Cleon

This post was written for us by Discord member DavidBarros, They share with us their FC Porto recreation Background The club Futebol Clube do Porto (FC Porto) is the second most titled club in Portugal, being unanimously considered as a chronic candidate to lift the Portuguese title. The manager The manager in charge is Sérgio Conceição, a former player (with two different spells at the club) who is now finishing his sixth season at the helm of the team. Being a fan favourite - both as a footballer and now as manager - he took over his managerial duties after the club went through four consecutive seasons without winning the title, having succeeded at winning it back on his first try. His major virtue, according to the fans and the critic in general, doesn't rely on tactical brilliance but on instilling resilience and fighting spirit in his players, both well-known and appreciated characteristics of this club since its foundation. Shape and principles of play Although FC Porto has historically adopted the 4-3-3 formation, since the beginning Sérgio Conceição has been successfully betting on the 4-4-2, varying it only sporadically. Being one of the favourites to win the title race, it is expected that FC Porto enters each game with the clear objective of winning it, so the shape and principles of play only tend to slightly differ in European competitions or when facing teams with greater offensive power. Having enjoyed both time and consistency, as it’s now finishing his sixth season in charge, we can safely summarize the following as the main principles of play of FC Porto under the current manager: Full-backs high and wide in the offensive moment Both full-backs are tasked to provide width, with one of them looking to attack and cross and the other one being more reserved, acting as a passing outlet and a deep cross option. This is also the main weakness of this team: the space that can be exploited in flanks when losing the ball and entering a defensive transition moment. Different routes to goal on the flanks The outside players share the burden of being responsible for supplying the forwards, but they don’t try to do it in the same way: while one of them cuts inside, helps the midfielders and brings creativity to the side, the other one relies on speed and dribbling to both create and finish chances. They both end up playing more in the half-spaces than on the wings. Attacking duo A creator-scorer duo upfront. One striker is always responsible for playing deeper and holding up the ball (creativity is a plus) while the other striker - the team’s first defensive wall - looks for the penetrative run to stretch the opposition's defence. Relatively high defensive line Having quite fast defenders, and not restraining both central midfielders from going up and down the pitch, the defensive line plays relatively high in order to compress the space between defence and midfield. The goalkeeper will sweep up any loose balls and with his excellent footwork, he can also act as a passing outlet. Horizontally compact when defending The team plays in a very compact way, having no problem giving up the flanks to the opponent. It is often customary when defending, to see the full-backs playing close to the edge of the box. Different lines of engagement Like many other teams, the line of engagement and the amount of pressure varies from game to game and even throughout the same match, according to its different moments. FC Porto usually goes for a high block that can turn into a medium block when the scoreboard is favourable or to conserve energy in the last moments of a match. A low block is not out of the equation, being used against teams that excel in pressing heavily. Whatever the defensive block, the pressure on the ball carrier is almost always constant, without being too gung-ho. Football made simple The team plays with the aim of progressing the ball forward, no matter if it has to play short or long/direct passes, so it heavily relies on each player's judgment and football intelligence. A noticeable pattern is that FC Porto prefers to penetrate the rival defences through dribble/passing instead of crossings, as only one player (a full-back) has some decent crossing ability. This “football made simple” might not always be eye-pleasing, but it’s also not dull as it sounds. Given the cohesion and familiarity between the players and the manager working together for years applying the same shape and principles of play, it might at times produce some eye candy such as this: Tactical tweaks (and a false start this season) FC Porto has tried out the 4-4-1-1, the 4-2-3-1 and even the 4-3-3 on more than one occasion, however, these changes were mainly due to deliberate tactical changes to counteract the offensive power of some opponents, usually in European competitions. Since this is the sixth consecutive season of Sérgio Conceição ahead of the team, and many players have been part of the squad for the last 4 or 5 years (one of which, Otávio, exceeds 6 years…) every season is introduced with some tactical nuance/tweak. Looking back, the most notable change was related to the more direct, physical and vertical style of 6 seasons ago, which contrasts with the more supportive, associative and thoughtful football played recently. As far as this season is concerned, in the beginning, the shape changed from 4-4-2 to 4-1-3-2, even when silverware was at stake, like the win in the Portuguese Super Cup that ended up “validating” the new shape. This system intended to use Pepê in the central position of the midfield, with total freedom of movement, but it did not deliver the expected results due to weaknesses on the flanks when in the defensive moment. With FC Porto losing important points along the way in its fight for revalidating the title it returned to the usual 4-4-2 formation. Meet the players and their roles The starting 11 GK- Diogo Costa A sweeper keeper, very comfortable with the ball at his feet but very restrained when it comes to taking risky passes. He’s the one in charge of deciding how, when and where the ball should be distributed. DR- João Mário Played all his career as a winger, he’s a natural source of width and always tries to run with the ball, dribbling and crossing, never neglecting his defensive duties. CDR- Pepe A regular centre-back (for a 40-year-old…), very physical and quick. CDL- Marcano Another regular centre-back left footed to give different passing angles when progressing the ball to the left side. Slightly better with the ball than Pepe, but still far away from being a ball-playing centre-back. DL- Zaidu/Wendell A defender who doesn’t take many risks, supporting the midfielders and staying behind, recycling possession or crossing from deep. RM- Otávio The main source of creativity from this side. He cuts inside, turning himself into a third midfielder, operating in the half-space and being the closest playmaker Futebol Clube do Porto has. RCM- Uribe A defensive pendulum whose main task is to shield the defence and ensure simple ball circulation/retention. Tactically very intelligent, he rarely goes up on the pitch but when he does, he’s very assertive in his actions. LCM- Eustáquio A simple midfielder, who goes up and down the pitch, complementing Uribe but with a slightly more offensive bent. Midseason he sort of developed a taste for arriving late at the box and ended up improving his offensive output. LM- Pepê/Galeno Fast and right-footed, these players give some width on the left flank when the ball is in the midfield, playing in the half-space and cutting inside as the play progresses. Their task is to bring the ball forward, creating goal-scoring opportunities for themselves and their teammates. RCF- Evanilson The team's first defensive wall. A striker who plays simply, rarely getting involved in the game and focused on vertical runs in order to vertically stretch the opposition's defence. LCF- Taremi Comes deep, holds up the ball and tries to take the game to the opponent, either through combination play or running with the ball. He’s the main penalty taker of the team and that’s a good reason why his goal tally is superior to the other forwards who play with a more attacking intent. The game changers Marko Grujic - A combative and vigorous midfielder. It doesn’t matter what his midfield partners are, he helps in the regular 4-4-2, and even when playing 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 as the midfield destroyer. Pepê - Lately he’s been deployed as a right winger. Being quite intelligent and complete in his game, he was used as the most advanced element of the midfield in the 4-1-3-2, having also played several times as a full-back, either due to injuries or because the team was in need of a more attacking threat. Toni Martínez - The go-to guy to bang some goals. He can replace both Taremi and Evanilson upfront, being physically strong and more of a presence in the box. He can play upfront alone, usually on the 4-3-3 and he’s by far the best header from all of FC Porto’s forwards. Gabriel Veron - Already used on both flanks, he was also successfully tested playing upfront with total freedom as in a “free role”. Danny Namaso - Also known as Danny Loader. Highly versatile, he played both upfront, as a winger in the 4-3-3 or even as an offensive player on the side of the midfield when playing in 4-1-3-2. The recreation Regarding player instructions, I would add these to the full-backs: If you would like to try the tactics you can download it here (with default set-pieces): [LINK]

This Tottenham Hotspurs FM23 tactical recreation has been written for us by @insidefullbackk, they share with us their Spurs FM23 tactic After just four months of being in the job, Nuno Espirito Santo lost his place as the Tottenham Hotspur manager to former Chelsea man, Antonio Conte. His famous 3 at back formations have seen him successful with Chelsea(3-4-3) and Inter Milan(3-5-2), winning them their first scudetto in a while. With a reputation of such magnitude, a lot of people definitely thought he was the man to change Tottenham’s fortunes, and rightfully so. At the end of his regime, most people defined his team as “boring”. Below I break down his tactics and how he played with the squad at his disposal. Overview Conte’s principles are simple. To be defensively solid, patient and able to exploit the opposition on the counter when the opportunity arises. A solid defensive base of three centre backs with a pivot in front of them and the wing backs ensuring each one of the five lanes in attack is covered shows how much of a foundation the 3-4-3 formation provides. Below I tried to break down my football manager's replication of the tactic. In possession In possession, Spurs tend to play out of defence to create space behind the opposition. Then they tend to “Pass into space” to exploit these spaces. Ben Davies, the wide left centre back offers occasional attacking threat through overlaps. The lack of a creative midfielder in this team sees Kane drop deep and the wingers more centrally to stretch the opposition vertically. Kulusevski is also another creative option for Spurs which sees him take up these spaces in the middle and an overlap from Porro or even a bust forward from Bentacur. Against a more defensive team, Spurs tend to play through the flanks and shift the low block with the aim of isolating the opposite winger/wingback. With a wide attacking width, spurs tend to play football on the flanks before sending in frequent crosses to the box. In transition Spurs play out from the back to lure the opposition to press, leaving space in behind them for Spurs to attack. This means we will set the instructions. They tend to have the wing-backs high and wide and wingers narrow to form a 3-2-5 in possession. Out of possession Out of possession, Spurs settle in a compact 5-4-1 low block. This means they regroup after possession is lost(as stated earlier) and they set a much lower defensive line in a low block. They don’t seem to press with as much intent to win the ball back which is why it’s on standard pressing. Conte likes to funnel the opposition out wide and close all the spaces in the middle making it harder for the opposition to get closer to the goal. Lastly, their tackles seem to be very aggressive in the low block, hence they get stuck in instruction. Individual instructions Both wingers “roam from position” to enable them to get closer to the striker zone. All three central defenders on mark tighter in the low block, What would I do differently? Personally, I don't think “Conteball” is sustainable in football anymore. The best teams do not use the three-at-the-back system anymore. And the most recent ones that have been used, such as Nagelsmann’s Bayern and Conte’s Tottenham have dropped in levels and would have to adapt to keep up with the football world. With that being said, allow me to introduce you to what I think the future of Tottenham should look like, with their current players. Without going into too much detail, this is quite similar to Brighton's 4-4-2 buildup model. I personally think Richarlison and Danjuma are way too good to sit on the bench for an extra centre-back. So this gives Spurs another option in attack in games. The midfield pivot of one destroyer and one progressor who both like to play it simple. Hojberg(6) and Bissouma(8) are not really a set choice and I feel Hojberg(6) and Bentacur(8) and Bissouma(6) and Bentacur(8) can do the job to the same level. I have Davies set on “stay narrow” to form a third cb in possession, with the midfield pivot and a front 5 of Son(holding width on the left), Kane, Richarlison central, Kulusevki and Porro). Other combinations I liked include Perisic holding width on the left in a winger/inverted winger role and Son holding width on the right, with Porro dropping out. The out-of-possession back 4 with this lineup will be dier rb Romero & Davies cb, Perisic lb. Another combination would be to replace Richarlison with Danjuma and play Son centrally with Danjuma out wide on the left. This is where it differs from De Zerbi’s Brighton a bit. With Kane likely to leave, I would look to bring a more traditional number 10 to play a proper 4-2-3-1 formation. James Maddison is definitely one to look out for with Leicester in a relegation fight. Van de Beek, who seems to not have it going at United, is another one. Others include Enzo Le fee, Houssem Aouar, Eberechi Eze, Lorenzo Pellegrini and Mason Mount. And of course, my next Tottenham manager? Mauricio Pochettino. Tactic links 523 4231

This Southampton FM23 tactical recreation has been shared with us by @alkindihasibuan In the current 2022/2023 Premier League season, Southampton is facing a relegation battle, having secured only 6 wins, 5 draws, and 19 losses. Their struggle started with the dismissal of Ralph Hassenhutl. His replacement, Nathan Jones, couldn't turn things around quickly enough, and he was relieved of his duties after 94 days, with 7 losses in 8 matches. However, Southampton has a new ray of hope in the form of Selles, Since Selles has been in charge, the team has shown some positive signs, including draws against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, as well as a victory against Chelsea. Despite these promising performances, Southampton's results have been far from good. Their shaky defence and poor conversion rate remain major concerns. In their most recent match against Manchester City, their disorganized defence and lack of communication cost them the game. TACTICAL PREFERENCES Southampton has primarily used a 4-2-3-1 formation this season, with a 4-4-2 formation also used frequently enough. The double pivot is responsible for circulating the ball and trying to combine passes to find the wingers, who love to stretch the defence and make runs in behind. Selles prefers to be reactive most of the time, but there is no shame in being pragmatic when your sole purpose is to survive in the Premier League. Therefore, implementing structure and converting chances will be the priority in this Southampton's tactical recreation. ON THE BALL Southampton prefers to play long balls to find forwards or switch sides, as they rank third in the league for the number of long passes. In the 4-2-3-1 formation, the attacking midfielder drops and roams to get the ball and link up with others. In the 4-4-2 formation, one striker roams around more frequently than his partner. The right-sided striker will drift wide, and the left-sided striker will position himself centrally and drop down a little. The wingback will overlap and help the wingers. These tactics can be used in one game, depending on the situation and the opponent's style of play, but the 4-2-3-1 will be the main system of play. During the build-up phase, Southampton does not always look to play long, when there is a chance Southampton will move the ball with more purpose, one of the fullbacks inverted, and the double pivot staying close to the defence. The main aim is to find runners out wide and forwards who love to move into channels and try to create and find spaces. Che Adams' aerial and physical presence is useful in this scenario, while his teammates will surround him as passing options or try to win the second ball. OFF THE BALL In terms of defensive structure, Southampton will use a mid-block most of the time, with a standard line of engagement. They will not necessarily counter-press the opponent all the time. This season, they have struggled to defend and face a transition. To counter this, one of the pivots will stay wider behind the overlapping fullback and try to force the opponent to play out wide, where they can attempt to win duels and start counterattacks. This approach will give Southampton the chance to soak up pressure, cut passing lanes, and minimize spaces for the opponent. 4-4-2 will be the shape off the ball. The 2 highest men will disturb the centre-back and DM, while the 4 midfield will play narrow and ready to close the gap once the forwards trigger press. This structure will allow the opponent’s winger more likely to find spaces but that is the aim, especially against big teams that like to play vertical passes on build-up. 4-2-3-1 Breakdown GK: Sweeper Keeper on Defend. Despite still being young, Bazunu has a lot of potentials. His command of area and distribution still needs some development, but his sweeping and shot-stopping is already there. This role suits his attributes DR: Fullback on Support. Tasked to stay narrower, the right-back will be patient on the build-up and when given chance, will support the winger and spam crosses. With Livramento out injured for a long time, Kyle Walkers Peters suits well with this role as he is comfortable using both feet. With Maitland Niles and James Bree as backups RCB: Ball Playing Defender on Defend. Given the responsibility to maintain possession and build up when allowed, RCB needs a secure technical ability and composure. Bella Kotchap will fill this post with Bednarek and Lyanco as backups LCB: Central Defender on Defend. The more traditional centre-back is put on the left side to compensate for a more adventurous wingback on the left. His main duty is to clear the defence line, mark dangerous opponents forward, and take fewer risks on build-up. Salisu will be the main man in this role with Duja Caleta Car and Lyanco as backups DL: Wingback on Support. His main duty is to maintain width, be a supporting runner on the overlap, create spaces, and cross from the byline. Perraud will be the first starter with Larios and Maitland Niles as backups RCM: Box To Box on Support. Here is the post for the talisman, James Ward-Prowse. He will be everywhere on the pitch and dictate the play. He will be asked to play a more direct ball, and of course, take every set piece we got. Diallo and Stuart Armstrong will fill the post when needed LCM: Ball Winning Midfielder on Support. Asked to stay wider, the LCM will cover a lot of distance with his priority to secure the ball and immediately trigger the counterattack once he won the ball. Romeo Lavia will be the starter with Diallo and Maitland Niles as backups AMC: Advanced Playmaker on Support. As the pressing number 10, AMC will drop down and look for the ball on possession, he will be actively involved in the attack, create chances and roam from the position. Out of possession, he will join the striker to press. Stuart Armstrong, Alcaraz, and Aribo will fill this role AMR: Inverted Winger on Attack. Mainly tasked to provide width, the right winger will cut inside from the flank looking for crosses or through balls. He will find spaces and make himself available in the opponent’s penalty box. El Younoussi, Theo Walcott, and Stuart Armstrong will fill this role AML: Inside Forward on Attack. Tasked to sit narrower and focus on attack, he will find himself a lot at the end of the attack and ready to provide a threat on the final third. He will shoot more often and run into a box whenever chances are created for him. Sulemana, Adam Armstrong, Djenepo, and Orsic will fill this role STC. Pressing Forward on Attack. The focal point of attack, he will drop down, link up, and create chances for himself and the team. He will relentlessly taunt the opponent’s defence on and off the ball. Che Adams will be the main starter with Onuachu, Orsic, and Mara as backups 4-4-2 SUMMARY On the 4-4-2 version, the focus is to use the width and be direct and fast on the ball. The aim is still the same, to catch the opponent on the break and use space as best as possible. In this set-up, one of the strikers will roam from the position, with Winger on Right Midfielder to utilize width and movement when building up and transitions. In transitions, the team will regroup to close space and stay compact. They are also instructed to play fairly narrowly. HOW THE SEASON WENT I try to play a season, mostly using the 4-2-3-1 formation and simulated around 80% of it. In the beginning, the media predicted us to end 17th, not far from current reality. As stated before, the main aim of this recreation is to make more chances and convert them. The result showing while the defence is still shaky as it is, our attacking improved and managed to score 60+ goals while conceding around the same number. Che Adams ended up as 3rd top scorer with 22 goals. In the end, Southampton secured 9th position, much better than what the media predicted. In Addition, our Cup performances also not embarrassing to say the least If you would like to try these tactics the links are here to download: 4231 442

