[FM23] & [FM24] Ernst Happel Challenge - If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again

[SixPointer]

A Star Is Born

When switching to the front three I toyed with the idea of wide men as strikers or strikers as wide men, this is something that in time will become a flexible and fluid movement. The need for players who can play in both lines allowed me to deploy a prospect a hybrid positional trial.

Standard Liège v Cercle Brugge

To add some context and answer some questions about the ability of the outsides forwards ability in defence I think it’s crucial to start here.

As you can see the left flank of Brugge harbours a nice partnership and one with an overlapping wing back. The right side perhaps a little more conservative but it’s still hosts the most creative player.

The decision is to shut off both flanks, in doing so inflict every opponent instruction on the wide men, the key part here in helping those wide forwards when out of possession is asking them to mark the opposing wing backs, and to tackle harder.

Young Charlie showing here exactly what these triggers can help apply. He tracks the LWB all the way into our own half and then cuts out a lame pass. A fine example off the player tackling hard, and from his defensive actions you can see how hard he worked out of possession.

A personal favourite was his ability to read the play here and cut out the pass and shift us onto the attack.

Brugge came into the match on a six game unbeaten run and the somehow managed to come out the other side of it seven unbeaten.

This must be viewed as two points dropped when you look at the volume of chances created, four clear cuts with an XG of 2.94. The difference being Brugge buried the one chance they got, we hit the post not just once but twice and had one ruled out for offside.

Their goal was totally against the run of play, while ours came when we needed it most. Breaking the lines of play quickly, moving into the final third with a decisive crosses to find the new kid on the block at the back post.

[13th Man]

Interesting slow drip.  I remember that you had your forwards man-mark opposing FB/WBs to keep the flanks secure even with 3 up front.  Looks like you're doing a bit of that here too then?

[SixPointer]

2 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Interesting slow drip.  I remember that you had your forwards man-mark opposing FB/WBs to keep the flanks secure even with 3 up front.  Looks like you're doing a bit of that here too then?

Yeah exactly that! There is certainly a lot of what happened at Odd going on here. I think where the variation will eventually come is when I go from using AMR/L and flat front three. I’m going to round up this particular setup in the coming days then get the season finished as I have the weekend off work. Then come the summer I plan on having three systems set in stone. Each having the core principles but enough variation to match many opponents. I need to get back into the habit of subtle role or personnel changes to get the edge  

 

[SixPointer]

The Penny Drops

Time really isn’t on my side now, with that the end of march I will do my best to cover the twists and turns off the new system. I want this season finished for the weekend so i can try my best to kick on, disclaimer updates will be less regular but hopefully in the size still pack the usual punch.

Antwerp v Standard Liège

A visit to Antwerp is something you would expect to be tough, but the Flemish side really have struggled at home. There 4-2-3-1 shape is something that has trouble us since arriving in Belgium, especially with two natural overlaps, thus a nice test for the new system.

After three minutes I thought the tactical shift was for the bin, by ninety minutes it was here to stay.

The idea to high press a vulnerable home side is necessary, but it allowed them to take the lead as the bypassed the press and opened us up like a tin of beans. That said games aren’t won and lost in the first five minutes, and from our key passes you can see how winning the ball high and launching the attack close to their goal brought success in the end.

The high press started to pay off, and we went really close to equalising. Magnificent work from Charlie and Maja to force the opposition, the ball from the right perfect for the Dragon at the back post but headed over. It wouldn’t take long however for the ball down the right to pay off, and Maja this time made no mistake.

A well worked 50th league career goal from Dragus sent us into the lead. The short throw starts with the Romanian hitman and finishes with him.

The main thing I want to highlight here is the work of the midfield two and how the combine, I’ve long been a fan of the anchor-man and it simplicity as a role, but I often feel its overlooked for its effect on the ball, here a simple pass to his more creative team mate after carrying the ball opens up the pitch, the volante provides the Ying to his yang and as a double pivot with one player staying and one going I can’t see past it.

Raskin with a rocket, he smashes his freekick into the far corner. Beautiful technique and caps of the perfect performance, he looks at home in the attacking Volante role, arriving late in the space left by the front three while have the desire and work rate to help the anchor at the other end.

Dragus completed the scoring this time from the other side of the front three but again from a short throw, Charlie with the assist and this shows the value in having them swap from side to side throwing man marking plans out the window for the opponent.

Regarding the double pivot, these are my two pairings. Both offer similar ideas in the sense we have one more attacking/creative player matched with one more defensively minded. But the key parts are in the difference scenarios that they are deployed.

The volante, anchor combo is suited against midfields I feel I can overrun, and when think there will be space when arriving late or when picking up second balls and matches up nicely with the current front three.

The RPM and BWM is utilised when I need to be cleverer on the ball and when I expect to dominate possession, this is used in combination with a different front three, the DLF becomes an AF, and the CF becomes DLF. This helps with a central overload as all three central players become supports and allows the flanks to be the target ball in behind.

Edited May 12, 2023 by SixPointer

[Jogo Bonito]

I'll have to take a look at this volante role. I have a mezzala (attack) but will read through the duties of your choice.

