Making the next step up...

[ashlfcowen]

I've had about a 5 month lay off from the game because I grew frustrated with it and instead of taking a visit here and reading the countless amount of free information from you gurus and actually asking for help I just quit.

Moving on...I spent all day yesterday reading what I could and even took notes. I then applied this to my current team and so far I'm doing alright, but I can definitely do better...

Philosophy

One thing I think Liverpool's midfield possess is stamina and their ability to apply pressure. So like so many aspire to, I want to;

- Play a pressing game high up the pitch.

- Look to my creative players to make the magic happen by paying a fast, short passing game.

Simple, right?!... So this is how I set out to achieve this..

Using the Team Instructions:

- Shorter Passing - 3rd best passing team in the league, so figured my players had the skills to adopt a slow passing game.

- Low Crosses - As Studge isn't blessed with great heading skills

- Push Higher Up - In line with my pressing game

- Close Down More - In line with my pressing game

- Stay on Feet - Because I don't want my players to commit to unnecessary tackles and take the pressure off the pressing

- Higher Tempo - I want some urgency about my team

- Be More Expressive - I want players like Coutinho, Depay, Sterling & Sturridge to do what they do best...

I have used a Standard mentality as I like to assess game by game where I need to be. I fear that by going Control or Attack I might be playing with fire especially as my CB's are not the fastest. I've kept the team shape Flexible as I don't feel I have enough specialized positions to change it from this.

A little bit about what I want to achieve player by player with a screenshot of how they're doing so far...

1. Simon Mignolet - Sweeper Keeper, Defend

Now I know my center backs are not the fastest, which is risk playing a high pressing game. Therefore I have set out SM to be a sweeperkeeper- the issue is he's not electric, so I've placed him on defend.

2. Nathanial Clyne / Jon Flanagan - Full Back, Support

I don't want him to commit to attacks as I want to leave the AMR(S) with that role. I want him to offer something going forward but want him to mainly focus on being part of a solid defence.

3. Mamadou Sakho & EA Balanta - Center Backs, Defensive

No nonsense CB's.

4. Alberto Moreno / Brad Smith - Wing Back, Attack

Main focus is to occupy the space left by the IF(A). Not overly bothered by his defensive role as that's what HB's job is for

5. Lucas / Lucas Romero - Half Back, Defend

Sit in front of the two CB's, providing cover for bombarding WB(A). A very much 'break up the play' type of man.

6. Jordan Henderson / Youri Tielemans - Center Midfield, Attack

I want either of these two to be a goalscoring threat in the team. To arrive late in the box, assist, score goals and generally cause problems.

PI's: Close Down More

7. Emre Can / Steven Gerrard - Deep Lying Playmaker, Support

My 'Pirlo' of the team. Generally just sit back, dictate play, spread passes and just look to receive the ball in space and do something with it.

8. Raheem Sterling / Lazar Markovic - Winger, Support

These two have the pace to pick the ball up just past the half way line and look to do something with it. Ideally beat their man and cross! Unfortunately both have "Cuts Inside" PPM's!!!

PI's: Close Down More

9. Memphis Depay / Phillippe Coutinho - Inside Forward, Attack

When they receive the ball, I want them to cut inside and generally cause havoc, scoring goals and assisting.

PI's: Close Down More

10. Daniel Sturridge / Gabriel Barbosa - Complete Striker, Support

I'm not sure what I want these two to do- score goals?! contribute to play somewhat?!

PI's: Close Down More

Now as I said, it's decent- some games I look great, others not much and the inconsistency means I'm not in the position I want to be in. Why? Because my general style of play isn't great, and sometimes I struggle, especially to defend.

I'm probably in a better position than some people who post here, BUT, I really want to up my game and improve results / player stats according to their role and what I want.

Premier League

Champions League

Capital One Cup

Judging from what I've posted already; are there any obvious changes you guys would look to implement before I start breaking down games where I've dropped points?

[bababooey]

I hate Liverpool, but I'd love to help you out.

1. Your system overall looks well balanced, that's a great start. I would recommend adding 1 more attack duty though. On that right flank, perhaps Clyne? You want to make sure you've got someone making those runs into the box from each strata of play (forward, midfield, defense)

2. I'm assuming you want to use more of a back 3 when you have the ball? The halfback will tend to act like a 3rd center back when in possession.

3. I would suggest making changes to your mentality and team instructions. I would change to either "control" or "attacking" and then remove almost all of the TI's except for "shorter passing" "stay on feet" and "be more expressive" The idea here is simplicity. You've said it yourself that you only recently got back into the game. Adding in a bunch of TI's is usually where people go wrong. The mentality setting of "control" or "attacking" would be an excellent start place to represent the type of football you want to play (fast tempo, pressing high(ish), etc.) Don't worry about being too aggressive here. Although it kills me to say this, Liverpool is a good team and you shouldn't worry about being hit on the break all that often. Just don't set the d-line any higher via TI's and don't use an offsides trap until you have defenders capable of doing that..

