The way of the Light: Sunderland AFC - FM19

[Unigo]

Introduction
So, after watching the documentary ‘Sunderland til i die’ i couldn’t stop the urge to start a career with the black cats! Of course our mission is to (eventually) play premier league football again, but for now the aim is to stabilize the club. After two relegations in a row we got a lot of work to do, so we need to be realistic. So not too many fancy transfers and aiming for straight promotion, i’m fine laying the foundations for long-term success.

Over the next few posts i’ll try give a rough view on my managerial style, the tactics i will use and an analysis of the players. But before all that, let's get an overall feel of what we’re dealing with here.

Finances
With Ellis selling the club to Donald, Sunderland is now debt-free. And our healthy financial situation is reflected in the transfer funds: we have a budget of 4.45 million, and a wage budget of 1.16 million a month. On top of that: we can use 90% of our transfer revenues to buy new players.

But, it isn’t all positives here. We’re not exceeding our salary cap, but are close to it. And it’s not the amount of players causing this but a few guys with hefty wages. So, that might be something to deal with sooner or later.

Facilities

This is where the true potential comes to light: a stadium with 48.000 seats, good corporate facilities, superb training facilities, good data analysis facilities and excellent youth facilities. All in all this seems like fertile ground to plant the seeds for long term success!

Staff

Not really anything special here. Quite some spots are filled, but we have a few empty seats. This goes for the senior squad, the -23 and the -18.

Squad - global

In the near future we’ll look into the squad with a bit more detail, but a brief overview shows us a few things:

• At first sight it seems we have a sufficient amount of players, but i’m still a bit worried. Playing in league one can be brutal and a deep enough squad can prove to be the difference between a **** season and a successful one. If you don’t believe me: ask any Sunderland fan witnessing last years relegation…
• Our average player wage is at 39.5K a month. The average in the league is 12K. So, on average we’re paying THREE Times more for our players than the others. That can’t continue! Then again: this also goes for player value, so we might be sitting on a goldmine. (or a expensive pile of ****…)
• Our goalkeepers are slightly above average, compared to the rest of the league.
• Our defenders are average, but are lacking in heading, jumping and strength
• Our midfield has good passing, technique and vision, but is average on the other attributes.
• We have some decent attackers, apparently capable of some good headers as well.
• Overall, the lack of natural fitness should be a concern. especially with the intensive calendar in the UK. Other mentals seem to be above average, though we are lacking some leadership.
• Last but not least: INJURIES! I don’t know if Sunderland has been on a combat-mission to Syria, but for some reason 7 of the senior squad’s players are out with an injury, most of them for more than a month. That’s a lovely start to a season...

Next up: tactics and a squad analysis!

 

[scarp]

Looking forward as I've been Sunderland fan for a while already!

[SixPointer]

Best of luck (from a Newcastle fan) following. 

[Unigo]

Update 2: player analysis
Before we setup our tactic, we need to know what players we have available. Then again: i’m not letting it all depend on the players, i have some ideas in mind beforehand as well. But, first things first: who are we having available. I wont post pics of every player, only the ones that seem interesting to me. 

GOALKEEPERS
Jon Mclaughlin
If Jon was a fieldplayer, he would be in the last good years of his career given his age. But, he’s not, so good for him. Jon is 30 years old and has on average some decent stats. He’s capable of playing as a regular goalkeeper but is even more at home playing as a sweeper keeper. The only weak points he has are his vision, acceleration and first touch. Which is kind of weird for a sweeper, since those stats are more relevant for that role. 

Robbin Ruiter
Robbin is kind of the same story as Jon. Decent stats, 31 years old, decent stats all around, with only a few weaker points. Command of area is not as good as we’d hope for, he’s also lacking some acceleration and first touch. 

Maksymilian Stryjek
Stryjek is 21 years old and somewhat of a talent. Not nearly skilled enough to play the in the first team yet, but he has 4 star potential. His stats are **** for sweeper, but he might make a decent goalkeeper in a few years. 

CENTRAL DEFENDERS
Glenn Loovens
Another Dutchy, i’m feeling right at home already! Then again: Glenn is old enough to be my dad, so that’s a tad worrying. Funny enough, he’s quite decent for a defender. Our average lack of jumping and heading-ability sure isn’t caused by Loovens. Basically he seems rock-solid as long as you don’t ask him to move. He’s worth almost nothing, and isn’t earning too much either, so he might be useful to have around!

Jack Baldwin
Jack is 24 years old so he has his prime years ahead of him. He looks a bit like a younger version of Glenn: decent stats, not much of a runner and (what a surprise!) even capable of deflecting some high balls with his head. Then again, there isn't much extra in him, so if he’s playing it would be in a standard central-defending role, or even as a no-nonsense centre-back.

Alim Ozturk
Alim is about the age of Jack and shares the most of his attributes. He’s big, can jump and head, and, as an extra: is somewhat technically gifted. With a bit of imagination he can play as a ball playing central defender. Then again: he lacks in the concentration and decisions department, so that might be a vulnerability.