[haier_fm]

Regarding the double pivot, I am also lately employing the first combination you have described in my 4231 DM system. A SV & A works really well in shielding the back four. 

Your choice of RPM/BWM is interesting. What is the thinking behind the BWM-S?

 

[SixPointer]

9 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

I'll have to take a look at this volante role. I have a mezzala (attack) but will read through the duties of your choice.

The mezzala is still one of my favourite roles in the game. It’s great for positional play as it’s drifts wide and more importantly the half spaces.

The volante is something I haven’t utilised very often, but with the rework to pivots and shifting to a two man midfield I think dynamic nature of the role and adding moves into channels it can also be a asset in positional play.

The RPM is another role I think will come to life in my two man pivot. Filling the role with Raskin who has the ability to be a playmaker and a ball winner can give it a real edge as well. 
 

6 hours ago, haier_fm said:

Regarding the double pivot, I am also lately employing the first combination you have described in my 4231 DM system. A SV & A works really well in shielding the back four. 

Your choice of RPM/BWM is interesting. What is the thinking behind the BWM-S?

 

So far am finding the SV(a) and A(d) are working in tandem perfectly. I dare say I could go RPM and anchor as well. But the reason I opted for BWM is I wanted a support role so both players advance together. In my eyes the BWM will work well in counter pressing situations when we lose the ball high up in games we’re I expect to dominate the ball. Which is when I’ll likely deploy the RPM. 

[13th Man]

Very interested in seeing the evolution of this double pivot.  In studying the 3-4-3 (Lindsay’s US predecessor liked a variation on the shape) there seems a danger of too much space between the front three and the midfielders. Is this problem solved with the roles (like VOL or RPM)? You don’t seem to have an issue centrally, but I was wondering if there was any trade off.

[SixPointer]

6 minutes ago, 13th Man said:

Very interested in seeing the evolution of this double pivot.  In studying the 3-4-3 (Lindsay’s US predecessor liked a variation on the shape) there seems a danger of too much space between the front three and the midfielders. Is this problem solved with the roles (like VOL or RPM)? You don’t seem to have an issue centrally, but I was wondering if there was any trade off.

It’s still very early in my trials of such a system in FM23. But back with Odd I used a stopper in the central role of the back three to step onto players breaking past the middle two. This was before wide centre backs became a role though.

I think every system has a trade of no matter how you look at it. The issue of being hammered down our sides is now gone. With that there will always be a trade of centrally. But with two complete players in the middle and the ability high press with three forwards that is my contingency’s plan. Stopping it at source and forcing it wide.

The fact it’s a double pivot in front of a back three still gives me great strength centrally in our own half. Three narrowish forwards stepping onto a back four should force long balls into my back three thus negating the middle two.

you could also use two players in the am slots instead of out and out forwards and get similar results. 

[13th Man]

6 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

But with two complete players in the middle and the ability high press with three forwards that is my contingency’s plan. Stopping it at source and forcing it wide.

I think this is the key, and figured your players and their roles stopped the service. You’ll see in a Born to Run post soon that the shape can sometimes lead to a massive gap, but I think it was a roles and possibly personnel issue. The problem was giving the opposition to much space deep, so they could pick their balls in behind without pressure. Stopping it at the source means you’re getting pressure there.

[SixPointer]

17 minutes ago, 13th Man said:

I think this is the key, and figured your players and their roles stopped the service. You’ll see in a Born to Run post soon that the shape can sometimes lead to a massive gap, but I think it was a roles and possibly personnel issue. The problem was giving the opposition too much space deep, so they could pick their balls in behind without pressure. Stopping it at the source means you’re getting pressure there.

Definitely, pointless having three players in the frontline and allowing them to play out at ease and get into the heart of your team.

That’s not to to be said that you couldn’t use it as a deeper setup and allow them the ball and use the three forwards to block passing lanes.

I think the issues arise if you sit somewhere in-between and allow them just enough time and just enough options.

Players in the double pivot must be of complete nature, you can’t really get by with specialised type as no matter the roles you set you need then to be capable in every sense of central midfield play.

Again you could have two players that compliment each other perfectly and it work but personally when you only have two men doing three men’s work I think it’s vital to have all rounders. 

[Jogo Bonito]

A  really interesting conversation, you guys delve in to this way deeper than I ever do. I'm unlikely to change and spend the time on it, but just reading is knowledge and one day some of these ideas may reach me and provoke some tweaks for improvement. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[SixPointer]

12 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

A  really interesting conversation, you guys delve in to this way deeper than I ever do. I'm unlikely to change and spend the time on it, but just reading is knowledge and one day some of these ideas may reach me and provoke some tweaks for improvement. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

Tbh sometimes if feel I delve to much. Especially when taking on journeymen challenges. It’s kind of stalled my play.

I think the beauty of FM is how we all play, and see things differently and bounce ideas around. 

[Jogo Bonito]

25 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

Tbh sometimes if feel I delve to much. Especially when taking on journeymen challenges. It’s kind of stalled my play.

