu or Pino will get the start at right wing. Fornals is also in consideration. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagain Posted January 28, 2023 Share Posted January 28, 2023 I feel I always learn something reading your tales. I like the way you narrow down the choices. Looking to the players of the future with PIno there. I'm not sure why I think it, but I always think of Deulofeu as a bit of a moody, temperamental player. I was always impressed with him in the PL. I can't recall if he left on bad terms and maybe something I read has influenced me. Might need to utilise the Pyrenees to stop Mbappe. Good luck. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
phnompenhandy Posted January 28, 2023 Share Posted January 28, 2023 This is incredible. So many fresh and original ideas in this concept. Taking on the persona of a superstar - different! Managing one of the most powerful sides in the world - a complete bore-fest in most people's hands, yet you've found a way to make it utterly fascinating. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 11 hours ago, anagain said: I feel I always learn something reading your tales. I like the way you narrow down the choices. Looking to the players of the future with PIno there. I'm not sure why I think it, but I always think of Deulofeu as a bit of a moody, temperamental player. I was always impressed with him in the PL. I can't recall if he left on bad terms and maybe something I read has influenced me. Might need to utilise the Pyrenees to stop Mbappe. Good luck. I remember a Villa-Tottenham game from possibly 10 years ago, where then Villa manager Alex McLeish named a side with 3 centre-backs, 2 right-backs, a left-back and 3 strikers somehow in a 4-4-2. Needless to say we lost 2-0. Now I'm not saying that Alan Hutton would ever be the answer to nullifying Mbappe, but if 6 defenders aren't enough to contain Gareth Bale, then I might need to consider a full outfield 10 of centre-backs. 6 hours ago, phnompenhandy said: This is incredible. So many fresh and original ideas in this concept. Taking on the persona of a superstar - different! Managing one of the most powerful sides in the world - a complete bore-fest in most people's hands, yet you've found a way to make it utterly fascinating. Whilst I can't completely downplay the talent at Spain's disposal, I do question if they have the player profile to be successful at the very top level for a while. Technical, graceful and cultured without a doubt, but it does feel like Spain lack a truly world-class forward - either up front or in the wide areas. Oyarzabal, Ferran Torres, Fati, etc... - it's probably the weakest frontline of any of the "major" nations. Ultimately, this is just the preface of the career, anyway. I plan on staying no longer than 6 years (2 European Championships and 1 World Cup), if I survive that long - and then pursue domestic football. The idea being that I will have established relationships and built a back story ready for when the true career starts. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 France (Neutral) - Nations League Semi Final A recurrent theme in many of my careers - I forgot to screenshot the team sheet before the game. So instead, here are some awkwardly edited images from the match summary with ratings erased so as to not give away any hints. As expected, Elustondo make his debut at right back, whilst Deulofeu also comes straight into the starting lineup. I'm hoping his pace and directness will be able to take advantage of the space I'm expecting Hernández to leave behind when he bombs forward. Oyarzábal will be expected to come inside and help create numerical superiority in central areas. Or, at least, that's the plan. Truth be told, this was not a classic. The map below, showing blocked shots, characterised a lot about how the game was played. There were spells of nice interplay in the midfield area, but space was limited in the final third and it was difficult to muster high quality chances. Moreno was played in twice by lovely balls down the channels, but on both occasions the recovering defender was able to get across and make the block as he shot. France, on the other hand, didn't really get in behind at all, but had a number of pot shots from range that could, on another day, have caused trouble. The best chance of the first half fell to Thiago, who forced a smart save out of Maignan from the edge of the area. The chance owed a lot to Pedri, however, whose direct running pushed France back and created the space for the shot. In fact, this approach seemed to be our most effective way of breaking through the lines, as we struggled to get much penetration through passing. It was much the same in the 2nd half, although France did have a good spell early - Mbappe crawling out of Elustondo's pocket to get his first chance of the game, only to fire wide from an acute angle. A second followed shortly after, only for him to blaze over from the edge of the box. Just after the hour mark, the game became embroiled in controversy. It can be hard to convey through the medium of FM's game engine, so I'll leave it to you to decide. The ref whistled - the foul's been given, but...is it inside or outside of the box? The angels of VAR have been consulted. The decision makes it's way down from footballing heaven, via an earpiece. IT IS NOT OUTSIDE THE BOX. PENALTY!!! Oyarzàbal steps up, Maignan guesses the right way, but the placement is perfect. 1-0 Spain. Thank you VAR (I'm not even convinced it was a foul). And that's how it ended. A boring 1-0 win, and we face either Netherlands or Italy in the final. 19 hours ago, SixPointer said: Like the thinking behind it. The use of highly creative players all woven in nicely should stop play being stale, like Spain can be at times in real life. I feel like you tempted fate here. Stale might be the best description of the game. We enjoyed a lot of the ball, and felt in control throughout, but breaking through a talented French defence proved very difficult. I felt we didn't try and attack the channels between the full-back and centre-back as much as I would've liked, and I might consider playing my wide forwards as offset False 9s in future games to try and stress these areas a little more. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 A far more entertaining game in the other semi-final as Italy, riding the back of Ciro Immobile's hat-trick, dispatch reigning World Champions Netherlands 3-2. The Nations League finals are taking place in Italy, so, despite the neutral venue designation, they definitely carry a home advantage for the final. They did play a day later than us, so hopefully that extra 24 hours of rest will serve us well. Speaking earlier of the lack of truly elite attacking talent for Spain, I would happily take any of Italy's forwards over ours. Our scouts reckon that the ageless Immobile will be flanked by Chiesa and, one of my favourite players in recent years, Giacomo Raspadori. (I remembered the team sheet this time!) Whilst we had an extra 24 hours' rest, it's been a long season for a lot of players, and so rotation is necessary. Galán, Fabián, Pino and Martínez come in for Gayá, Thiago, Deulofeu and Moreno respectively. Ramos replaced Torres for tactical reasons, as I want a right footed centre-back in that position, as I expect they'll need to come out and cover Elustondo on the occasions Raspadori wriggles free. As alluded to in the previous post, I've pushed the wide forwards into the striker strata, deployed as false 9s. I'm hoping this will result in more dynamic movement in the half-spaces and channels and give us much better positional depth when trying to progress the ball through the lines. A perfect start sees Pedri slip Oyarzábal through to open the scoring after 8 minutes, but he is miles offside. It doesn't take long for us to gain the lead proper, however, Toni Martínez marking his second cap (and first start) with a fine finish after a delightful through ball from Pino. Martínez played a huge role as the outlet for the transition before making his way back inside for the finishing touch, and I'm delighted that the goal came from 2 of my changes for this game. Locatelli and Rodri traded long distance efforts that went narrowly over as the first half ended. For much of the 2nd half, we continued to control the game. Galán had a couple of chances narrowly wide, and was saved at the near post after picking up the 2nd ball from a corner. The best chance to wrap up the game fell to Martínez though with 10 minutes remaining, when Deulufeu's knock on find him 12 yards out, but his volley was saved magnificently by Donnarumma. Whilst we looked comfortable for much of the game, Italy did rally late. Chiesa sent through from deep, but Laporte was able to get back in time to make the block. Then with barely seconds remaining, substitute Pellegrini managed to get free down the right. His drilled cross flashed across the 6 yard-box untouched for Raspadori to meet it at the far post. Thankfully, 37-year old Sergio Ramos was also there, and the ball ricocheted off his ever-young legs and safely into the hands of Unai Simón. SPAIN WIN THE NATIONS LEAGUE. It was a much better performance than the France game, and whilst the stats suggest the game was tight, we felt in control for most of the game. It was perhaps similar to France, in that we kept Italy in front of us a lot of the time, and so whilst they had a reasonable amount of shots, it felt like we kept them out of the most dangerous areas. At least until the final couple of minutes. I was more encouraged by our attacking patterns, though, as we did a better job of moving the ball between the lines and creating decent quality chances. Pino deservedly earned the Man of the Match award, and not just because of his assist. His movement was fantastic throughout the game, picking up spaces out wide or in the half space and helping us progress up the field. A lot of his contributions weren't things that show up on the stat sheet, but his game intelligence was very much on show and he's definitely made the most of his opportunity. Before I finish, just a word for Toni Martínez. He made his debut as a 2nd half substitute against France and won the penalty, and followed it up with the winner on his first full cap. An absolutely fantastic contribution from the Porto striker who has never scored more than 10 league goals in a season (although he has scored 22 across all competitions this season). He's come a long way since his 15 appearance, 1 goal loan spell at Oxford!! 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 2022/23 Season Summary As we go into hibernation until the next International break, it is the season's end, so an appropriate time to see how things have panned out in the world of club football. No major surprises, as the major leagues were all won by teams expected to challenge for the title, but Real Sociedad securing a Champions League has to be the "feel good" story of the season. Villa, Udinese, Strasbourg and Vitesse are nice surprises, whilst the Premier League threw in a couple of shocks with Brighton and Crystal Palace relegated. The Premier League also featured significantly in the major European cups, with West Ham (Conference League), Arsenal (Europa League) and Man City (Champions League) all finishing runners up. Villarreal won the Conference League on penalties after a, quite frankly, dull 0-0 draw - in what was the last game of the season I attended. Lazio edged 1-0 past Arsenal to secure the Europa League trophy, whist Inter ran riot in Extra Time to run out 4-1 winners in the quest to be crowned Europe's best. Best Player In Europe European Golden Boy Golden Shoe Sadly no Spanish players picking up individual accolades this year, but Spanish clubs at least featuring strongly. Golden Boy is always a bit of a tricky award in the first season, as it's based on calendar year - in this instance that's 2022, where obviously there's only half a season of performance being judged. If it was at season end, I'm pretty certain Pedri would've taken home the honours for the second successive season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 29, 2023 Author Share Posted January 29, 2023 (edited) Back to European Championship Qualifiers, and a games against the 55th and 56th ranked sides in the world, Finland and Greece. With domestic leagues barely back underway, we're working off last season's data points, and the squad is mostly going to be determined by fitness. And, for that reason, Sergio Ramos, Thiago, and Toni Martínez sadly miss out. Pablo Fornals is also dropped - whilst he's match fit, he's had a poor start to the season, and didn't really make an impression in the last squad. There's a bit of a shortness of viable centre-back replacements. Marsà has picked up another knock, and whilst he'd be fit by the time the games roll round, he won't have match sharpness. Unai Nunez, Inigo Martinez and Eric Garcia are all short of match fitness, too. So I will take a leaf from Luis Enrique's book, and consider Rodri as an emergency option if required. That means Sergio Busquets earns a recall, as we might need DM depth if Rodri has to drop into the backline. Luis Alberto is also back from injury and takes Fornals' spot. Leeds' Marc Roca gets a call up in Thiago's absence and could be in line for his senior debut. After singing his praises last time out, it's a bit gutting to be without Martínez. Neither Fati, Morata nor Ferran Torres are there in terms of match fitness, so in comes another Villarreal forward, Alex Baena. It was a toss up between him and Sociedad's Barrenetxea, who has started the season very well. Baena gets the nod, though, as he was considerably ahead in key passes propensity and turnover differential last season, and I feel a lot more comfortable working against the larger data set. Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards Finland (Home) - European Championship Qualifiers We stick with the 3-striker formation, and that means we're going to be looking at our wing-backs to provide width, so our defensive midfielder will drop into the defence as a half-back. That sees Bellerín come in for Elustondo, whilst Vencedor gets his first start. Rodri is one yellow card away from suspension, so I want to ensure he's available for the next game. Pino pulled a back muscle within hours of the squad being confirmed, and whilst he is back in training, the game comes a bit too soon. Deulofeu is restored to the starting line-up as a result. Galán keeps his place after an enterprising performance against Italy. Spain 4-2 Finland A funny old game, as we concede the first goals under my stewardship. Pau Torres opened the scoring from a corner inside 2 minutes, making a delightful run from the far post to the near post to thump his header past the keeper. A couple of Hrádecký errors put us in control - first getting confused as Oyarzábal's header back across goal was awkwardly palmed into the path of Moreno, before then punting a clearance into Moreno's back, the ball looping in stride for Deulofeu to volley home into an empty net. It should have been a comfortable game from there but, within 15 seconds of the restart, Glen Kamara easily glided past Torres and into the box to slot home a consolation. Oyarzábal restored the margin, tapping in Bellerin's low drilled cross at the far post, but once again we ceded the initiative from kick off, and Pohjanpalo was able to get another. To call it complacency is an understatement. It was like our centre-backs just down-tooled as soon as we had a 3 goal cushion. Very frustrating stuff, especially as it would have been an almost perfect performance without those moments of slackness. Greece (Away) - European Championship Qualifiers Despite the defensive concerns last time out, we run with the same tactical approach. This is partly to see if our frailties were in fact a result of having both wing-backs pushing forward. As has become standard for the 2nd game of the international break, we've rotated once again. Elustondo, Gayà, Rodri, Luis Alberto and Pino come into the starting lineup, as we look to make it 4 from 4 at the half way point of the qualifiers. Greece 1-2 Spain An unnecessary handball by Nikolaou gave us the perfect start; Moreno sending the keeper the wrong way from the penalty spot. From then on, it was death by a thousand paper cuts, as kept Greece pinned back and created chance after chance. Oyarzábal is starting to earn a reputation for being wasteful. A far post volley slammed off the foot of the post, just moments after he blazed over when well placed. Yet he also almost pulled off the sublime when he chested down a cross field pass then let fly on the volley from 25-yards, only to be denied by the bar. He's getting the chances, and that's a skill in it's own, but he really needs to be more clinical when the opportunities present themselves. We almost had to count the cost of that profligacy, as Greece levelled with a classic counter-attacking goal. Tsimikas made a great tackle as we approached their box, and then was able to break forward with the ball before playing in Giakoumakis. Elustondo was caught out of position, allowing the Grecian to carry into the area and place into the top corner. We kept the pressure on, though. Fabian denied by a great Vlachodimos save, before Pino fired over from the edge of the area. Eventually Elustondo was able to make ammends, meeting Gayà's free-kick at the far post to restore our lead. There was time for more, and Fabian was once again spurned by the Greek keeper. A lot of good things on show, and we're definitely meeting the core requirements I'm looking forward. Excluding our opening game against Romania, we've only had less than 65% possession in one game - and that was 58% against Italy! We do need to consider going back to the withdrawn defensive flank to help secure ourselves a little bit more defensively, but we're moving in the right direction. Edited January 29, 2023 by GIMN 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
13th Man Posted January 29, 2023 Share Posted January 29, 2023 (edited) Congrats on the Nations League win! Nothing more satisfying than a dubious penalty to get you past France! Seems like your focus on tactical match ups and squad picking is bringing a lot to the much maligned international management game. Side note - Sad to see the NFL concepts thread die, though it definitely makes sense. I think there could some use in using NFL concepts in (real) football, especially in misdirection, use of space, and overloads and isolations, but the game engine is going to struggle with such out of the box thinking (cue the get back in the box punching meme "never again"). That said - the changing room song was definitely a banger and worth it just for that. Edited January 29, 2023 by 13th Man 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted January 29, 2023 Share Posted January 29, 2023 Sorry for being the curse of stale football 🤣 seems you have managed to shake that tag off tho! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 29, 2023 Author Share Posted January 29, 2023 10 hours ago, 13th Man said: That said - the changing room song was definitely a banger and worth it just for that. I might still be using it as my victory song after every game. If nothing else, I'm happy that I discovered Uthongathi and their YouTube channel! 