[FM23] El Caballero Pálido (Manchester United, 2029/30)

[13th Man]

Oh man.  This excellent post is getting me thinking about the wonders of 3atb with WCBs again.  I missed the 4-3-3 for my two year jaunt into the 3atb world, but not I'm kind of hoping that my next landing spot lends itself to a 3atb again.

Also, 100% record 20 games into the season??? 50 for, 6 against???  This is domination the likes of which has never been seen before!

[SteinkelssonFM]

A thoroughly enjoyable read this morning mate, I am surprised to read that so many teams in game have moved away from the three at the back. 

Torres winning 83% of his aerial duels, I am a firm believer that having a player who can effectively dominate these aerial duels goes a long way in helping to build a successful team, many of this victories will be around the middle of the park, helping you to regain possession as the opponents play the long ball to relieve pressure on their defensive unit.

20 wins from 20, you have created a monster! 

[rich ruzzian]

Did you play a B/c squad in the Caraboa cup? Because you did beat Newcastle 4-1 in the competition after the defeat after penalty's. 

Edited May 1, 2023 by rich ruzzian

[GIMN]

5 hours ago, 13th Man said:

I missed the 4-3-3 for my two year jaunt into the 3atb world, but not I'm kind of hoping that my next landing spot lends itself to a 3atb again.

I'm a big fan of the spacing with the 3-2 build up shape (as opposed to 2-3).  As it's so difficult to get that with a full-back tucking inside on FM, then I think I'm going to be 3atb for the foreseeable future.  With Spain we played with Wide Centre Backs, but we've pretty much stuck with regular Central Defenders for the last 18 months.  I'm hopeful that my next move, whenever and wherever that may be, will see something a little different

5 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

Torres winning 83% of his aerial duels, I am a firm believer that having a player who can effectively dominate these aerial duels goes a long way in helping to build a successful team, many of this victories will be around the middle of the park, helping you to regain possession as the opponents play the long ball to relieve pressure on their defensive unit.

Absolutely.  Whilst I've not been wedded to the idea that all my centre-backs have to be aerially dominant, I'm keen we're not weak in that area.  It's one of the reasons I liked Torres over Gvardiol (that and narratively it felt more appropriate I would try and bring in someone I worked with before).  As much as it can be mitigated in a back-3, the days of a Lisandro Martinez are definitely over at Old Trafford.

5 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Also, 100% record 20 games into the season??? 50 for, 6 against???  This is domination the likes of which has never been seen before!

5 hours ago, MattyLewis11 said:

20 wins from 20, you have created a monster! 

It is, quite frankly, ridiculous.  There's been a couple of less-than-dominant games, but none where I'd say we deserved to lose.  There does seem to be a real lack of diversity in playing styles in the EPL, which no doubt helps, but it is really satisfying watching us play.

3 hours ago, rich ruzzian said:

Did you play a B/c squad in the Caraboa cup? Because you did beat Newcastle 4-1 in the competition after the defeat after penalty's. 

Nothing outside of my usual rotation.  We had 7 "starters", but came up against an inspired Diogo Costa in the Newcastle goal.  Unfortunately for us, it was just one of those days.

[SixPointer]

It’s appears Henry Smith is real deal. Compared to the last defender who signed from Blackburn rovers who promised so much and in the end has fell flat on his face. 

[haier_fm]

On 13/04/2023 at 03:46, GIMN said:

(New season, new approach - I'll be covering longer periods of time and usually with a focus on a specific topic rather than going through events in every game.  There is an interactive dashboard with Match Reports, Player Performance, etc... all in one place which I'll be linking to throughout the post)

As with our transfer activity, where we looked to make the marginal gains required to push the squad to the next level, the summer was also about making those tweaks to our tactical approach that will help elevate us to Champions League glory.  Whilst we were difficult to beat, due to our back 3 and screening anchor, and able to dominate most teams in possession, we did struggle against the bigger teams.  There should be no major surprises there - those teams are filled with talented players and guided by elite coaches - and they will expect to beat us just as much as we expect to beat them.  Nonetheless, we need to be able to adapt whilst remaining true to the concepts that we value.  It would be good to revisit those:

- Dominate possession, exhibiting patience with the ball
- Have confidence to play within tight spaces
- Prioritise players with intelligence, trusting in their qualities

Whilst we need to be conscious of those principles, first it helps to identify when and why the tactic has worked and, of course, not worked. 