And.. shockingly… that’s it! Of Course Lamine Kone is also one of our defenders, but he’s on loan for the entire season at RC Strasbourg, so we can’t make use of him. In the youth squads there’s no player getting above the 1.5 star rating, so we might need to bring in some fresh blood here.
 

BACKS
Donald Love
Wonderful name, i have to give him that. He’s a right-back, with decent stats. Nothing really jumps out, except for his workrate and stamina. His concentration is his weakness though, so that’s not too good. He is 23 years old though, so he still has some potential.

Reece James
Reece is 24 years old, so he too has some potential. Reece is a lefty, he only lacks a bit in composure, other than that he’s quite decent really!    Also, just like Love: good workrate and stamina. These two might be a nice pair for the future!

Bryan Oviedo
Ah, Oviedo, a familiar face from the documentary. He earns a ******** of money, but he’s worth a few coins as well. And, he has something to show for it: he is by far the best left back we have. Might be a starter for us!

Tom Flanagan
Tom is a 26 year old right back, who is slightly better than Love. I would like to see a bit more crossing ability from him, but then again: we can’t complain. Might be a starter for us.

Adam Matthews
Someone has been buying too much right backs and should have brought in a centre back… Matthews is a 26 year old right back who is about equal to love. But, if you look at the wages, Matthews makes around 60K more a month. The guy might be a Sunderland-relic, but he won’t be a starter and that’s an awful lot of money to pay for a benchwarmer. 
 

MIDFIELD
Lee Cattermole
Lee is somewhat of a special case: he earns 145K a month, which is almost 12% of our total wage budget and is 30 years old so will likely decline in form from now on. But, he really is a solid defensive oriented midfielder. Great stats in aggression, marking, teamwork, workrate, positioning, bravery make him a giant pain in the ass for our opponents. On top of that: he’s playing for Sunderland since 2009, played 204 matches and has great leadership skills. He might earn more than our defenders combined, but might be worth it if we use him wisely.

Luke O’Nien
O’Nien is a young player (23 years old) who recently joined Sunderland. And to be honest: i wonder why. He’s not that impressive, though he has some good workrate attributes and is two footed. He might be more of a back-up than a starter for us.

Max Power
Max Power… what a name! 24 years old on a loan from Wigan, but joining us permanently in the winter. And, he’s quite great! decent stats, good workrate, stamina and a decent penalty taker. For most of the midfield positions he doesn't have any major holes in his game it seems.

Dylan Mcgeouch
Dylan, age 25, is worth 4.1 million and recently joined Sunderland. One of our most valuable players and not even earning too much! He’s more of a playmaker type, and has the stats to show for it. Great passing, composure, decisions and vision will work for him. He’s not much of a workhorse, and is quite small and light, so he won’t fit every midfield slot, but he sure is valuable to have around.

Chris Maguire
Chris is somewhat weird. He can play on both wings, but is about as fast as a turtle. So, attacking midfielder or a more controlling role on the wings is more suiting to his attributes. He has some decent stats, but nothing really stands out except for his free kick taking. On top of that: he’s 29 years old, so any dramatic improvement won’t happen here.

George Honeyman
Honeyman is comparable to Maguire. Not really a winger due to a lack of speed, but also capable of playing in attacking midfield. He’s not as slow as Chris, but for a winger we would like to see a bit more speed. He lacks any defensive skills whatsoever, but brings good technique, workrate, stamina and teamwork to the table. And: he’s only 23 and can still grow. Also important: he’s been with us since 2011, which is something to appreciate.
 

WINGERS
Lynden Gooch
Lynden is a young guy with great acceleration and decent pace, capable of playing on the right and left wing, although he’s more at home on the right one (and being a rightfooter). The first thing that i noticed is the lack of crossing or finishing ability. He has decent workrate, technique and dribbling, but if he can’t convert those runs to assists he might be less useful to us. Something to keep in mind.

Aiden McGeady
Aiden is a legend, and has the age of a legend as well. More comfortable as an inside forward than a winger, which (again) is weird given his average finishing rating and great crossing ability. His passing and technique are good, but being 32 years old shows on his physical skills and lack of speed, acceleration and workrate. Also, he’s tempted to cut inside and shoot from distance which compliments his above average long range shooting. But i’m still a bit worried about his declining physique. 

Duncan Watmore
Duncan is 24 and still has his prime ahead of him. He’s incredibly fast and quick in acceleration, Crosses are incredibly **** though. which is a shame for a right winger who’s right footed. Dribbling is good, technique is not, Workrate is also above average. That’s about it… he’s great in some aspects, and poor in others…
 

STRIKERS
Jerome Sinclair
Jerome is with us on a loan from Watford. He’s young, technically gifted, with decent finishing. Other than that: nothing really stands out. 

Charlie Wyke
Wyke is a typical target man. Strong, slow, great heading and good jumping. Also has some decent workrate. Other than that: nothing really stands out. He’s 25 years old and has played his fair share of games before coming to Sunderland, playing 200 games and scoring 64 goals. Especially at his last two clubs (Bradford and Carlistle) he scored 54 goals in 133 matches.

