Overmars

One thing that could really spice up FM is if figuring out a player's PA became much more difficult. Scouts are savants in the game, and that's not a realistic representation of real life. There are essentially two options here: Make PA a variable amount. I don't think this is necessary, but it would help create more variance in player development. Make scouts unable to identify a player's PA beyond a huge band of uncertainty. I think this option is more realistic and would shift some of the optimal FM strategy away from acquiring wonderkids who your scouts have guaranteed will be elite players.

I agree about the DMs. It seems to work better for me too, and you can be quite bold with the DM roles (ex. regista, RPM, SV(a)) due to having a back three behind them. OP, I'm not a fan of playing a higher defensive line in FM22, but especially without playing the offside trap. I don't think you can logically have one without the other. Also, if you are going to do that then you should avoid using a cover duty. As for finding goals, I am confident that using a 3-4-1-2 will make it much easier to score than sticking with a 3-4-2-1. Single striker tactics are prone to issues in FM -- usually around that one player needing to be in form and not having an off day. With two strikers in your formation, you can safeguard against that, and they feed each other much better than AMs seem to feed strikers.

I wouldn't trust stats from a league that isn't being simmed on full detail level. Even if on full detail, the stats can be dubious. Struggling clubs will have very low ratings and goals scored totals, and the one good player on the team that you are scouting can't necessarily overcome the fact that his teammates aren't any good. The match rating figures are particularly deceiving since they are predominantly based on team performance rather than individual ability.

And they get killed in the match ratings for those low percentage crosses. They essentially require an assist to get a decent match rating, so you often end up with wingbacks dropping into poor form. The IWB role does not suffer from this issue, and even in a narrow formation, it seems to be more effective.

My two main saves: Telstar (Netherlands) then Koln (Germany) Hamilton (Scotland) then Coventry (England) Lots of league titles, but I couldn't find any success in continental competitions. I think those competitions were tougher than ever in FM22. The elite teams are overwhelming with their superstars, and since they never seem to age, that advantage sticks around for a long time.

I'll buy it, but I hope I don't end up as frustrated with FM23 as I was at times with FM22. I want fewer instances of teams "in good form" scoring 3 goals on 0.4 xG. I want fewer games where teams "in poor form" hit the woodwork three times and fail to score. I want player performances to depend much less on how well they played in their last five matches. I want fewer players demanding outrageous wage increases and then complaining that I didn't offer them a new contract. I want crappy teams to stop passing the ball so perfectly. I want AI teams to actually develop young players. I want someone other than my set piece taker to be my player of the season. I want players to quit becoming "demotivated" after whatever positive words I tell them in our team talks. In short, I'd like more logic from the game so I'm not frustratingly writing this same type of comment in the "Will you be buying FM24?" thread.

Some ideas: Play fast strikers with good anticipation who can beat an offside trap Encourage your players to try long balls with "try risky passes" player instructions and "pass into space" Use players who "enjoy big matches" and avoid the opposite type of players who fold under pressure Use an expert set piece taker, play for set pieces, and hope you grab a corner or free kick goal You might have to use a "stay on feet" instruction to avoid conceding too many free kicks and accumulating too many cards

I think you have to use the HB role since it was essentially created for this tactic. I also think much lower tempo is probably most on brand with this tactic, though it might not work too great in a match engine that tends to favour higher tempo stuff. You might consider giving your players more creative freedom too.

I find the ordinary 4-2-3-1 formation to be suboptimal in FM22. Using a 4-2DM-3-1 seems to be much more defensively sound for me. The lack of DM is going to hurt you in front of your defensive line, which might be why teams can take long shots against you. Also, the lack of DMs combined with a higher than normal defensive line and attacking fullbacks could lead to plenty of balls over top -- a real issue with defending in FM22.

You might find more joy in using inverted wingbacks. They often sit narrower, of course, but they will move wider if no one else is out there and the situation warrants it. They won't waste possession on speculative crosses, and they will often be in dangerous position on the edge of the box to deliver a through ball or open long shot. Inverted wingbacks also tend to receive better match ratings, which helps keep those players in good form even if they aren't actually doing much more than what wingbacks do.

My tips: Look for low-cost loans (they get cheaper towards the end of a transfer window). Make use of free trials to easily scout potential free transfers and to make them more likely to want to sign with you for cheaper wages. Find 1-2 expert set piece takers. They are locks to perform well and produce a few easy goals for you. Never play a one-striker formation with an out of form striker. A two-striker formation can help protect you from ever having to do this. If you are on a big losing streak, squeeze in a friendly against a very weak opponent so you can score some goals and break out of player form slumps. In FM22, success seems easier to find with a DM in your formation. Defensively, it produces much better results, and you can still be aggressive with a 4-3-3 if you use adventurous player roles.

What is your team good at? Do you have the technique, passing, vision, decisions, anticipation, and off the ball movement required to pass through opponents? If so, I would allow your team to be more expressive, not more disciplined, use a deeper striker role (DLF, F9), and get inside forwards or central midfielders attacking the box. If your team is average or worse at this sort of advanced passing attack then I would focus more on playing with higher tempo, seeking counters, and getting your quickest, most athletic team onto the pitch. AF and W roles are compatible with the latter approach. In terms of gaming the system, I would be very tempted to use either a CM(a) or IWB(a) on the left side of that formation. An IF(s), CM(s), FB, and no playmakers is going to be rather stale and log low ratings. Also, you are going to make it much easier on your defense if you press more. A high defensive line without urgent pressing is asking for trouble.