3 hours ago, SixPointer said: Sorry for being the curse of stale football 🤣 seems you have managed to shake that tag off tho! All is forgiven, but the last few games have definitely highlighted our need for a cutting edge. Something that has plagued Spain since Villa's retirement and Fernando Torres' decline. I have high hopes that Toni Martínez might be the answer, however ridiculous that sounds, and I'm keeping an eye on Jon Karrikaburu whose had an electric start to the season for Sociedad and might soon be ready to make the step up to International level. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted January 29, 2023 Share Posted January 29, 2023 1 hour ago, GIMN said: I might still be using it as my victory song after every game. If nothing else, I'm happy that I discovered Uthongathi and their YouTube channel! All is forgiven, but the last few games have definitely highlighted our need for a cutting edge. Something that has plagued Spain since Villa's retirement and Fernando Torres' decline. I have high hopes that Toni Martínez might be the answer, however ridiculous that sounds, and I'm keeping an eye on Jon Karrikaburu whose had an electric start to the season for Sociedad and might soon be ready to make the step up to International level. How is Fer Nino doing? He was churning out sublime numbers for @MattyLewis11 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 29, 2023 Author Share Posted January 29, 2023 30 minutes ago, SixPointer said: How is Fer Nino doing? He was churning out sublime numbers for @MattyLewis11 Unfortunately, without @MattyLewis11's guiding hand, he's merely an afterthought for Villarreal, unable to get game time ahead of Moreno, Yeremy, Danjuma or Jackson in new manager Didier Deschamp's 3-5-2 formation. It's a similar, albeit less pronounced issue, with Gavi - who would be perfect for what I want to do but is unable to get regular minutes for me to genuinely consider him for selection. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyLewis11 Posted January 29, 2023 Share Posted January 29, 2023 If memory serves me right, I do believe he is in the B team at the very start of the game. I gambled on him over Jackson after pre-season and never looked back. Nice to see you picking a few of my lot, Baena...not quite sure how he snuck in...would take a look at Iker Bravo. If you are keen for any other off the radar call ups I will happily throw you a few profiles to look at. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 29, 2023 Author Share Posted January 29, 2023 49 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said: If memory serves me right, I do believe he is in the B team at the very start of the game. I gambled on him over Jackson after pre-season and never looked back. Nice to see you picking a few of my lot, Baena...not quite sure how he snuck in...would take a look at Iker Bravo. If you are keen for any other off the radar call ups I will happily throw you a few profiles to look at. Baena was definitely the beneficiary of early season fitness issues. That's not to say his performances don't deserve a closer look: He was very much a "safe" option. Good pass completion numbers, actively involved in play, and some pleasing defensive output. He's two-footed, too, which mean he could have utility if I really needed to call upon him, but it was quite unlikely that I would. Even with Pino missing the game against Finland, Baena was still behind Olmo in the picking order (probably worth mentioning that I'm only able to make 3 subs for Euros qualifiers). I am also very conscious every time I call up a Villarreal player that this national team starts to look more and more like a tribute to your career Bravo is sadly another player who looks like he's not going to get much first team action for a while. He mustered a whole 3 appearances for Castilla last year, and is back with the Leverkusen youth team currently. There's a very good chance that by the time I leave the Spain role, I'll have no players younger than 25 in the squad! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 30, 2023 Author Share Posted January 30, 2023 October 2023 Only a month between games now, so we're able to build up some momentum. But, with relatively little time between international breaks, we're still facing the same conditioning issues as before. In fact, it's somehow worse. Ramos, Thiago, and Martínez are barely featuring for PSG, Liverpool and Porto respectively. Barcelona are becoming the bain of my existence, as Garcia, Pedri, Torres and Fati are also all on the fringes and nowhere near fit enough for international consideration. Pau Lopez has a slight knock, which opens the door for De Gea to return to the international setup. Despite needing to make changes to ensure we have a sharp squad, that's not going to deter me from making changes in other areas where I think it is necessary. Specifically Olmo and Deulofeu have not impressed me in their recent appearances, and so I'll be looking to bring other players in. Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards A lot of new faces, yet again. Osasuna centre-back David García benefits from being a rare commodity - a right-footed centre-back who is fit. He is here on merit, though. Playing in a more defensive setup than most of our options, he makes 3.27 interceptions and 5.29 clearances per game, whilst also maintaining a 86% pass completion rate despite 10% of his passes being progressive. More importantly he boasts a 93% tackle success rate, and rarely concedes free-kicks. Carles Aleñá takes the spot of Pedri, and leads all eligible Spanish midfielders in % of passes resulting in open-play Key Passes. He has a tendency to drop deep, which isn't ideally what I want from my more attacking central midfielder, but he's got a good chance of wrestling away that spot from Luis Alberto for the upcoming games. Roca keeps his place with Thiago still not fit. Toni Martínez's loss is Jon Karrikaburu's gain. He's got 6 goals in 9 games so far this season, including 2 in 2 in the Champions League. He'll be joined by Sociedad teammate, Ander Barrenetxea. whose been creating chances at a reasonably impressive clip. 5% of his passes are open-play key passes, with an average xA of 0.12. In those same aforementioned Champions League games, he was named MotM both times. He probably should've been in the squad last time out, but he didn't play enough last season for consideration. Finally, Suso gets a recall to the International squad. The former AC Milan and Liverpool player has been in scintillating form to start the season, both creatively - 7.75% Open-Play Key Pass rate - and defensively - a turnover differential of -4.29 (which is very good for