SteinkelssonFM

@_Ben_ it is a pleasure to be back here with the familiar faces, I hope you have enjoyed the early updates on what I am hoping will be a save to remember. I really wasn't expecting us to put in such a dominant performance, you expect away fixtures to be a little tougher, or maybe I simply am underestimating the strength of Anderlecht given how they performed in the first half of this season IRL. @13th Man this is 100% a 'right the ship' save, I don't think I have started a save with a club before which is in such a terrible financial position. As for the philosophy, it helps to know that the club has a brand which it relies on hence not attempting to deviate away from it in regards to my style of play. @rich ruzzian his three goals across those four games are all quite different, one from the penalty spot, the other is him getting on the end of a through ball. Finally, the last is the most intelligent as he drops off into space towards the edge of the box after a counter down the right-flank to slam the ball home. RSC Anderlecht vs Oud-Heverlee Leuven Seven players were still unavailable for selection due to their involvement with the Belgium U21 squad. This provided the opportunity for Luca Ferrara to be called up from the Futures squad to sit on the bench due to a spot becoming available after Francis Amuzu stubbed his toe, resulting in him being absent for six to nine days! Théo Leoni started in the role as the inside forward due to him being the only player available, the 22-year-old expects to provide competition for places and sees himself as a squad player, despite his actual playing time reflecting that of an emergency backup. It was Leoni who played in Benito Raman for the opening goal in the 11th minute, unfortunately we couldn't build on the opener, we struggled to bypass the midfield, again finding the 5-2-2-1 a tough nut to crack, this is reflected in both the pass map and progressive passes. Sofian Kiyine picked up the MOTM award, it was his goal which not only secured a point on the road for his team, the Moroccan has put a halt on our 100% record. AIK vs RSC Anderlecht The opening UEFA Europa Conference League fixture, away in Sweden went as expected as we ran out comfortable winners at the Friends Arena, despite losing the xG battle! Despite Anders Dreyer scoring a brace in the first-half, I wasn't happy with how the game was playing out, spectators could have been fooled it was a game of basketball as counter was countered with a counter for the majority of the first period. The home side then attempted to excerpt their dominance as they tried to get back into the match before the break. This made me take the executive decision to bring on Marco Kana for Amadou Diawara who in my opinion is a better ball player, the decision paid off as we had more ball after the break and added additional goals from Yari Verschaeren (our box crashing midfielder) and Islam Slimani. I would like to highlight the performance of Killian Sardella as the 20 year old put in a progressive ball masterclass down the left flank, completing 18 progressive passes on the night. Elsewhere in the group, our old friend Yeremy Pino scored a late brace as Villarreal pumped FK Bodø/Glimt in a game in which the All Yellows lost both Fredrik Bjørkan (3-4 weeks) and Amahl Pellegrino (2-3 months) due to injury. KVC Westerlo vs RSC Anderlecht The KVC Westerlo match is sandwiched between two Europa Conference League fixtures, with Villarreal visiting Lotto Park four days after this game. Our hosts find themselves in 17th place in the Pro League after securing the single victory (KV Mechelen) in their opening seven games. We will be looking to continue to pile the pressure on Manager Jonas De Roeck, although I have taken the decision to field a heavily rotated squad for the fixture, which I could live to regret after the final whistle is blown at the 't Kuipje. On another day we would have picked up three points, we had 61% possession and tested 'Man of the Match' Sinan Bolat no fewer than 11 times. The Westerlo goalkeeper had a game to remember, whilst Bart Verbruggen experienced the polar opposite, saving only one of the three attempts on goal, picking up the lowest match day rating. Our seven game undefeated run comes to an end. However, all is not doom and gloom as both Standard (lost 2-1 to Sint-Truiden) and Club Brugge failed to pick up maximum points (0-0 Seraing FC) in 2nd and 3rd. RSC Anderlecht vs Villarreal Let's not beat around the bush, the game against Villarreal is going to be extremely tough, anything other than a defeat can be seen as a massive result. Looking at the 'Team News' Villarreal will be without Yeremy Pino and for some strange reason have not decided to register Gerard Moreno! Quique Setién will look to play a fluid system with a vertical tiki-taka style, this will see us remove the counter press instruction in transition, in favour of regrouping, improving our chances of getting as many men behind the ball and making it harder for the opponents to score. The result unfortunately finished as expected, we succumbed to a 3-1 defeat. Despite the score-line, again there were positives to take away from the match. First and foremost we won the XG battle and also closed off the game with more shots and possession. Both Villarreal goals scored by José Luis Morales, came from passes by Samuel Chukwueze which were played behind our higher defensive line, in hindsight should I have also dropped this deeper given the fact we were no longer counter-pressing in transition? Or if we kept the counter press option on would Chukwueze had enough time on the ball to play such a pass. I think simply the result goes to show that the difference between playing abilities as good teams more often than not take their chances when presented with them. Elsewhere in the group, AIK managed to do what we failed to achieve, somehow securing a point away in Norway, in a game which looked extremely one-sided. RSC Anderlecht vs KV Kortrijk The second string side did it again, securing a 2-1 victory over our mid-table opponents. Goals were scored by David Hubert and Anders Dreyer. We now have a 14 day break from competitive fixtures, a period which will be used to arrange a few friendlies to raise monies for the club along with getting the opportunity to see some of the RSCA Futures players and U18's perform. I will cover these friendlies along with my approach to tracking players from within the club under the first team level. The next block of five fixtures for the First Team squad are against 5th, 10th, and 3rd in the league. We also have the double-header against FK Bodø/Glimt to navigate, which could well have a heavy weighting on our ability to progress deeper into the continental competition.