Ruben Amorim 343 Sporting CP Tactical Recreation After enjoying watching Ruben Amorim's Sporting this season and their 343 tactic I’ve decided to take what I’ve learnt and try and recreate the tactic in FM23. I’ll go through what I’ve seen and my thoughts before building the tactic and then show you what it looks like in the game. Research The Sporting lineup in a 343 playing out from the back and through the middle of the pitch. A typical passage of play from back to front in the two wide centre backs push wide and the wing backs push up. The double-pivot midfield makes themselves available for the pass, creating almost a 5-5 formation. The keeper then plays out from the back to one of the three centre backs who then look to progress the ball to the two central midfielders. During this time the two wide attackers have moved narrowly creating a narrow front 3. The wing backs are rarely used in the transition phase only as a safety outlet if no options are narrow but their main job is to push the opponent's Full backs back. With a slow build-up play the now back 5 (3CBs/2DMs) move the ball up the pitch trying to find passes to the front 3 in particular the two narrow wide men who operate as two tens in attack. You will often see the double pivot offset so Ugarte is behind his midfield partner offering cover. When sporting loses the ball the team retreats the back 5 and 2 DMs drop back into shape and the front 3 do single-man presses Notes - no counter press or high press or press more often or prevent short GK distribution. All these pull the team forward and out of shape at times. We need to ensure the team drops back in. But we will ask the front 3 to press more often via above the Team instruction via their player instructions. We will add the Drop off more Team instruction to ensure they drop back and we will try a mid-block. Now I mentioned Sporting play a 343 FM even suggests this as their best XI But in FM we’re going to play a 523. The reason for this is that in the defensive phase, they are set as a back 5 and in FM the tactic shape is based on the defensive formation. Tactic Formation As I mentioned the formation is set as the defensive phase so we want the back 5 to get as deep as possible. I’d imagine a lot of recreations would opt for a back 3 with 4 across the DM positions, for me this wouldn’t work as the wing backs wouldn’t drop back as deep as they should do in a proper recreation. Team Instructions In Possession: Play out of Defence - As I mentioned Sporting play out from the back so this instruction will ask them to do this Narrow - we want the team to have minimal width when attacking, the wingbacks will give us natural width In transition: Distribute to centre-backs - This makes sure the goalkeeper looks to play to one of the 3 centre backs Out of possession: Much higher defensive line - Sporting plays with a really high line, so this makes sense. Mid Block - I mentioned earlier we didn’t want a high press as only the front three press but the team doesn’t defend in a low block so a mid-block suits here. Drop off more - As I mentioned the defence does drop in so this makes sense. Tactical Recreation in FM Attacking Phases of Play You can see here from their recent game vs Arsenal that their front 3 are very narrow supported by the two central midfielders and flanked by the wing backs. A similar phase of play in FM and we have recreated the same shape. The defensive line is high, the midfield two have their staggered pivot. The wing backs are pushed up and the front 3 are narrow. Again here when the defenders have the ball you can see how we’ve created the same attacking shape. A narrow front 3, Wing backs giving width and the two central midfielders supporting. We saw this time and time again throughout the recreation where the shape matched up. Again with the ball on the far side, we’ve created the same shape. The 325 in attack in play here and the front 3 being really narrow is nice to see. Sporting Counter Here in the game the front 3 have won the ball back high and countered In the game, I’ve asked the two inverted wingers to press more often. The Pressing Forward does this naturally. Here we have lost the ball when attacking. Their keeper has rolled it out to their defender and he's passed to his CB partner As you can see the back 7 have dropped back deep and quickly while the front 3 keep high and look to do single-man presses. Again here the back 7 have dropped in and so have the wide attackers as the striker operates the single-man press. Maracas then passes it out wide to their RCB and see what happens My Pressing forward drops in and my LW starts his single-man press. This is showing the single-man press working and the team instructions telling the others to drop in. Defensive possession Here you can see the shape the team has when playing out from the back through the centre backs. The 3 centre backs fill the width of the box. The DM has dropped in and the wing backs are wide the right wing-back is just out of shot where the arrow is. We have created a similar shape here. 3 Centrebacks in the box showing options for the goalkeeper. Wing backs wide and the staggered two defensive midfielders. And as you can see he's made the pass to the RCB as we look to build out from the back. Defensive block I mentioned above about the team dropping deep and only the front 3 press here you can see how deep they are The whole back 7 are behind the ball defending with just the front 3 ahead of the ball. A similar situation here, you can see our back 5 are back in deep, our double pivot are back too and the front 3 have dropped in. Again recreating a similar shape. Things I noticed Whilst we were playing nice football we were using the wing backs more than Sporting do, I mentioned above that they are mainly used as a safety outlet ball and to push the other team's defence back so I added: Team Instruction: Focus Play through the middle And it worked. This next phase of play will show. We started with the ball at the back Coates should now pass into the two DMs He does, he passes to Goncalves who plays a pass to Ugarte as he is pressed, who then turns and passes forward to Edwards. Edwards then again turns and runs inside Before playing a through ball to Trincao Who runs forwards and shoots narrowly wide. Just the addition of one team instruction changed the recreation and it made it better. This goal here is another example of it working through the middle, Coates played it into Ugarte who switches it to Edwards with a through ball to Paulinho to score Conclusion The tactic ended up like this, just 7 Team instructions were used. The formation gave us the right shape. It was just a case of getting the right roles and player instructions added to get them to attack as they should attack. Player instructions were added just to the two Inverted wingers as mentioned. I’d love for you to download the tactic and give it a go. Below is the link. Tactic download LINK

This Crystal Palace FM23 tactical recreation has been written for us by @jocantaro35 Spirit of the tactic: When I was thinking about which tactic ROY HODGSON should use to save Palace from relegation, I think an old-fashioned 442 came to mind, based on a low block, having a compact defence, not having possession, fast transitions and direct balls from the defence to front 2 to taking advantage of Zaha's speed up front, using the wings to create danger, in FM terms: "442 with Direct Counter Attack". I also thought about which players to use, and I thought that following his style, R.H. will trust the most veteran players with the task of non-relegation. R.H. is not a manager who trusts young and virtuous people (which is why I think we will see little of Olise on the field until the end of the season, sad), and we will see more of Ayew, Milvo, McArthur or Ward, already seasoned in a thousand battles and with several war wounds... The Players: GK: Guaita, solid Goalkeeper, 35 y.o. 6th season at Palace, not much more to add. DCL: BPD(D); Gehi, young, although already with international experience, an athletic powerhouse, good pass, undisputed with Vieria, he will be with RH too. DCR: BPD(D); Andersen, along with Gehi, they must be the wall in front of Guaita, and he also has a good pass to play direct to the forwards, undisputed with Vieria too. DL: WB(S); Mitchell, the only left-footed fullback, he will have to support the winger but without surpassing him, he will have to prioritize defending more than attacking. DR: WB(S); Clyne or Ward, Clyne is more offensive than Ward, but like Mitchell, the priority is to maintain position. Veterans rule. I have preferred this role because it is a bit more offensive than that of FB. ML: W(A); Eze, good dribbling, quick, agile and with lots of flair and vision, essential to create chances for he and others, he can cut inside or go to the line because he is two-footed. MCR: BWM(d); Milvo, a hard-working player, helps a lot at defence, lacks creativity and technical MCL: B2B; Docure, a quick and creative type of player, helps to attack during the transitions with his speed or direct balls to striker partnership. MR: W(S); Ayew, a long experience player, more of a worker than Eze, he can track back to help the fullback and maybe run with the ball and touch the line. FCR: DLF(S); Mateta, can receive back from the goal, stop the ball and play killer balls to his front partnership, and score some goals too. FCL: AF(A); Zaha, the best-attacking player, the primary goalscorer, his function will be to search the back of the opposite defence, taking advantage of his pace, catch the through/direct balls from the CB's and the other FC, and score (obviously). Although, I am more of a fan of what Patrick Vieira was working on, and this is my particular vision. This is a 4-3-3, with a high defensive line, a bit more aggressive but not too much. A more passing game, with players with good technicals and more creative freedom, including a talented young player that everyone knows (Olise), with Zaha on the wing looking for 1v1 situations, Edouard scoring (although maybe not as much), and Mitchell with more freedom to go on the attack. The tactics to download : HODGSON 442 VIERIA 433

This Benfica Roger Schmidt FM23 Tactical recreation post has been written by @Aeuc46 The RogerBall - An Incredible Season After 2 consecutive seasons finishing third in the league, the newly appointed Chairman of SL Benfica decided to hire the PSV’s manager Roger Schmidt. The supporters doubted at first, but after seeing the spirit that Mister Roger brought back to the team, and the spectacular “RogerBall”, all doubts started to disappear. I, as a fan of Benfica and an FM lover, felt challenged to try to recreate Roger Schmidt’s tactics in FM. So I did, and it went incredibly well. As you can see, we managed to win the league unbeaten. Best attack and defence of competition (98 goals for, only 15 against), 29 wins and 5 draws, and record of points in the league (previous was 92pts for Porto in 2021/2022) Here is the tactic: The pivotal idea of Roger Schmidt’s playing style is to put as many bodies in interior areas as possible, allowing space for the wing-backs to try to cross the ball. With this in mind, you will need wingers who can cross, who are creative and with good stamina, because they will be running up and down the pitch during the matches. Your striker is going to be a pressing forward. A workhorse. Need good stamina and work rate to allow your team to gegenpress during the different stages of the game. Most of his goals will be “tap-ins” from good crosses coming from your wing-backs! Goalkeeper needs good technique. It is extremely important because he will help your team find a way to play out from defence, beating the pressure from the opposition. Although Benfica doesn’t have that Sweeper Keeper (Odysseas has no technique and can not play with foot), the way Roger Schmidt found to solve this issue is to use a 2+1 structure to play out from defence: the first pass goes to one of the centre backs, and then the left-sided Defensive Midfield drops to collect the ball and tries to progress the pitch or by passing it long for the wing-back already up the pitch; or simply by running with the ball – depending on the pressure from opponents My Season in Numbers: I have shown you how you will play; now, I want to let you see a little bit of how good this tactic was for me, showing you the numbers we achieved. We managed to put 6 players in the top10 for open play key passes per 90 min, and 4 for open play key passes: Neres was really good at the right winger position, as I was able to bring up the best from him with the attacking duty. We also have put 3 players in the top10 for chances created and open play expected assists per 90min: And 3 players too in the top 10 for non-penalty xG/90 min: Tiago Tomás played fewer minutes than Gonçalo Ramos who was my first option for the striker role. I think this is enough to show you how good was the football we played. I hope you enjoy trying the tactic the link is below Download link

This Liverpool FM23 tactical recreation is written by @petedavejones When people think of a ‘Klopp team’ the first thing that springs to mind is probably a number of cliches: Heavy Metal football, gegenpressing, high-tempo football. You wouldn’t necessarily be wrong but since taking over the reins at Liverpool in October 2015 there has been somewhat of an evolution in the way Klopp’s Liverpool play. After being so close to a clean sweep and writing their names in folklore, Liverpool has tripped, stumbled and well and truly fallen as this article is being written. Here we look into Klopp’s setup this season and how, in theory, and with all players available, Liverpool would (probably) play. Formation 4-3-3 is the go-to system but Klopp has, due to injuries, experimented with 4-4-2/4-2-4, 4-4-2 diamond (my personal favourite) and 4-2-3-1 but we’ll stick with the usual Klopp 4-3-3 setup. The 4-3-3 gives us 5 horizontal lines within the structure of the team for the opposition to break through. In possession Liverpool is, predominantly, a possession-based team despite the reputation of playing direct, counter-attacking football so we’ll look to play out from the back and use slighter shorter passing. Keeping the mentality on ‘positive’ means that the default passing and tempo are good to go; slightly shorter passing and slightly higher tempo. Ideal for moving the ball around with urgency but prioritising keeping possession. We’ll look to play ‘slightly narrower’ which should help with ball retention and look to overlap where possible as Robertson and Trent Alexander Arnold are a key part of how Liverpool attack; they play high and wide and provide the width and the ability to send in dangerous crosses. At times this season we’ve seen Trent move into a narrow position (e.g. the 2-2 draw at home to Arsenal) so, if you wanted to, you could use him as an inverted wingback to offer a passing threat from the middle. However, here we’re going to ask him to stay wide, get forward and roam around the right flank to make the most of his passing and crossing ability. As we want to counterattack and have devasting pace in Salah, Nunez and Diaz we will also ask the team to pass into space. This also works nicely with Trent and Thiago looking to play those killer balls in behind the opposition defence. In terms of the final third, we’ll leave that as it is and trust the players to make the right decision. We could ask the players to work the ball into the box but that might limit the speed at which the team counterattack. In transition Geggenpress time. Counter press, counterattack. This is where Klopp has been somewhat of a revolutionary from his time at Mainz and then more so at Dortmund where his teams would be relentless in their pressing and harrying of their opponents often out-running them and not giving them a moment to relax when in possession. To quote the man himself “If you win the ball back high up the pitch and you are close to the goal, it is only one pass away a really good opportunity most of the time. No playmaker in the world can be as good as a good counter-pressing situation.” The whole principle of Klopp’s philosophy is to win the ball back as soon as you lose it and, in that moment, take full advantage of the opportunity you have created. Liverpool plays out from the back so we’ll distribute to any of the 4 defenders as quickly as possible (although when chasing games I tend to deselect these to give Alisson the option to use his distribution skills and start counterattacks with either long kicks or direct throws). We’ll leave it up to Alisson as to how he wants to distribute the ball – we’re not micromanagers, after all. Out of possession Much media attention has been made of Liverpool’s high line (pipe down Gary Neville!). As expected, we set both the line of engagement and the defensive line to the highest possible as well as asking the defensive line to step up more. It’s a high-risk, high-reward strategy which we have seen succeed more than fail but when it does go wrong, and the opposition breaks the offside trap and has a clear run-on goal then boy…. It goes wrong! It’s all part of the pressing philosophy; the whole team moves up and towards the ball when it’s lost to restrict the opposition's space. The work rate of the likes of Salah, Nunez and Diaz makes this possible and the pace of Van Dijk and Konate gives some relief if they can recover. Individual player roles and instructions. Perhaps more important than the shape of the team and the positions is the role that each player is assigned. GK – Sweeper Keeper (Attack) – Combines with the high line and plays the offside trap. Alisson is one of the best at sensing danger and rushing off his line. As mentioned above, this also gives him the go-ahead to distribute more freely. RB – Complete wing back (support) – a key role in the side is using Trent’s ability to get forward and create. As a complete wing back he will naturally roam from his position to pick up dangerous positions from deep. We won’t be adding an additional instruction here. RCB – Central defender (standard) – We’ll use a standard CB here to limit the number of long passes from the back. If I were to play Matip over Konate then there’s the option to use a ball-playing defender or assign him to ‘dribble more often’ as a standard central defender. LCB – Ball-playing defender (standard) – Van Dijk’s role is pretty clear; he has the technical ability to make long passes and bring the ball out of defence. LB – Full back (attack) – Robertson loves to bomb forward but is more defensively-minded than Trent so we’ll use him as a more traditional full-back but on attack. This should keep a bit more balance to the team too. In terms of individual instructions, we’ll ask him to stay wider and run wide with the ball, again, working in synergy with the team instruction of looking for overlaps. DM – Defensive Midfield (Defend) –Nice and simple. Sit and protect the back 4 and prevent opposition counterattacks. For the last few seasons, Fabinho has been fantastic at doing that job – no wonder Klopp nicknamed him ‘Dyson’ due to his ability to clean up messes in midfield. When chasing games or wanting to apply more pressure I’ll adjust this role from defend to support so he will step up into midfield more often. RCM – Carriero – This is ideal as he shuttles across to cover for the gaps behind left by Mo Salah and Trent as they push down the right flank. Individual instructions – mark tighter, tackle harder. The idea is that as the ball is played into opposing midfielders then Henderson will be tight to them and be aggressive in the tackle. This, in tandem with pressing high and counter-pressing, reinforces the idea of winning the ball back immediately. LCM – Deep lying playmaker (support) – providing he’s fit then Thiago has this role. The creative spark of the team and when he’s on form everything goes through him. If he had the physical attributes then I’d certainly use him as a ‘roaming playmaker’ but this will do him nicely – dropping deep to get the ball and keeping it moving works perfectly with his player traits and his brilliant passing, technique and first touch attributes RW – Inside Forward (Attack) – Mo Salah’s role is simple, score goals. Inside forward’s don’t tend to cross as much as Inverted Wingers and try and break the offside trap which is exactly what Salah wants to do; get in behind the defence and cut inside on his left foot to shoot. We’ll also add ‘roam from position’ and ‘sit narrower’ to allow Mo to get closer to a striker position. You could always change his position to an AMC and select him as a shadow striker but for this, we’ll leave it fairly conventional. For the final two positions, there are two options in terms of selection and roles here. The first is recreating the Salah, Mane and Firmino triumvirate which we have seen a lot of during the second half of the season with Nunez moved out to the left to make the most of his pace and power with Gakpo playing through the middle in the ‘Bobby Firmino/False 9’ role. The second is playing a slightly different style with Nunez through the middle as the focal point and using Luis Diaz out on the left: Option 1 LW – Inside Forward (Attack) – Fulfilling the Sadio Mane role is Darwin Nunez. I’d be tempted to play around with ‘sit narrower’ and ‘stay wider’ here as we’ve seen Darwin both hugging the touchline and, when Gakpo drops deep to get the ball to feet, we’ve seen Nunez occupy the centre forward position making runs in behind and in between the centre backs. Note – you might also want to select Trent to look to cross to the far post particularly if Darwin is up against a smaller and weaker fullback. ST – Deep lying forward (support) – the idea here is for Gakpo to drop into midfield, turn on the ball and either play in Mo and Darwin (passes into space) or retain possession. He has the technical ability to receive passes to feet and retain possession in tight spaces and has the work rate to press. We’ll also add the instructions to mark tighter and tackle harder which can potentially expose any defenders or defensive midfielders that have a poor first touch or aren’t particularly comfortable on the ball. Note – an additional option here is to get Gakpo and Nunez to swap positions throughout the game. We haven’t seen too much of Gakpo playing wide left so not an exact recreation of this season's tactics but it’s another tool that could be used. Option 2 LW – Inverted Winger (support) – Use Luis Diaz in this role. Receiving the ball between the defenders and midfielders and using his dribbling skill and trickery to run at teams. It’ll also create space for Robertson to overlap on the left and Salah and Nunez to find the space behind. ST – Pressing forward (attack) – This is the role Darwin Nunez played at Benfica – the focal point of attack, making runs in behind and setting the press from the front. Essentially what Sadio Mane was doing for the second half of last season worked an absolute treat. We certainly haven’t seen the best of Darwin this season and he’s taken time to adapt to both the Premier League and playing out wide, but he has the knack of finding the right spaces and positions; I’m hopeful the finishing will follow soon. So, there we have it. There is nothing more satisfying than overwhelming the opposition through sheer effort, energy and enthusiasm. This season clearly hasn’t gone to plan for Liverpool but the above is how I believe they would ideally play. This can be great fun to use with other teams on different saves and with the right players this can be an effective method and is hard to stop when it all clicks into gear. I’ve used this is a recent save with Hoffenheim and it’s slowly starting to click into place. A few things I would add: This is clearly an intensive style of football and is very difficult to keep up for 90 mins, game after game. Klopp and Liverpool now have more of a tendency to lean into ‘game management’ when they are 2 or more goals up (depending on the game and the temp) so my advice would be to do the same; lower the tempo, play short passing, drop the defensive lines slightly and take that opportunity to save some energy and reduce the injury risk. Manage your training. Give days off where you can and when specific players are tired give them time off too or reduce their training intensity, at least. Use all your subs! Another way to manage holding onto a win (who doesn’t love a bit of shithousery time wasting then you’re winning?!) and rest some legs. 5 subs to use now so make sure you do. When employing this method with a new team accept that it will take time. Rome wasn’t built in a day but with planned training and the right players you can make it happen. Have fun and enjoy. Tactic Download LINK