an attacking player). DISASTER - Pino picks up a back injury in a 2-1 victory over Barcelona, where he scored both goals. That game did however, see Ferran Torres play the full 90, and he is now showing as match fit, so he will fill the space vacated by Yeremy. Romania (Away) - European Championship Qualifiers Luis Alberto gets the nod ahead of Aleñá to fill the gap left by Pedri, whilst Barrenetxea takes Pino's spot. Elustondo comes in for Bellerín, as I look for a little bit more defensive solidity. I'm not overly concerned about Romania's attacking threat, but I am wary that they like to play possession football and their defensive mentality means that we might not be able to dominate the ball as much as I like, and that means we might see Suso quite early if we need to become extra aggressive in our press. Romania 1-2 Spain I didn't intend that to be foreshadowing, but boy was I right about Romania's propensity for passing the ball around the back. By half time we'd barely seen 40% of the ball, despite us having 3 attackers in position to disrupt. We could, however, feel a little hard done by to be level at the break. Moreno had opened the scoring with a rasping daisy-cutter from 25 yards. It was a sweet connection, but I'm sure Radu will have felt he could've done better. Oyarzábal continues to find new ways to miss, this time screwing wide from about 10 yards out unmarked, whilst Barrentxea almost got a debut goal, but was denied by a combination of keeper and post. Romania's equaliser was nice - Dennis Man collecting the loose ball after a free-kick, skipping inside of Galán before firing low across Simón into the far corner. Half time required a change of approach. Strikers asked to press more aggressively, whilst Luis Alberto was instructed to stick close to R Marin at the base of their midfield, as we aimed to swamp their central defensive triangle to wrestle back control. We did a good job, too. Drăgușin, who had 65 touches in the first half, was restricted to only a further 27 in the second, and we were able to impose our will on Romania. Oyarzábal again was wasteful, but thankfully Moreno got his second with 6 minutes remaining, sweeping home a low Gayà cross at the near post for a deserved win. Latvia (Home) - European Championship Qualifiers With qualification all but secured, and a home fixture against the whipping boys of the group, we decided to rotate heavily. Only Simón and Torres kept their spot, whilst debuts were given to David García and Karrikaburu. Not sure how much we can learn from this game, but there's opportunity for those fringe players to make their claim for further chances in future squads. Spain 4-1 Latvia That was fun! A very entertaining game, as we moved them ball at will and created lots of good opportunities. It might only be Latvia, but there was some really nice stuff on display. Pau Torres opened the scoring from a throw-in routine, swiveling to volley home at the near post with his right foot. From then on, it was the Suso show. A hat-trick of assists - 2 beautifully weighted passes for debutant Karrikaburu and a selfless square ball to Torres - and a hat-trick of misses. He's obviously been watching Oyarzábal play, and decided that profligacy was what I am looking for in a left-side forward. Thankfully his creative output more than made up for it. We slowed things down and stretched the game in the 2nd half, in the hope we would be able to see the game out more successfully than we did against Finland. Unfortunately, someone forget to tell Torres that the game doesn't end on 85 minutes, as he twice switched off - once to allow Degtjarevs to tap home from close in, and then again literally a minute later as he allowed the young Latvian to drift past him with little effort. Euro placed secured, but there is still work to do defensively. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rich ruzzian Posted January 30, 2023 Share Posted January 30, 2023 Interesting take on the international manager job. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carambau Posted January 30, 2023 Share Posted January 30, 2023 Congrats on qualification for the EUROs 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 30, 2023 Author Share Posted January 30, 2023 5 hours ago, rich ruzzian said: Interesting take on the international manager job. Thank you. It's been ages since I've done international management in FM, and this is quite fun. I just watch other teams play, and then stare at spreadsheets - my idea of heaven! 4 hours ago, Carambau said: Congrats on qualification for the EUROs I'd love to wax lyrical about how it's all done to my Iniesta's genius, but the "best" team in the group besides ourselves is Greece, who are currently ranked 49th. It has definitely been a kind draw! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
phnompenhandy Posted January 31, 2023 Share Posted January 31, 2023 8 hours ago, GIMN said: Thank you. It's been ages since I've done international management in FM, and this is quite fun. I just watch other teams play, and then stare at spreadsheets - my idea of heaven! A habitually original take. I've not come across anyone doing international management unless it's the likes of San Marino or Oceanic Islands. The consensus seems to be that international management has been so long and badly neglected by SI that it's unplayable. And yet here you are making it gripping! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 31, 2023 Author Share Posted January 31, 2023 2 hours ago, phnompenhandy said: A habitually original take. I've not come across anyone doing international management unless it's the likes of San Marino or Oceanic Islands. The consensus seems to be that international management has been so long and badly neglected by SI that it's unplayable. And yet here you are making it gripping! I certainly understand the gripes about international management, but I can't say I agree with them. The two glaring omissions, to me at least, are the lack of training and the data hub. For the latter, there's just not enough games in a season for it to provide meaningful purpose, although I do miss the next opposition reports. Training is a bit more nuanced. Ultimately, training's purpose within FM is two fold - player development and tactical familiarity. There isn't enough time for player development, and setting up a schedule filled with tactical familiarity sessions is arguably pointless. There probably should be something in it's place, but it probably requires something unique and dedicated for international football, and I'm not sure there's enough value to it. I would love to be able to rest players after a match, though! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted January 31, 2023 Author Share Posted January 31, 2023 November 2023 The last international break of the calendar year, and our final two qualifiers. 1 point guarantees us top spot. Pau Torres is injured, whilst Thiago and Sergio Ramos are finding it difficult to break back into the starting lineups for Liverpool and PSG respectively. I've been clear that if players play well whilst on duty with me, then I would be happy to call them up even if their club form was disappointing. Sadly, it's a different matter altogether if they're not playing at all. Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards Inigo Martínez fills the void created by Pau Torres' injury. The Athletico Madrid man might've been involved previously if it wasn't for the surfeit of left-footed centre-backs at my disposal. An experienced and cultured player, I expect he will fit in without any problems. Pau López and Pedri return, with Remiro and Luis Alberto dropping out. Remiro's done nothing wrong, but De Gea's passing has been surprisingly better this season and so he clings onto that 3rd choice spot. Luis Alberto hasn't impressed me so far, and I'd rather see a little bit more of Aleñá. Pino is also back, in place of Barrenetxea, whilst Toni Martínez's Spain career is being jeopardised by lack of action at Porto. (Quick aside: the more eagle-eyed might notice that the players caps aren't increasing with each update. I'm lazy. I don't want to screenshot 23 images each time. I'll probably refresh the images at the end of each season) Finland (Away) - European Championship Qualifiers Pedri comes straight back into the starting lineup, whilst Karrikaburu and Ferran Torres keep their places after impressing last time out. Elustondo will be the defensive full-back on this occasion, giving Gayà the freedom to push forward on the other side. Finland 0-2 Spain We've scored inside the opening 20 minutes in each of our last 5 games, and once again we got off to a hot start. Karrikaburu volleyed home unmarked from 12 yards after latching onto Oyarzábal's flicked header. We could've been ahead before that, but Rodri's long range effort flashed past the post. From thereon in, it was a struggle. Finland were deep and compact and in their 5-3-2 and made it difficult for us to get our shots away. Karrikaburu did come close to a 2nd, firing wide from just inside the area after good work from Pedri. We eventually got our 2nd courtesy of more good work by 20-year old Barca man, who carried the ball between two defenders, cut back inside another and found Fabián with his cross. What ensued next was chaos, as the initial shot was blocked and the ball pinballed around the area, before Fabián was able to get the telling touch and stab it home. Whilst Pau Torres was missing due to injury, he was not missed. Laporte did his best impression of his normal centre-back partner by completely switching off near the end and almost allowing Finland to pull one back. Thankfully Simon was equal to Lod's effort. It seems we have a mistake in us every game, which is frustrating as the centre-backs have otherwise been faultless. Greece (Home) - European Championship Qualifiers With top spot secured, I took the opportunity to experiment a little. A 3-4-3 formation, with the same team instructions, was deployed as I look to find ways we can adapt for more meaningful games. As has been common throughout the qualifiers, a heavily rotated squad for the 2nd game of the break which most notably included Suso getting a start on his 30th birthday. Spain 3-0 Greece Any value that could have been gained from trying a different formation was pretty much lost after 12 minutes, as Greek striker Bakasetas decided to scythe down Laporte. A deserved red followed, and Greece understandably reverted to an ultra-defensive setup. Vlachodimos pulled out a couple of great first half saves to deny Galán and Pedri. The pressure told in the second half, though, as Suso scored two almost identical goals. Swift one-twos with Galán resulted in the birthday boy being sent free down the channels where he was able to advance on goal and fire across the keeper. That's 5 goal contributions in 187 minutes for Suso, albeit against Latvia and (10 man) Greece. Karrikaburu put the icing on the cake, intercepting a wayward back pass to poke past the stranded Vlachodimos. 100% in the qualifiers, we can consider that a job well done. Finland beat Romania to join us in the Euros. Until the draw, our calendar for next year looks blank, so we've arranged a couple of friendlies in March. A trip to Egypt before a home game against Belgium should give us some interesting challenges to try and prepare us for the Euros campaign. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted February 3, 2023 Share Posted February 3, 2023 Just out of a interest what did the 343 look like? Is it something you could potentially use in tournament football? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted February 4, 2023 Author Share Posted February 4, 2023 3 hours ago, SixPointer said: Just out of a interest what did the 343 look like? Is it something you could potentially use in tournament football? The hope is certainly that it will be appropriate for tournament football. The 3-2 build up shape is something I'm keen on, as it helps us be more press resistant, allows us to withdraw and recycle possession in a very safe manner, and I like the security that comes with 3 to guard against the counter attack. It's ultimately what I want to see when I play with a back 4, but given the limitations of FM, the back 3 is naturally better for that purpose. Tactical instructions are pretty uniform for every game - only difference for the Greece game was mentality dropped from positive to balanced, and that's because I just wanted to see how it played out at the most neutral mentality before making adjustments. Realistically, if Thiago or Fabián started, I would've had them as a DLP or RPM alongside Pedri. Vencedor is a more defensive option, and I wanted to encourage him to push wider in possession to provide us with a bit more stability on that flank if we turn the ball over. In the 4-3-3, with one FB staying back, the F9 on that side is encouraged to stay wider to help provide width, whilst Pedri is given a more attacking duty. From an attacking perspective, I prefer that approach, as