@_Ben_ I have pinged you an inbox about the skin. 👍

Just picked up the last couple of posts, and as others have said...what a bloody good read...and the dashboard, that is box office my friend! The tactical analysis and breakdown of the system in game is excellent and the screen shots help to see how it is playing out in game. Strapping myself back in now that I am back on the forum. 💪

Fer Nino absolutely light up for me at Villarreal before securing a multi million pound move to Newcastle. I am glad to see that he is as prolific for you and the mighty bees.

@SixPointer I have been playing catchup with your save and I have been inspired, clearly looks as if you are in the groove and enjoying every minute of both playing and documenting your save. @GIMN You are indeed correct, the rest of the loan £65 million is a gift loan which is only repayable on the departure of the chairperson. @JoOSTAR blame Squawka as the visual is theirs, I think I can easily amend the storytelling by stating this is what the team could have looked like if the Mauve's kept hold of players which donned the purple shirt. Much like Six Pointer, I must admit that covering the finer details of the save really does help to boost the enjoyment factor. So here we are with another update, taking us deeper into the start of season one. Sint-Truidense vs Anderlecht With the double header against Basel just around the corner, I opted to play a significantly rotated team to rest the legs of the majority of our starting-eleven. In fact Jan Vertonghen was the only player to start the game as I made 10 changes to the squad. We opened the scoring in the second minute through Benito Raman, after a nice through pass was played down the channel for the striker to run onto. (His natural role is as an advanced forward). The tables then turned as Camara played a square pass into the midfield which was intercepted and progressed in a blink of an eye for Bruno to score. Leinster turned the game on its head in the 33rd minute scoring a front post header from a corner. Eight minutes into the second half Raman scored his second after a great interchange between Verschaeren and Stroeykens. The Belgian forward completed his hattrick from the penalty spot, we didn't give our opponents a sniff in the second half. We also managed to complete the game with 68% possession, our highest figure to date, a pretty delightful stat which is reassuring to know that the second string players can still deliver. Although, I am also sitting here wondering how much more convincing the result could potentially have been if there was no need to rotate. Anderlecht vs Basel 10 changes were made to flip to our strongest team for the qualifier, we were at home and wanted to put our stamp on the tie. Things didn't initially go as we planned as Uli Forte's side took an early lead, Bart Verbruggen parried a shot from Zeki Amdouni into the path of Andi Zeqiri to tap home. Verschaeren equalised close to half-time from the penalty spot, minutes later Majeed Ashimeru played a pinpoint through ball in-between four opponents for Anders Dreyer to run onto and slide the ball home. Our opponents couldn't sustain any period of attacking momentum in the second half and we were quite unfortunate to not convert our dominance into a two goal lead. Basel vs Anderlecht Amir Murillo played the starring role in the away victory, his 108 passes received in the game was 35% more than any other player on the field. The 26-year-old from Panama played four key passes, three of which were clear cut chances, and 0.8 xA. Goals were scored in the first half by Yari Verschaeren and Amadou Diawara. Union Saint-Gilloise vs Anderlecht Up next were Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, who unlike IRL opened the season with only one victory in their first four matches. Dreyer's goal was all that separated the two sides, this match was fairly low key with both teams only managing four shots on target. Anderlecht vs KAA Gent The final game of this block of fixtures against KAA Gent was our first fixture my first against a side which was predicted to finish inside the top six, the domestic fixture list has been kind to us until this point, which has enabled me to acquaint myself with the playing staff at my disposal. KAA are on a four game unbeaten streak, a run which has been spearheaded by Jens Petter Hauge. We are in good form in the league and looking at the stats, I am pleased to see that we are yet still to concede first in any of our domestic matches... We managed to score either side of the break. However, our opponents were never really in the game, they struggled to make any impact in the attacking third, which is clearly apparent in the xG story. Yari Verschaeren and Islam Slimani were the goal scorers, our attacking playmaker has now scored three goals his last four matches, which whilst it is impressive, he has now scored more than assisted. UEFA CONFERENCE LEAGUE DRAW The draw has been made and boy, oh boy, we are in for a tough run! The computer has put us up against Villarreal, a side I know well from my FM23 save The Crown of Aragon, and Glimt, another side which I have managed during FM21 We will make the northerners proud. The final team are AIK from Sweden, a country which I have just returned from, I ran out to the Friends Arena from Stockholm centre during my stay. I cant see us taking anything from Villarreal, who will absolutely be the favourites to top the group. We will need to make sure we win both home fixtures against AIK and Glimt, prior to what will be a tough fixture in X up to Bodo. BELGIAN PRO LEAGUE Six from six, the only side to take maximum points to date in the league! Kudos must be given to Standard who have only conceded the single goal in their opening fixtures which included AA Gent and KRC Genk. Our next run of games include the home fixture against Villarreal, whilst I am expecting to lose this match, it will be nice to see how Quique Setién deploys the team, with me secretly knowing I would have done better! haha!