4. By changing the overall mentality you can work towards playing a style that is more like what you're after, while also reducing the number of TI's which can cause issues further down the road for you.

Looking at the results, I think you're doing great. If you have questions about making changes in the match, fire away. But like I said, you seem to be doing very very well. Especially in the Champions League!

One final though, using a lone striker on support is wise, but make sure that you've still got a proper attacking threat from a wide forward, like Countinho is an IF-A. Just keep an eye out that he's getting enough supply. The partnership you've created between the striker and left wide forward is very smart. So, this looks pretty solid to me.

Good luck. And Go Man United!

[ashlfcowen]

Thanks for the reply mate! In further inspection, I think I'm doing alright- I just need to step it up a notch and try and work out why I'm doing well and how I can do better, so thanks for the reply

I hate Liverpool, but I'd love to help you out.

1. Your system overall looks well balanced, that's a great start. I would recommend adding 1 more attack duty though. On that right flank, perhaps Clyne? You want to make sure you've got someone making those runs into the box from each strata of play (forward, midfield, defense)

That's what I want from Henderson / Tielemans. Would switching Clyne to an attacking duty not disrupt Sterling/Markovic? It's those two I want proving the nuisance down the wings, I just want them to drop deeper to start causing troubles as they have the skill and pace too.

2. I'm assuming you want to use more of a back 3 when you have the ball? The halfback will tend to act like a 3rd center back when in possession.

Correct. I did start off with a DMC/D but found he didn't offer as much protection as the halfback, especially when Moreno was bombing forward and leaving gaps.

3. I would suggest making changes to your mentality and team instructions. I would change to either "control" or "attacking" and then remove almost all of the TI's except for "shorter passing" "stay on feet" and "be more expressive" The idea here is simplicity. You've said it yourself that you only recently got back into the game. Adding in a bunch of TI's is usually where people go wrong. The mentality setting of "control" or "attacking" would be an excellent start place to represent the type of football you want to play (fast tempo, pressing high(ish), etc.) Don't worry about being too aggressive here. Although it kills me to say this, Liverpool is a good team and you shouldn't worry about being hit on the break all that often. Just don't set the d-line any higher via TI's and don't use an offsides trap until you have defenders capable of doing that..

You're right. Although the results have been great, I don't think my pressing game has and I feel I don't see games out early enough as I spend too long assessing what to do. When I do go Attack mid-game, my D-line is too high and I get undone with a few balls over the top. As a result, I've now dropped my TI's to:

- Shorter Passing

- Stay on Feet

- Higher Tempo

- Be More Expressive and changed my mentality to Attacking.

When it comes to playing top teams i.e. Chelsea, would it benefit dropping back to Defensive and then bringing up the TI's to encourage the high pressing game more seeing as you suggest going Attacking will do this automatically?

Looking at the results, I think you're doing great. If you have questions about making changes in the match, fire away. But like I said, you seem to be doing very very well. Especially in the Champions League!

One final though, using a lone striker on support is wise, but make sure that you've still got a proper attacking threat from a wide forward, like Countinho is an IF-A. Just keep an eye out that he's getting enough supply. The partnership you've created between the striker and left wide forward is very smart. So, this looks pretty solid to me.

I must admit, since posting this my results have improved and now Sturridge is sat on 18 goals in 18 starts and Depay on 23 in 23. Great, yes, but after them is Sterling on 8 and Henderson on 3. Their assists aren't bad, with the former on 9 and the latter on 10 respectively, but I need them to chip in with more goals as Coutinho is very much a different player to Depay in the IF(A) position and Tielemans different to Henderson in the CM(A) position, so if either of my starting 2 were injured I think I'd struggle...

Good luck. And Go Man United!

Not even in another life ;o)

[bababooey]

Thanks for the reply mate! In further inspection, I think I'm doing alright- I just need to step it up a notch and try and work out why I'm doing well and how I can do better, so thanks for the reply

That's what I want from Henderson / Tielemans. Would switching Clyne to an attacking duty not disrupt Sterling/Markovic? It's those two I want proving the nuisance down the wings, I just want them to drop deeper to start causing troubles as they have the skill and pace too.

Correct. I did start off with a DMC/D but found he didn't offer as much protection as the halfback, especially when Moreno was bombing forward and leaving gaps.

You're right. Although the results have been great, I don't think my pressing game has and I feel I don't see games out early enough as I spend too long assessing what to do. When I do go Attack mid-game, my D-line is too high and I get undone with a few balls over the top. As a result, I've now dropped my TI's to:

- Shorter Passing

- Stay on Feet

- Higher Tempo

- Be More Expressive and changed my mentality to Attacking.