(Click image for tactical instructions)

Our primary formation is a 3-5-2, with the Mezzala and False 9 working in tandem to create the box shape to help us have numerical supremacy in central areas.  We look to play narrow, so whilst the wing-backs will provide width they are not necessarily hugging the touchline.  This positioning also helps us to move between the channels as necessary.  If we switch the play to a specific flank, it is easy for us to shift across and create overloads in the half spaces.  It can, however, lack penetration.  Unlike the 3-box-3 formations we are starting to see become more commonplace in the real world, especially those utilising inverted wing-backs, our wide players are not contributing as much in terms of crashing the box.  This puts the onus on the mezzala and false 9 to be both transitional players - creating the central box - and goal threats.

In our 4-1 demolition of Newcastle last season, we saw the benefits of this approach.  As can be seen above, Hannibal was able to drop into the hole to receive the ball, and doing so he garnered the attention of both of Newcastle's centre-backs.  Had Rashford been able to stay onside this would've been a goal.  It is indicative of how things have worked for us.  When Hannibal or Anthony were able to find space, it messed with opponents' defensive structure and we reaped the rewards.  It is, however, quite an easy thing to counter.

In the Champions League final defeat against PSG we saw a lot of this situation, where Hannibal would try and drop into the hole but would be well marshalled by Guillamon at the base of their midfield.  The extra attention allowed the defence to hold it's shape better, and also created opportunities for the rest of the team to press Hannibal quickly.  As a result, we would lose possession in the final third a lot more frequently, or we'd find our false 9 drifting out wide to get on the ball.  Whilst the latter is not necessarily a bad thing, the rest of the tactic isn't built around that movement and so the support structure isn't in place.

It is likely no coincidence that when up against elite defensive midfielders we struggled, and we need to find a way to be able to bypass the opposition pivot.  As simple a solution as it is, this means being more variable in our width.

By being able to switch to a wider formation, we can consider the support structures alongside it.  Wingbacks being instructed to stay wider and a return to the wide centre-back allows us to have options when the ball reaches the mezzala or false 9.  Ultimately we are widening the support area between those two players, and as such we are not going to be able to dominate in central areas as easily.  The opportunity to progress the ball between the corner of the box (DLP and MEZ, for example) are going to become harder and more risky.  We will also lose the counter-pressing strength that comes from having a lot of players in a tight area when we lose possession.  As a result, this is not a wholesale change, but a situational one for specific games or specific moments within a game.

The new season threw up a couple of challenging opening fixtures, which will allow us to put these ideas in practice - the Community Shield fixture against Liverpool, and a very short away trip to Man City.

A wonderful example of the wider formation in action.  When Mladenović picks up the ball, Sancho pulls out to the right hand side, whilst Güler peels away from his marker Konate to head out towards the left half space.  Konate is now in a proverbial no-man's land allowing Sancho to run at Virgil Van Dyke.  With Van Dyke having to engage, it creates the angle for Sancho to play in Rashford...who was marginally offside.  I still don't agree with that decision - the final image is just after the ball is played, and he looks level to me!  Whilst this didn't result in a goal, that didn't stop us from running out 3-1 winners on the day and retain the Community Shield.

We can see this in play again against Man City.  Sancho doesn't just drop deep, but also drifts wider, taking up a wonderful spot in between 4 Man City defenders.  Rodri has a lot of ground to cover to engage, and that allows him to play it across the field to Güler who, just like in the Liverpool example before, had split out wide as we pushed forward.  He breaks inside to receive the pass, and because of his wide position, he is being tracked by City's right back, Cancelo.  This means that Güler has an extra step on his defender, who desperately lunges in.  Güler is away and able to play in Rashford, who somehow conspired to find the outstretched leg of Ederson rather than the back of the net.

The extra width doesn't just help us when Sancho drops deep.  We are starting to see him as an outlet in the channels more often.  This might be a result of his natural inclination as a winger, compared to someone like Hannibal.  This is massive for me, as that area inside the box - between the outside edge of the 6-yard box and the inside edge of the 18-yard box - is an area I want to see us attack often.  There is a lot of stress placed on defending the width of the 6-yard box so, by extension, that area just outside becomes the easiest part of the area to enter.  Once you're in the box, defenders have to be more cautious as a mistake can lead to a penalty, and so if we can get into that area often we have a good chance of creating problems.  As can be seen above - which was our opening goal in a 4-2 victory - Sancho's run has put Ederson into a bind, and his decision to come out allows a simple square ball for Rashford to give us the lead.

