Football Manager for Dummies - Guide

Theory in Practice - Assessing the squad and creating a tactic

Assessing the squad and creating a tactic

In this part, I'll assess my squad, figure out a fitting tactic and try detailing my thought process in as much detail as possible. Please feel free to comment, should something about my approach not be clear or you have a better way of doing things!

VfB Stuttgart

I'm not yet familiar with the squad and I don't have any ideas about what tactical system I'm going to use.

Firstly, I'll identify my best players. They're the ones I'm going to try building the tactic around, so I need to be aware of their strengths and weaknesses. I use the Reports Squad view and sort it by Ability.



Right on top of our Assistant Manager's list is Morten Thorsby, an industrious midfielder I've picked up in January. With exceptional Work Rate, Team Work and Stamina, he should make a tidy BBM, which is the Role I'll place him in for now. There's one thing I should take note of, however—his Does Not Dive Into Tackles Player Trait:




The above description lets me know that, while he might be willing to work his socks off, he will not be tackling too often. In order to make up for that, I'll be pairing him up with a proper destructor (either alongside or behind him).

Next up, is Marc-Oliver Kempf. With 16 Composure, 13 Passing, 13 Technique, 13 Vision and Tries To Play Way Out Of Trouble Player Trait, he is a Ball Playing Defender. Being left-footed, I place him in the left DC slot.

Knowing that I've got a BPD who will be attempting defence-splitting passes from deep, I immediately start thinking about how to make best use of those. In order to give him at least one passing target for now (player making frequent forward runs), I decide to go with an attacking LCM.

This is when I start thinking about possible Formations:

• I've got a BBM who needs another central midfielder for defensive cover
  
• I've got a BPD who can play out of defence and needs enough passing targets (CM-Attack + wide forward/striker?)
  

Knowing that I need at least three central midfielders, I choose the 4-3-3 DM Wide. It enables me to utilize a defensive midfielder (defensive cover for the BBM unwilling to tackle); knowing that I'll Play Out Of Defence to make the most of my BPD, I decide on a HB—a role very suitable for possession play.

After fitting the rest of my best players into their best roles, this is what I end up with:


While I fit Fernandes, Mavropanos and Anton into the Roles I already decided on (CD, HB and CM-Attack), Connor Roberts was another player that gave me an idea where to go next. With good Work Rate, Stamina, Off The Ball movement and Gets Forward Whenever Possible Player Trait, he should make a decent attacking wide defender. Since he lacks in Dribbling and Flair, and also possesses the Runs With Ball Rarely Player Trait, an attacking Wing Back Role might perhaps be too demanding; I settle on an attacking Full Back instead.

In order to make the most of his frequent forward runs, I will be using an Inverted Winger ahead of him. A Role that cuts inside frequently should also fit my Formation nicely (provide striker with more support centrally).



And just like that, the jigsaw is starting to come together. I'm left with empty LWB, LW and ST positions.

Knowing that my left CM is on Attack Duty, I opt for a defensive WB—a Role that mostly stays behind, but isn't afraid to put in a cross should a right opportunity arise.

Ahead of him, I decide on an IF-Support. With higher Individual Mentality than any other wide forward Role, it should act as another passing target for the BPD (frequent forward runs). Having Take More Risks Player Instruction pre-selected, it should also help creating chances for the attacking CM and a striker, which is now the only empty Role left.

With a supporting IF behind him, I choose a Pressing Forward on Attack Duty. With 17 Acceleration, 16 Pace and 18 Strength, 26 y/o Brayan Riascos should fit the mold perfectly.

That completes the tactic:

• Positive: slightly increased risk-taking profile
  
• Shorter Passing: in order to get my FB-At and central midfielders involved, I decide on a more patient build-up style (Shorter Passing also lowers Tempo down to Standard)
  
• Play Out Of Defence: make the most of my technical BPD, as well as prevent needless long clearances that could bypass the hard-working midfield
  
• Higher Defensive Line: defensive line positioned slightly higher, which gives my attacking FB and central midfielders less ground to cover and gets them involved in attacking transitions faster
  
• Higher Line Of Engagement: engage opposition higher up the pitch to force mistakes or long clearances
  
• Split-press: in order to try winning possession back more aggressively, the front four (PF, IF, IW, CM) were individually instructed to Close Down More; aim is to force long clearances and win second balls with the rest of the team positioned in deeper areas
  

Initial Results

Four games in, things are looking good! Despite being expected to fight against relegation, we're currently sitting 3rd in February.



Our most notable performance so far came against Hertha Berlin—multiple good chances our forwards would have converted on another day and a solid defensive display:



I also thought it was worth sharing the following goal against Schalke. It demonstrates the split-press described above perfectly; opposition tries playing out of defence, CB gets pressed and forced into a clearance, our defence wins the second ball and triggers the counter-attack from which we end up scoring:

End of Season Update

As expected, Bayern ran away with the title, but we managed to finish third and secure Champions League football.





In terms of our tactic, the only change I made was drop the Line Of Engagement back to default (Higher D-Line + Standard LoE + split-press). I found that our midfield was getting pulled out of positions too easily, as they were stepping up to press opposition who could then play right through us. I made the change early in the first half against Bayern and since it made us look more defensively stable, I stuck with it.

End-of-season stats:





I'm a sucker for clean sheets, so conceding least goals in the league was certainly pleasing.

Final Words

Although explaining thought process in text can be quite difficult, hopefully you get the idea. If I was to summarize the whole post, my initial squad assessment would look something like this:

• Sort Squad view (Reports) by Ability, identify best players
• Place them in their best Roles, start thinking about the rest of the tactic as you go
  
• Don't take star ratings at face value, make sure to compare similar players manually
• Take special note of key attributes and Player Traits

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Final words

If you made it this far, I applaud your dedication! Hopefully you enjoyed the read and if there's something you don't understand or want to comment on, please feel free.