This Man City FM23 post was written by one of our Twitter followers @Andy_Hobs and is the latest in our tactical recreation articles. Recreating ‘Guardiola ball’ is probably one of the most popular trends for football manager content creators. So the task of wading in on this debate is a daunting one. No matter what conclusion I come to here the likelihood is people will scream at me for getting it all wrong, which is fun. So let's delve into it, shall we? Background First of all, we have to understand how Pep has got to his current 3-2-3-2/3-2-4-1 shape. The introduction of the Norwegian, goal machine, Haaland has posed a challenging tactical question for pep. Without a false 9, how does he create the extra man in midfield? The answer he went with was to steal a defender. City is no stranger to the inverted wing-back but in recent months the right/left back role has wholly been abandoned for what is now more recognisable as a “verted midfielder” ( yes I know verted isn’t a word). So we need Lewis, Stones or Bernardo to play alongside Rodri rather than drifting towards midfield. We also need to ensure Rodri is getting as many touches on the ball as possible and isn't sitting too deep behind the rest of the midfield. Rodri tops the charts for passing and touches for PL players and plays further up the pitch than most 6’s in possession. Finally, we have to try and introduce ‘pausa’. Pep believes ‘pausa’ (break in English) is crucial to effective play. He wants teams to take an extra second to allow them to make better more considered decisions that strategically benefit the team. It is why we mere mortals may think Foden is better suited to being a 10 or mezzala but Pep plays him out wide. Pep feels Foden still needs to learn that ‘pausa’ rhythm that balances flair with strategy. So we know we want a 3-2-3-2 shape but how does that look in FM23? Here we see the Frankenstein formation that is a 3-2-1-3-1. It's not pretty to look at but it’s what I see as the best representation of what Man City have recently switched to. And this whole tactic is designed to resemble the current city one best, not be the best version of a city tactic to work on FM. We have in the Team instructions much shorter passing, slightly slower tempo, playing fairly wide with an emphasis on both playing out of defence and working the ball into the box. We are set up simply to keep the ball and control the game. In transition, It's no surprise we want to counter-press and hold position when the ball has been lost or won. We want the goalkeeper to mainly take short kicks but give him the freedom of who he is passing out to. We ask Ederson to slow things down, however, as we want that ‘pausa’ thinking throughout the team. Out of possession, we have gone high for both our defensive line and our press, fairly standard for a Pep team. We are pressing more often and we have both ‘get stuck in’ and ‘step up more’ on. City has recently looked back to its best with the reintroduction of Dias, who has brought that aggressive feel back to the city defence (but more on that later) Man City FM23 Positions GK - Sweeper Keeper - Attack As easy as it gets with this team. Why have Ederson if you don't play him this way? LB - Full Back - Defend Instructions - Sit Narrower We have gone for a Left Back not a Left Centre Back. Ake has largely been deployed here and he has been slightly wider than a centre-back would usually be. And we do want him to support Grealish down the left and I found that any version of a WCB was either overlapping too much leaving us exposed or just not getting involved in the game enough. CD - Central Defender - Stopper Now rather controversially we haven’t gone for a Ball Playing Defender which is what Pep is known for. This is because BPD’s on FM can sometimes be guilty of “yeeting” the ball up the pitch and we need better patience than that. We have also chosen a stopper… Now this is the first role that changes depending on who we face. If you are playing a team you expect to dominate then keep him on stopper. We want to isolate the forward into a 1 vs 1 tussle with an aggressive Dias knowing any second balls will be picked up by the other 2 defenders or Rodri. If you are playing a decent team who tries and take you on in a more man-to-man fashion or who just has numbers high up the pitch. Then switch the CD to defend. Otherwise, he will step up onto the striker leaving the gap between him and the LB very exposed to runs from midfield. RCB - Ball Playing Defender - Defend Instructions - Stay Wider In possession, this centre-back needs to fill that right-back space you want a smart pacey defender here any of Stones, Akanji or Walker will do. We have allowed them to be ball-playing centre back to allow that extra freedom to play diagonals or find the RW who is slightly further away from him. DML - Regista - Support The absolute heartbeat of this team the Regista may not be the best player but he is potentially the most vital to the system. He needs to be able to sit in the pivot with the full-back/midfielder but also drives forward and break the lines. Because of all the other players we have up the pitch, he should be able to pick up the ball in space often, getting as many touches as humanly possible. DMR - Defensive Midfielder Support. Instructions. Dribble less, Take fewer risks, Shoot Less Often. Hold Position. The Impossible job of recreating Pep’s latest innovation. We can't have John Stones as a half-back because he doesn’t fill in as a centre back and against Liverpool he was involved in the high press. We can't have him as a playmaker as we don’t want him taking influence off Rodri or KDB. So we have gone for the basic DM. We have firm instructions set on him to keep this role tame. But what excels here is the incredible mental attributes of Stones and Rico Lewis (after the update) and that is what is crucial for this role more than anything. CM - Roaming Playmaker. Just let Kevin De Bruyne be Kevin De Bruyne. Does he want to join the attacking midfielders? Fine. Does he want to drift into the Right-wing channel? Fine. It's all fine Kev you just, do you. LW - Winger Support. Instructions - Shoot less often. We have gone for Gucci boy Jack Grealish as a winger, not an inverted winger. This is to maximise the time he spends keeping the width and getting chalk on his boots. Try it for yourself he still cuts in ALOT. AML - Attacking Midfielder Support Take fewer risks, Hold up ball, Shoot less, often Gundogan is the on-field coach for this City side and therefore has to take a leading role in creating the Pausa style. He also often plays as the closest player to Haaland which leads to him also getting in on a few chances. Some city fans may get frustrated but he is there to weigh up risk and reward and keep control of the game even high up the pitch. RW - Inverted Winger Support Instructions - Stay wider, Shoot less often Foden especially but Mahrez too sometimes drift inside more than Grealish (off the ball). Foden, in particular, has often created rebound chances for Haaland by playing closer to the striker and both often receive floated passes to the corner of the box from Rodri. STR - Poacher Attack Haaland can of course play as any kind of striker. But we want him to achieve his dream of “ 5 touches and 5 goals”. Hence we have him playing as a poacher. We want him firmly playing between the width of the 12-yard box (or even the posts) and rarely getting involved in the build-up. Opposition Instructions. I suggest creating a press plan of some form with the “mark-specific player’ player instructions. At the very least get the 3 right-sided players (CBR/DMR/RW) set up to cover the left flank so you aren’t left alone. The last thing you want is Akanji marking a striker and both Stones and Foden pressing the LB leaving an LW totally free. The Coward's way out If you are ever feeling nervous I have created an IWB version as well. I don't like it as the Avg position for Stones is still a RB which when you have 70% possession should just not be the case. But it's there if you need it. Tactic Download Links Tactic IWB Tactic

This Everton FM23 post has been written for us by @TheHaIfSpace Since Sean Dyche took over from Frank Lampard in February, Everton has been statistically about as average as you can be; 3 wins, 3 draws and 3 losses. It may be worth noting that 2/3 wins have come against top 10 opposition, most notably the 1-0 victory against Arsenal. In terms of performances, it has been night & day from when Lampard was at the helm, Dyche has brought with him a level of fight, pro-activity & ownership for one’s actions on the pitch. I don’t want to pigeonhole him with these emotional characteristics because tactically he has been quite brilliant. With the task of replicating Dyches’ system on FM I will admit, I struggled. As an Everton fan, I see every match but it wasn’t until I went through every match looking for patterns of play or how the team shape alters when in specific scenarios I noticed just how fluid the system is. The first thing we’re going to do is set our team up when in possession. We know Sean Dyche has previously been tarnished with the old ‘long-ball’ English stereotype but at Everton that couldn’t be further from the truth. Everton Football Club was built on getting fans off their seats & playing a fast-paced style of football, which is what we’re going to try and emulate here. We’re going to start off playing keeping our shape ‘Fairly Narrow’. Everton has only had on average since Dyche took over 38% of the ball & a lot of Frank Lampard criticism is that Everton was too easy to play against, so far that reasoning is we’re going to keep our initial shape quite tight as when we lose the ball, we don’t kill ourselves reorganizing. We’re going to keep our passing length to ‘Standard’ as Everton doesn’t just wellie it forward and chase after it, there are times when the midfield 3 will retain possession and allow the wide players to progress up the pitch. That being said, Everton plays a lot of ball down the channel or half-spaces if you prefer. These are simply just balls played into space that allow the team to advance and give the defence some breathing room. We don’t need to over-complicate this section too much, just as long as we’re getting the ball into dangerous areas so that our midfielders who burst forward have something to connect with. In the transition is where Sean Dyche’s philosophy comes to life. When losing possession (especially high up) Everton will always have bodies darting back to cover as much space as possible and cut off any potential passing lanes. We selected a fairly narrow team shape earlier and what we’re looking for is for the ‘Regroup’ selection to work in harmony with our shape. A lot of the time Everton has players, mainly forwards and wide players isolated in 1v2 or 1v3 scenarios so we expect to lose the ball… We just need to make it as difficult for the opposition when we do. When possession is won by Everton the initial thought is to be positive and progress the ball as quickly as possible. Someone like Amadou Onana is brilliant at carrying this out, he’s so energetic and has one thought on his mind when the ball is won… Get forward. When Pickford has the ball at his feet anything can happen, we’ve seen defence-splitting balls like the one for Demari Gray against Nottingham Forest in the 1-1 draw and we’ve seen him keep it simple and slow play down by circulating the ball with Tarkowski and Keane/Coady. I think it's fair to say though that the majority of Pickford's distribution lands at the feet of the wide players. When out of possession Dyche and his teams are notoriously organized, Everton will happily soak up pressure and wait for the counter to present itself. I’m potentially being a little harsh on Everton here by suggesting that it’s a low block they play with because they’re times when Everton press right up to the opposition's penalty area and try to win possession early. I think having a low block while pressing often is a happy medium so we’ll stick with that, getting stuck in is a way of life for Evertonians. Under the lights at Goodison, the crowd almost playing on the wing, and the players feed off that energy. Ask any Evertonian about Phil Neville, they won’t speak of any goal or assist… They’ll mention the tackle on Cristiano Ronaldo that turned the season around. For Evertonians, things like that live long in the memory, I can’t recall how many times I’ve seen Tarkowsi’s tackle on Oliver Skipp since Monday! Let’s get down to individuals now, shall we? The backline is going to be as simple and straightforward as you can imagine. Pickford as our Sweeper Keeper is comfortable with the ball at his feet and has the ability to fulfil this role. Easy. Mykolenko & Coleman as our fullbacks, we don’t want anything spectacular from these. Simply stay tight to the CBs and cover the gaps in the half-spaces, when they win possession, we want them to give it to a more technical player. Tarkowski & Keane as our centre-back pairing. Again, nothing too fancy or complicated here, if we have to deal with crosses, we’re more than comfortable in that area. Simply it’s a good solid pairing with good mentals & decent physicals whose aim will be to break up play and stop the ball from entering the box. Now, let’s talk midfield. We’ll start with our wide players, Dwight McNeil & Alex Iwobi. The Defensive Winger role is seriously underused on FM in my opinion and these two players fit that role beautifully. Within this Everton midfield, there is an awful lot of rotating happening, McNeil will come centrally while Doucoure will move out left, or Doucoure will play almost as a 2nd striker and Onana & Gueye will form the flat 4. There’re times when Iwobi will fit in as a makeshift full-back and form part of a back 5. When I said earlier, I struggled, it was for this reason. Quite complex for a ginger Englishman with a blocked throat. The midfield 3 of Idrissa Gueye, Amadou Onana & Abdoulaye Doucoure is where Everton’s magic is produced. Most Evertonians don’t expect Amadou Onana to be here post-summer, with finances in ruins and the fact he simply is that good it’s hard to disagree. I was undecided about what role Onana should have because the way he plays is quite complex, I finally settled on the Segundo Volante (S) as it allows him to link well with our other DM, Idrissa Gueye who has been selected as an Anchor (Self Explanatory) but it also allows him to support Doucoure and the striker with late runs from deep. He also possesses some solid physicals which make him fit the role perfectly. Doucoure was out of the fold under Frank Lampard but under Sean Dyche, he has been Everton’s Mr Versatile. We mentioned above how he shifts lefts and supports the striker so I think having him as Central Midfielder (A) is the correct role as it allows him to support both attacking & defensive play while also surging into the box to support the strikers. At last, we’re onto our striker, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin injured it’s been a bit of a mash-up between Demari Gray, Neal Maupay and now Ellis Simms but here I’ve settled on Gray. As I mentioned earlier, Everton’s attackers will a lot of the time be outnumbered and isolated so we need someone who can hold the ball up & is quite technical so they can create their own chances and space. Primarily what we need in our attack is a player that can link midfield and attack, which is the main function of the Deep Lying Forward. Tactic Download LINK