I think the beauty of FM is how we all play, and see things differently and bounce ideas around. 

Absolutely agreed. My strength is in balanced squad assembly, and it's the part I enjoy most. I've been involved in football in the past so understand the tactical side well enough, but don't have time or passion for it in FM - limited game time hence slow play and less write ups for me too! I can imagine it slows down your play, but it's a part you enjoy and that is all that matters

[SteinkelssonFM]

On 11/05/2023 at 16:01, SixPointer said:

when out of possession is asking them to mark the opposing wing backs, and to tackle harder.

I fully agree with the above, often adding the PI to mark the opposing wingback will help to aid those players defensive outputs...I also am a big fan of tackle harder...not the excessive use we see in many tactics made on YouTube, I like my wing backs to have the PI along with press outside instructions....forcing opponents down either of the chop shop corridors lol.

[SixPointer]

26 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Absolutely agreed. My strength is in balanced squad assembly, and it's the part I enjoy most. I've been involved in football in the past so understand the tactical side well enough, but don't have time or passion for it in FM - limited game time hence slow play and less write ups for me too! I can imagine it slows down your play, but it's a part you enjoy and that is all that matters

That’s it in a nutshell my friend. Do whatever we enjoy most! I like a good career update but I think in truth I should perhaps go down the road of tactical page write ups as that’s my true passion lies. 

[Jogo Bonito]

2 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

I fully agree with the above, often adding the PI to mark the opposing wingback will help to aid those players defensive outputs...I also am a big fan of tackle harder...not the excessive use we see in many tactics made on YouTube, I like my wing backs to have the PI along with press outside instructions....forcing opponents down either of the chop shop corridors lol.

I like the idea of having the WB on tackle harder PI. Do they tackle too aggressively inside the penalty area or make rash 'attack the ball and player' decisions outside of the box? Or usually act sensibly?

[SixPointer]

4 minutes ago, MattyLewis11 said:

I fully agree with the above, often adding the PI to mark the opposing wingback will help to aid those players defensive outputs...I also am a big fan of tackle harder...not the excessive use we see in many tactics made on YouTube, I like my wing backs to have the PI along with press outside instructions....forcing opponents down either of the chop shop corridors lol.

I feel PI’s and certainly OI’s can be the most effective tools when making specific match plans for opponents with certain strengths and weaknesses. 

[SixPointer]

Not Just A flash In The Pan Then

The final write up in my mini tactical series before pushing on and getting the challenge moving again. Game time has been scarce but there is hope on the horizon.

Standard Liège v OH Leuven

Going up against a familiar foe having just come of the back of our cup semi-final. It would be incredibly stupid to forget that Leuven is one of the main reasons a back-up plan was made, there 4-2-3-1 and lethal roaming playmaker wreaked havoc on us as he slipped in their dangerous wide players at ease.

Dishing out back to back demolitions, this time against a side firmly in the mix with us for the European places.

Young Charlie got us underway with a well taken finish inside the box, the switching of the outside front men really does cause problems. There fullbacks had a torrid time, and really failed to perform both defensively and offensively.

Conceding in behind the back line does bring more cause for concern in this early stage of the tactic, but the unsettled nature of the back three hasn’t helped. People have raised concerns about space between the lines and i think i would be very naive to dismiss this as being the sole cause. As you can see the space afforded to the AM, but thats not to say that the back three shouldnt have more than enough to cover the space in behind.

A standard near post corner routine puts Franz side back into the lead, something we have come to expect from his sides. Charlie turned provider again from the advanced forward tole on the left hand side, after nice work from Sobol, this shows the dilemma for their fullbacks, do they mark the forward or close down the wing back.

The fourth goal shows the direct nature of our play, as we transition quickly after winning the clearance, the DLF drops in to link play and creates the space for the RWB to advance, from there on in its the Cruz show as he skips past his man and rifles one in at the near post.

High five, the fifth goal is a perfect blend of being direct as Charlie races down the left hand side after winning the ball back, he picks the perfect pass to the supporting wide centre back, who plays into the feet of the central forward, who lays it off to the volante with a simple lay off the DLF has peeled to the back post and tucks it home. A superb move which captures our free flowing attacking play.

Charlie with his second player of the match this month, the young man has slotted into the frontline and has taken the bull by the horns. Rated at number twenty five in the NXGN top fifty for 2026 things are really shaping up for the youngster.

Franz has been trigger happy since his arrival but it was certainly needed, I tried my best to be calculated in January and not to upset the apple cart too much. This alludes to an even bigger summer transfer window in the east of Belgium. Charlie has shown that Franz has a clear pathway for players who have the ability to step up and that age won’t be a deciding factor in this performance driven side.

The namely trident system in all its glory. nothing screams elaborate especially when it comes to team instructions quite simple, allowing the roles and duties to create the specific patterns of play for now.

Back three consists of two wide centre backs one given license to roam forward and overlap the anchor, the BPD is one role am not entirely set on, I had visons of him switching play and finding the front three but its yet to bare fruits perhaps a summer arrival could change this.