When it comes to playing top teams i.e. Chelsea, would it benefit dropping back to Defensive and then bringing up the TI's to encourage the high pressing game more seeing as you suggest going Attacking will do this automatically?

I must admit, since posting this my results have improved and now Sturridge is sat on 18 goals in 18 starts and Depay on 23 in 23. Great, yes, but after them is Sterling on 8 and Henderson on 3. Their assists aren't bad, with the former on 9 and the latter on 10 respectively, but I need them to chip in with more goals as Coutinho is very much a different player to Depay in the IF(A) position and Tielemans different to Henderson in the CM(A) position, so if either of my starting 2 were injured I think I'd struggle...

Not even in another life ;o)

1. No, an attacking wide defender is a great option on the right flank because you can achieve an overlap (or underlap if you prefer) with the more advanced wide player. This is a very common tactical principle and it's one that shouldn't be ignored because.. well.. it's extremely useful! For instance, in my tactics (if I use dual wide players) I like to make sure I always have, on one side, a wide defender who overlaps a wide forward cutting inside, and then on the other side a wide defender who supports a wide attack by staying either under him or cutting inside. This creates variability in attack without disrupting your defense.

2. Sounds good here. The halfback is a great option in this system. Maybe an Anchor man would also be a good choice? Really what counts is watching how it all plays out and then making adjustments as needed.

3. It really depends on what's happening on the pitch. I don't recommend trying to anticipate things like: ' okay, playing Chelsea I'm gonna switch to defensive and then change these TI's, and then etc. etc.' The reason for this is that tactics and the players carrying them out do not occur in a vacuum. Anything can happen and you have to take into consideration that these are just players being asked to do something. But they're not robots either

So in that case, just try to make common sense choices. Playing an aggressive / high press against Chelsea probably isn't wise. It's helpful to create a 2nd tactic, a plan B that might offer more defensive stability and less of an aggressive approach for those kind of matches. But, don't feel like you need to make DRASTIC changes either. You aren't a league 2 side playing against Chelsea.

4. Sounds to me like your players are doing fantastic, and I honestly wouldn't change much in your attack, if anything. If you find yourself in an injury crisis just remember that when making your tactics you need to balance suiting the players you've got, and your overall approach. I think someone like Depay is more than capable of being a prolific wide forward. If anything, I think he's better than Countiho as a goal scorer starting out wide, because I see Coutinho as more of a classic #10.

[Jambo98]

One thing I wouldn't under estimate is the impact of team gelling. You have made a large number of first team signings in one window and it will take a while to settle (that's some financial outlay by the way!)

The overall system looks reasonably well though out to me. Just don't go changing things too quickly or without asking yourself really 'why?' and 'what do I hope to achieve?'

Finally don't forget how ppms will shape how those top class players will operate in each role.

[ashlfcowen]

One thing I wouldn't under estimate is the impact of team gelling. You have made a large number of first team signings in one window and it will take a while to settle (that's some financial outlay by the way!)

The overall system looks reasonably well though out to me. Just don't go changing things too quickly or without asking yourself really 'why?' and 'what do I hope to achieve?'

Finally don't forget how ppms will shape how those top class players will operate in each role.

This was overlooked in pre-season which is why I think I struggled at the start. I focused on fitness which I now realise was the wrong thing to do and probably why I suffered a fair bit of injuries through the season.

You're right- I used the editor and got rid of everyone who I didn't see fit for reasonable prices, i.e Johnson for 5.5M, Balotelli for £16M, Lambert for £2.5M etc so I had around £40M to spend on top of the £20M I was given at the start. Basically I pretended I was Klopp taking over the helm at the start of the 2015/16 season, ha.

Since this post, things have been great and I'm learning more and more about the game, so thank you Bababooey & Jambo.

[bababooey]

This was overlooked in pre-season which is why I think I struggled at the start. I focused on fitness which I now realise was the wrong thing to do and probably why I suffered a fair bit of injuries through the season.

You're right- I used the editor and got rid of everyone who I didn't see fit for reasonable prices, i.e Johnson for 5.5M, Balotelli for £16M, Lambert for £2.5M etc so I had around £40M to spend on top of the £20M I was given at the start. Basically I pretended I was Klopp taking over the helm at the start of the 2015/16 season, ha.

Since this post, things have been great and I'm learning more and more about the game, so thank you Bababooey & Jambo.

Awesome. Keep it up! And definitely download llama3's FM 15 pairs and combinations guide stickied in the tactics forum. And also THOG's guide "lines and diamonds." They're seriously the 2 best tools you can have at your disposal, and if anything, they'll increase your knowledge of the game by a zillion %.