In some past versions of FM, I used to enjoy experimenting with such formations. In FM22, however, I have found any version of 3 at the back and no wingbacks to be woeful defensively. To me, that's a fairly good representation of real life, where very few teams would consider playing 3 at the back and no wingbacks. It's simply ill-quipped to defend against most opponents who are using AML/AMR formations.

I started a save with Hamilton Academical in Scotland. I have offered contracts to about 8-10 free transfer targets, all of whom accepted my offers. Unfortunately, I have not been able to sign any of them because as soon as I agree terms, one of the AI teams goes and beats my offer somehow. While I appreciate that the game has heightened the competition for transfers, it's incredibly frustrating to not be able to sign anyone but the most anonymous of U18 prospects. Furthermore, it's frustrating to see players not receive any bids at all, then once I bid for them, the AI wakes up and does the same. Has anyone found a way to tilt the odds of signing players back in your favour? Is this something that becomes easier as the club grows and/or the save progresses?

You also have English teams such as Bath and Exeter that are fan-owned. Wikipedia has a full list of English clubs that are fan-owned. A lot of them are smaller clubs, but that can be fun to build up as well. I think Wimbledon is the ultimate choice, though it's tough to take them to any sort of Premier League glory if you stick to the fan-owned domestic player small club vision.

The other confusing part is with respect to efficiency of scouting. If you create that assignment, you might get a dozen reports over the next few months, however if you told that same scout to scout 12 specific players you would get those reports in about a week. If left to their own schedule, scouts seem to be rather lazy -- either that or they are way too efficient when told exactly who to scout.

On older versions, Martin Odegaard. On the last few versions, it's anyone who has excellent corner/free kick taking attributes. Ward-Prowse, Demirbay, Eriksen -- they all flourish thanks to the preponderance of set piece success and the knock-on match rating effects. I also seem to be drawn to Simone Zaza's pressing forward attributes at a reasonable price.

I loved your entire post, but I think the fix is to change squad selection criteria to rely on more than just primarily reputation. AI managers are still terrible at squad rotation (overplaying tired players) and have an unwillingness to develop young players. In every save, I seem to be rescuing countless 20-22 year old future stars who have been ignored by their AI managers -- sometimes even after they were purchased for large transfer fees. I was very excited to sign a cheap regen striker from Ivory Coast. I was playing him a fair bit as a teenager in the Dutch Eredivisie, but Brentford came in and bid 30 million pounds to take him from me. I followed him for a few seasons after that because I wanted to see him do well after his big move. By age 22, he had yet to play a game for Brentford, despite having attributes almost as good as the 30 year olds they were playing instead. I tried to buy him back from Brentford, but they refused to sell him for any less than what they had purchased him for. The game correctly factored in potential into the transfer market, but it failed to factor in potential when selecting players to play.

I find due to the game mechanics around some CA being used up by player versatility that I get more value out of players who play in just one or two spots. Players who are accomplished at 5-6 spots will inevitably look like they are missing out in the attribute department when compared to their CA or star rating peers. Of course, it's nice to have one or two Milner types in the squad to provide injury cover.

Yes, and no matter how much you watch of a match, those ratings matter a lot in terms of player form and development. That fullback who misses all five of his crosses in a match is going to get hammered in the ratings, just as central defenders who rack up uncontested header wins and easy pass completions will get huge ratings and development boosts. I find wide players in general get hit hard unless they are scoring or assisting in a match, so it's easier to keep everyone on high ratings if you play a narrow tactic and overload the middle.

Good point about the fewer fixtures. That's one of my favourite things because it doesn't feel like a slog (i.e. the 46 matches in the English Championship). Training, squad building, and getting through seasons so you can see the results of your work just feel much easier in shorter schedules.

Part of the problem has to be Wilson as a DLF(s). That feels like the wrong role for him -- or maybe he just isn't a top half of the league starting player in any role.

I'm managing in the Bundesliga with Koln. Every match is critical. You can't slip up and rest your stars because Bayern isn't going to drop many points. In my current season, Bayern is undefeated with 4 matches remaining. If you recruit and develop well, you can approach Bayern in quality, but you'll never truly match them. Recruiting is very easy because attendances are huge and money is readily available. You have lots of European spots available too. If you scout worldwide, you can build a huge army of top prospects and play the long-term game. The Bayern element is frustrating, though. You'll do everything right, beat Bayern in xG in head to head matches 2.5-1.0, and still lose the game because they have that one striker in the game with 20 for all of their attributes. You have to be okay with that.

Yeah, I think you're way off. I can't see viewers wanting to watch fake football seasons play out in real time. That's what real life football is for.

The one thing that bothers me the most is the player form variable. The ubiquity of peaks and valleys in player form make me wish the game forgot about form entirely. It's too predictable in its execution and it all depends on an inherently flawed player rating metric (which is why central defenders rarely drop in form, thanks to all of the headers they can win in every match).