This Aston Villa FM23 post has been written for us by @DanielBettridge of the "Under a gaslit lamp" Villa podcast. A tactical analysis of Aston Villa’s 22/23 Season How has Aston Villa lined up this season? It’s been an odd year aboard the good ship Villa. The season started under the management of Steven Gerrard, a man with all of the tactical nous of a Play-Doh factory. But after realising that clicking the “pump fists” button during team talks was getting us nowhere, the club’s owners mercifully pulled the trigger, hiring a genuine top-class manager to take over the helm at Villa Park. In the six months or so since his appointment, Unai Emery has transformed a team that was sleepwalking towards relegation to one of the form teams in the league. In fact, at the time of writing, Villa is one of the league’s most in-from outfit - with only the likes of City, Arsenal and Liverpool above them since the Spaniard took charge. So how has he done it? The key behind Villa’s revival has been a shift to a 442 (that shifts into a 4222 in attack) and a change of style towards a more progressive, possession-orientated outfit. Anyone familiar with Emery’s work at Villareal will see some familiarity here. But whether it’s driven by the personnel available to him, or a change in tactical direction - there are some unique wrinkles to how Villa play. Key principles One of the biggest things that Emery has implemented since his arrival at B6 is to get Villa playing out from the back. Villa plays a lot of short slow passes in their own half, the goal is to encourage the opposition to press them - drawing them out of their defensive shape. Once the opposition has taken the bait Villa up the tempo and the directness of their passing, looking to take advantage of their opposition’s imbalance. It’s a kind of manufactured counterattack, one that aims to control the game while also taking advantage of the directness offered by the likes of Watkins, Bailey, Buendia and Ramsey. Indeed, you’ll quite often see Villa driving with the ball through the centre of the pitch, with their wide players (who are often midfielders playing out of position) coming inside to form a box midfield. Out of possession, Villa has been equally impressive. Dropping into a 442 shape, they create a tight compact unit that presses in a midblock. Key to both sides of the ball is the double pivot of Boubacar Kamara and Dougie Luiz. The heartbeat of the team they are as comfortable defending as they are on the ball, it’s this duo who more often than not decide when Villa should change gears and speed up the attack - moving up the pitch and keeping pace with the attack as they go. You’ll also see them pressing high up the pitch. They are true all-around midfielders with the technical and physical attributes to cover every blade of grass. The shape Though there are multiple ways to skin this particular tactical cat, bringing the fundamental principles of Emery’s Villa into FM is pretty simple. Shape-wise it’s all built around the double pivot, with both players on support duty to reflect how they play on the pitch. These two are key to how the whole system functions with Luiz the more progressive of the two (I’ve opted for a Roaming Playmaker, but a Segundo Volante on support would also work). But don’t overlook the impact of Kamara. As a DM on support duty, he’ll screen the defence but he’ll also pick his opportunities to push forward. In my current save, I’ve also turned him into a quasi-playmaker (training traits like dictates tempo, and switches ball to flank) to emphasise his role as a ball progressor. On either side of the double pivot we have two inverted wide men. In recent times Emery has played John Mcginn and Jacob Ramsey here - two players who previously played in the centre of the pitch but have flourished in these hybrid roles. Defensively we want them to slot in alongside the pivot, but in attack these two push high and central, creating something of a box midfield. You could set the formation up by starting them in these more central positions, but I’ve found it’s a lot harder to get them to defend as a flat four from these positions. Looking further forward the line is led by Ollie Watkins who is very much the focal point of the attack. You could make him a Pressing Forward (A), and his attributes certainly lend him to that role. But I find the Advanced Forward recreates the way that the team can look to hit him early in moves. Watkins is typically partnered by either Leon Bailey (who tends to drift wide) or Emi Buendia (who drops deep and central). One thing Emery values is adaptability - he regularly makes minor tweaks to his system to gain an advantage over the opposition - that’s something we can recreate in the game by changing roles when we change the player. When Bailey starts I have him as a Complete Forward on support with the PI to drift wide, when it’s Buendia he’s a False Nine. It’s a simple way of tweaking the tactic based on how you want it to play or who you’re playing against. Finally at the back things are pretty simple. The only slight variation is on the left, where Emery likes newcomer Moreno to get forward and offer overlapping width. He’s not a flying fullback, but he does get forward, often arriving late to whip in a cross. If all of that looks a little familiar it’s because it is. Emery’s Villa is a bit of a Poundland version of Wenger’s Invincibles, and I’ve leaned on Cleon’s superb replication of that for inspiration. The instructions In possession - In the game, Emery’s preferred tactical style is “Control Possession” and that’s the starting point for this replication. We have made some tweaks, however. “Work the ball into the box” has gone, we’ve also ticked “Run at defence” and “Overlap left.” We’ve done this to achieve that change of gears that Villa demonstrate as well as their directness when they reach the final third. It also enables us to create Moreno’s flying runs without sacrificing our tactical stability. In transition - Again just the one change here and that’s ticking “Counter”. This is arguably unnecessary. But one thing that’s noticeable about Emery’s Villa is that whilst play is now a lot more patient, Villa is still happy to attack at pace, taking advantage if Ollie Watkins’ pace and physical presence. Out of possession - Out of possession Villa play in a compact 442. They press the opposition, but typically from a midblock with the defensive line squeezing up to condense the space between the lines. That in turn gives the pivot licence to press higher up the pitch. Although the team presses and counter presses, they are still incredibly disciplined with their shape which is why I’ve kept the pressing urgency at standard. PIs LB - Stay Wider, to recreate the width Moreno offers. LW - Sit narrower, to encourage the central running. RW - Cut inside, dribble more, cross less often. CF (s) - When Bailey plays he has stay wider. There’s also an argument to give Watkins Stay wider and roam in order to recreate his average positioning - which tends to be on the left. Away from home One of the biggest impacts Emery has had is on Villa’s away form. An element of our game that was woeful before the Spaniard’s arrival has now become a strength. We tend to play differently away from home. Things are a lot more cautious, with a focus on solidity rather than the spectacular. Typically I find it’s enough to switch to the counter mentality. Though for tough away games I may also give man-marking instructions to the two wide players to recreate the back 6 (yes you read that right) that Villa has displayed in visits to the likes of Spurs and City. The end result The system can be hugely effective on FM. I’ve won leagues and cups with this set-up, often without adding to Villa’s threadbare squad. In real life, Villa has been one of the form teams in the league and I’m surprised that there hasn’t been more discussion of the job Emery is doing at Villa Park. The transformation has been staggering, taking this side from a flirtation with relegation to an outside shot at European places. In the game, this transformation can be equally rewarding. Though it needs strengthening, Villa’s squad is full of potential, with several players capable of playing in a variety of positions. I’ve had a lot of fun moving players around and tweaking roles in order to take advantage of the opposition. Want more possession? Put Buendia or Coutinho up front as a False Nine. Want to go more direct, stick Bailey up there, or put him on the wing to stretch the opposition? Need to tighten things up? Dendonker can come on for Luiz as a ball-winner or another DM. Emery is the definitive “man with a plan,” a manager who’s obsessed with details and finding ways to get marginal advantages over the opposition. This is a simple way of recreating that on the game without having to change tactics every five minutes. And best of all, it’s a hell of a lot of fun. Tactic download LINK

This Brentford FM23 post was written for us by long-time FM community member and former SI employee @dazza1889 Thomas Frank is one of the most tactically flexible managers currently operating in the Premier League. Throughout his time as head coach of Brentford, he has consistently shown an ability to change shape and personnel within the framework of his side. He’s more pragmatic (I know that word conjures up thoughts of Tony Pulis and Big Sam, but I think it fits here) than I think people may give him credit for as he’s more than happy to forgo possession to win. From his first full season, he started with an attacking 343 which quickly evolved to a more common 433 spearheaded by the free-flowing BMW frontline (Benrahama, Mbeumo and Watkins) and after narrowly missing out on promotion he lost 2 thirds of that front line and had to reshape while being spearheaded by Ivan Toney which saw the Bees go on a 21 game unbeaten run in the league and reach the top before long term injuries to the likes of Rico Henry and Josh DaSilva forced another tactical tinker and saw him adopt a 352 which saw the Bees win promotion to the Premier League via the playoffs. During Brentford’s first season in the top flight, he continued to use the 352 but was also more direct with the style of play as he looked to hit teams on the counter and in transition but again when the form faltered, he changed back to the 433. The arrival of a playmaker of the calibre of Christen Eriksen also played a key role in giving him the confidence to be more open. 2022/23 Season The 2022/23 season Brentford has surpassed expectations and has not suffered from the “second season syndrome” that many expected and predicted they would. This season has seen Brentford get wins over some big names such as the 4-0 home win over Man United, a 2-1 away win at Man City and a 3-1 home win over Liverpool. The last of those was also done without star man Ivan Toney (something I’m sure Frank is already preparing for with Toney likely to be unavailable for the Bees either because of a potential upcoming ban or maybe even a summer move). Trying to recreate this level of flexibility isn’t something I feel is entirely possible within FM so instead what I am going to do is offer my take on both his 433 formations and the 352 and try and explain Some of the changes he makes depending on what players he picks for the system. 433 Frank will mainly use the 433 at home to sides outside of the big 6 and away from home in games where he feels Brentford can and should control possession, it’s as close to the possession heavy BMW era Brentford as we’re likely to see in the Premier League so with that in mind I have gone for a control possession style with a couple of tweaks. It’s a fairly basic control possession style but I’ve added overlapping on the left. Rico Henry is usually instructed to get right up the pitch more so than the right back. I’ve also got distribution set to fullbacks as what Brentford like to do is get it wide to start the build from one side to the other pulling the opposition out of shape. Out of possession is all pretty standard for this type of tactic, the only thing I’ve added here was to stay on feet, Brentford look to win the ball back through pressures and interceptions rather than diving into tackles The Roles GK – Sweeper keeper on attack. Raya is more than comfortable with the ball at his feet and his ability to read the game means he times his runs out of the box well RB – Full Back on Attack. Sit Narrower and cross from the byline added. He’s a little more reserved than the left back and with Hickey’s ability to play off either foot sitting narrower lets him cut inside in order to break lines. Crossing from the byline means he does get forward in support though. RCB – Ball Playing Defender on defend. Frank likes to have at least one CB comfortable in progressing the ball. LCB – Central Defender on cover. This could easily be another ball-playing defender if you like but the reason I have them on cover is that with the wing-back next to him on attack and the team looking for the overlap on this side you need someone to just sit in on this role. LB – Wing back on attack. The wingback here is to get forward and support the attacking players. DM – Defensive Midfielder on Defend. His role is simple in that he’s base, protects the CBs, wins the ball back and then passes it to the creative players. LCM – Roaming playmaker on support. Run wide with the ball added. This is the Jensen role, the heartbeat of the team, he looks for space and his teammates look for him. Long or short passing it doesn’t matter, this is the guy your team build around. Have added runs wide with the ball because Thomas Franks likes both of his 8’s to go wide to create overloads with the fullbacks and wide players. RCM – this is where Frank’s flexibility shows as depending on who plays here the role changes. Janelt or Onyeka and it’s a Ball Winning midfielder on support. If it’s Josh DaSilva it’s more like a box-to-box midfielder and if it’s Damsgaard then it’s more like a Mezzala on attack The only constant here is the stay wider instruction for the same reason we look to run wide with the other CM. RW – Inside forward on support. Mbeumo’s role here is to be slightly wider than Wissa on the left but still to make those runs into the box to support Toney LW – Inside forward on attack and sit narrower added. Wisa tends to operate more centrally than Mbeumo does on the other side, he needed to get closer to Toney and play off him a bit more. ST – Complete Forward on support. Toney loves to drop deep and hold up the ball but is capable of leading the line which is why I went for a support role rather than attack, the PI’s that come with this role suit Toney with roam from the position and move into channels perfectly for him. The 352 The 352 is the formation Thomas Frank used to firstly see Brentford over the finishing line and win promotion from the Championship and what he used for the majority of last season. This year it’s mainly been used at home to the big 6 clubs and in tougher away games. It’s a counter-attacking set-up where the aim is to sit deep and then hit the opposition on the break while also trying to play for set pieces (another area where Brentford focus on) With that in mind I’ve gone with a direct counter-attacking style mainly because when Frank play this he’s looking to get the ball up to Toney quickly. The only team instruction I added was to remove get stuck in and instead use stay on feet for the same reasons I said earlier. The Roles GK – Sweeper Keeper but on support this time. No need for attacking with the low block and a back 3. RCB – Wide Centre Back on attack. This player (usually Kris Ajer) will have the role of not only bringing the ball out of defence but is also used to push up the field whenever possible. CB – Centre Back on cover, this is your experienced defender. Pontus Jansson or Ben Mee type, not the quickest but reads the game well. LCB – Ball playing centre back on defend. You want someone comfortable on the ball here, his role, while the RCB pushes on, is to play the ball forward into either the DM or the wing-back but is also capable of switching the ball if needed. RWB – Wing back on support. Pretty standard here, gets forward to support but with it being a defensive set up his main role is obviously defending. LWB – Wing back on support with get further forward added, same as Hickey on the right really but with the added instruction, we don’t use it on the right as with the WCB there pushing on it would leave the side too exposed down that side, for the LWB though his role is to get forward and support the midfield and attack. DM – Defensive midfielder on defend. His role doesn’t change, sits in the middle and breaks up play before moving the ball on. RCM – Ball-winning midfielder on defend, it’s his job to go and hunt the ball and win it. For Brentford, this is either Janelt or Onyeka here. LCM – Roaming playmaker on support. Thought about changing this but Jensen’s role doesn’t change, he’s instructed to dictate the game and look to play the balls through to the attackers. ST – complete forward on support, like Jensen Toney’s role doesn’t change, he’s the main man, drops deep and brings others in while looking for goals. It’s his job to occupy the defenders ST – Pressing forward on attack. Here you’re looking for someone with a bit of pace but also the work rate to pressure the defenders, even though it’s a low block Mbeumo’s role is to look to run off of Toney but also help him pressure the defenders. Set Pieces An area Brentford focus on for marginal gains is set pieces, I feel this is something most Football Manager players also do as well but more and more actual clubs are starting to catch up now, and at the time of writing I think Brentford are the leading scorers from set pieces in the Premier League this season with around 16 goals. Their variations are too many for the FM set piece creator to handle but in the main, they tend to have a left footer (Mbeumo usually) taken from the right-hand side with Jensen coming short and the other way around on the left-hand side. Most times its inswinger but honestly I don’t think I’ve seen them use the same routine twice in a row for about 3 or 4 years now. The main one, and one I’ve added to the tactics) is to have the DM attack the near post looking to flick on and have runners behind him to attack the flick on or be there if a save is made. They also tend to send everyone forward and have their fastest players on the edge of the box ready to run back to stop a counter (having someone as fast as Rico Henry is a key part of this and when he’s missing it doesn’t work quite so well – see the Bournemouth goal in the 2nd leg of the playoffs as an example) but I’m not sure how the FM match engine would handle having no one back at all for every corner so I’ve amended it slightly: The key thing to remember with Thomas Frank is just how flexible he is with shape and player roles, sets out with a plan for every game but is comfortable in changing things up, even running an attacking 343 with one or 2 CMs in the backline at times when chasing a game. As much as I love having him as the Head Coach of Brentford I’m very interested to see how his career develops from here on out and what he does next. Tactic download links: 433 352

This Arsenal FM23 post was written for us by @rocksendfm an Argentinian FM Blogger who has written pieces for SI's The Byline and is a big contributor to The Argentinian FM community as well as the English-speaking one. Mikel Arteta has been nothing short of a revolution for Arsenal FC. At its core, the work done by the Spanish coach has been about changing mindsets; among the players, among the fans, and (it even seems) among the board itself. At the Emirates, the outlook has been changing from a pessimist view to an optimistic one. However, there has also been a change in the tactics, from an outdated approach under Emery and (particularly) Wenger, to a modern one. Right now, Arsenal looks like one of the most cutting-edge sides in Europe tactically. Arteta made good use of his learning years under Guardiola, and while his love of positional game shows, he’s also incorporated elements of his own when putting together this Arsenal team. Now, with the Gunners skyrocketing into the league of the Premier League, let’s take a look at how Arsenal and Arteta are doing it. Arteta’s Tactics for 2022-23 A key part of the Arteta revolution in the Emirates has had to do with what the team shows on the pitch. Once not too long ago an apathetic and predictable side, now the Gunners are a side that can regularly make you jump out of your seat (ask Dan Gear and FM Stag about their match-watching experience with me). Arsenal plays a youthful and exuberant style under Arteta, something that makes sense as they’re the youngest squad in the EPL. The Gunners look to move the ball quickly vertically and use movement and sharp passing to unsettle the opposition. Their basic shape is a classic 4-3-3, with a holding midfielder and two free-eights operating behind the front three. Once the ball gets rolling, however, things start to change. At the base of it all is goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale. The unquestionable winner of Bernd Leno’s confidence shortage after the injury that saw Emiliano Martinez’s career get kick-started, the English goalie is comfortable at the ball, and his distribution has been as important for Arsenal as has his (at times heroic) goalkeeping. His excellent passing abilities from goal kicks and his confidence on the ball in open play mean Arsenal can have him spread the ball short and long depending on what’s required at any given point. Keeping the England international safe we have the back four of White, Saliba, Magalhaes and Zinchenko. While still far from that famous Arsenal defence, the four have been key for the Gunners this season, and look set to be so for some time. The centre-back pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes is the foundation of it all. Not since the days of prime Koscielny and Mertesacker did Arsenal have as good a fit as partners for central defence, and it shows. With Saliba more suited to build up from the back, read play and intercept or tackle using his excellent 1v1 game, Gabriel provides a more aggressive and physical presence, particularly in the air., However, neither depends on the other to do what it takes to win the ball back. On the right, Benjamin White has performed excellently since being “pushed” to the flank as a result of Takehiro Tomiyasu’s injury and the return of William Saliba. Far from the flair and electricity of a more typical right back, White provides a solid defensive presence which combines with good ball control and a solid understanding with his flank mate Bukayo Saka. Most importantly, White is a very intelligent footballer and knows how and when to either overlap Saka or tuck inside to create a back three, which (you’ll see) is key to how Arsenal plays. On the left, however, plays arguably Arsenal’s most important player this season: Oleksandr Zinchenko. The influence the Ukrainian has had in the Arsenal set-up is hard to quantify. Mentality-wise, he’s been an injection of spirit and hunger, always roaring to go. However, his impact on the pitch has been even greater. Nominally, Arteta deploys him as a left back, but he very quickly inverts as he used to do at Manchester City, and has a licence to roam all across the pitch, constantly offering passing options, progressing the ball and even having the odd pop from outside the box. As his stats from Arsenal’s now iconic 3-2 win against Manchester United show, he has full licence to pull the strings all along the left flank and into midfield. With the such adventurous play on Arsenal’s left flank, it’s clear the midfield has to provide some support, and a big part of that is Thomas Partey. The former Atlético de Madrid man has been a rock for the Gunners. Despite often being branded as a defensive midfielder, he has provided defensive support and a passing outlet almost in equal measure, and his injury absences have proved hard to overcome for Arteta. Sitting right in front of the Ghanaian are Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard. The Swiss have gone from an outcast under Unai Emery to playing his best football ever with Arteta. A key cog in partnership with Zinchenko, Xhaka will either push forward or provide cover depending on how and where the Ukrainian moves, while he’s also been deadly with his runs and late arrivals into the box. Odegaard works almost as the playmaking hub for the Gunners. Free to move and find space, he shares a great understanding with Arsenal’s talisman, Bukayo Saka, and they constantly pass and move, switch positions and playmakers for each other. From there, he usually moves into the 10 positions to play a pass or look to score, benefitting from the movement of Gabriel Jesus as the striker, with whom he can combine in short to split open the low blocks Arsenal has often come across. Arsenal’s front three has been one of the most exciting sights in the Premier League this season. On the right, Bukayo Saka starts very wide; this serves two purposes: on the one hand, it allows him to stretch the opposition, something the more defensive and less electric Ben White often can’t do, while also allowing him to receive into space out wide or (as Arteta would prefer), cutting inside, which allows him to break out of the box oppositions look to keep him in. From there, it’s a game of pass, cross or finish, all of which the highly talented academy player can do brilliantly. Out on the left, Gabriel Martinelli starts every bit as wide as Saka, since Zinchenko is more often than not cutting inside; however, he plays a much more direct game, using his speed and dribbling skill to either find a scoring opportunity by running into space or break into the box for a cross. Leading the line is Gabriel Jesus, who was a revelation early on in his Arsenal days but has since struggled with injury. Regardless, the Brazilian is the ideal man for Arteta’s play, as he’s not only a solid goalscorer, but also willing to drop deeper to create space for the runs of Saka, Martinelli, Odegaard and Xhaka, and offers a great passing option in the final third to break down deep defences. Taking Arteta’s Arsenal to Football Manager 2023 As with every tactical recreation done on FM, we must consider that while the tactics toolbox at our disposal is very versatile, it can’t mimic perfectly what a real-life coach can train and set real-life players to do on the pitch. It is understandable and expectable. Therefore, for most recreations, I always aim at looking to mimic the general concepts a manager applies, and not dwell on the irreplicable minutiae that fall outside our reach. To recreate Mikel Arteta’s tactics on Football Manager 2023, I created a brand new save with the latest 23.4 update to take a look at the team. Going into the tactics board, we’re going to set up in a 4-3-3 with a DM sitting behind two central midfielders. Starting from the back, in goal, we’re going to use a Sweeper-Keeper in Support Duty to take the best advantage of Ramsdale’s passing and vision. In front of him, we’ll have a centreback pairing of a BPD-Cover on the right and a CD-Stopper on the left, played by William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes respectively. I’ll instruct Gabriel to stay wider when the team is in possession, to provide more cover for Zinchenko. The right-back will be Ben White, as a Full Back on support. We’re also going to ask him to sit narrower when the team has the ball, to form that back three, while also asking him to run wide when he’s on the ball to set up an overlap. On the other flank, we’ll have Zinchenko as an Inverted Wing-Back on Attack, which will be enough to have him cutting inside and ruling the space on the left. The midfield trio will be composed of a Deep-Lying Playmaker on Defense, played by Thomas Partey, and two free-eights to replicate the roles of Xhaka and Odegaard. For the Swiss, on the left, I’ve gone with a Carrilero while also asking him to Get Further Forward and Shoot More Often to utilise those deadly longshots by the former Basel man. On the other side, for the role of Odegaard, I’ve gone with a Roaming Playmaker. The idea is to have him free on the right side to mix and pass with Saka and Jesus. On the right side of the attack, we have Bukayo Saka as an Inverted Winger on Attack. I’ve asked him to Stay Wider when the team has the ball to provide that defence-stretching positioning, while the role and his Player Trait to Cuts Inside from Right Wing guarantee he’ll be going into the half spaces. Opposed to him, Gabriel Martinelli will play an Inside Forward on Support to make that darting runs with or without the ball, while also being asked to stretch the opposition by staying wider. Last but not least, we’re taking advantage of the 23.4 databases to have the now fully recovered Gabriel Jesus back on the team. He’ll play a Complete Forward on Support to better use his Teamwork, Passing and Vision without entirely dropping him as a scoring option. Going into our Team Instructions, we’ll start with a Positive mentality. In Possession, we’ll look for quick circulation of the ball as a way to unsettle our opposition and open gaps in the defence. We’ll do it first by looking to build from the back with Play Out of Defence, while at the same time going much shorter on our passes and upping our tempo as we have the technical ability to do so. We’ll also narrow ourselves to keep passing options near the ball carrier, which favours ball movement. In Transition, we’ll add Counter-press and Counter, a staple of Arsenal lightning attack, although Counter can be turned on and off depending on how the opposition settles defensively. We’ll also ask the goalkeeper to distribute with short kicks, keeping the options open during the buildup and using Ramsdale’s vision to sort out the best pass. Out of Possession, we’ll simply set a High Press with a High Defensive line, letting our role selection and player attributes do the work. That way, the final look is this: How it all works together With our tactic ready, it’s time to test it out and I’m very happy with the results. We’ve achieved a team that’s capable of lightning transitions of shorts passing, with lots of movement and lovely combinations, while also managing to mimic some of Arteta’s Arsenal’s best moves. On build-up, we can see how the back three is formed by White, Saliba and Gabriel, with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli stretching the play and keeping the opposition fullbacks busy. This leaves huge gaps for interplay, as you can see with two players nearly unmarked on the left, allowing for creative play. Like the real-life Arsenal, one of the ways we created the most danger was via Xhaka’s rushing on to the box. Here, Odegaard spots the Swiss making one of his darting runs behind the back of a centreback and passes into space for him to create a clear chance. As we discussed, another staple of 2022-23 Arsenal has been the influence of Zinchenko, and his FM23 counterpart does not disappoint. Looking at the Ukranian’s performance, we can see how he influences the game through the left flank, offering passing options across that half of the pitch. That influence can be seen on the pitch. In this action, Saka spots the Ukrainian making a run behind the defenders and plays a pass into his channel. With the ball under his control, Zinchenko breaks into the box and lays off a ball for Gabriel Jesus to score on a very easy chance. Overall, we’ve managed to imprint on Football Manager the essence of Arteta’s style, playing some exquisite football. I encourage you to try it out and see if you can improve on the Gunners’ performance this season. Thanks for reading! Tactic Download LINK