Into the midfield and the pivot which has been covered looks very settled in this shape (may change when variation of front three roles and positions come). As for the wide men nothing fancy here although both are encouraged to get forward, again in time with the right players these may become complete wing backs.

The front three is designed to drag the opponents defence out of shape and create the space for the supporting cast. The DLF drops into the pocket and link with the SV or allows him to overlap, this opens space for the RWB, the AF stretches play on the opposite flank and allows space for the LWB to roam into. The CF is a work in progress, and something am not set on, I see him at the top of the diamond bringing everyone together while being a threat himself.

[karanhsingh]

Wow very interesting formation! I am usually in favour of having at least one support in midfield. Are you being able to dominate games in terms of possession? I guess the over lapping center backs must help with that if they work as intended. 

Great to see Charlier continuing to progress well, can we see a screenshot of him?

[SixPointer]

On 11/05/2023 at 17:01, SixPointer said:

Young Charlie showing

 

1 hour ago, karanhsingh said:

Wow very interesting formation! I am usually in favour of having at least one support in midfield. Are you being able to dominate games in terms of possession? I guess the over lapping center backs must help with that if they work as intended. 

Great to see Charlier continuing to progress well, can we see a screenshot of him?

A screenshot of him in an above post bud.

yeah the CMS/DMS are the two roles am most happy with in system. I don’t look to dominate possession in all honesty. I look to play forward quick. 

[karanhsingh]

4 hours ago, SixPointer said:

 

A screenshot of him in an above post bud.

yeah the CMS/DMS are the two roles am most happy with in system. I don’t look to dominate possession in all honesty. I look to play forward quick. 

Fair enough with the 3 strikers. 

The young kid looks good and that personality should help with his development too. 

[Blarney]

15 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Not Just A flash In The Pan Then

The final write up in my mini tactical series before pushing on and getting the challenge moving again. Game time has been scarce but there is hope on the horizon.

Standard Liège v OH Leuven

Going up against a familiar foe having just come of the back of our cup semi-final. It would be incredibly stupid to forget that Leuven is one of the main reasons a back-up plan was made, there 4-2-3-1 and lethal roaming playmaker wreaked havoc on us as he slipped in their dangerous wide players at ease.

Dishing out back to back demolitions, this time against a side firmly in the mix with us for the European places.

Young Charlie got us underway with a well taken finish inside the box, the switching of the outside front men really does cause problems. There fullbacks had a torrid time, and really failed to perform both defensively and offensively.

Conceding in behind the back line does bring more cause for concern in this early stage of the tactic, but the unsettled nature of the back three hasn’t helped. People have raised concerns about space between the lines and i think i would be very naive to dismiss this as being the sole cause. As you can see the space afforded to the AM, but thats not to say that the back three shouldnt have more than enough to cover the space in behind.

A standard near post corner routine puts Franz side back into the lead, something we have come to expect from his sides. Charlie turned provider again from the advanced forward tole on the left hand side, after nice work from Sobol, this shows the dilemma for their fullbacks, do they mark the forward or close down the wing back.

The fourth goal shows the direct nature of our play, as we transition quickly after winning the clearance, the DLF drops in to link play and creates the space for the RWB to advance, from there on in its the Cruz show as he skips past his man and rifles one in at the near post.

High five, the fifth goal is a perfect blend of being direct as Charlie races down the left hand side after winning the ball back, he picks the perfect pass to the supporting wide centre back, who plays into the feet of the central forward, who lays it off to the volante with a simple lay off the DLF has peeled to the back post and tucks it home. A superb move which captures our free flowing attacking play.

Charlie with his second player of the match this month, the young man has slotted into the frontline and has taken the bull by the horns. Rated at number twenty five in the NXGN top fifty for 2026 things are really shaping up for the youngster.

Franz has been trigger happy since his arrival but it was certainly needed, I tried my best to be calculated in January and not to upset the apple cart too much. This alludes to an even bigger summer transfer window in the east of Belgium. Charlie has shown that Franz has a clear pathway for players who have the ability to step up and that age won’t be a deciding factor in this performance driven side.

The namely trident system in all its glory. nothing screams elaborate especially when it comes to team instructions quite simple, allowing the roles and duties to create the specific patterns of play for now.

Back three consists of two wide centre backs one given license to roam forward and overlap the anchor, the BPD is one role am not entirely set on, I had visons of him switching play and finding the front three but its yet to bare fruits perhaps a summer arrival could change this.

Into the midfield and the pivot which has been covered looks very settled in this shape (may change when variation of front three roles and positions come). As for the wide men nothing fancy here although both are encouraged to get forward, again in time with the right players these may become complete wing backs.

The front three is designed to drag the opponents defence out of shape and create the space for the supporting cast. The DLF drops into the pocket and link with the SV or allows him to overlap, this opens space for the RWB, the AF stretches play on the opposite flank and allows space for the LWB to roam into. The CF is a work in progress, and something am not set on, I see him at the top of the diamond bringing everyone together while being a threat himself.