Josh Maja
Josh is (if we can keep him) our main man for the future. He’s 19 years old and has some real talent. His finishing could improve, and so could his technique and mentals, but makes up for it in speed, balance and determination (20, anyone?). 

 

And, that’s all! So all in all we have some decent players, but we might need to get some fresh blood in almost every role, depending on the formation we use of course.  Next up: building a formation!
 

[Unigo]

Part 3: tactics and formation time...
Now, tactics-time. First off: what did we learn from our player-analysis?

1. At first sight the defenders seemed poor headers and jumpers. But, the closer look showed that this was (likely) caused by our backs, because our centre’s are actually quite decent in this area. So, i was inclined to set my defense up quite wide, to prevent crosses, now i feel we might need to go for a bit tighter defense and hope we can deal with the crosses. This also should help the central defenders in not covering too much distance, since they are all quite slow. 
2. Our team has high work-rate which might be a good foundation for a more gegenpressing-like style of play. But, we also lack natural fitness, and have a shortage of players on almost every position. On top of that: we play 46 games in the league this season, and will compete in two cups. This season will be gruesome,  so i opt for a less intensive tactic, without too much gegen pressing. 
3. Learned from the numbers game: goals conceded are more costly than the benefit of goals scored. So i’m not going for an all-out attacking play. Also, i like my defensive foundations to be solid, so i’m likely to use 4 defenders. 
4. I want Cattermole to be able to play his defensive midfield game. Also, i’m inclined to use 1 striker, since we only have 2 decent ones capable of playing on this league’s level (I don’t think Sinclair is ready for the league one yet). 
5. So that leaves (next to Cattermole) 4 spots to be filled on the midfield and the wings. Now, the wings are a bit of a headache for me. We have some okay- wingers, but nothing really impresses me. Then again: we have plenty of them (including the slow ones that i described in the midfield-section. So, i think i’ll use wingers. more specifically: one winger, one inside-forward. 
6. This leaves 2 spots for the midfield. I want Cattermole to be more defensive orientated, and i like to have a playmaker to distribute the ball towards the wings or directly to the striker. With Lee (Cattermole) staying behind, i think we could use some more bodies in the attacking 3rd, so i might go for a more mobile midfielder there, somewhat like a box-to-box player. But, not on the inside-forward side, i don’t want them covering the same space.

So, that brings us down to this formation:

A few other things i did:

• WIth McGeady playing as an inside forward and cutting in from the side, there’s room for the left back to push up and (if we’re lucky) swing in a cross. So, we gave the left back a attacking mentality
• I went with the ball-winning midfielder role for cattermole, since it suits his aggressiveness. We might tone it down to central midfielder with a defending role if it’s too much
• We pick a balanced approach for now, i might make a second tactic with a bit more caution for games where we are the weaker side
• For now i go for standard tempo and passing-directness. I do want to work the ball in the box, to prevent a lot of long-range shots on goal. 
• When possession has been lost we go for re-group, i already explained why i don’t want a more counterpressing style of play. When we win the ball back though, i’m fine with going on the counter. To compliment this i’m enabling the goalkeeper to distribute the ball quickly, where to is up to him. 
• Last, we use a narrow defense with a normal defensive line and less-urgent pressing intensity. 
• I created a second tactic for games where we are being the weaker side (for some reason) with a lower defensive line and line of engagement and a more coutious approach.

Next up, we're going to start playing, so i might come back with some transfer news!

[Unigo]

Part 4: one more thing to do....

Before i started progressing and scouting around the transfermarket, i had to do one more thing. For some reason i do this every time i start at a new club: i make a spreadsheet. And, this is what it looks like:

So, what are we looking at: 
Based on our previous analysis and the way we like to play, i've created a tactic. Now, i've entered all those positions in the spreadsheet and marked the preferred (blue) and critical (green) attributes. Next, i've calculated the sum of those attributes and multiplied the critical ones by two, because i want those to be of more influence on the end result. The last step is adding those two sums together and drawing an average from them. This gives us the score we're looking for. These scores indicate, based on the attributes only (so no personality, traits, etc.) if a player could do well on a position.

Why do we go through all this? Well, it gives some interesting insights, and can be used to rate a scouted player. But, what did we learn from this exercise regarding Sunderland? Well:

• Tom Flanagan might be a better centre-back than Ozturk currently, so if we regard him as a viable stand-in for that position we already have some more depth in the centre-back department.
• Adam Matthews not only has a very high wage, he's also the 3rd choice on the right wing. Both Flanagan and Love are quite a bit better. Another reason to sell him.
• We lack midfielders capable of playing as a box-to-box player. If we buy a midfielder, we have to make sure he is well suited for this role.
• Jerome Sinclair was previously perceived as the 3rd option as a striker, but if we use an advanced forward he might actually be the best option.

Well, Now then... onwards to the transfermarket!

[TheDecentOne]

How is this going? Recently began a Sunderland save myself after watching the documentary & was impressed with the detail you have put into this save.