jc577

That was not my intention sir, apologies. I was merely citing your post which explained in depth a lot of ME issues with the game in its current state.

I’d have to disagree here; ‘We don't feel the match engine is broken, unplayable or needs 'fixing'. We'd like to improve it and that's what we're working on.’ Statement from Neil Brock/SI. My issue with this is that clearly, certain aspects of the ME do need fixing. I don’t see how changing the behaviour of CB’s so that there isn’t a 20-yard gap between them can be seen as an ‘improvement.’ Likewise, the abundance of long balls, and poor 1v1 conversions as a result, cannot be seen as improvements to the ME. These are issues which should have been eradicated before the Beta was even released - it’s now mid-jan. Basic long balls cause so much confusion amongst the backline it’s ridiculous. Defending in general is abysmal, I’ve seen my FB leave his man from a throw in and charge across the other side of the box - for no apparent reason - several times on this edition, and in FM19 too. In all honesty, that statement from SI is rife with a lack of accountability, passing off serious issues as potential ‘improvements’. It seems as if SI are happy with the balance of the game when the reality is, they shouldn’t be. The issues I mentioned above are the extremely obvious ones which should have been dealt with, but there are a plethora of *match engine issues* which @themadsheep2001explained in great detail. I do understand that SI have a very difficult job on their hands, and I do not mean to attack them in any way, but their assessment of the game vs. User perception is vastly different, and the most important thing for any business is to understand their customers. Do I believe the current ME to be unplayable? Probably not. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t unplayable to some. Some posters in here should take that under consideration, instead of attacking people who have differing opinions to themselves. My main gripe is the lack of clear, coherent and congruent communication from SI. I’m sure most users would feel somewhat appeased if SI were talking us through the fixes, reassuring us that it’s a priority, even given as a potential timescale, which of course, we would understand if it had to be delayed. However, sitting in the dark, unaware of whether changes will be made before the winter patch, doesn’t exactly do much to stifle the discontent amongst some members of the community. SI do deserve credit for the non-ME changes that have been made over the past three years, truly amazing work. The development centre, training and club vision are my personal faves - especially club vision, as you really feel like you’re building a project just as in real life. It also acts as a point of reference if the board decide your time is over - was I meeting my targets? Was the project headed in the right direction? Great stuff FM20 has the potential to be the best of the lot, no doubt, but if you can’t replicate your style of football on the pitch, then all the off-field improvements become rather futile, unfortunately.

Thanks for everything Herne

It seems as if their studs have got stuck in the turf, much like centre-backs when *defending* long-balls.

This sort of goal is clearly possible in FM20, but doesn’t happen often enough imo. On a side note, has any noticed strikers not attempting to get in the box after releasing a winger/wing-back? I’ve seen it frequently and results in the wide player having to shoot from a difficult angle as there’s no one in the box.

As others have said, the Liverpool system is highly nuanced depending on who is available. For example, OX is definitely plays a MEZ-S (RCM) which actually creates space for Salah inside. Henderson also played this role against Chelsea last season, allowing Salah to come inside and hit one from 25 yards out... probably doesn’t have the dribbling/flair to be a MEZ in game so BBM with run wide with ball would do. Gini & Milner usually rotate that MCL spot but they play it very differently. Gini is a lot more central, whereas Milner drifts out wide to cover from Robertson. So I’d go with CM-S for Gini & Carilero for Milner... it all depends on what combination of roles suits your tactic best in game.

Do you struggle defensively using a higher line of engagement without pushing up the defensive line? I've been testing it out in the last few games I've noticed there's huge spaces in midfield if the ball isn't won high up the pitch.

Wasn’t far off 😂

There’s a great thread on here titled ‘Making good decisions during matches’ give that a read in short, the OP (forgotten his name) makes changes based on what he sees. For example, are you team winning second balls/long balls from goal kicks or from deep? If not, why is that the case? Perhaps your defensive line is too low, or there is not enough pressure on the ball carrier in their own half... could be a combination of both. Another example could be your full-back is continually getting destroyed by the opposition’s winger; it could be a physical mismatch, or perhaps his starting position is too deep and allows the winger to build ahead of steam. The majority of tweaks we can/should make our basic ones, but it requires knowledge of your system and a tiny analysis of what the opposition are trying to do.

I’m going to disagree with the general consensus on this thread; personally I don’t think there’s much wrong with your tactic at all. Arguably it could be toned down a tad, with the removal of the overlaps (considering you’re using two CWBs) and lowering the tempo and/or more direct passing. However, your aim is clearly to play direct football which is perfectly fine, and you want to generate these 1v1 opportunities for your strikers, but there is a known ME issue with these types of opportunities. Not all CCCs are all that clear, but if you’ve created 9 of them I’m sure at least 3/4 should be buried. Conversion rates for these types of chances are generally off, and that’s affecting your tactic.

Any thoughts on the inverted winger? Personally I think it’s a little more passive than I was expecting, especially in regards to dribbling with the ball, although it works really well when creating overloads and plays some nice through balls from out-wide.

Honestly, I haven’t seen any real improvements to the ME since the full release. 1v1s appear to be a bit less common, but the increase in conversion hasn’t followed suit. End product in general seems to be off; decision making, shots from wide angles etc, are all still quite apparent. I’ve seen some woeful - and I mean woeful - attempts at striking the football. I don’t know whether this is a realism addition as players do miss-hit the ball IRL, but it seems too common.

I agree with ED here; I think your TIs are too aggressive both in possession (much shorter passing + much lower tempo) and out of it (much higher d-line, LOE & extremely urgent pressing) but even more importantly, I don’t think it suits the Newcastle squad. Joelington is an excellent TM and Almiron would be lethal combining with him in a counter-attacking based system. However you are 7th in the league, so it must be working! But that’s the direction I would go in.

The only glaring issue for me is your left flank; Both the IW and the FB are looking to make forward runs, and the BBM will also look to get up in support later on during moves. All of the above would require your LCB to be super human I’d look to either: change the FB from support to attack, or make the BBM a Carrilero/CM-D so that he covers for the FB when he goes to attack.

Hi mate, I can’t see any of these pictures... is this intentional?