This is a wild formation.

[SixPointer]

5 hours ago, Blarney said:

This is a wild formation.

Wild indeed my friend. This is not to say I will use it indefinitely. I still have my 352 system which has served me so well since the start of the save.

The main reason for the switch was to solve the issue against teams with strong flanks. 

[SixPointer]

Now we’ve caught up on the writing and I finally have a day off. Let’s get some much needed game time in!!

[SixPointer]

I managed to complete the season yesterday so just a case of writing it up today. 

[13th Man]

Looking forward to it!

[SixPointer]

Old Habits Die Hard

The last game of the season before the split, a trip to the capital for the classic. Anderlecht set up in a 4-4-2, a shape that the 3-5-2 had good success against. I wanted to evaluate the 3-4-3 and see if there was an upside to it. Anderlecht would look to dominate the ball so the high pressing front three could be a real asset.

Certainly not the result I wanted, but valuable knowledge gained.

On the face off its Anderlecht dominated the fame, particularly down our left side. I think with a two man front line with one player dropping into the midfield and overloading our two man was a real issue, shifting to a stopper and man marker only further opened the channel.

They took the lead through at set play, and we answered back with one of our own. Gifting them a goal early in the second half left us a mountain to climb, we did create chances and, on another day, when our strikers could hit the target the game ends differently.

Despite the result its job done, when you consider the start of the season the club had I think securing our slot his highly significant. Now the points are halved, it leaves us sitting only two points off a top four finish.

Deficient performance, good result. One point won rather than two dropped.

Genk away is always going to be a tough task, especially with their highly creative wide men, James, Munoz and Castillejo have cause us problems all season. So, to keep a clean sheet was a real positive.

It became a defensive effort and Matteo must be praised for his performance in goals, from the graphic you can see the bypassed the high press often and a lot of our defensive work was done inside our own half. Sadly, we couldn’t turn these into counter attacking opportunities and we offered truly little in attack.

Club Brugge setup in our original shape, interestingly enough they struggle against a 4-2-3-1 as well which is what became our problem. This offered us a chance to pitch our front three against a back five, it did however leave us short down the middle.

Much more creative than the Genk match, Milosevic and Maja missed big chances which could have easily swung the game in our favour. Brugge also had their moments and Matteo again repaid a chunk of the faith shown in him.

The back three was changed and Noubi and Ngoy who I really want to kick on now had good games. The middle pairing was slightly tweaked by the end of the game, but both held their own against a three man midfield. Something that became clear was using them to man mark two of the three players and allowing the less threaten player of the three the ball did help balance things out.

Huge three points against the other half of Brugge.

Back to the old shape for this one, I felt after firing two blanks I needed to freshen things up. Although I do feel a lot is down to spending time away from the game, I lose my edge for spotting certain things. Anyway 4-2-3-1 with good wide men is something that led me away from this system so goof to see it get us back to winning ways.

One thing that I do love about this system is the ability it gives us to press the double pivot and centre backs aggressively in a quadrant, however that comes at a price if the opponent has attacking wing backs. I do feel that both systems complement each other nicely now for specific scenarios.

The first goal is well worked and gets us off to a flyer, nice to see young Charlie break beyond the lines in a two man front line, and well his finish shows you how confident he is as a 17 year old. The equaliser is slack and perhaps a taste of our own medicine, a well worked short throw. Big Milosevic has been due us a goal after a few big misses, and his header at the far post playing as the target man is reminiscent of big Kulenovic.

The second classic of the month didn’t go as planned and the bragging rights firmly sit in the capital.

Opting for our 3-5-2 shape which should allow us to come central overload against the two man midfield and help to counteract the excellent passing combinations between the centre backs and double pivots. Anderlecht’s passing shape is frightening and they dominate the ball at ease, especially on their own turf.

Four minutes on the clock and the balls in the back of the net for us, and its harshly ruled offside. Raskin then gives the ball away high up the pitch and the purple and whites make for a devastating counterattack and punish us, not the type of goal you’d expect from them.

The leveller shows that the gameplan wasn’t entirely wrong, Raskin turns ball winner and takes it off the playmaker. He drives forward into the space commits one midfielder slips it into Milosevic who bounce passes into Charlie who blasts home. 

Perfectly little counterattack and shows the value of this system when central pressure is required. Getting the balance between the two is going to be the summer plans.

Conceding the next goal from set plays is criminal and is undoubtedly the worst way to concede from my point of view, I spend a lot of time setting up both attacking and defending routines so to be out done by one and a corner of all is very frustrating. The other side of this is that it’s extremely rewarding when you score from a set play, and that’s exactly what we done to level up the match!

Instantly poor defending and a fortunate deflection allows Anderlecht to snatch back the lead. A superb game for the neutral and again one of great educational value for Franz and his backroom team, but the wrong result and one the fans will be hurting from.

Bounce back ability, with a superb result and performance.

OH Leuven really do hate our 3-4-3 system, they have now seen three defeats in a row since it came to light. Limiting our opponents to zero shots on target was most impressive considering how highly regarded their attacking play is.

