nick1408

I sign him to play as WB-At quite often. He always excels and becomes a sought after player. I'm into 2027 and while he isn't as developed as @causticgrip has him I have been quite pleased with him:

Hopefully a really easy inclusion. I'd like to see a list of the set piece takers on the applicable set piece screen. I'm not a fan of having to switch between screens to get my set piece takers list and there is a lot of vacant space on this screen. I have put it the list on the right in the example below but it could easily be put on the left or make the pitch smaller and put the whole selection screen on the left.

What really annoys me is players switching allegiances after signing them. As an example, on my current save I signed an Australian from an Australian club to my Koln side and he switched allegiances to England straight away. Before Lyndon Dykes This hasn’t happened for an Australian since the 90’s. in my opinion; switching allegiance from a lower nation to a higher ranked nation should be extremely rare while switching from a higher ranked nation to a lower ranked nation should be easier. Maybe link it to promises a bit better. If you tell a player they’ll be in the World Cup squad then aren’t they will switch.

He is inconsistent but my issues all came around with the addition of the player trait. My tactic isn't setup for strikers to receive the ball at their feet. I have a TM and an AF so the ball should be coming into the TM in the air or the AF either in front of him to run onto or knocked on from the striker. That particular player trait says in the tooltip that it increases the likelihood of the player showing and asking for the ball into his feet rather than into space or another part of his body. Inconsistency to me isn't two brilliant seasons then dropping off. It's yoyo performances game-to-game: Here is my inconsistent striker. Notice the match ratings jump between mid 6's to mid 7's with not a lot in between? That's what I would call inconsistent. His last three games of 6.7, 6.7 and 6.6 I would call consistent (even if it isn't world beating).

Not really a help but I am in the same position. Striker won the Bundesliga Golden Boot twice in a row then picked up the Likes Balled Played to Feet PPM and now doesn't score at all. I am having a hell of a time removing the PPM so you have my sympathy.

Makes sense but isn’t there a trade off as you can’t mentor?

Uploaded "Barcelona (v02).fm" for you to have a look at. I may be well past this point now though but the bug is consistent in any save I play

I'd be leaning towards either Marzucchi or Bregonis although before making a decision I'd use the comparison tool to compare them side by side.

I've done something that has removed the text from the Recruitment Meeting screen. I did it months ago so I've no idea what I did. Where should I be looking and what should I do to fix this mistake? Thanks guys.

I haven't noticed any issues with goalkeeper distribution. Did I mention it? Apologies if I did - I'm not seeing any issues.

And just like that I have my best win of the season. Swapped out an inform Skhiri for Branthwaite to add some extra body in the midfield and it worked a treat. Tactic was also adjusted to my it's gone to poo adjustment prior to the match as Bayern Munich are just way too good for my side.

Just a quick update. I've stuck with the Koln game as it provided the biggest challenge. Predicted to finish down the bottom somewhere and currently 3rd. I ended up sticking with a TM and pairing him with an AF as I liked the penetration the AF provides. There are issues with the marking - the AF refuses to mark the opposition MC regardless of settings. I'm sort of putting up with that as I like the penetration the AF brings but I would rather a proper 4-4-2 defensive setup, just with an AF: In the above instance the AF charges down the CB which has allowed some easy passing options back through midfield. Both the TM and AF have closed down here. The AF closed down first before the sideways pass then the TM decided to do the same. It isn't the end of the world as the TM does drop back afterwards but the AF lingers (as @cocoadavid said attacking duties would). This to me is a trade off. I don't like the AF's positioning defensively but what I do like is his output: Those 21 goals have him 6 goals clear in the goalkickers after 23 matches. What is more surprising to me is while he is highly rated his attributes (other than stamina and work rate) are nothing special. So, onto the tactic. I didn't really change a hell of a lot in the end but I do adjust if the game is going south: PI's: More or less the same as @cocoadavid other than the IW being told to take more risks, sit narrower and roam. Both strikers are told to mark tighter and to mark the appropriate MC rather than a DM. if things are turning to poo I change the MR/ML to WM-At and possibly the RB to a CWB-Su if I need the extra support on the right. I dropped counter-press as it didn't feel right as a default setting for the defensive shape. I add it back if I need a goal but by default it is off. I really like what the BWM does here. I use him as a sort of BBM that is defensively a lot more aggressive and doesn't roam. By adding PPI's like Dictates Tempo he is almost like an AP or RP. For me, Skhiri has been very valuable. My backup is Jarrod Branthwaite (the CB from Everton) and he brings a difference of being a more defensive body in the midfield rather than the ball player that Skhiri is. It's sort of a horses for courses selection policy depending on what I need for a particular match.

I actually don't mind if an opposition takes a long shot (for clarity - I consider this to be a shot from outside the box). To me it indicates a lack of options further forward or a 'get out' option when there is nothing else available. Even better if the long shot comes from an acute angle. As far as I'm concerned they can shoot all day from out there as it's a low percentage shot.

@cocoadavid I've been playing around with this and I do like it. I like that it is a general framework rather than purporting to be a plug and play tactic. I think the key is to not over-complicate things with team instructions as the opposition instructions are extensive. I wouldn't say it's a world-beating tactic/framework. What I like is it does the basics right - it defends strongly and allows some smart ball movement in offensive stages. Flexibility does allow some quite unique adjustments. I tried this with Barcelona with Messi as a DLF-Su and the other striker as either a PF-At or AF-At and it worked fine, although the PF does press the CB's more than I liked. With Red Bull Leipzig I had a TM-Su and AF-At and this allowed me to float crosses (both strikers are tall). This gave me a different avenue to goal. At Koln I have a TM-Su but am still deciding on his partner. I'm thinking a PF-De but am wary of the hardcoded movement and pressing they have. The way you have spelt out the defensive aspects is fantastic. I'd love to see your ideas on attack too.

How will/would you adjust to Grelish leaving and Bailey coming? Buendia out wide?