I have manged to play the first handful of competitive fixtures, and am thinking that I will continue to provide updates in blocks of five. This will ensure that you guys get to keep up to date with the Purple Talents save and I continuously get to write, which massively helps me to submerge myself into my world of FM. I am hopeful that it will also continue to provide you with an insight as to how I play the game. The tactic seems to be working well, we have won the xG battle in all fixtures which highlights our ability to carve out chances, whilst not conceding many. The highest xG created came against U Craiova 1948 CS, we manged to accumulate 2.46 from 20 shots, 0.12 xg per shot - again showing the quality of chances created. Islam Slimani was the first player to pick up a perfect 10 rating in this fixture, the forward scoring a hattrick from his three shots. We are averaging 65% possession in the league two percent off AA Gent and Charleroi. However, it is still way too early to judge our ability to play the possession game as we need to have a much improved sample size. We have had a good spread of goal scorers (Six) and assists (Nine) which have come from all over the park, the main assist type has come from a cross, I am hoping that we can get a few more from through-balls, especially after the slight change in tactic. (later my friends) Islam Slimani has scored the most goals whilst four players have provided two assists, a list including our Advanced Playmaker on attacking duty... YARI VERSCHAEREN Verschaeren is a two-footed technically gifted player, standing at 5'8 with a low centre of gravity giving him impressive agility (14). He likes to get on the ball and has a good passing range , which is reflected in his excellent pivot (Passing 14, Technique 14, and Vision 15). Whilst his Off the Ball movement (14) ad Flair (14) make him an unpredictable threat in the attacking third. Starting the save Yari is a blank canvas with regards to his player traits. Therefore, he will initially look to adopt the 'Dictates Tempo' trait, one which will enable him to put his stamp on games as our playmaker. Below are the chalkboards of his performances in the opening three league games to provide an initial flavour of his in-game actions (passes completed and key passes). KV Oostende: An impressive performance in the opening fixture one in which he managed to create nine key passes (only seven showing in the analytics tab), three from open play, all coming from zone 14, the area which we want Yari to dominate. Rating 7.1 KSV Cercle Brugge: Our opponents played with a double defensive pivot which reflected in Yari's performance, the player managed only one pass in the attacking third as he picked up a poor individual rating. Rating 6.5 RFC Seraing: Yari picked up his first assist in the game against Seraing, our opponents lined up in a 4-4-2, which enabled Yari the freedom to play between the lines and have an impact in the attacking third. Rating 7.3 Early signs are promising for the 21-year-old as he currently is creating 2.83 shot creating actions per 90 (Key Passes) from open play, making him top the charts in the Jupiler Pro League or this metric. I have already made a slight tweak to our tactic, opting to play an inside forward as opposed to an inverted winger on the left-flank. My thoughts behind this stem from my time attempting to maximise the impact of the Trequartista in my previous save. The Crown of Aragon: Fantasista As you will know the main difference between both roles is that the IF will cut in without the ball whilst the IW will cut in only when in possession. Therefore by playing an IF on Yari's side of the pitch I am providing him with an improved supply line to secure those much needed assists. (well that is the plan) The next run of fixtures include our fourth round qualifying match in the conference league, a two-legged affair which we really need to navigate to hep pull in some much needed additional revenue. Off the field, I was blessed with the below email... £3.8 million per month! The debt is going to cripple us as a club and we will absolutely need to sell some of our key players as time goes on in order to make us operational for the future. I will be looking to take some of the key points from @ThrowingCopperFM excellent article from the Byline Eight Ways to Manage Debt in FM23 Without Selling Your Best Players

Thanks @GIMN @gggfunk @FM_Ghost and @rich ruzzian for taking the time to comment, there is something special about the SI Forum, I am looking forward to documenting my second FM23 save here and interacting with you all. BENEFITS OF THE 4-3-3 First and foremost, the 4-3-3 formation provides a solid defensive structure. With four defenders at the back, the team can maintain a compact defensive line, which makes it difficult for the opposition to break through. The three midfielders in front of the defenders can also contribute defensively, helping to shield the backline and intercepting passes. This defensive solidity ensures that the team is not exposed on the counter-attack, which is a common problem with more attacking formations. Another benefit of the 4-3-3 formation is the flexibility it offers. The three midfielders can be used in a variety of ways, depending on the opposition and the team's strengths. For example, one midfielder could be tasked with breaking up play and providing cover for the defence, while another could be given more freedom to attack and create chances. The third midfielder could be a box-to-box player, who contributes both offensively and defensively. This flexibility allows the team to adapt to different situations and opponents, making it a versatile formation. The attacking potential of the 4-3-3 formation is also a huge advantage. With three forwards, the team has a more potent attacking threat. The wingers can provide width and stretch the opposition's defence, while the central forward can act as a target man, holding up the ball and bringing others into play. The midfielders can also contribute to the attack, making late runs into the box and providing support for the forwards. The attacking trio can create a lot of problems for the opposition's defence, which can lead to goals and victories. In conclusion, the 4-3-3 formation offers many benefits for football teams. It provides a solid defensive structure, flexibility, attacking potential, and can create a strong team spirit and identity due to the clear structure and defined roles for each player within the system. PRE SEASON As with any pre-season the results are not important, the purpose is to ensure the squad improve their match sharpness and avoid picking up any long-term injuries. Positive results were secured across the schedule of non-competitive fixtures and we managed to escape with only one player (Kristian Arnstad) picking up a moderate injury, the midfielder picked up a twisted knee in the game against SK BMD Vorwärts Steyr which kept him out for two weeks. Tactical familiarity is starting to take shape, I expect the team to be fluid across the board after a few more fixtures and the integration of match preparation training sessions. I have now seen most of the players in action and have made the above assessment in relation to club depth, Verbruggen has been placed between the sticks IRL ahead of Van Crombrugge, which is something which I may well consider. Camara has been introduced from the RSCA Futures team due to not having sufficient depth at right-back position. The 19-year-old is naturally a right winger. However, given the fact we want our right wingback to be the attacking outlet down the right flank, Camara should be adept at playing this role going forward at least and will be given the chance to shine when facing weaker opponents, at home. Sandwiched between the Seraing FC match is the UEFA Europa Conference League Third Qualifying Round in which we will face either Seinäjoen Jalkapallokerho (Finland) or U Craiova 1948 CS (Romania), neither of which should cause us any significant threats.