Set plays I love them, there I said it. The first and second goals coming from them. While the third goal comes from great forward play from Jovan Milosevic who is started to find his feet at this level. Laying the ball of wide and then continuing his run into the box to power the header home.

Winning the dress rehearsal for the cup was vital and doing it with such dominance.

Keeping Genk’s magical wide men quiet for the second time in a month is sensational stuff, Castillejo had his moments and the better of Cruz but James on the other side couldn’t get a foot in the match. I opted to double up on him with Sobol and Brassier and it worked wonders.

Another man marking ploy that paid dividends was asking the anchor to man mark El khannouss and the volante to man mark Ouattara, thus leaving the less threating cuesta more time on the ball something I’ll be looking to implement regular against 4-2-3-1 shapes.

Our goal was splendid, a fantastic team move from side to side pulling Genk apart. Dragus taking the ball in behind and firing home, it was no less than we deserved and on another day against a weaker keeper it could well have been three or four.

[Hootieleece]

Great to see the new formation working after some teething troubles.

You are good at Set Pieces? I have a lot of trouble especially when Board wants them. (They do at Preston now) I do ok when they aren't wanted by the board or I am actually trying to use them except as a supplement.

Unfortunately, It looks like I am going to have to play defensive this season and rely on Set-Pieces.  I am scoring but everyone except the Top teams seems to "Park the Bus" against us. The Top teams press us and I go to early crosses.

[SixPointer]

2 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

Great to see the new formation working after some teething troubles.

You are good at Set Pieces? I have a lot of trouble especially when Board wants them. (They do at Preston now) I do ok when they aren't wanted by the board or I am actually trying to use them except as a supplement.

Unfortunately, It looks like I am going to have to play defensive this season and rely on Set-Pieces.  I am scoring but everyone except the Top teams seems to "Park the Bus" against us. The Top teams press us and I go to early crosses.

Thanks man!

i posted the routines way back but your welcome to use them.

 A few key pointers

make sure you aim the delivery, make three routines that rotate and offer various delivery, front post, back post.

make sure you have the best players attacking these posts again keep them varied system to system. Lastly have someone with good delivery.

I do well with them but I do feel it’s an area SI can really improve upon. Especially with most teams in real life now employing set piece coaches. 

Edited May 15, 2023 by SixPointer

[karanhsingh]

Some good results there - it seems like you're mainly having trouble away from home which is to be expected at this stage against the bigger teams. 

[Jogo Bonito]

7 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Thanks man!

i posted the routines way back but your welcome to use them.

 A few key pointers

make sure you aim the delivery, make three routines that rotate and offer various delivery, front post, back post.

make sure you have the best players attacking these posts again keep them varied system to system. Lastly have someone with good delivery.

I do well with them but I do feel it’s an area SI can really improve upon. Especially with most teams in real life now employing set piece coaches. 

Something I stopped making an effort on a couple of versions back. I really should make the effort again as it's probably a(nother) reason why I'm so mediocre in FM 

Edited May 15, 2023 by Jogo Bonito

[13th Man]

Well done overall.  Seems like Anderlecht are finishing incredibly well against you - thought it seems like everyone's performing above xG somehow!

Still, it seems like the systems are working well for you.

[SixPointer]

11 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Some good results there - it seems like you're mainly having trouble away from home which is to be expected at this stage against the bigger teams. 

Yeah three very hard away games. Especially at this stage with the club. I still feel we are punching above our weight in terms of what we have at our disposal.

5 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Something I stopped making an effort on a couple of versions back. I really should make the effort again as it's probably a(nother) reason why I'm so mediocre in FM 

I don’t blame your for stopping. It’s a long tedious process. setting each one up for each tactic for each different delivery and then when you switch anything start over. It’s what I take so much joy from it when it does work. It vindicates my effort 🤣.

Jokes aside I feel it’s a big area that SI can really improve. Much like they did with the training model a few games back. I feel the set play area needs a vast revamp and brought up to the level of other parts of the game.

16 minutes ago, 13th Man said:

Well done overall.  Seems like Anderlecht are finishing incredibly well against you - thought it seems like everyone's performing above xG somehow!

Still, it seems like the systems are working well for you.

Anderlecht have three unbelievable strikers, Esposito, fer nino and vasilabre ridiculous stuff.

The systems are working as intended but I’m still tinkering and I think I’m still void of a system that’s a balance of the two which will give me something to work on over the summer. 

[SixPointer]

First think, second believe, third dream and finally dare.

Both Genk and Standard Liège are no strangers to these finals, the last time either team won the cup it was against one another. Standard Liège have been in 19 finals and winning 9 of them, there latest success coming in 2018. Genk have taken part in 12 and won 7, beating Standard Liège twice in the process, once in 2000 and their latest triumph in 2021.

Genk make two changes from the league match, Munoz comes in at centre back and the creative Toma comes back into the midfield. The electric pace of James has been switched to the left and the guile and intelligence of Castillejo switched to the right, both players now inverted.

