Bottling it

[locky82]

Can anyone help me to stop my teams from bottling it. It was a constant problem on 16 and it appears that I'm going to have the issue on 17 also. On 16 I played in numerous play off finals with Ashton Utd and ALWAYS lost, I had to go up automatically or not at all. I played in two L2 and five Championship play off finals on 16 and lost them all. This year I have only played in one, the play off finals for Ligue 1 but it was the manor of the defeat which was concerning - my team  bottled again. My Lens team went to Saint-Etienne with a 1-0 lead, and lost 5-0 without them making a single clear cut chance.  

It has to be something I'm doing - Maybe team meetings, press conferences, i don't know. I'm hoping you do! ? 

[jayahr]

It would be a lot easier to help you if we knew what you are doing

If you could post screenies of your tactics, your team instructions, possibly individual player instructions and tell us if you are playing the same way all the time or if you make changes when leading (and if so, which), then I'm sure that someone will be able and happy to help
Ideally you should actually do this in the tactics forum as the most qualified users are there.

 

hth

[paddypower]

My brother had this problem, his team bottled the title a couple of years in a row. Then he happened to look at his coach reports and discovered half his team dreads big matches. He dropped those players the next year at the serious end of the season and finally won the league. 

[Cougar2010]

You have to know your team and its easier if you build a squad with similar mentalities.

What a player is like mentally is as important, if not more than the attributes you see.  Take note of their personalities and identify their strengths & weaknesses looking for things like consistency & big matches (pressure hidden attribute).  Also look for professional & determined players who deal well with going behind & won't panic in matches.

If you have a squad full of these types of players giving team talks then becomes easier as they all react in a similar manner, you can be more demanding and they will perform to a higher level more regularly.

Even if you haven't built your squad that way and have a mix of personalities you should know how each react and which rise to the occasion.  You should know which players to pick for the big games & what team talk is needed to get the best out of them.

[locky82]

I have never signed players due to their mental attributes. I'm going to have to go after a cup final XI now. Can you scout by mental attributes? I resigned from Len last night and am still looking for a new club. Thanks for your help. 

[phnompenhandy]

Yeah, as mentioned the 'big matches' hidden attribute could be the issue.

However, let me throw out another issue that gamers commonly overlook, especially with lower league teams, but also affects premier league teams in real life too.

It's your pre-season schedule. What can happen is that the manager pushes the squad hard in pre-season - high fitness training, loads of friendlies. Come the end of the season some players are getting jaded. To off-set that, if you know you're going to be in the play-offs, reduce your training schedules to low, give players rests, and rotate them so that they are fresh for those extra matches.

[suncrush]

Yeah, if you're making deep cup runs, playing in continental competitions, etc., too many friendlies is actually a killer.  Schedule just enough to get your starting XI match fit, and schedule reserve friendlies to get your subs up and running.

 

And you may need a deeper squad.  Some people like to manage a small squad, but with a top EPL side, you can play 65 competitive matches in a season, without playing a single cup replay and at that level, your players will have international matches.  You're going to need a full second XI.