This Erik ten Hag's Manchester United Tactical recreation comes from @TheDevilsDNA He's very active on Twitter sharing his analysis of United and his thoughts about the team. Principles of Play and Team Instructions As a first season in the Premier League with a team that’s not quite in his ideal image yet, there has been a lot of figuring out for Erik Ten Hag in 22/23. Based on the opposition, player form and player availability, he has opted for a variety of approaches ranging from very deep defensive blocks that bypass build-up to focus on generating direct transitions, to high control possession setups that have patient build-up, rotations and a high press. It feels like a clash between “What he wants to do” versus “what he can realistically do given the conditions”. My FM tactical recreation will marry a bit of both. In cases where I felt, we can be optimistic and go for Ten Hag’s ideal scheme, I have opted so, and in cases where I felt the existing players simply cannot do what he envisions, even on FM, I have gone for the pragmatic option. On that note, the team style I have opted for and the team instructions that come as a result, have a certain dichotomy to them. Let’s take a look. I have opted for shorter passing and playing out of the defence, to recreate Ten Hag’s insistence to build up whenever possible. The team gaps from real life aren’t as hard to paper over on FM, so this approach largely works well. Ten Hag’s ideal vision sees more patient build-up in deeper areas and more direct and transitional play in advanced areas. I try to mimic the latter by allowing the team to be more expressive and pass into space. This gives us a good combination of patience and security in the first phase and flair and expressiveness in the chance creation phase. The player instructions have also been set based on this duality, but I’ll explain that later. In transition, I have opted for counter-pressing and counterplay, since most Ten Hag teams. including this Manchester United one, have a big tendency to press hard, steal the ball and counter quickly to target the gaps left by the opposition. The distribution of short kicks is in line with the approach of playing out of defence. Probably, the instructions I experimented with the most are the out-of-possession ones. While United have been in the bottom 5 for defensive height in the league this season, there are games where Ten Hag has wanted to play higher. I have opted for a standard line as a result. It helps the team not concede too many long balls and through balls behind their defensive line and yet remain decently high enough to enable attacking play and pressing. I have gone for a higher and more intense press, as I feel that even with a deeper line, United have mostly tried to press well whenever possible. Player roles and instructions Coming to each player role, they largely follow the principles laid out above, in addition to maximizing their traits and of course, replicating how Ten Hag has used them, in reality, this season. Let’s start from the back. While in reality, De Gea has repeatedly proven to be very incapable of displaying any aspects of the sweeper keeper that the team needs, in FM, he isn’t as bad. Given our build-up needs, I have assigned him as a sweeper keeper but on the ‘defence’ duty. If the team was playing a higher line, I would have shifted that to ‘support’ or ‘attack’, but for a standard line, this should be good enough without straining De Gea into doing too much. Varane has been the more defensive-minded centre-back of the duo, largely focussing on box defending and taking very less risks in possession. I have assigned him the basic CB role, with additional player instruction to reduce risky passes. He will win the ball, cover behind the line and keep it simple in possession. On the other hand, Lisandro has been the major build-up player in defence this season, comfortably helping United progress out of their half even without support. I have assigned him as a ball-playing defender and his traits of diving into tackles, bringing the ball out and attempting long-range passes, perfectly lend themselves to the role of an aggressive front-foot defender who is great at carrying and passing under pressure. I did need a bit of a think on the fullbacks since 4 have featured heavily with varying roles and form. In the end, I decided to pick Dalot in an inverted role and Shaw in a wide role, which seems to be the trend this year, and also suits both players well. Dalot is pretty well-rounded, which lends itself well to the inverted role, where he is a part midfielder and part fullback. His trait also enables him to enter wide or central areas higher up the pitch, when the opportunity presents itself, just like in reality. I gave Shaw a lot more attacking freedom. Essentially, he is to join the attacking front 5 as the widest player on the left who stretches the pitch and creates chances in the final third. In addition to the attacking wingback instructions, I have asked him to dribble more and stay wide to stretch the pitch and create gaps in the opposition's defence. His attacking traits also suit these instructions perfectly. The midfield 3 was another cause for great thought. Ten Hag has played a hybrid between 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 with the build-up midfielder moving based on phase. I opted for a DM triangle shape since the formation you see on FM is largely the shape in which the team defends in and for United, in the defensive phase, Casmeiro largely takes up the central anchor role to position himself to defend transitions. He has the most possession regains for United this season, which is why the ball-winning midfielder role seems suitable to recreate what he has done this year. Eriksen’s role has been very interesting this year. Essentially he drops deep during the build-up to help the team progress and later joins the attacking third as well to create in advanced areas. I felt that ‘Roaming playmaker’ best describes this movement and is very well suited to Eriksen’s skillset as well. His traits of coming deep to get the ball are a very good match for the build-up movement, while his killer ball trait helps with releasing attackers nicely. The obvious candidate for AM in case I had gone for an AM triangle, Bruno is largely the side’s main chance creator. I had to think hard about his role, since he has been shifted around a lot this year, to the right wing and even the build-up role in recent times. From the few games we saw when all of Eriksen, Casemiro, Antony and Dalot played together, I noticed Bruno take up a right-sided midfield role that helped him link up with the 2 players on the right flank while giving him license to roam into attacking areas, especially the right half-space area. I think this is where Ten Hag envisions Bruno to be playing long-term when everyone is fit, and as a result, I have given Bruno the mezzala role. With an additional instruction to cross more, which Bruno loves to do from the right (often towards Rashford) and his own traits of killer balls and shooting from distance, we end up getting a powerhouse of chance creation, instinctive attacking movement and goal threat from midfield. Antony has been settling into the squad, managing form and fitness constantly, but in most of his appearances, his role is clear - a wide isolation profile, who stretches play by parking wide or carrying the ball towards the wing, and then looks to cut in to cross or shoot. With an inverted winger role, that’s exactly what he does and I have given him additional instruction to stay wide and stretch the pitch. He becomes the widest player on the right in the front 5 when the team attacks. But when he gets the ball, he comes alive. His traits of cutting in and trickery, combined with his great attributes of dribbling, flair and agility, help him weave his way into good areas and produce the x-factor that the attack needs. It’s no secret that United need a new striker. Between Martial’s injury concerns and Weghorst not being the elite-level talent that should be leading the line at a club vying for titles, Ten Hag has had it rough in this department. But when either play, I feel that the deep-lying forward describes them best. This role enables a lot of back-to-goal play, where the striker can receive in tight central areas and lay it off to an oncoming player, or turn and play a through ball to one of the wider players. Martial’s excellent first touch, dribbling and technique help him pull off this role to great effect, while he also gets on the end of chances, after the initial hold-up and pass. Last, but not least, the team’s main outlet this year - is Marcus Rashford. While Rashford has featured in the central role a few times, it seems clear that Ten Hag envisions him as an attacking inside forward playing off the striker. I have given him an attack duty and asked him to stay narrow. With Shaw on attack duty while staying wide and the team instruction of overlapping on the left, what we end up getting is Rashford in the left half space. Essentially the front 5 in the attacking phase looks like this: Shaw- Rashford-Martial-Bruno-Antony With the instruction of shooting more, player traits of getting into the opposition area and beating the offside trap and excellent attributes for off-the-ball movement, acceleration and pace, don’t be surprised if Rashford is the one regularly on the end of moves and ends up as the team’s top goal scorer, as he has been this season in reality. The final tactic And that’s how it looks when it comes together. I have explained the playing XI in detail, but here are a few notes on rotation players. Ten Hag has used Maguire on the right and Lindelof on the left this season, in a bid to give Maguire a chance to usurp Varane and partner Lisandro, but that hasn’t worked out. In reality and in FM too, Maguire is better on the left and Lindelof better on the right. They also suit the tactic roles that way. My advice would be to rotate that way. The fullbacks are more open to debate. If you want to play it realistically, ideally Malacia should have an inverted role from LB and Wan-Bissaka should have a more traditional wide role from RB, but again, for the purposes of not confusing the whole tactic (especially their equation with the wingers), I would advise to just rotate them in these same roles. The midfield backups are technically not suitable replacements, but I have seen decent success with Scott in the DM role, van de Beek or Sabitzer in the Bruno role and Fred or Sabitzer in the Eriksen role. Long-term, you might want to make some ins and outs here. In attack, Sancho is the highest-profile backup option. He doesn’t offer the movement and goal threat of Rashford due to vastly different traits and attributes, while he isn’t a great inverted right winger either. I would suggest experimenting in both roles and seeing what works better (much like how Ten Hag has done). Garnacho feels like a much better like-for-like LW rotation (again, like real life). Weghorst is decently suited to the CF role as a backup, but it would probably be best to sign a top-end CF anyway. Another note in on-game tweaks: I haven’t created a second tactic, since I didn’t feel a more defensive version was required. This tactic defends decently and is capable against the best teams. What I would offer are a few tweaks against smaller teams if you want to force a breakthrough or want to dominate against an easy opponent. If your possession is high, but the team isn’t taking enough shots, increase the tempo. If the opponent is settled in a very narrow formation (Half-time analytics reveals the shape), then consider attacking wider in possession to stretch them. If you feel their attack isn’t good enough to trouble your defensive line, you can push it up higher and increase the pressing intensity, in a bid to force high turnovers. Gameplay and pre-season results With my tactic set up, I decided to give it a run in some pre-season friendlies and see how it works out. I set up 3 testing games against Arsenal, Leipzig and Bayern. Within 20 minutes, we could see a move that recreated what we wanted. A quick interchange between Varane and Bruno set up a brilliant through ball into the left channel from Eriksen to Rashford. Those are the areas we ideally need Rashford receiving regularly in. From there, a simple cross to Martial was enough. The next goal was a result of the good pressing setup and Antony doing what Antony does best. Martial and Antony press well to force the mistake and the striker plays in Antony, who delivers a fine far-corner curler from the edge of the box. Those are the situations we want Antony in. The game was tight with Arsenal bossing more possession and shots taken, but a lot of those shots were from distance thanks to our deep line. In terms of xG generated, we were superior and had 2 clear-cut chances and 2 half chances. A good result. The pass map vs Arsenal indicated much of what we wanted, with Rashford being the main outlet and the team having a left-leaning shape with Varane dropping more to offer defensive cover. The next game saw us meet RB Leipzig. I picked them specifically to see how we do against a high-pressing team, which FM favours at times. I did have a feeling that our setup could be ideal to hit such a team on the break, and that’s how it played out with us running riot in a 4-2 win. Two goals were of interest. Bruno’s trigger-happy nature paved the way early for a good long-range effort. Expect him to get a few goals from such areas. The second goal was brilliantly worked. As always, the team finds Rashford in a good advanced area. Some nifty passing later, our secondary chance creator Shaw finds Antony at the far post easily. In the end, the RBL win seemed closer than it was, thanks to some second-half slacking off after being 3-0 up. With 4 clear-cut chances and an xG of 3.33, our attack was clearly on top. The pass map saw the wide players enjoying the spaces behind RBL’s aggressive fullbacks and Martial much deeper than expected (as he often is in real life as well). The final game was probably against the toughest opponent. What complicated matters were the trio of Rashford, Martial and Eriksen missing due to injuries (A snapshot of what Ten Hag has to deal with in real life). Even with key members out, we kept things competitive. The only goal of the game came from a good front press from Sancho (not so likely in real life) that resulted in a thumping bottom-corner finish from Weghorst (even more unlikely in real life). A game that should have seen more goals; We still won the xG battle and created 1 clear-cut chance and 7 half chances to Bayern’s 2 and 2 respectively. A tight game that could have gone either way. In the end, I was satisfied with our pre-season results. We were largely competitive or better than a variety of opponents, and the principles of play that we were going for were clearly visible. A full season of this should do as well or better than 22/23 Manchester United in reality. Tactic Download LINK