The footballing landscape in Belgium, which used to be dominated by RSC Anderlecht has changed, with the side from one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capita Region not winning a title since 2016/17. Rivals Club Brugge have a firm grip on the Jupiler Pro League, being crowned champions on four of the last five occasions. There have been a few factors which have led to the demise of the team, both on and off the field, which I will briefly touch on. First and foremost the club is in significant financial difficulty, they have a net debt of over £100 million at the start of the game and the balance sheet forecast for the next few years continues on a downward trajectory. Anderlecht is not a club which is bankrolled by foreign investors. The club relies on the income which is provided by the Academy, an area which it has not effectively utilised over this period. Anderlecht is a club which has historically built its reputation with young blood flowing through its veins. Other contributing factors as to why they find themselves in this position are; securing poor returns from high cost transfer targets (to follow), failure to implement a wage structure, and failure to maximise sale on values (knowing when to sell) for key players. Whilst on the field the team have lacked a cutting edge, which was apparent in both the 2021/22 season (10 draws), and the current Pro League campaign (7 draws). Looking at the clubs record arrivals on Transfermarkt.co.uk and the individual player stats, really highlights how poor some of these signings have been for the club. Only one of the top 10 record signings is still on the books (Anders Dreyer), and he signed this season. Nicolae Stanciu, the clubs record signing, played 53 times for the club before being sold to Sparta Prague for a loss of nearly €6m. Bubacarr Sanneh, played less than 1,400 minutes for the club before being sent out on multiple loans, eventually leaving the club on a free. Michel Vlap, made 36 appearances for he club, again before being loaned out and then eventually sold for €2m. THE ACADEMY The club has a clear vision for its academy: to produce players that will be capable of top-flight and Champions League football by the ages of 18-21. The below image shows just how Anderlecht could have lined up if the were able to keep hold of players which have played for the RSCA Futures team. A key component of Anderlecht’s philosophy is to create technically proficient footballers, fluid attackers with a natural instinct to press in the half of the opponent, all of which we will look to implement within our game model. Below is an example of the clubs training philosophy which is covered in greater detail in the Inside The Academy video on YouTube, within it there is a clear focus on technique (body and ball mastery), along with footballing intelligence (brain stimulation, development, and accelerator). The Anderlecht way is formed on speed of thought and quality of execution, with players expected to have the confidence and craft to build attacks with triangular passing, from the defence if necessary. At Anderlecht, it is not merely about talent; it is about ambition and application. That is underlined in the club’s stance on winning and losing: the manner of playing exceeds the importance of the result. For the Belgians, effort is imperative, winning is a bonus. GAME MODEL Taking key points from the above and with the knowledge that Academy students are expected to slot comfortably into a 4-3-3 at the age of 15-years-ol and above, I have looked to continue playing in this shape and will explain the reasoning behind the choice of a few of the team instructions below, with help from the ‘Comparison’ tab in the squad planner. IN POSSESSION Shorter Passing and Slightly Higher Tempo: The team have the highest rating in the league with regards to first touch, passing, and technique. Therefore ball retention has to be integrated into the game model, I have selected a slightly higher tempo as our squad have the technical ability to play a possession based game, at pace. Play Out of Defence: The defenders will be encouraged to pass their way out from the back rather than clear the ball long, this is the Anderlecht way. Be More Expressive: this will enable our more creative players the freedom to play the game with additional vision and flair. A good intelligence (Anticipation, Decisions, Flair, Teamwork, and Vision) is essential for this team instruction to have maximum effect, which links very nicely to our DNA. The above comparison is our midfield and strikers mental attributes, you will see we are above average for all these attributes, we my also look to select the ‘Pass into Space’ instruction, enabling us to also play more balls in behind the opposition, again making the most of the ability to read the game. OUT OF POSSESSION Trap Outside: the above comparison shows how skilled our defenders are at defending, they have the best tackling and heading attributes in the league and are significantly high in relation to their positioning. The ‘Trap Outside’ team instruction should fit like a glove, pushing opponents wide and inviting the cross, enabling the defenders to do their job and defend. DNA What is a save without a DNA profile to build from, the above image shows how the current playing squad rank in terms of the DNA which I have selected, this will be used as a benchmark when looking at bringing players from the Futures team through into the first-team and of course acquisitions. Primary DNA: Intelligence (Anticipation, Decisions, Flair, Teamwork, and Vision) a fundamental for an Anderlecht player, the training philosophy from earlier really hammered this home with the focus on brain training from under 8 and beyond. Secondary DNA: Passing, Technique, Work rate, and Stamina – if we are looking to play a possession based game, then passing and technique are also non-negotiables. Work rate and stamina will enable us to press hard without the ball and also ensure that we can execute technical skills throughout the 90 minutes, which could well be a huge asset, especially in close games. OBJECTIVES As with any save, it is always helpful to set out a few objectives on for the save to keep you focused and ensure that you have some form of long-term plan. To reclaim the title of Belgiums finest – let’s face it, we play FM to win and therefore there will be a desire to lift the Pro League title and move Anderlecht up the club coefficients and reputation rankings. Currently Anderlecht are 124th in the co-efficient rankings 80 places behind Club Brugge, and have three and a half stars in terms of their reputation. Clear the clubs debt – As previously discussed, the club not only need to improve their position on the pitch, there is a need to ensure thy club stay out of the red. Adrien Trébel is the highest earner on £33,000 per week, whilst squad players like Lior Refaelov find themselves as the third highest earner on £21,500 per week. Personal Development – of course I will want to continue to develop players within the club, seeing the healthy pipeline of talent within the Futures Team continue their pathways, transitioning into the Senior Squad. The ultimate aim will be to target 50% of the first team squad to be Academy graduates. Yari Verschaeren – as with my Villarreal save, there will be a focus on attempting to maximise the potential of Yari Verschaeren, a player in real life who’s development has been hampered by injuries (Torn Ankle Ligaments 2109/20, Ankle Injury 2020/21, and Cruciate Ligament Rupture 2022/23). The 20-year-old holds the second highest DNA score in the squad and has a high potential. I will be looking to focus on his role as the Advanced Playmaker on Attack Duty.