Standard make three changes the experienced Gilles Dewaele comes in for Cruz who struggled to cope in the last game, Zabu drops to the bench for the more defensive minded Kaba. The exciting youngster Lukas Charlier get the nod over Josh Maja in the other change.

Both teams’ setup as expected, leading to our defensive gameplan as this, due to the fact Genk will look to Touma and the wing backs to progress the ball before hitting the front four. Being outnumbered in the middle means Raskin will mark Toms and Kaba El Khannouss to stop central plans, while the usual marking full backs will come down to the outside forwards.

Three minutes on the clock and the whiz kid has gone close from a second phase corner, should really score but Savic does well. It’s all Standard liege at the start, one way traffic. It pays off in the fifth minute, Milosevic gives Standard the lead, neat build up play before a switch to the flanks and great header from a Sobol cross. 1-0.

Another Sobol cross and Dragus just heads over at the back post, our left flank is posing a real problem for them. Charlier looks up for it and his counter press nearly pays off, the shot is blocked then Raskin blazes over.

Liege are really taking the game to Genk, but for the first time in the match Genk have got around the press and down the sides. James’s cross takes a nick and Onuachu heads it against the bar. With only three minutes until halftime that could really have changed the dynamic had that went in.

That said it went from so close to so far for Genk before the break.

Standard are strutting their stuff with some of their best attacking play on show, the ball played through the right hand half space out to the wing back, who plays a delightful cut back into the path of the on rushing Charlier which is begging to be scored, He obliges with a finish into the bottom corner. 2-0 at the break and Standard look excellent value for it.

Onuachu misses another header from close range, one either side of the second goal these are the big moments in big games and its not went right for Genk. The widemen have switched sides which now poses a problem for more crosses into the box.

Standard Liege take it up a notch and work the ball from a throw in on one side two the other side with great combination play, Charlier is the released in behind and the 17 year old shows tremendous composure to stand on the ball before cutting it back for Milosevic who has ran off his man in the middle. A goal worthy of any cup final and testament to the attacking approach Franz has shown today. 3-0

Taking the foot of the gas wasn’t an option, Franz pushed his men on. He has runners up medal from his time in Austria in the back of his head and he’s determined not to let this slip. The youngster Pera takes his managers advice and whips in a spectacular ball to the far post, Dragus who’s had better days in front of goal hits the woodwork.

It’s almost a dream finish, Charlier goes so close with a magical left foot volley, taking the ball over the top. Great link up play again in the midfield but by this point Genk look out on their feet, they have been pulled from pillar to post all day by a Standard team on the very top of their game.

Standard Liege 2026 Belgian Cup winners, the 10th time in the club’s proud history. Its back to back domestic cup titles for Franz, he really needs a league title to take away the mantle of cup specialist. Standard feels like a good place to make that happen.

Franz's men turned up for him today when it mattered most, they have had great moments since the Austrian arrived. Won his first classic against Anderlecht, Knocked Charleroi out the cup in his first Walloon derby, there has also been lows, losing to Anderlecht twice in a month. But today is there day and they done it in style.

In the end we battered Genk, they could live with our intensity, the man marking scheme paid dividends and kept their creative players in the build-up quiet, a couple big chances did go a miss but other than that it was all one way traffic. 

A huge statement from Franz was allowing Charlier to step up into the first team, the young man has repaid him and then some with a man of the match display in the cup final.

[warlock]

1 hour ago, SixPointer said:

Standard Liege 2026 Belgian Cup winners

Well played . Hope you can push for that league title now!

(Not sure how this is my first post in the thread, I've been reading all your career updates for several FMs.)

[SixPointer]

3 hours ago, warlock said:

Well played . Hope you can push for that league title now!

(Not sure how this is my first post in the thread, I've been reading all your career updates for several FMs.)

Thanks man. League title is out of the picture this year. But the foundations are being laid for challenge next season hopefully.

Yeah you’re always upvoting stuff I see that bad. Appreciate everyone’s input, I get the post are lengthy at times so there is an effort involved for any one following. 

[Jogo Bonito]

Congrats on the Cup win. Maybe that will bring extra confidence and next year's league challenge will be strong.

[karanhsingh]

Great stuff, congratulations on the cup win!

[SteinkelssonFM]

Congratulations on picking up some silverware for the trophy cabinet, now for the big one! 

[13th Man]

Congrats on the cup! Think with the system getting more and more refined, the league can be a possibility next time around. Having 17 year olds ready to break into the side is quite helpful too…Just need to get that pesky Esposito et all from scoring on you for Anderlecht!

[SixPointer]

16 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Congrats on the Cup win. Maybe that will bring extra confidence and next year's league challenge will be strong.

Thanks bud! Hopefully laid the foundation for it. 

 

15 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Great stuff, congratulations on the cup win!

Thanks 

14 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Congratulations on picking up some silverware for the trophy cabinet, now for the big one! 
 

 a title next challenge is a must next year!

7 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Congrats on the cup! Think with the system getting more and more refined, the league can be a possibility next time around. Having 17 year olds ready to break into the side is quite helpful too…Just need to get that pesky Esposito et all from scoring on you for Anderlecht!