I want to see Pedri higher up the pitch, and I like trying to get my wide forwards into positions where they might be able to be isolated against a full-back. That said, I expect the 3-4-3 will give me more stability that will be suitable at a tournament level. Two friendlies isn't going to be enough to try out everything I want to see, and that's why it's kinda galling that the Greece game was ruined as a research exercise by the early red card. I'm keen to see how we get on in a 4-4-2 defensive shape, possibly with a wide playmaker on one flank, attempting to create the same shape in possession. I haven't fleshed this idea out fully, but I know that I want to have options for when we reach the Euros: 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagain Posted February 4, 2023 Share Posted February 4, 2023 Karrikaburu and Suso certainly took their chance to impress. Easy qualification. Have to agree that being able to rest players is the glaring miss in international management in FM. Been a while since I last did international though. Central African Republic about 15 year ago. This is making me think about it. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
13th Man Posted February 4, 2023 Share Posted February 4, 2023 Like the look of that 4-4-2. Kind of old school in a good way. Like the shapes and movement I can imagine getting. Of course, the 3-4-3 is always going to be fun as well. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPointer Posted February 4, 2023 Share Posted February 4, 2023 442 could be wise for tournament football, gives you a robust defensive shape but doesn’t take away potential for attacking fluidity 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 March 2024 It feels like forever since we last kicked a ball in anger. It's given me the opportunity to take in a lot of games which, in turn, means I have definitely overthought this last squad before the Euros. Keen to try out new formations and introduce a few new faces to see if they can snatch a last minute trip to Germany. Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards Remiro comes in for De Gea. He's in slightly better form, and as we're talking about competition to be 3rd choice keeper, I'm happy to go with the slightly hotter hand here. Angeliño, Porro and Sadick can all be considered surprise call ups. Galán is just returning from injury, so I'm keen to see what Angeliño has to offer. His passing accuracy and turnover differential sets him apart from all our left-back options, but he's often fallen behind in terms of key passes and assists. Porro is recalled after being part of my very first squad. Bellerín is out of favour at Barcelona, and so the opportunity is there for Porro to cement his place. A £39m move to Bayern in January has certainly helped to elevate his profile, and he seems to have fit in like a glove over there. Mujaid Sadick moved to Porto in the summer, and has kept up the fine form he was showing in Belgium before. He has a chance to challenge Elustondo for that hybrid centre-back/full-back role, so I'm keen to see how he handles an even bigger step up. Gavi makes his first squad under my tenure, as he's finally got a run of games at Barca. Aleñá would have kept the place, but he's nursing a slight knock, which gives the 19-year old Sevilla-born wonderkid a chance to make his mark. I really hope he makes his mark. With us looking to deploy a 4-4-2 and 3-4-3 during this break, we've gone heavy on wingers/F9 options. Barrenetxea, Deulofeu and Olmo all get recalled as players who could be deployed in either shape. Oyarzábal is injured and Suso has sadly lost his spot in the Sevilla team and is short of fitness, so there are definitely places up for grab. Nico Williams is starting to develop into a quality player, with 17 goal contributions in 35 games this season. I believe everyone is aware of his talent, and know he is getting regular game time and putting in good performances, he's got a great opportunity to stake his claim. Egypt (Away) - Friendly We're looking to split the team into two separate starting XIs for these friendlies, with a mixture of bona fide starters in each. We're going with the 3-4-3 here against Egypt's 4-4-2. I'm keen to see how well Barrenetxea and Williams do dropping into midfield and hopefully creating a box with Fabián and Gavi. Alongside Williams, Sadick and Angeliño make their debuts. Egypt 0-6 Spain I think it is safe to say that was rather comprehensive. Williams marked his debut with a perfect hat-trick; opening the scoring with a fair post header, before squeezing the ball in at the near post with his right foot after dribbling in from the byline. It was rounded off with a 32nd minute penalty to put us 4-0 up. Gavi scored the best of the goals, however, as he found the top corner from the edge of the area with a sublime curling effort. Egypt failed to muster a single shot in the first half. We did coast a bit in the 2nd half, and I'm sure I'm meant to say something about how we need to be professional and apply ourselves for the full 90 minutes, but let's be realistic - you and I would probably let our foot of the gas a bit for the last 45 minutes, too! Egypt were chosen because they were a top 40 side - making them (theoretically) stronger opposition than we'd faced in the Euro qualification groups. However, without Mo Salah leading the line, they were toothless and disorganised. Belgium (Home) - Friendly No debutants for this game, as this was probably the stronger of the two XIs - although I'm keen to see how Deulofeu and Olmo get on in the 4-4-2. Ironically, this time we're up against a 3-4-3. This is how we set up to start: Spain 2-0 Belgium A good win against the team ranked 6th in the world. It was a cagey first half, with us just about edging it. Pino got the goal, firing in from the edge of the area, after Bornauw had made a last ditch challenge on Karrikaburu. Truth be told, I thought it should've been a penalty, as Karrikaburu appeared to be nibbled at by both Bornauw and Struijk in the lead up to the goal, but Pino's finish made it a moot point. We struggled to assert ourselves on Belgium as much as I would've liked, and whilst our defence kept Lukaku quiet, I felt Belgium were able to break through in central areas a little bit too easily. At half time we dropped our double pivot into the DM strata, which did wonders for us. Rodri made our second, threading the ball through to Karrikaburu just after the break, and the young Basque forward drilled it low into the corner. Karrikaburu had a couple of chances later to put the game beyond doubt, but anything more than 2 goals would've been flattering. Bizarrely, despite having Origi on the bench, Belgium played much of the 2nd half with Struijk up front, opting to replace Lukaku with centre-back Arthur Theate. Perhaps Roberto Martinez is trying to get sacked after miraculously surviving after a disappointing World Cup campaign. Obviously I'm delighted with the results, and it's great to see everyone making good contributions and making my life difficult when it comes to naming a squad for the Euros. The draw isn't for another month, and there's a lot of football to be played before the tournament comes around, but there's definitely going to be some tough decisions to be made. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 Euro 2024 Draw It's a Scandi-fest, as we are handed what can only be described as a favourable draw with Denmark (=14th), Sweden (25th) and Finland (55th) making up our Euro 2024 group stage. The worst case scenario would've been Portugal (7th), Netherlands (8th) and Croatia (=14th). In fact, that highlights just how little I understand the seeding - as the best team in Pot 4 are ranked the same as the team we drew from Pot 2. Netherlands, the reigning World Cup champions, were in Pot 3!? No time to quibble; I'll just be grateful that fate has been kind and focus on our plans for the finals squad. There's 6 weeks to go until the squad needs to be announced, and injuries/fitness withstanding I have a good idea of 16 players who will be on the proverbial plane to Germany: The fact there's a few spaces available in the forward line bodes well for Nico Williams. It's pretty hard to ignore a debut hat-trick and, with players like Suso and Ferran Torres on the fringes of their respective club sides, it feels like he's timed things perfectly. If Bellerín is match fit at the end of May, it's going to be a tight battle between him and Porro for the right wing-back slot; whilst there's a lot depending on Thiago establishing himself in Liverpool's lineup. He's been back in the starting XI for the Merseyside team, but is regularly one of the first players substituted. I know I can rely on him at an International level, but he needs to be match fit to be in consideration. The striker position is locked down and sadly Toni Martínez's international career seems to be over as quickly as it began as he's been unable to get enough minutes at Porto. Karrikaburu has hit the ground running, and possibly earned himself the starting spot over Moreno. Should an injury befall either of them, Sevilla's Rafa Mir is a possible candidate, as is U21 striker Iván Azón. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GIMN Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 May 2024 - Euro Squad Reveal Goalkeepers No surprises here. Simón is the entrenched starter, whilst López is a very capable understudy. Remiro gets the final spot, courtesy of his better passing ability than De Gea. Central Defenders Laporte and Torres have locked down starting spots, helped a little by Ramos' advancing years translating to less game time at PSG. García keeps his place as our best available right-footed centre-back. Hybrid Defenders Marsà is definitely a favourite, and the polygon shows exactly why. He is excelling in Portugal, and has been dependable for us. Unfortunately for him, our best wing-back options are on the left hand side, limiting his opportunities, but I know I can rely on him. I feel similarly about Elustondo, even if his statistical output isn't as impressive. Both are safe options in those wide areas and capable of playing in a back 3. Wing Backs The first real decision, and it's Pedro Porro who gets the nod over Bellerín. He's a much better passer of the ball, and could play further forward in the 4-4-2. Gayà and Galán have been consistent for us so far and deserve their spots. Defensive Midfielders Thiago does enough to make the squad. He's not necessarily at peak fitness, but he is sharp enough, starting 7 of Liverpool's last 10 games. He's performed well within our system, but so has Fabián and the PSG midfielder has definitely pushed ahead in the pecking order. Vencedor is a dependable backup. Attacking Midfielder A couple of shocks here as both Dani Olmo and Gavi make the squad. Aleñá didn't do anything wrong, but Gavi was fantastic against Egypt. Olmo hasn't really done anything spectacular during my tenure, but he does offer the ability to play in a multitude of positions - whether that is central as a mezzala, out wide in a 4-4-2 or up top as a false 9, and that flexibility is invaluable. Wide Forwards Williams makes the cut. An outstanding debut obviously helped his cause, but his performances this season are more than deserving of a place in the squad. His output is very similar to Oyarzábal, although it's worth adding that he has considerably more pace than the Sociedad man. Pino offers a greater goal threat out of my wide options, and I'm glad to have a little bit of variety to our options. Strikers Like chalk and cheese. Karrikaburu's goal contribution (21 goals, 3 assists) considerably outweighs Moreno's (14 goals, 2 assists) - but Villarreal's experienced frontman performs better in every other phase of play. Whilst I prefer Karrikaburu in our system, I see a lot of value to Moreno starting games and bringing Jon off the bench to provide a more direct threat when required. Whilst I don't feel the squad is too far out of left-field, it's notable that there are only 2 Barcelona players, and 0 Real Madrid players. I feel this is more of an indictment of their squads, as the Spanish players at each club just aren't getting enough games to be considered. Reputation alone isn't enough. Álvaro Odriozola is a good example here. He left Real Madrid in the summer for Lyon and has been performing well. Not quite as well as Porro, though, and so he hasn't quite cracked into a squad up until now. If he'd have been playing regularly last season, however, he might have had a chance in those early squads to cement his position when the opportunity was greater. We've arranged two games before the Euros start - a trip to Germany against the tournament hosts, before a home game against Uruguay. Both teams are Top 20 sides, so should be good preparation for the Euros, although it was a shame that the dates available were after I had to trim down the squad from 30 to the final 23. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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