Jumping back into the forum as I will be looking to document a new save in here over the next week or so, an enjoyable intro and a save which I will follow along. I have limited knowledge of Slovakia so keen to absorb your content to improve this.

If memory serves me right, I do believe he is in the B team at the very start of the game. I gambled on him over Jackson after pre-season and never looked back. Nice to see you picking a few of my lot, Baena...not quite sure how he snuck in...would take a look at Iker Bravo. If you are keen for any other off the radar call ups I will happily throw you a few profiles to look at.

No mate I have never deviated away from the original tactic, I haven't felt the need to do so as performances have been excellent and the squad has been built to play this shape. TBF it was built this way by Pellegrini and continued by Emery.

This might help, I have a thread over on the career updates page where I have focused on the Treq for three years. https://link.medium.com/2HkpmN5APwb

@Cassius The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula. Therefore as pointed out it isn't available in the search filters. I think in my opening post I showed how I searched for players, you will see a list of towns/cities that fall under each autonomous community. The search filters took about 60 minutes to implement after gathering all the places to add in (64 in total) after leaving out some areas with a small population. These are selected as 'place of birth' under the search filters, providing me with the talent pool which I have been recruiting from within the save.

@Kealu121202 you are right, this is the blog which I wrote previously... https://medium.com/@steinkelssonfm/fm22-replicating-tactics-using-open-source-data-18deaae901cb However, the sources quoted are great for replicating tactics from within the big 5 leagues, but not really ideal for historical content. When looking to replicate tactics, the best tool is the internet...you need to search for key words searches such as "anlysis" "tatics" etc etc. For Pellegrini I used some of these (luckily saved in my Pocket app) The 4-2-2-2 tactic explained Pellegrini's Villarreal The Engineer and his magic rectangle Villarreal Tactics: Scouting the Yellow Submarine Coaches Voice is also another great source along with other similar tactical websites.

February 2025 R.C.D. Mallorca 1-5 Villarreal With our new signing Julián Álvarez recovering from sprained wrist ligaments, Iker Bravo was presented with the starting shirt, and the burden of replacing Fer Nino. The 20-year-old put in a performance of the highest quality, the oppositions defence could not cope with Bravo, who walked off the pitch not only with the match ball but equalled the club record set by Fer Nino of scoring four goals in a game. Bravo's four goal haul came from an xG of 1.5 which was accumulated over six shots, an xG per shot of 0.25. The forward will not want to change his boots after scoring 100% of his shots on target, this performance provides me with a slight headache now as it would be wrong of me to introduce the record signing to the team, at least in a starting birth. Abel Ruiz also deserves a mention for racking up two assists after being introduced at the break. Despite his inability to score goals, he now has an assist per 90 of 0.57 after contributing with six assists from 941 minutes of football. MOTM: Iker Bravo (4 goals) --- U.D. Las Palmas 1-2 Villarreal (Copa del Rey) What a difference a day makes, well three to be exact. Iker Bravo failing to score despite one of his shots holding an xG value of 0.69, the striker dwelled on the ball with an empty goal in front of him to enable the defender to come in and make a well timed block. Abel Ruiz, again showed his ability to make a difference from the bench, this time scoring the decisive goal. MOTM: Abel Ruiz --- Elche 1-2 Villarreal (Copa del Rey) Elche took us the distance in the cup, the rotated side were again called upon to play their second game in a three day period as I looked to keep the first team fresh for the assault on La Liga and the game with Betis. Looking at the trends from within the match we rightly progressed to the next round, with Arnaut Danjuma leading by example, he not only scored the opening gaol but provided the assist for the winner in a game in which he created two clear cut chances (0.9 xA). MOTM: Arnaut Danjuma (1 goal, 1 assist, 4 key passes) --- Villarreal 4-1 Real Sociedad (Copa del Rey) The hairdryer treatment at the break spurred the side on to a complete dominant performance in the second-half in a game which seen record signing Julián Álvarez make his debut for the club. It was the £40 million man who scored the goal after the break, it was not a finish of beauty, he simply scored a tap in after a goalmouth scramble, they all count and he is off the mark. The Argentine also provided the assist for Iker Bravo who also got on the scoresheet. Yeremy Pino was the star of the show, he clearly benefited from some time off, scoring two and creating one. We have one foot firmly placed in the Final. MOTM: Yeremy Pino --- Ok, Sevilla mean business! --- Villarreal 4-2 Real Valladolid Going two-nil down in the first 15 minutes of a football match is never ideal, the only benefit in doing so is that there is still a significant amount of time on the clock to regather your thoughts and bring the tie back in your favour. This was the case for this match, a result which provided us with a new club record, ten back to back victories. Pablo Fornals with one of his best performances in a Villarreal shirt, drifting very narrow in the role of the inverted winger, you can see how quite a few of his key passes were from central areas as he created an overload. MOTM: Pablo Fornals (1 goal, 1 assist, 3 chances created) --- Villarreal 3-0 Betis Three goals in three games for Julián Álvarez who has slotted into the role of the Advanced Forward well, he is yet to hit Fer Nino levels but we can' complain with his form to start. Pino, Fornals, and Samuel Chukwueze with the assists, the Nigerian picked up the MOTM award from just 24 minutes on the pitch. MOTM: Samuel Chukwueze --- Villarreal 1-2 Barcelona Once again, we were the better team against Barcelona but somehow managed to come away with nothing from the match. Julián Álvarez opened the scoring early doors, at which point I was thinking we would accelerate through the gears and pick up the victory. It wasn't to be and the result makes the league become really tight again. --- Real Sociedad 1-1 Villarreal Sociedad huffed, puffed, but they could not overcome the first-leg deficit which sees us progress to the Copa del Rey Final against either Real or Atletico Madrid. --- One point off the pace, with individuals topping ALL the key outputs...if we don't do it this season, I honestly don't think we will have another season where it will be possible given that previous winners have lost 2, and 4 games. We simply can't afford to lose many more matches. Fortunately we face Sevilla and Almeria at home, the only issue is will we expend all our energy in the UEFA Champions League? Still (in theory) on for a treble...something Villarreal have never been able to balance, we ARE competing on all fronts.