Yeah a couple more look primed for game time. That’s not to say they will live up to Charlie’s standards.

Anderlecht aren’t the best team in Belgium at the minute. Club Brugge and GENK are battling it out for that title. 

[SixPointer]

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end

Four games left to wrap up in what has been a superb turnaround in fortunes, it may be the end of the season, but I feel like things are only starting now. A full summer window and a pre-season will make all the difference.

Tough one to take but in the end, I think the best team won, just shaded it.

Their 3-5-2 gives us a different problem and perhaps I should have matched up with them, but with nothing to play for I was tempted to tinker and see how effective we can press against a back three. The main reason they came out on top was they didn’t allow us to get into any serious rhythm, our link up play was snuffed out.

A set play provided our goal to get back in the match, Milosevic and Charlier missed glorious chances and Club Brugge buried there’s. One of those days but I will put some of the result down to a trophy winning hangover.

A very messy three points but three points none the less.

I decided to fully rotate and give a few players who haven’t featured as much a chance to convince me they want to be around next season. In truth all I found out was Maja is a player I would love to keep but his wages are ludicrous.

The match really highlighted more strength in depth required for next season, a title challenge and European football is a tough enough nut to crack without a jiggling act of players and poor fitness. I would expect something drastic like ten departures at this minute and time which means at least eight arrivals.

Pera is someone I expect to step up next season, he has shown glimpses off what he can do, like this. He broke through same time as Charlier and in all honesty, I thought it would be him that stole the show. Gillies is the opposite of Pera, aging but continues to provide the goods. Setting up the second and third goal, I almost have sentiment for the guy and don’t want to sell him even though he is getting past the sell by date.

If Carlsberg done last home games of the season......

The fresh legs and the sending off played their part, but even when you take them into account limiting Anderlecht to zero shots on target is something else. They almost scored at will the last twice we played them but this time the boys stood the test.

Near post corner pays off again! That got the ball rolling after hitting the bar in the first half. Debast was given his marching orders for a heavy lunge on the whiz kid, this allowed us to be more expressive in our play and go in for the kill against our great rivals.

Raskin with a lovely finish to a nice team move, he doesn’t score simple goals but with only four this term it’s something I want to see more often from the best player at the club. Big Jovan Milosevic has come to life towards the end of the campaign, he looks to be settling and with 7 goals in 13 starts and 8 sub appearances I’m very optimistic for his future at the club.

More damage on the road

Think it’s safe to say our away form is patchy, at best. Something that will be looked at in closer detail over the summer for sure. A poor way to end what has been a good season, but again highlights the fact the squad needs work and it’s really punched above its weight at times.

OH Leuven brough about the change to a front three for us and then got punished every time, until now. They clearly wanted it more and I must admit I already had one eye on transfer dealings.

4th place finish level with our great rivals and only seven points short of the winners Genk. The foundations have been built, coming in and turning around an abysmal start isn’t easily done. Players adapting to a new style, players that just don’t suit the team. 

The summer offers us a chance of a bigger clear out some of which has already began along with the re investment into the playing squad which also has already began and with better suited players of a better quality one can dream of a league title in Liege.

[Hootieleece]

Good Job so far. Can't wait to see the new recruits.

[warlock]

4 hours ago, SixPointer said:

4th place finish... The foundations have been built

Lots to look forward to next season. European football will be an additional - if welcome - burden. Onwards and upwards 

[13th Man]

Solid closing to the season! (Thinking you had two in a row where Anderlecht way out performed their xG?)

Either way, looking for that title next season. You planning on prioritizing that over Europe considering the challenge?

[SixPointer]

8 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

Good Job so far. Can't wait to see the new recruits.

Thanks man! A lot of the business is already done. Should write some up today.

4 hours ago, warlock said:

Lots to look forward to next season. European football will be an additional - if welcome - burden. Onwards and upwards 

Could well be a burden but if I get the squad balance correct we should be able to manage it.

2 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Solid closing to the season! (Thinking you had two in a row where Anderlecht way out performed their xG?)

Either way, looking for that title next season. You planning on prioritizing that over Europe considering the challenge?

I’m very much a deal your bread and butter (the league) type off manager. But Belgian teams have been struggling in Europe of late so I do what to give a good account of ourselves as well. 

[karanhsingh]

Good finish, are you going to stick with the 3 strikers formation next season?

[SixPointer]

2 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Good finish, are you going to stick with the 3 strikers formation next season?

Yeah it will definitely be used. But I don’t tend to use one out and out system. The plan will be over the summer to make a third system then I’ll have three systems. 

All three will have the same principles but will have subtle differences to cover all bases when coming up against certain opposition styles 

[karanhsingh]

8 minutes ago, SixPointer said:

Yeah it will definitely be used. But I don’t tend to use one out and out system. The plan will be over the summer to make a third system then I’ll have three systems. 

All three will have the same principles but will have subtle differences to cover all bases when coming up against certain opposition styles 

Makes sense, i want to do more of the same myself