ThrowingCopperFM shares this post with us about the tactical principles of Will Still at Stade de Reims and how he implemented it into FM23. Tactic download link included. A lot of people will be aware of the rapid rise of Will Still at Stade de Reims. The 30-year-old is the youngest head coach in Ligue 1 history and has caused a storm since taking over at Stade de Reims in October 2022. Will cites Football Manager as a major part of his footballing education and led the team to a long unbeaten run, including two games against PSG. In this article I’ll take a look at the main principles of Still’s Stade de Reims tactics and attempt to implement them in Football Manager 2023. FORMATION Like a lot of teams, Stade de Reims use a 4-2-3-1 formation. What sets it apart, though, isn’t exotic positions or complex player instructions, but instead a sound tactical structure and a squad of players who clearly buy into what William Still is trying to achieve. Let’s take a look at how the system works both in and out of possession. IN POSSESSION Normally, smaller-budget teams are quite conservative when it comes to attacking the opposition. Be careful to not commit too many players forward to avoid being caught out of position and punished on the counterattacks. That’s not the case though with Stade de Reims under Will Still. Refreshingly, each touch seems to be positive, with the intent of causing problems for the opposition. When in the final third the system, which is quite rigid defensively, springs into life and becomes more fluid, with lots of player movement. The defensive midfielders hold position, rarely entering the box, whilst the central attacking midfielder becomes a second striker, aggressively attacking the area. On the flanks, the fullbacks push up to stretch the opposition's defence and they regularly interchange positions with the wide attacking midfielders. The space created by the width leaves underlapping opportunities in the space between the opposition fullbacks and central defenders. One of the main improvements Stade de Reims have seen since Still took over is the number of shots taken from inside the penalty area. They aren’t just shooting on sight though. With the opportunity to make the extra pass being taken regularly, the xG per shot has also seen an increase. Build up When the ball is with the goalkeeper, Stade de Reims tend to line up in more of a 4-1-2-3 formation. This is achieved by one of the defensive midfielders pushing higher up, whilst the wide attacking midfielders push up high, in line with the striker. If facing heavy press, this gives good numbers upfield to win the first or second ball, should the goalkeeper or a central defender choose to bypass the pressure with a long ball. On the other hand, if they choose to try to play through the press, smart movement by the central midfielders pulls the opposition out of position, creating room for the wide attacking players to move into and receive the ball. If not being pressed, Stade de Reims are happy to play out of defence, through the central defenders. They’re neither a short-passing team nor are they a long-ball side. Each pass is focused on getting the ball forward and they take whichever option presents itself for the good of the team. One player who stands out for me is the right Attacking Midfielder, Junya Ito. The Japanese international is a constant threat and his position is forever changing. One minute he’s hugging the touchline like a traditional winger, the next he’s central and bursting ahead of the striker like an attacking inside forward or shadow striker. Recreating his impact is something I’ll look to achieve. OUT OF POSSESSION My favourite thing about this Stade de Reims team is the way they play when out of possession. Upon losing possession, Stade de Reims forward players aggressively counter-press. This counter-pressing has three purposes: 1 - to win the ball back in a dangerous position 2 - force a long pass which can be intercepted 3 - to slow down the opponent's attack, allowing the defensive players to get into position. If this counter-press isn’t successful, and in general out of possession play, the 4-2-3-1 transforms into a compact 4-4-2. By using the striker and central attacking midfielder to cut off passing lanes into midfield, the opposition is forced to move the ball wide. Once there, the 4-4-2 makes the flanks difficult to progress down and Stade de Reims can look to win back the ball. The mid-block the team falls into means there’s little space between the lines for the opposition to play and find time on the ball. Two defensive midfielders doggedly protect the defence, whilst hard-working wide Attacking Midfielders drop deep to form a bank of four. The counter-press isn’t the only area they’re aggressive in. They’re certainly not shy about getting stuck in, with the team ranking 1st for the combined number of tackles and interceptions in Ligue 1. Their commitment to winning the ball back is further evidenced by having the 3rd most yellow cards and 2nd most red cards. Note - Still’s determination to cut off passes into the centre of the park can possibly be seen by him using a natural defensive midfielder, Munetsi, in the AMC role. The defensive awareness, positioning and ball-winning abilities also help with the counter-press. TRANSFERRING INTO FOOTBALL MANAGER So now we know how Still’s 4-2-3-1 works in and out of possession, how do we recreate this in FM23? Here are the four elements I’m aiming to recreate: 1- Attack in a 4-2-3-1 with an aggressive central Attacking Midfielder pushing up alongside the striker. Generating a high number of high-quality shots. 2 - Recreate the influence of Ito in the attacking play. 3 - A disciplined, compact 4-4-2 in defence, forcing opponents out wide. 4 - An aggressive counter-press upon loss of possession. THE SEASON Now we know the style Stade de Reims plays under Still, as well as the main elements I aim to recreate, it’s time to head into the season. Ligue 1 in France is my favourite league to manage in so I’m excited about the challenge ahead. At the beginning of the season, we’re predicted to finish 13th. To ensure fairness I won’t sign any new players and the first transfer window will be disabled. The Formation: To begin with, I entered pre-season in a standard 4-2-3-1 with the Attacking Width set to Wide to encourage the ball to be played out to the flanks. However, this failed in two aspects: Recreating the 4-4-2 out of possession - despite the wide attacking midfielders being asked to mark the opposition full-backs, they still remained high up the pitch and didn’t fulfil their defensive duties. Not getting Ito involved enough. Whilst he was getting the ball, it was all out wide and not like he plays in Still’s system in real life. To counteract these issues I swapped the Attacking Width to Fairly Narrow and aimed to generate the natural width by asking the fullbacks to stay wide in their player instructions. I then knocked the wide players down into the midfield strata. This not only solved the above issues but also made us much more compact centrally. Here’s the formation I went into the season with: To get the forward-thinking play I’ve chosen a Positive mentality and selected Pass into Space which should create forward momentum. I’ve chosen Slightly Shorter passing directness which gives players the permission to pass in behind the opposition defence, when appropriate, where the pace of the Balogun and the Attacking Midfielders can cause problems. Moving into the final third, I’ve selected Work Ball into Box to make sure the players forge high-quality chances. Coupled with the Be More Expressive instruction we should see good movement and positional changes, with players looking for pockets of space to exploit. Out of possession we counter-press much more often and sit in our mid-block with the instruction to get stuck in. Sticking with the aggressive theme, the defence is asked to step up to challenge the ball as this should help to squeeze the space in between the lines. With the formation and tactics set it’s time to head into the Ligue 1 season… The Results: Well, we defied all pre-season expectations and managed to secure European football by finishing 4th. In doing so we scored 70 goals and conceded only 34 which both ranked 2nd behind PSG. Speaking of PSG, they won Ligue1 at a canter, but how did they do against Stade de Reims? With Will Still hitting the headlines for securing two draws against Christophe Galtier’s squad of superstars, I saw this as a yard-stick to measure my version of his system against. Note - I didn’t change the tactics or team instructions versus PSG. I played them exactly the same as all the other teams. In the first meeting of the two sides, we were very unlucky. I thought we’d rescued a draw when Balogun scored in the 89th minute, however, we fell to a very late defeat after Sarabia netted in the 95th minute. As you can see from the stats, we won the xG battle and deserved at least a draw in what was a fun, open game. The second game saw a much stronger PSG performance, in which most of our chances were created off turnovers forced by our tenacious defence. Thankfully, we had a very in-form Balogun who netted a hat trick to give us a well-fought point. Although we lost one game I still feel I passed the test. Will Still probably disagree. THE PRINCIPLES IN PLAY So, we know the tactic worked extremely well, as evidenced by our 4th placed finish, but did I succeed in meeting the four elements of play outlined earlier in this article? 1 - Attack in a 4-2-3-1 with an aggressive central Attacking Midfielder pushing up alongside the striker. Generating a high number of high-quality shots. Despite the wide Attacking Midfielders starting deeper, we still attacked in a 4-2-3-1 (and occasionally a 4-2-2-2) thanks to the Positive team instruction. This can be seen from the average positions when in possession, taken from the first game against PSG. It’s a clear 4-2-3-1 even in a game where we were pinned back for large spells. Average positions with the ball, versus PSG The aggression of the Shadow Striker role, used in the central Attacking Midfielder position was vital to our success: The image below shows Ito on the right flank, battling for the ball with two PSG defenders. Even though possession hasn’t yet been won you can see the Shadow Striker in this game, Munetsi (circled in blue), is already bursting towards the penalty area. Having this positive intent also helped when it came to counter-pressing when we lost possession high up the pitch. The advanced position of the Shadow Striker meant he was always around to either challenge the ball carrier or help Balogun cut off passing lanes. The player who started the most games as the Shadow Striker was Nathanael Mbuku. In 30 games he scored 9 goals with 6 assists and managed 0.78 shots on target per 90 minutes. Showing his commitment to his defensive role, he also won back possession 7.88 times per game. Attacking performance of the Shadow Striker, Mbuku Did we manage to create a lot of high-quality shooting opportunities? Yes, we did. The image below from the data hub shows we ranked 4th for shots on target per game and 2nd in expected goals-to-shot ratio. For a team ranked 10th for average possession (51%) that’s very impressive. 2 - Recreate the influence of Ito in the attacking play. After tinkering with the role of Ito throughout pre-season and the first couple of months of the season, I settled on an attacking Inverted Winger. This, along with an Underlap Right instruction, created some nice interplay with Ito and the right Full Back. He ended the season with 12 assists (tied 3rd with Neymar, behind Messi and Payet) and 4 goals with an overall average rating of 7.09. His performances really kicked on when I added the Roam from Position instruction, as it allowed him more licence to find pockets of space to exploit. He seemed to get on the ball more and boosted his influence on games. 3 - A disciplined 4-4-2 in defence, forcing opponents out wide. To achieve these two elements I had to use the following instructions: Ask the wide Attacking Midfielders to mark the opposition Full Back. Ask the central attacking midfielder to mark the opposition defensive midfielder. Use the defensive line to Step Up More to compact the space in between the lines. Tell the team to Trap Wide, which forces the opposition to the flanks. In the below image, you can see our plan working to perfection. Prior to this screenshot, Balogun and Munetsi had blocked off the centre of the park and forced the ball wide to Hakimi. Our left winger, Zeneli, was able to apply pressure whilst cutting off the short pass to Messi. Meanwhile, Munetsi was carrying out his role of marking Marquinhos (blue rectangle). The only options for Hakimi were to play back to the Central Defender or play a long ball forward. He picked the latter and it was easily cut out by our Central Defenders. Finishing the season with the second-best defensive record shows how difficult this system made it for opponents. The middle was cut off, and upon being forced to the flanks it was equally as difficult to make progress thanks to us having a wide Attacking Midfielder and a Full Back positioned there. The passing map for PSG from this game shows they were unable to make much progress centrally, with our defensive midfield duo doing a great job. 4 - An aggressive counter-press upon loss of possession. Our pressing stats and the energy from the players were impressive all season. In the image below you can see that as soon as the ball was played from defence into Defensive Midfielder Marquinhos he was aggressively closed down by Munetsi (blue circle) from below and Balogun from behind. Our four midfielders are circled in yellow allowing you to see how two of them also committed to the press, whilst the other two remained disciplined in their defensive duties. Here, the press was successful and after winning the ball Balogun managed to drive forward and fire a shot narrowly over the bar. Our mid-block worked very well and helped the team to be very aggressive in counter-pressing, whilst retaining enough energy to see out games. We gained 43% of possession in the middle third which shows how effective the mid-block was. Our commitment to being aggressive in defence meant we committed the most fouls in Ligue 1 and received the most yellow cards. We also ranked 3rd for tackles won. We allowed 4.85 passes per defensive action which seems quite low, however, you have to remember we used a mid-block. Therefore we didn’t press as high as other teams, preferring the compact system instead. CONCLUSION I have to admit that this Stade de Reims team is a joy to manage. Whilst not the most talented or deep squad, the players are full of fight and determination. Will Still has clearly created a tactical system and philosophy to get the best out of this squad and it works. Not only in real life, but also in Football Manager. Balogun was brilliant all season long, scoring a massive 34 goals in 35 Ligue 1 game. The tactic plays perfectly to his strengths, with our positive play always looking to get him in behind the opposition defence and his teammates always looking to get him the ball in dangerous areas in and around the penalty area. Whilst I wasn’t able to put together a long unbeaten run like Will Still, I’ve shown his system is extremely effective and it’s made me fall in love with the 4-2-3-1 once again. Some of the football we played was tremendous and we had some excellent games against the likes of Rennes, Marseilles and OGC Nice. I was reminded why I love Ligue 1 so much. One minute I was comfortably beating Lyon, the next I was losing to Ajaccio and Brest. If you haven’t tried Ligue 1 before, do it! Now if you would like to try this tactic yourself in FM23 I've attached a download link for you - Tactic

This post has been written by @CarrileroFM where he shares with us a non-league team tactical recreation and has provided the tactic for download so you can use it in your save New Milton Town sits within the tenth tier of the English football pyramid in the Wessex League Division One. Currently, they occupy second place in the league with four games remaining and despite many teams having games in hand a playoff place is practically confirmed although there is a slight chance of going up as champions if Andover New Street slip up. They are the league’s top scorers with 106 goals having broken the 100-goal barrier on the 11th of March with a 5–0 win over Folland Sports and are at the time of writing on a 6-match winning streak. Manager Paul Turner has earned many plaudits over the past two seasons in the local press for his alternative style in non-league football. When someone says ‘non-league’ the instant thought seems to be that the ball is up in the air more often than not and tackles are flying in left, right and centre. This is not the case at New Milton Town Football Club. Turner likes his team to keep the ball on the deck where possible and encourages his players to express themselves on the pitch. It is no coincidence that four of their regular attackers in Luke Stone, Ben Cooper, George Deem and Tyrrell Sampson all have 20+ league goals each this season. The clinical finishing, flair off the wings and tireless running from their central midfielders make for very strong performances going forward. The tactical setup below is a good representation of how they’re set up. Turner uses a 4–3–3 system with three central midfielders all equipped with a different role. In possession, they get their heads up and look for the short pass with the aim of moving the ball up the field quickly to the wingers, more often than not they will attack mostly down the left-hand side of the field. Out of possession they quickly get back into their shape and attempt to force the opposition out wide. Goalkeeper | The goalkeeper’s job in this team is to get the ball to the wing-backs who then begin moving the ball up the field. Central Defenders | Here we have a ball-playing defender who will look to carry the ball forward whilst the ‘stopper’ will do everything to stop the opposition from getting through. It’s pretty much a beauty and the beast combination here. Wing Backs | The wing-backs job are simple. Show attackers outside and stop crosses whilst in transition moving the ball forward and getting up the pitch themselves to help with attacks. Central Midfielders | The roaming playmaker has the freedom to move around and find the key passes, dropping into the empty spaces. The other two midfielders are more defensively minded. The ball-winning midfielder is the one who will be getting stuck in, assisted by the box-to-box midfielder who will also make late runs into the box. Wingers | The left-sided winger operates as an inside forward, cutting in and driving into the area. The right-sided winger does the opposite, galloping down the side of the pitch to whip crosses into the box. Forward | The lone forward takes on an advanced role, staying high up the pitch, prepared to anticipate where the ball will be coming from and make runs that create space for the inside forward on the left to run into. The roles can be changed here depending on who you have available. New Milton’s options up top consist of Luke Stone (Target Forward) and George Deem (Poacher) both of whom have different strengths. The tactic itself should be strong at all non-league levels. Whether New Milton Town does finally celebrate promotion remains to be seen but with Paul Turner’s style and values, it will only be a matter of time before the Linnets are moving up the leagues. It is a brilliantly run football club that is a pillar of the community, offering a style of football you will not see at many grounds below the football league and I hope this tactical recreation shows that. Tactic download LINK

This Leicester City FM23 Tactical recreation post has been written for us by Leicester City fan and long-time FM community contributor @lutterworthfox Steve shares with us his Leicester City FM23 tactical recreation (Download Link included) The Formation Whilst at Leicester Brendan has tried a few tactics, when Harvey Barnes was injured he switched to a 532 but this season, overall though, he has tried where possible to play a 4231, this has changed throughout the season, mainly when Maddison has either been injured or had to fill in at Right Wing, at this point he has switched a more defensive 433. For this post, I am going to expect Maddison to be fit so we will be going with a 4231. This will be a flat-back four, two midfielders, one holding and one more attacking, two wide men, Maddison in the hole and a single striker. The Goalkeeper As mentioned previously Leicester lost their talisman Kasper Schmeichel in the Summer. Although his distribution was sometimes lacking he believed, alongside Brendan, in playing out from the back. Since Kasper has gone that element of Leicester’s style has stayed even if the options we have in goal aren’t great. For me, even with Kasper leaving, Brendan wants a Sweeper Keeper in goal, someone who is quick off his line and good with his feet. He doesn’t want his keeper to hit it long but, when the time is right, he likes his GK to play the ball out to the flanks, usually a dinked pass to the fullback. So for me, a Sweeper Keeper on Defend is perfect. The Back Four As you see with the above we are going with a flat back four. On the right-hand side, Leicester have usually played Timothy Castagne this season, is he the first choice? Probably not, both Ricardo and James Justin can play there and have both been injured. This side is the more attacking side, Castagne likes to get forward and link up with the man on the right wing, this has been even more prominent when Maddison has played out on the right and he tends to drift inside creating more space for the RB to get forward. At Left Back Leicester have Luke Thomas and Victor Kristiansen, this side is the more defensive side therefore a full back on support is perfect. They do like to get forward but are a lot more disciplined as Harvey Barnes usually plays LW as he doesn’t like to track back as much. In central defence, as I said previously, they do like to play out with the ball. This season Wout Faes has played on the left with Amartey and now Souttar on the right. Faes is a ball carrier, he loves to get forward and play out, and he is good with his feet even if he is a bit erratic! Amartey and Souttar are both just as good on the ball but, especially in Amartey’s case, are prone to errors. Therefore a more conventional central defender role is better. There are no frills, get the ball and pass it to someone better! The Midfield Two This was a hard choice, Leicester tends to play with two sitting midfielders but one of them does like to push forward at times. Therefore I decided to have one Defensive Midfielder and one Central Midfielder In the Defensive Midfield slot, we have a Ball Winning Midfielder, first, it was Kane, then Ndidi and for parts of this season we’ve also had Mendy, all three do a similar job, drop deep to collect the ball and attempt to play it forward but be that player who closes down the opposition when they are attacking to get the ball back. In Central Midfield we have a Box to Box Midfielder, Keirnan Dewsbury-Hall has lately taken the mantle off of Tielemens and with the latter likely to leave in the Summer Kiernan will likely continue in this role. He is a work-horse, he gets around, closing the playdown and winning the ball back but also likes to get forward and join the attacks. He also likes to link up with the play on the left-hand side, providing a three-pronged left-side attack with Barnes and the Left Back. The Attacking Midfield Three This is where the creativity begins but also Leicester’s biggest problem area this season. They spent nearly the whole first half of the season without a proper Right Winger, relying on Maddison to spend a lot of time out there or looking at the likes of Ayoze Perez to fill the void, it has been a problem area Brendan Rodgers knew about but due to lack of money, couldn’t fill the void….until the Winter! Where he eventually got someone in and that lad Tete, a tricky Winger who likes to run at defenders and cause problems. He also likes to cut inside meaning I have decided, on FM, to put the RW role as an Inverted Winger on Attack. Tete is a skilful player, he likes to run with the ball but also likes to join the attacks. With the Right Back also quite attacking it makes sense to have the RW play a bit more narrow, creating the overlap and overload down the right. On the left, we have Harvey Barnes, one of Leicester’s prime creators and a key man on the side. Barnes’ big issue is he only really likes to do one thing and that’s cut back with the ball. As a right-footer on the left-hand side, he wants to cut in on his decent foot and usually get a shot away. Therefore an Inside Forward is the role for him. Now we come to the main man, the “James Maddison” role”! That’s if he stays fit, he has been out numerous times this season, and when he does Leicester tend to play a bit more conservatively, relying on Dewsbury-Hall to fill this role. When Maddison plays though he is the man, players will look for him to get the ball to, he is the creator in chief. I would have loved to have made him a Roaming Playmaker but unfortunately on FM this cannot be done in the AM strata. Therefore an Advanced Playmaker on attack is the way to go The Striker Brendan Rodgers wants his Striker to not only be the goal-scorer but also to cause trouble for the defenders by closing them down. Think Vardy is in his prime but a player who wants to get involved more. When Vardy was at his best he would play on the shoulder of the central defenders, he wouldn’t get too involved in the play but was there to pounce, either on a mistake or a through ball. With Rodgers in charge, this has kind of gone, Leicester plays a lot slower and shorter and therefore the Striker needs to drop in a bit more and connect play. He also needs to close down that defensive line and harry the opposition. A Pressing Forward is the right role, it could’ve been either a support or attack duty but I decided to go with an attack duty as I still expect the lone striker to lead the line. Team Instructions - In Possession This was quite an easy one. I’ve mentioned before that Rodgers style is to play out of defence but looks to do it methodically, so a slower tempo and shorter passing is the right way to go about it. He also wants his creative players to get involved and express themselves more and he wants those attacking players to take care of the ball, rarely do we get too many crosses into the box so asking players to work the ball into the box seems the sensible route. Team Instructions - In Transition Leicester’s style revolves around keeping the ball but, as I’ve seen many times this season, they tend to lose it cheaply, when they do though they immediately want to try and get it back, therefore we have counter-press ticked. I toyed with adding “counter” when we win the ball back but for me that seems to go away from the fact that Brendan wants his players to take care with the ball, adding counter would mean getting it forward too quickly. I’ve also added a couple of goalkeeper instructions. The GK is asked to play it short, not to hoof it, he does tend to play it out wide but only when the option to a central defender isn’t there. Team Instructions - Out of Possession I haven’t added or changed too much here. I’ve left the defensive line as Standard but I have asked the Defensive Line to Step Up More. The reason for this is the defenders do like to try and push up when they don’t have the ball to stop gaps forming between them and midfield. I’ve also added Trap Outside, Leicester seems happy to let players get the ball wide and then attempt to either block the cross and rely on the central defenders to win the ball from a cross. Finally, Leicester does tend to like their forwards to press the opposition's back-line, so I’ve increased the line of engagement by a notch. All in all, Leicester have massively underachieved this season. They have suffered from injuries but overall they just haven’t turned up in games they should be winning. Their slow style of play has frustrated the fans at times and the lack of urgency to score has been annoying at best! Throughout this, though Brendan has stuck to his beliefs in the way he wants to play, he trusts the players to stick to how he wants to play even if at times he knows the players aren’t good enough to play that way. Now numerous players are coming back from injury, some key to this style, Leicester can turn around their poor form and do enough to claw themselves away from the drop zone. Brendan does need to change the way he plays sometimes though, fans want exciting, attacking football, and play without fear, unfortunately, he seems unable to change! Tactic file download LINK