Excellent ability to bounce back from the defeat in the final with some HUGE results to close out the Championship group. Just out of interest how much bigger is the salary at RB compared to yours? Just trying to get a feel for how much more muscle they have financially in comparison to you.

Keeping my fingers crossed for you mate, this has to be your year! Madrid are off the pace, I wish I had the same luck!

January 2025 It was a good start to the year in Villarreal, youngster Iker Bravo secured the European Golden Boy award, joining a long list of talented youngsters in achieving the personal accolade. This can only be a good sign for what is to come as previous winners include the likes of Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, João Félix, Pedri and Paul Pogba. Star player Yeremy Pino, also signed on the dotted line to a new bumper contract, the £115k per week makes him the highest paid player at the club and secures him to the club until 2029. If only at this point I opened talks with others, things could be very different. The Spaniard is leading the open play key pass charts, creating eight more shot creating actions from open play than second place Vinícius Júnior, it is only when comparing this stat to chances created that the quality of Pino really stands out, Yeremy has created 29 chances in La Liga, whilst again second placed Vinícius Júnior has just 16. The 'Fantasista' really is something special. He now holds a leadership role in the squad hierarchy. --- Villarreal 5-0 Getafe Our fist fixture of the year was against Getafe and we took them to the cleaners, it wasn't the final scoreline which was impressive, it was the 19 minute spell in which we put the ball past them five times. Yeremy Pino demonstrated his creative genius, accumulating 11 key passes, seven from open play (6 clear cut chances). However, failed to contribute with a single assist (1.4 xA). MOTM: Arnaut Danjuma --- Villarreal 2-0 Real Madrid The King Abdullah Sports City 'The Shining Jewel' will be a venue to remember for the supporters of 'The Yellow Submarine', ok it may well only be the Supercopa de España but a win, our first against Real Madrid is one which will hopefully break the curse. Unlike other fixtures where the game was even, this fixture was different. 3.63 xG vs 1.22 (inflated by the two penalties) 2.06 non-penalty xG vs 1.22 - we still created the better chances 4 clear cut chances to their 1 MOTM: Gerard Moreno (2 goals) --- Barcelona 4-3 Villarreal It was always going to be a tough ask, to beat both Real Madrid and Barcelona in the space of a few days. However, we certainly gave it our all, this game was exceptionally entertaining and would no doubt help to raise the profile of La Liga in Saudi-Arabia. We came from behind on three occasions before 36-year-old Robert Lewandowski scored his second of the game to secure the victory. Gerard Moreno hit the post, not once, but twice in the dying seconds, which would have taken the game into extra-time. MOTM: Robert Lewandowski (2 goals) --- We managed to navigate a jam packed month, continuing our good run of form in both the league, the cup and of course Europe. The match against Milan at the San Siro has to be the standout result, we must have the rest of Europe watching over their shoulders like the Atalanta side of 2019/20 which made it all the way to the quarter-finals. Gerard Moreno was the star of the show, the 32-year-old walked off with the match ball, others to get their name on the score-sheet were Fer Nino and Danjuma. We closed the 'League Phase' in second place, this secures us passage to the last 16 and guarantees the club £8.27 million income. --- Transfer Talk The transfer of Baena to Seville for £18.5 million meant that we had the cash flow to plug the much needed gap in the squad, the role of a secondary centre-back with a left-foot, Enter José Marsà, a 22 year-old from Esplugues de Llobregat, a municipality of Barcelona metropolitan area. José is a player which we had identified as a target in season one, we paid £26 million to secure his signature from Sporting CP. Although this fee may look steep on face value, his suggested value post move jumped to between £61 million and £68 million. Losing a key player with two days before the transfer window slams shut is never ideal. However, after spending a few hours looking over the market and viewing all out scout report we made the executive decision to sign Julián Álvarez of Manchester City for a club record fee of £40 million. This is the third big money signing which we have made in a row, this shows that we are moving in the right direction to be labelled as one of the major achievers under the hierarchy of wealth, although we aren't there yet. Julián (Green), aged 25, like Nino is at best when playing in the role of the 'Advanced Forward', when comparing the players (above) you will note that he is a more technical player with slightly better speed and a bucket load more vision. Both players are consistent, with our new signing enjoying big matches, something which Fer lacked as he didn't enjoy them. The Argentinian has big boots to fill and we will need him to do so quickly if we are to continue our form, there is no time to for him to acclimatise to Spain for this signing. I am not going to lie, I was absolutely devastated when Newcastle submitted a bid of £60 million (Record Transfer Fee) for Nino, we have become so reliant on the strikers ability to hit the back of the net, not just this season but since day one of the save. I will write a piece on the layer in the season three write-up, but for now I have just pulled some of the players headline stats for you to see. 111 appearances under Magnus Steinkelsson 100 goals, thankfully reached that milestone in the game against 22 assists 26 Man of the Match awards He also leaves La Liga with the current highest average performance rating of 7.92 and is leading the race for the Pachichi by five goals. --- There are just three points which separate us from leaders Barcelona, whilst Real Madrid find themselves eight points adrift from their rivals. Again, there are still the usual teams in the mix and Seville have managed to maintain their form and made some smart transfers (including Baena, they have obtained the services of Álvaro Morata, João Gomes, Fábio Vieira and Elye Wahi). José Bordalás has a squad that fits his attacking 4-4-2 well and has a good mix of youth and experience, very much like we did in season one. The following month sees us face Betis and Barcelona, before closing the month with an away fixture against Elche.