Naturally, it is not without risk.  As mentioned before, the additional width means we are less effective in the counter-press, and Man City were able to equalise almost immediately after a swift transition allowed Haaland to run the outside of Lacroix at the heart of our defence.  This does mean that sometimes we will look to become more compact in possession when defending a lead to help allow us to stay compact out of possession.  This is kind of counter-intuitive, as a possession based team might be more inclined to try and reduce the tempo and stretch the play in order to tire out the opposition who will be desperate to chase the game.

It is probably a good opportunity to spotlight Jadon Sancho, who has taken to the False 9 like a duck out of water:

(Click image for player profiles)

We can see that his astonishing xA of 0.48 shows just how devastating he's been in this role.  If it hadn't been for some...umm...interesting finishing from Rashford he would have more assists.  More importantly, he is also scoring at a rate which vindicates our decision to let Anthony go.  He is not alone, we have absolutely wracked up the goals so far this season, averaging 3 goals per game.  18 games in and Rashford tops the scoring charts with 14 in all competitions, with Leo Meinel not far behind on 10.  Güler is also benefitting from the changes, as he is on pace to reach double figures for the first time in his career.

Here is an illustration why.  As mentioned before, the additional width sees him push out towards the left early in transitional periods which tends to make it difficult for the opposition full-back to tuck inside too much.  The first image shows the two widest players as Meinel (playing as a False 9) and Güler.  What we've lost in support distance between the two of them, we've gained in space for others.  Henry Smith plays it short to the marked Christian Eriksen, who is able to play it into the hole to Rashford.  That pulls the defender away and creates the space for Güler to run into en route to a 3-0 win over Brentford.

Whilst there's a lot of talk here about playing wide, the narrow approach has still been very effective, especially against teams fielding a 4-4-2.

Another 3-0 win, this time at Everton's expense, and maybe my favourite goal of the season so far.  It's not spectacular, but Rashford playing as a False 9  this time out peels off his defender beautifully to drop into the hole, and that creates the space for Endrick to break into the gap he leaves behind.  This is the type of goal that the tactic was designed for, and it's very satisfying when it comes off.

Results-wise, it's been an unmitigated success; winning all 18 games through to the end of October.  As for game plan, not quite as successful.  A comeback 3-1 win against Nottingham Forest was a mistake where we'd started wide and got punished on the break.  Whilst an immediate equaliser helped get us back into the game, it was the half-time change to a narrower approach that bore fruit.  Another 3-1 win, against Bayern Munich, was possibly our worst performance of the season.  Two late goals flattered us and shows that we still have a lot to learn.

(Click image for match reports)

Despite our incredible form, we are not top of the league.  Liverpool have been equally impressive, and hold a 3 point lead courtesy of playing one mroe game.  We scored 3 times against them in the Community Shield and that seemed to be enough of a motivator for them to decide they never want to concede again - having kept clean sheets in each of their 12 league games this season.  It's going to be one hell of a contest!

Just to let you know that I am following this thread, albeit slightly behind on updates. But what a terrific write-up here. Everything documented to the most miniscule of details. I would love to be able to do something like this, but I tend to get too carried away with one aspect (i.e. Tactical analysis, appropriate number crunching) and get too overwhelmed by it. 

It will take me a while to catch-up, but I am looking forward to seeing how the save and Iniesta's managerial career develops. 

KUTGW!

[GIMN]

On 03/05/2023 at 09:03, SixPointer said:

It’s appears Henry Smith is real deal. Compared to the last defender who signed from Blackburn rovers who promised so much and in the end has fell flat on his face. 

I am waiting for Henry Smith to have his floor-header moment.  At the very least SI need to add in the "Heads Ball Regardless of Height" trait.

On 04/05/2023 at 21:30, haier_fm said:

I would love to be able to do something like this, but I tend to get too carried away with one aspect (i.e. Tactical analysis, appropriate number crunching) and get too overwhelmed by it. 

1) Great to see you back!  2) Completely get what you mean - trying to focus on covering as much as possible whilst being concise is a battle I'm constantly losing.  Essentially, that's why I've given up and just gone for big "feature" pieces.

[oakesypvfc]

Oh my goodness, what a career thread to read, I am genuinely in awe of all your updates, layouts and tactical thoughts. Amazing work!

Do you find yourself getting bored at United yet, ready for a new challenge?

[GIMN]

9 minutes ago, oakesypvfc said:

Do you find yourself getting bored at United yet, ready for a new challenge?

Very much so!!  I am pretty much comitted to resigning not at the end of this season, but the season after (2.5 years into my "new" contract).  Assuming, of course, that we don't fall apart and I get sacked beforehand.