For the Brighton one, we wrote the article for the official FM website, so can't copy it here. Instead we'll provide the link so you can read it there; https://www.footballmanager.com/the-byline/recreating-brighton-hove-albions-tactical-style-fm23 But it didn't have a download link so that can be found here; Download link - Tactic

This AFC Bournemouth tactical recreation has been written by @Etothe2power and he has included the tactics to be downloaded' Introduction 1-0-3. Two goals for, 16 goals against. Minus-14 goal difference. Three games without scoring a goal. Oh, and a 9-0 loss. It’s better if we just forget Scott Parker’s time in charge as a Premier League manager for the club (Aside: Parker has since been hired and fired at Club Brugge, which included a run of two wins in 12 in the league). But this is not a post about Scott Parker and his relative qualities as a football manager, it’s a post about AFC Bournemouth in the game Football Manager 2023. Utilizing data and statistics compiled by various outlets (Football Reference, Opta, and whoscored), this post will examine and attempt to replicate Gary O’Neil’s tactics and playing style in FM23. AFC Bournemouth Under Gary O’Neil “I don’t see us just going into every game and being the same” – Gary O’Neil, to Jack Tanner of the Daily Echo https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/sport/23048103.afc-bournemouths-gary-oneil-details-flexible-approach-games/ Well, thanks for making my job in this post easier Gary! Under O’Neil’s leadership, Bournemouth has indeed run out of various formations throughout his tenure. They opened with a 4-4-2 in his first game in charge against Wolves and, since then, have also gone with a 4-2-3-1, 4-4-1-1, and 5-4-1 at different points. Despite the formational variations, let’s look at what the statistics can tell us about how, regardless of formation, the Cherries have played under O’Neil. AFC Bournemouth’s Tactical Style in FM23 The Cherries are among the most direct teams in the league and are fast and direct with their attacks, with the most prominent, exceptional even by their standards, example of their directness occurred recently as they opened the scoring from kick-off against Arsenal. On average, Bournemouth has the fewest number of passes per sequence at 2.70 and is behind only Leeds United in terms of how quickly they move the ball upfield (meters/second) at 1.57. Unsurprisingly, with just 38.2% possession (calculated by fbref as the percentage of passes attempted), Bournemouth is rock bottom in the league, a fair bit behind second-bottom Nottingham Forest (40.8%) and miles behind leaders Manchester City (64.2%). Measured by the number of 10+ pass sequences in open play (courtesy of Opta), Bournemouth again rank dead last with 114 such sequences (Brentford are second bottom with 138 and Man City are runaway leaders with 584). Based on the above, the Direct Counter-Attack style fits what has happened on the field in real life for Bournemouth this season under manager O’Neil. I will make some alterations to the preset tactic in my attempt to replicate this season’s Bournemouth side. Defence and Defensive Actions AFC Bournemouth - Team Defense and Defensive Actions Tactically, O’Neil began his tenure by ditching the back three and implementing a 4-4-2 at home against Wolves. Since then, he has primarily utilized a back four, although he has occasionally gone to a back five (in a 5-4-1) from the start or, especially earlier in his tenure, to try and close out games. The switch to an ever so slightly more proactive four-at-the-back system paid immediate dividends, as Bournemouth held a clean sheet against Wolves in his first game in charge (a nil-nil draw) and as they went unbeaten in the first six games of his tenure (2 wins and 4 draws) allowing six goals during this span. Adding to the impact of this change, only two of those six goals during this run of games were scored from open play. O’Neil abandoned his predecessor’s 5-3-2 low block that invited pressure and has opted for a somewhat more proactive defensive approach, although the club does not press often nor create many turnovers outside their defensive third, ranking last in opposition passes per defensive action and forcing turnovers outside their defensive third. ] Bournemouth is not, on a per-game basis, a particularly aggressive team, as they rank 12th in tackles per game (16.2), 11th in attempted tackles per game, 15th in fouls per game (10), and 17th in interceptions per game (8.7). Across these defensive categories, the Cherries are, more or less, league average. As a collective unit, Bournemouth players have collected 45 yellow cards, which ranks 13th in the league, while also being one of eight teams with no red cards in the league. Additionally, according to fbref, throughout the entire 2022-23 Premier League season, Bournemouth have also completed the fewest tackles in the attacking third (40), placed 9th in tackles in the middle of the pitch (165) and 12th in tackles in the defensive third (217). Again, looking at these team statistics, Bournemouth is, excepting tackles in the attacking third, league average. AFC Bournemouth - Individual Defense and Defensive Actions Having looked at a selection of team statistics, let’s examine how individuals have performed to help inform our decisions replicating Bournemouth’s 2022-23 tactics in Football Manager. Left-back. At LB, Jordan Zemura has gotten the lion’s share of the minutes this season, with Lloyd Kelly also seeing time at the position. Occasionally, especially when Kelly (I happen to notice this more when Kelly starts, but don’t have evidence to back this up) starts on the left, that typically indicates Bournemouth will look to use three at the back when in possession, leaving Jaidon Anthony ahead of him additional defensive responsibilities as Kelly slides into the back three. Central defenders. The most common CB pairing in O’Neil’s tenure has been Welsh international Chris Mepham and Argentine Marcos Sensi, with loanee Jack Stephens providing cover for both. When O’Neil has his Bournemouth side lineup in a back three or five, these three form the central defensive trio. AFC Bournemouth’s Defensive Play in FM23 Based on these selected defensive action statistics, at both the team and individual levels, we can consider how to transfer Bournemouth’s defensive style of play into Football Manager 23. As a generality, Bournemouth is not an overly aggressive team according to various defensive metrics. Across the backline, a majority of defensive actions occur in their own defensive third. The central defenders complete most of their defensive actions in their own defensive third of the pitch, with Marcos Sensi being the notable exception, as he has completed 37.8% of his tackles in the middle third of the pitch, making him the most likely of the central defenders to try and win the ball higher up the field. The fullbacks, especially RB Adam Smith, have ventured further upfield to engage their opponents, although as a collective group, they do the bulk of their work in their own half of the field. Team Instructions: Out of Possession In FM terms, these statistics suggest the following Out of Possession settings are appropriate for Bournemouth’s defensive style of play. The Out of Possession team instructions are minimal, with the team set in a mid-block, as a vast majority of the action takes place in their own defensive and middle thirds of the pitch (76%). With most action in these areas, and to replicate that Bournemouth defenders largely engage the opposition in their own half, a mid-block is the most appropriate FM setting. The defenders are instructed to play in a standard defensive line and told to drop off more. The collective aggressiveness in the tackle, again near league average, means we can leave both Stay On Feet and Get Stuck In team instructions unticked. These team instructions will be reinforced with individual player roles and duties, discussed later. Team Instructions: In Transition Given the collective defensive action statistics, our Out Of Possession team instructions, and the (relative) defensive stability shown under Gary O’Neil, many of our In Transition team instructions are straightforward and, as with our Out of Possession instructions, fairly minimal. Bournemouth is not a counter-pressing side, partially indicated by the areas in which the Cherries engage the opposition. For this reason, Counter-Press remains unticked. I’ve chosen to tick the Regroup option, which instructs the players to quickly return to their defensive shape after losing possession. I’ve also ticked the Counter option, as Bournemouth have created the bulk of their chances via that method throughout the season. I have instructed Neto, who signed on a free from FC Barcelona in the summer, and who O’Neil installed as the starter, replacing Mark Travers, to distribute to the full-backs. The reason for this decision stems from the fantastic interplay down the left between regular LB Zemura and midfielder Jaidon Anthony (more on this in the next section). Team Instructions: In Possession Both Anthony and Zemura are graduates of the Cherries’ academy and made their first team debuts in 2020. As such, despite their youthful exuberance (both are 23 years old), the two have a lengthy history of playing together and their games are very complementary. A right-footed player who operates on the left wing, Anthony frequently cuts inside onto his stronger foot, leaving space for Zemura on the overlap to cause havoc or, at the very least, force the opposing defender into making a decision. The prevalence of the Anthony-Zemura partnership is manifested in the fact that more of Bournemouth’s attacks have come down the left (41%) than the centre (23%) or right (36%) of the pitch (whoscored). The left-side partnership of Zemura and Anthony is not the only outstanding feature of Bournemouth’s play while on the ball. With six league goals, Philip Billing leads the team in scoring. A capable and reliable option up the middle as a defensive, central, or attacking midfielder, Billing has operated in the latter role until the arrival of loanee Hamed Traorè on the last day of the Winter transfer window. Traorè’s arrival, in his short time with the club, has provided a much-needed creative boost, as the Cherries have scored just 25 goals in their 26 league matches to date, which actually represents a slight overperformance, as their non-penalty expected goals (npxG) stands at just 22.1. Since arriving, Traorè has started in an advanced midfield role, which has pushed Billing back into a more familiar central midfield role. Operating as an attacking midfielder, Traorè is a more attack-minded player who looks to drive forward and combine with Solanke, while also relying on the runs of wingers Anthony and Dango Ouattara, another Winter transfer window addition (signed for £20M from French side FC Lorient). Up front, O’Neil has relied on Dominic Solanke to either lead the line on his own in a 4-4-1-1 or as a partner in a 4-4-2, in which case Kieffer Moore utilizes his 6’5” frame as a target forward. Translating the above into Football Manager terms, the In Possession team instructions to replicate Gary O’Neil’s Bournemouth squad are as follows: Given the aforementioned partnership between Jordan Zemura and Jaidon Anthony on the left, I’ve instructed the team to focus play down that side, while also selecting the overlap on that side of the pitch. To replicate Bournemouth’s style of play, we need to set the passing directness to, at least, more often, and could even tick that option to the maximum. The side do not cross particularly often on a per-game basis (averaging 13 per game), nor do they, collectively, look to dribble past their opponent. For those who do, we can add individual player instructions. Without a set piece expert, there is no need to tick the Play for Set Piece option that comes standard with the Direct Counter-Attack style. Bringing it All Together in FM To summarize, Bournemouth is a counter-attacking team who sits in a mid-block and who look to utilize the left side of the pitch in their attacking moves. Here is what that looks like in FM23: The Formations Although Bournemouth, under O’Neil, has lined up in a 5-4-1 on occasion, I’ve created two of the most common formational options: a 4-4-1-1 and a 4-4-2. 4-4-1-1 Across the backline, Zemura on a FB(a) role will allow him to surge upfield and overlap Anthony, who will cut in onto his stronger right foot as an IW(s). As Marcos Sensi tends to perform his defensive actions slightly higher up the pitch, I have him playing as a CD with the stopper duty to push ahead of the defensive line to close down opposition players earlier. Chris Mepham, his central defensive partner, is a CD with the cover duty to sweep up behind the defensive line. I like the stopper-cover combination in front of Neto, who is a simple GK on defend. Adam Smith, on the right, is on a FB(s) duty to prioritize the defensive aspects of the role but also provide support to the midfield. Moving up the pitch to the midfield, I have already explained Anthony’s IW(s) role. Since moving back into the midfield, Billing can supplement and provide an attacking option as a late runner arriving inside the box for Traorè in the more advanced midfielder role. Billing’s midfield partner, as a BBM(s), can also support the more attacking players by arriving late into the box. On the right, a W(a) will remain wide, but get forward as an option for Traorè – significant because of the need to have a variety of runners and attacking options – and his midfield companions. Up front, Dominic Solanke will look to lead the line as an AF(a). 4-4-2 In the 4-4-2, the introduction of Kieffer Moore as a TF(s) to partner Solanke up front provides an alternative option to use his physical presence to hold up the ball and play simple passes to Solanke and the midfielders providing various runs behind the front two, in addition to playing in his attacking partner. AFC Bournemouth Results To get at least a sense of how this system plays in Football Manager, I simulated the 2022-23 Premier League season using the 4-4-1-1 tactic. What a final day of the season! Bournemouth entered the final match week 18th in the table on 38 points with a home fixture against 4th place Manchester United. We came from a goal down on two different occasions and scored twice in the final four minutes to level and win! The victory took us to a final position of 16th, meaning we avoided relegation and finished ahead of rivals Southampton. Final day fireworks aside, let’s examine some team and individual statistics to see if, and how well, we replicated Gary O’Neil’s system in FM23. Defensive Actions As expected, we completed an overwhelming majority of our defensive actions within our own half of the pitch. At 42%, perhaps the percentage of defensive actions within and around our penalty area is a bit higher than in real life, in general, our in-game defensive actions occurred largely in areas that align with how Bournemouth have played this season. Our less aggressive defensive approach also largely mirrored Gary O’Neil’s men, as during the simulated season Bournemouth allowed the most opposition passes per defensive action (5.26). We were near the bottom in yellow card accumulation, collecting just 42 in our 38 league matches. Similar to real life, Bournemouth players ranked in the bottom third in fouls per game, at 16th with 11.29 per game in-game, compared with 10 so far during the 2022-23 league season, which currently places the Cherries in 15th position. Unlike the real-life Cherries, Bournemouth leads the league in interceptions (1,018) and interceptions per game (26.7). As SI and the sources consulted to compile the in real-life statistics differ in their calculations, this difference can account, at least in part, for the inconsistency between in-game and real-life results. In fact, Bournemouth lead the league in many defensive statistics (blocks: 347, possession won: 4,972; clearances: 819; and interceptions (1,018), which makes sense, given we had so little of the ball during the simulated season. Looking at individual defensive performances indicates our in-game tactical style largely mirrors that of O’Neil’s style. For example, Left Back Jordan Zemura covered a lot of distance and completed a high number of sprints per 90, indicating his overlapping runs down the left as he combined with Jaidon Anthony in the midfield and also contributed to attacking moves. Possession, Passing, and Movement In terms of in-game possession, we propped up the average possession table with just 35%. We also completed the fewest number of passes during the simulated season. Both of these statistics mirror what Bournemouth have done through the first 26 games of their season. As the Cherries rely heavily on counterattacks and direct play to create chances, our team instructions got the team to play like Gary O’Neil’s team, as the data hub tells us, “our attacking movement numbers stand out as considerable outliers.” With fewer dribbles per game, the implication is that we looked to move the ball upfield with more direct passing. AFC Bournemouth Conclusion As expected, 2022-23 has not been an easy season for Bournemouth and their real-life struggles manifested in Football Manager. If the Cherries can manage to avoid relegation as they did playing according to Gary O’Neil’s tactical system in my simulation, Cherries fans will gladly take that result, please and thank you. Tactic Download links: 4411 442