In all honesty I think it is a little bit of luck and a slightly higher quality of player. Looking at each result, we have never been defeated by more than the single goal, in our first game in season one, we got hit by their two goals in two minutes to swing the result in their favour. The defeat in season two (4-3 classic) was a bit more of a swashbuckling encounter with both teams playing end to end stuff. Whilst our latest defeat I think we can find ourselves rather unfortunate. Of course, there is a big difference between securing a draw and picking up all three points. Preparation for these matches is normally the same, we have the training schedule for weaker teams and the schedule for stronger sides, a few role tweaks in terms of duty are normally applied, usually to give us a bit more stability in the middle of the park, to help us have an extra body back for the counter-attack. Agree, the beauty of Spain, there is not dominant side but two, which makes our second place finish last season such an impressive achievement.

December 2024 We really struggled on our travels across the month of December, managing to only create the single clear cut chance at the Carlos Belmonte (Albacete), and two at the Estadio de Vallecas (Ray Vallecano). I would say this could be a slight problem. However, I think that would be overthinking things, the tactic has served us exceptionally well and deviating away from it would be silly especially considering we find ourselves ranked second in goals scored, expected goals and top the chances created charts. The one defeat which hurt us, and continues to be a problem is our form against Real Madrid. Real Madrid 1-0 Villarreal The game itself was a close affair, as you can see both sides finished the game on the exact same xG, they had more shots, we had more possession. Looking at the average ratings below, you can see that the defence and attack had a poor game. There is a need for us to dip into the market for a left-footed centre-back as Pau Torres is the only left-footed option at the club and at this rate will suffer from fatigue or pick up a major injury due to being over-played. The attack on the other hand it was a complete off day. Yeremy Pino really took the bull by the horns, he had five open play key passes and a xA of 0.9, as shown below. Unfortunately, the man on the end of those chances, Fer Nino, had a day to forget in front of the goal, he had an xG of 0.7, in other days that would have seen him secure the match ball. We close the month in second place in La Liga, if other seasons are to go by then anyone in the top five could be in the mix for the title. However, we all will need to play our parts to ensure that Barcelona drop points. Below are some off the headline player statistics/data, despite Yeremy Pino leading the chances created and key passes per 90 tables, our 'Fantasista' only has six assists to his name to date, he will need our attacking players to finish off what he is creating if he is to secure above 17 assists, his figure from last season. Below is our fixtures for January 2025, maybe we can beat Madrid and pick up some silverware, and hopefully break the hoodoo they have on us.

Oh wow, congratulations on that massive victory. I was reading through the latest update thinking you are going everything you can possibly do, but can you get that massive W against RB Salzburg. What changed the match momentum at the break, was it the goal or did you implement and specific instructions after some analysis?

Thanks Ben, I have often been using your skin behind the scenes, I really think it is an excellent addition, serious kudos for taking the time to build it. Despite Danjuma not starting as much this season, he is still very much an integral part of my squad. Looking at his outputs for this season, you will note that he is producing outputs that are in the 'Elite' level for dribbles, open play key passes, and expected assists. Ok he has only played half the minutes of Fornals (below) but his outputs are significantly better and he is likely to secure more minutes from the starting whistle going forward. *note Fornals stats are not as accurate as Danjuma's due to playing a significant amount of minutes as the SV. Above is Fornals form in La Liga, he is averaging 7.00 in terms of his performance and has two goals and three assists to his name. However, for a record signing he isn't really having as much of an impact as I would like, this is probably as I see him as being an excellent Mezzala, a role which isn't in our system.

Really enjoyed this thread, sorry to only just post as have been lurking for a few posts. Abi is doing bits in the role of the advanced forward, a role which I am too having success with. I think if you can secure a strong supply line for this role the chances will come, especially with the use of your mid-block.

November 2024 Almeria 1-3 Villarreal We defeated Rubi's side in a game in which we didn't struggle to progress the ball, unlike Seville. In this match we managed to increase our progressive passes, which in turn reduced our backwards passes by 42% in comparison to the last match. We returned to the normal trend, which credits our ability to score goals from central areas in the penalty box and limit the oppositions touches/shots in our penalty area. MOTM: Fer Niño (2 goals, 6 dribbles, 3 key passes) --- @Carambau it looks as if Celta could do with you in my save, a managerial sacking just before we face them, you are 19th in La Liga. --- Villarreal 3-0 AC Sparta Praha We enjoyed near total domination over our opponents from the Czech Republic. Iker Bravo scored the first and then gifted Yeremy Pino the second in a game in which he was extremely effective as the advanced forward. MOTM: Sander Berge (1 goal, 3 tackles won, and 92% pass accuracy). --- Villarreal 2-1 Celta De Vigo Another game and another three points in a game in which we created 25 attempts on goal (TEN key passes stemmed from Yeremy Pino). Caretaker Manager Carlos Hugo García Bayón was left scratching his head as his side looked lackluster in front of goal, Celta have scored only seven goals from their 12 games in La Liga. MOTM: Fer Nino (2 goals) Looking at our expected attacking outputs we have a clear divide this season in terms of outputs, either scorers or providers. --- Villarreal 3-1 Valencia Our sixth derby de la comunitat, we continue our impressive record against our rivals Valencia with an impressive victory. We dominated the ball, which was reflected in both possession stats and ball share, we put the ball to good use by creating chance after chance and were three goals up before the break. (Berge, Nino, and Moreno). MOTM: Fer Niño (1 goal, 1 assist). --- Villarreal 2-1 Ajax Despite our dominance in this fixture, both goals were as a result of some poor decision making from both goalkeeper and central defender, as sloppy passes were directed at Fer Nino, who capitalised on both mistakes. The result has us positioned in fourth place in the competition, I am not a fan of this new format...I am not sure if it is just the change and it will take some time to get used to...please share your thoughts/feelings on the new format. --- The next month is divided, the first three fixtures could be an opportunity to either rest some players for what lies ahead or to try and push for the personal awards. Newcastle and Real Madrid to close the year...what a time to be alive!

October 2024 Porto 1-4 Villarreal The opening game of the month, and our first victory in this new format of the UEFA Champions League. If we were to define this victory with one word it would be clinical, we had an overall xG per shot of 0.14 and four of the seven shots on target Diogo Costa had to pick out of his net. Samuel Chukwueze put in the best performance on the pitch, he scored two goals and also created two clear cut chances. The above map excluding backwards passes goes to show how he aided ball progression and creativity in the progressive stage along with impact in the final third, I can see why @Shrewnaldo rates him so highly, despite playing second fiddle to Yeremy he has always made an impact with 14 and 15 goal contributions in the first two seasons. MOTM: Samuel Chukwueze --- Club Atlético de Madrid 3-0 Villarreal Two goals after the 90 minute mark make the result look far worse than the performance. However, we continue our run of bad form against sides from the capital. We gifted our opponents the first goal after a mistake by Victor Chust (the best performer, until that point) played in Matheus Cunha. João Félix scored a late penalty and then added another from an acute angle to put the cherry on the cake. MOTM: João Félix (2 goals) --- A nice little news flash, we, along with Barcelona have produced the most players, currently playing for the national side. --- Villarreal 2-1 Espanyol Óscar Gil was able to celebrate victory over his former club, Yeremy Pino gave us the lead with a fine header from point-blank range in the 40th minute. Dani Parejo doubled the lead after scoring at outrageous 'paneka' before Javi Puado made the final 15 minute spell a little bit uncomfortable. MOTM: Yeremy Pino (1 goal, 4 key passes, 2 dribbles) --- Villarreal 2-1 Manchester United A historical day at the Estadio de la Cerámica as we defeated Manchester United, the game was a tough encounter and it took the introduction of Álex Collado to really ignite the tie. The midfielder coming on for Yeremy Pino and creating two clear cut chances from three key passes, it was his pass which gave us the lead, assisting Iker Bravo. The result gives us another £2.41 million in the bank and places us in 15th place in the league phase. MOTM: Dominic Calvert-Lewin --- Villarreal 3-0 Real Sociedad There was a huge sigh of relief as Abel Ruiz finally found the back of the net, his first goal in 16 hours, since his move from FC Kobenhavn. The striker assisted both other goals, which were scored by Fer Nino and Pablo Fornals, MOTM: Abel Ruiz (1 goal, 2 assists, 100% shots on target, and 4 key passes) --- Real Madrid drop more points as they lose El Clasico at home to Barcelona. --- Sevilla 1-0 Villarreal This was the first game in a while in which there was a visible disconnect from the defensive to attacking phase, this lack of cohesion is made apparent in the xG story, in which we pretty much flatlined. Kudos to Sevilla for this, unless the trend continues, then it becomes a personnel/tactical issue. MOTM: Óscar --- We close the month on top of La Liga, thanks to our superior goal difference and also the head to head rule. As things stand it looks like it is going to be a competitive season with teams dropping points a trend, we look forward to playing Tenerife - one for the pachichi hunt. The next month has some tasty fixtures in both the league and in Europe, looking forward to facing Ajax to close the month and of course opening with @Matt_1979 high-flying Almeria.