This Nottingham Forest recreation is the first of our guest tactical recreations for Premier League clubs and they come with download links for the tactics. This post comes from @FMMeerCon How has Nottingham Forest lined up this season? Well... due to an incredible amount of injuries throughout this season and some rocky results in the opening quarter of the season, Steve Cooper has been somewhat forced into playing a different system than he has previously been using with forest. Over the course of the past half season, we have been transformed from a team playing a 5212 to combinations of 433/4312. Here is how (on average) we see our team line-up over the course of our maiden premier league season since the 98/99 season. The current “adapted” system So I’ve mentioned injuries already and that in my opinion is one of the biggest contributing factors as to why we now play a “433”, but my take on the current formation (from the screenshot above) is that we don’t have a set player in the left wing position as we do with Johnson on the right and even then, his position can fluctuate a little. Let’s break the tactic down, shall we? In Possession - We’re a team which focuses a lot of play down the wings while being pretty counter-attacking this season, hence the reasoning for my choices in this section. In Transition - there is some tendency to try and play out of the back from goal kicks which meant I added distribute to CB’s, I went for Regroup after losing the ball as we tend to have numbers back however, we do tend to do SOME pressing, mainly from the front and once a certain point is crossed, we stand off and and try to keep our positions. Out of Possession - Continuing on from the pressing in the transition, I opted for a mid-block but this can vary. Likewise the pressing is more often as opposed to much more often. I’d say we tend to have a medium to high defensive line, which will drop when needed and finally, we are quite a physical team, hence the instruction to get stuck in. GK - Pretty standard here, just a basic GK (D) with no special instructions. PI’s - None Fullbacks - There is clearly a difference in the types of players Aurier and Lodi are as well as the players ahead of them. Lodi tends to have a lot of responsibility on the left side and is often seen bombing up and down the pitch regularly, whereas Aurier has Johnson playing his side and sometimes overlaps but he never seems to be as high as Lodi, showing he is a little more defensive than the left back. PI’s - LB (Cross More Often, Dribble More, Stay wider) / RB (Cross More Often) CB’s - This is a big change to SC’s usual system of having 2 CB’s instead of 3, again, this is down to players not being good enough and injuries to the better defenders, such as Niakhaté, Boly and Mckenna. Nevertheless, they tend to do a relatively simple job of defending and being the outlet for a pass if needed and can be comfortable playing out of the back. Worrall tends to play quite wide when we have possession, something he could be instructed to do or also some tendencies from the old 5212 system he was used to last season and at the beginning of this season. PI’s - Take fewer risks (Right CB, Stay wider) DM - I do think Freuler fluctuates between DM and CM, depending on the situation, but he pretty much does the same job regardless and for FM ease, I have put him as a HB as it allows him to have the ball and lets him fulfil his defensive responsibilities he has for our side. You could argue he can play as a carrilero on occasion but ultimately, he seems a more defensive player for us this season and is very comfortable with the ball and offers outlets. PI’s - None CM’s - Here there is one constant, Ryan Yates, When he plays (which is most of the time unless injured like recently) he is a box-to-box midfielder, always sure to have a shot or two and always back to defend, he’s a physical player. Next to him, seems to be a Ball Winning Midfielder or an all-rounder, perhaps a standard CM, in this rendition, I’ve opted for a BWM, due to Mangala and Kouyaté featuring a lot this season. PI’s - BBM (take fewer risks, cross less often, dribble less, get further forward and tackle harder) BWM (Take fewer risks, cross less often, dribble less, shoot less often, hold position, stay wider) CAM - Now this is the beginning of where positions can be slightly disputed. Gibbs white tends to be a roaming player, finding the space, happy to pull back and defend, and full of energy to press. I believe often you see the front three being shown as a standard forward line in a 433, I see him frequently towards the centre, which is where I have placed him in this recreation, I’d also have been happy to put him at just left of CAM, still in the middle somewhat. PI’s - Dribble more, Roam from Position, Move into Channels RW - Brennan Johnson is a stalwart for our team and has played just about every minute. I’ve opted to have him as an inside forward from the right wing. Nobody can dispute him being on the right side as he tends to run wide on the right side more often unless he has his eye on the goal as to which he’d then be cutting inside. There is a shout for him being put as a poacher at right striker as he usually is the last man up and looks to break the defensive line to receive a Gibbs-White pass, if you did this, you could select PI’s of Stay wider, Shoot more often, but as I say, today, he is a right-winger. PI’s - Shoot More Often. ST - We tend to play with one proper striker, someone who can hold the ball up as well as win it in the air and be able to finish when in the right position. I’ve opted here for a PF, left of centre, as it represents Awoniyi the most in terms of our attack. He is often seen further wide on the left when helping the build-up, but also happy to use his pace and strength to break the defensive line. PI’s - Take fewer risks, Shoot More Often. How would Steve Cooper prefer to line up, problems aside? Judging from last season and the beginning of this season, it’d be a wise assumption that if he had the players available, he’d be looking to use his trusted 5212. I believe with everyone at his disposal, Cooper would look to line-up like the above! Lots of similarities to last year, with some tweaks. Lodi would be our Djed Spence but with Brennan on the right, I think we’d be playing a little more evenly on either side. Williams would be more suited to this system as he can bring more offensively than Aurier I’d say. Another tweak is that Garner would have been a DLP (s) for us last year, but Freuler has to be one of the better players in this squad, especially with all his experience at a very high level. I do think for the premier league, he’d be doing a similar job to what he is doing in our current setup, but still being an additional creative player and someone we’d look to get the ball to, in order for him to make something happen, or hand off to Gibbs-White, so I’d say he’d be a DLP (D). As mentioned earlier, Johnson could be argued to be a poacher, which he would be in this setup. I'd add player instructions to stay wider though, to make it more realistic to how he plays. One team instruction difference I have gone with is that we would no longer be a more direct counter-attacking team and would like to play the ball out of defence more and try to retain possession more than we do currently. It has been a tough season for Forest so far with us hoping we can maintain a finish above the drop, as well as see new tactical changes this season in comparison to the same stuff we had since Cooper took over last season. Whatever happens, come the end of the season, we’ll find out if he does revert back to his favoured 5212 once the injuries ease up! Here are the tactic download links: 433 5212 Thanks again to FMMeerCon for sharing this with us and hopefully it's the first of many.

This Fulham tactical recreation has been written by @JamesMi25181471 and he has included the tactic to be downloaded A tactical analysis of Fulham 22/23 season How have Fulham lined up this season? Well due to their lack of premier league quality squad depth Fulham have had little rotation and tactical flexibility due to the same 11 starting most games. 12 players in the squad have played over 1100 minutes with team ream starting in every premier league match this season. After being promoted from the championship Marco Silva has altered Fulham’s style of play, improving their solidity and making them a lot harder to beat whilst sticking to his tactical fundamentals. During this season Fulham have again set up in a 4231 system however in possession it can become a slightly asymmetric 433. The wide midfielders stay arrow to support Mitrovic with the wing backs bombing forward aiming to create chances for him within the penalty box where he is most lethal. This is Fulham’s most consistent starting 11 over the course of the season with Marco Silva favouring Bobby Reid on the right wing and Issa Diop at Centre-back partnering Tim Ream. A recent change to the eleven we’ve been seeing is manor Solomon starting over Willian on the left now that he’s returning from injury. He has also tried out Willian on the right hand side however he seems a lot less effective due to his trademark move of cutting in off the left hand side and going for goal. It is also a system that highly relies on the the 1v1 ability of the full backs defensively and the industriousness of the holding 2 midfielders and work rate of each individual. It also heavily relies on the set piece ability of Andreas Pereira and the aerial ability of the side which for Fulham fans is a new sight as before Marcos time at the club the only corner goal I can remember is Denis Odoi’s header against derby! It is also impossible to talk about this Fulham side without talking about their underlying numbers. Their expected goals scored for the season is 33.7 and they have scored 38 meaning an overperformance of 4.3 whilst their expected goals against is 44.9 whilst they have only conceded 37, meaning they are overperforming in defence by almost 8 goals! Once again, a strange feeling for any Fulham fan but this has to be largely accredited to Bernd Leno in goal. As a result their total goal difference is 12 above what it should be expected. How sustainable these overperformances are we will have to wait and see… The Tactic In possession Fulham vary, against weaker sides they tend to be slightly more direct and this is also apparent when playing away. They tend to have a shorter passing range and standard tempo with a lot of play being a ball played through the centre to their target forward with him laying it off and then the ball is spread out wide to the full back’s with the aim of hitting the box with a cross. In transition they do tend to play out of the defence with the keeper often going short to the centre backs. There is also an aggressive mentality off the ball, looking to win the ball back explaining why I put counter-press. This usually occurs from the front with almost a 442 formation occurring at opposition goal-kicks with Pereira pressing high up with Mitrovic onto the opposition centre-halves hence the prevent GK short distribution instruction being on all 3 tactics. Lastly out of possession Fulham played with a standard line of defence and a high line of engagement, sometimes being a standard line of engagement. Often against teams who like to play balls in behind or have fast attackers the defence will drop off more to cover for the centre-backs lack of pace, this also aided by Tim Reams incredible ability to read the game at left centre-half. Also the instruction to get stuck in is rather obvious, I mean have you ever watched Fulham play this season? If not just look at their tremendous yellow card count or watch the highlights of them at old Trafford in the FA Cup. The Tactic in Game… Bernd leno will play as a sweeper keeper on support or against higher pressing teams as a sweeper keeper on defend as he will take less risks. Right back- (FB-AT) Kenny tete will aim to play as a Full-Back on Attack, this role will look to maximise his crossing ability and 1v1 defensive attributes which this season have been impeccable, only being dribbled past twice this season. He is often bombing down the right hand side and looking to cross early. The player instruction for him is optional and it is for him to stay wider. Right Centre-Back- (CD-DE) Issa Diop is precisely the type of centre back Fulham have been missing, a big tall strong presence who reads the game well and isn’t scared of putting a foot in. however his passing ability is slightly limited even though he can carry the ball very well due to his stature. He has no player instructions. Left Centre-Back –(BPD-DE) the quote from pep Guardiola about Tim Ream is all you really need to know about him ‘if you were 10 years younger you’d be playing for me’, well no Pep he wouldn’t because 10 years ago he was playing championship football for Bolton. Honestly, I have no idea what Marco Silva has done to this man but he has turned him from water to wine. 2 years ago if you'd of told me Fulham would be 9th in the prem with Tim Ream starting every game I would’ve assumed the only plausible explanation would be that Messi came out as a die hard cottager and signed for us. This season the American has been near-perfect as the rock at the back and has really showed his leadership skills. He plays as a ball playing defender due to his technical prowess and often the ball is distributed to him from the goal kick. No player instructions are used for this role. Left Back- (WB-SU) there is a reason that Antonee Robinson was linked with a £30 million pound transfer to man city in January and that’s because he is excellent. His physical prowess, speed and ability 1v1 are very impressive although he does sure have his weaknesses and these are highlighted in football manager. His 3 key mental statistics in composure, decisions and anticipation are all sub-par for a premier league full-back and his technical too are not out of this world and fairly so. However, his energy and pace are both key to the way Fulham play. The player instructions set on him are to cross more often and optionally stay wider. Defensive Midfield- DMC/DMCL, (DM-SU) the main man himself. I’m still sat here wondering what on earth were premier league scouts doing over the summer allowing a player of his quality to join Fulham and for £18 million!! There is no shock in the rumours of him to join Liverpool for £60 million as I reckon he could play better than Fabinho in that role with a blindfold. He’s easily the best ball winner in the premier league this season. His physical prowess matched with his height make him a force to be reckon with in the middle but he's so much more than just a destroyer in there, he can switch the play and if you saw his goal against Leeds in the FA cup then you know too that he has more than a worldie in him. This guy is the key to Marco’s Team as shown by the results when he's not playing. His player instructions are to close down more often and to tackle harder and an added hold position in both tactic 2 and 3 when he's paying as the DMC. DMCR- (VOL-SU/AT) I was unsure as to whether I put Harrison reed as a box to box, or a ball winning midfielder on support or as a Segundo volante on support and that’s because honestly whatever you ask this little ginger Iniesta to do, he’ll do it. Easily one of the most underrated players in the premier league and he will run his socks off! I chose a Segundo volante as it allows him to sit deeper and cover the space left by the attacking full-back whilst also allowing him to make runs forward which we have seen in his improvement in attacking areas this season although he may be slightly technically limited. The only player instruction for him is to close down more often. Right winger- AMR- (IW-SU) now this position was a hard one for Fulham as they don’t really have a left footed right sided player this season so a winger on support or attack would make more sense but in order to facilitate the full-back overlapping the right winger has to invert. Again, Bobby-Reid probably lacks the technical ability for the prem but his work rate, off the ball movement and defensive ability make him a viable option for Marco Silva’s system in a defensive team looking to press from the front. There are no player instructions for this role but switching him to a winger on attack when trailing is advised. Also adding a player instruction of sit narrower when as a IW-SU can be helpful to create more space for the full-back. CAM- (AP-AT) Fulham’s main creator, Andreas covers almost every blade of grass in the opposition half, his defensive work rate is again a major reason why he suits this system so well, he has a tendency to drift over to the wide left hence his AMCL positioning in both tactics 2 and 3. He is Fulham’s main creator and he is a goal threat too, not to mention his set piece ability being a real reason why Fulham have scored so many goals this season. A player instruction of roam from position will work for this role, especially in tactics 2 and 3. Tactic 3 with him on support can be useful against teams who are playing a lower block with Reed as volante on attack making the surging runs and Andreas dropping in to pick up the ball. AML- (IW-AT) This role at Fulham is probably the one most up for grabs, with Willian’s experience, Solomon’s goal threat and Kebano’s trickery it’s definitely an exciting position for Fulham. All 3 of these players love to cut inside and either create chances for Mitrovic, surge into the penalty box using 1-2’s or go for goal themselves and they are all highly technical players with good acceleration and agility. This role also allows for the overlap of Robinson and creates more space for him. If noticing that he isn’t receiving the ball enough then make him a wing back on attack and this role an inverted winger on support, aiming to provide the players around him more. A player instruction of take more risks is highly suitable due to the players high flair. ST- (TF-AT) Alexander Mitrovic is Fulham’s main goal threat in every match he plays in. Marco silva has turned this man into a goalscoring machine. He broke the goalscoring record for the championship with ease and has completed halted all the critics saying he isn’t good enough for the premier league with 11 goals in 23 matches, 3 more than £75 million striker Darwin Nunez. He also more than just a goal scorer for this Fulham side though as his hold up and link up play are vital for the way they build their attacks. All you have to do is look at Mitrovic’s stats and watch 10 minutes of him to know he is a target forward. The player instruction of shoot more often is also applied. This team and system have helped Fulham easily surpass the pundits expectations of a relegation battle and have really shown the premier league why they dominated the championship last year. However, I do believe that because of Fulham’s poor squad depth and lack of flexibility that they could suffer from second season syndrome, so to help with this I’m going to briefly list a few targets and problem areas Fulham could look to delve into during the summer market. Right back cover- Kenny Tete lacks competition even with the loan signing of Cedric Soares, I think Fulham should aim to sign him on a free if possible. Another option for me which is my personal favourite is max Aarons if Norwich were not to be promoted as he would provide perfect cover and competition for Tete. A final right back who Fulham have been linked with is SC Heerenveen’s Milan van Ewijk who is a pacy attacking outlet for the Dutch side with a current average rating of 7.27 in the league. Centre back- I sadly believe Tosin is going to leave in the summer due to the lack of firs team football and also see Tim Reams current form unsustainable due to his age so centre back is a key area for Fulham. In terms of left-sided centre halves I personally would go for the Hungarian Attila Szalai of Fenerbahçe who is a tall strong and composed ball playing defender who has represented his nation 31 times. Another option is the Serbian Strahinja Pavlovic playing for RB Salzburg in the Austrian league which would fit the Serbian contingency Fulham are building with Sasa Lukic and Mitrovic. However, he is a lot younger and less experienced than the Hungarian. As for a right-footed centre back Nino from Fluminense is a player I’d like to see move to Europe, a 25-year-old leader and ball playing centre back playing for Fluminense. Left back cover- if Tierney goes to Newcastle which is looking highly likely then Matthew Targett is a player id be looking at with beady eyes, a former cottager Targett doesn’t quite have Robinsons pace but makes up for it with his technical ability and mental development. Another option I would like at is Granadas Carlos Neva, a solid player who suits the Spanish speaking contingency under this Marco Silva side. CDM cover- Andre from Fluminense, a backup to Joao Palinha is rather obviously lacking from the Fulham squad as can be highlighted in their records with and without him, the 21 year-old Brazilian has been heavily linked with a move to Fulham and Nottingham Forest and I think his well roundedness and physical ability would be a good coup for this Fulham side. Another suggestion would be 27 year-old Uruguayan destroyer Mauro Arambarri who is an astute ball winner in the middle of the park. Right wing- Liel Abada is an Israeli right winger playing for Celtic lighting up the Scottish premiership, recently in the media the Israeli head coach touted Abada to have a rise to top division football like Solomon and even suggested the potential of them at the same club. Whilst I do believe he is still a bit raw his talent is noticeable with his lightning pace and dribbling ability his potential is high. Another option would be ismaila sarr, a player who has previously worked with Marco Silva at Watford. If they were not to get promoted it would be likely that Sarr would look for a move away back to the top fight and potentially at a discounted price with only 2.5 years on his deal remaining. Tactic download LINK

Over on VIEW FROM THE TOUCHLINE We recently reached out to people in the community to collaborate with them, to recreate tactics. These are all mainly Premiership teams so far, with a few others chucked in. We've not released them all yet but as and when we do, I'll update this thread with them. They all include download links too. English Teams Fulham Post Nottingham Forest Post Bournemouth Post Brighton Post Leicester Post Manchester United Post Arsenal Post Brentford Post Aston Villa Post Everton Post Man City Post Liverpool Post Crystal Palace Post Southampton Post Tottenham Post Lower League Teams New Milton Town Post Portuguese Benfica Post Sporting Post Benfica Post Porto Post French Stade de Reims Post

Not unless they were playing out from the back and he was a creative influence.

Play out of defence forces you to pass it more often, hence why it's risky. You wait for proper openings and try moving the ball forward as a team. Hence why it can be risky against high pressing teams. None of this happened though. I took an example from the game and just highlighted what happened. I'm not really sure of the point you are attempting to make now? I wasn't creating scenarios that didn't happen, I was just reporting on what happened. Ofc, I can also show what I think a player can do in this situation too but I don't see the point? We all know what could have been done differently. So are we talking real life now rather than the game? As you mention "if you"? Same as above really. Not sure on the point you are making? It's like you are trying to explain to me what high pressing is in real life. Before I got my Uefa B license, I had to do a presentation on pressing and then get marked for it as part of the course. I was just pointing out how playing out of defence is risky against the high press and used an example from the authors game. Now we are creating fake scenarios of stuff that didn't happen and having pressing explained to me. I'm confused

Such a tease

I think that's the thing with FM. People focus on duty and see attack, rather than what the role does, where it's starting from etc. Attacking roles on defenders etc, just impacts what they do when you have the ball. When you don't have it, they're still regular defenders. But I think most see past that point. Not saying you do btw, I just mean generally