how to analyse your squad to see what style of football your team can play?

[silentventus]

I think one thing that I have struggled with the most when picking up this game is knowing what my team is capable of on day 1. I have seen people say to use the comparison page located in the squad planner, which I have tried to use but I think the thing I struggle with is trying to use that information to see what style my team can play, I even downloaded bustthenet support, defend & creators dna views but don't know how to use them effectively. If anyone could tell me how they do it themselves I think that would be helpful for me, thank you!

[Cloud9]

2 hours ago, silentventus said:

I think one thing that I have struggled with the most when picking up this game is knowing what my team is capable of on day 1. I have seen people say to use the comparison page located in the squad planner, which I have tried to use but I think the thing I struggle with is trying to use that information to see what style my team can play, I even downloaded bustthenet support, defend & creators dna views but don't know how to use them effectively. If anyone could tell me how they do it themselves I think that would be helpful for me, thank you!

1. Check your media prediction: this means literally nothing usually but it does tell you how other teams will perceive you going into the season. Ie: are they going to be bringing the game to you most matches? 

2. I  would look at your best players in the squad, and build a tactic to get the best out of them. You can bring in squad players for pretty cheap who can do a job .

[silentventus]

1 hour ago, Cloud9 said:

1. Check your media prediction: this means literally nothing usually but it does tell you how other teams will perceive you going into the season. Ie: are they going to be bringing the game to you most matches? 

2. I  would look at your best players in the squad, and build a tactic to get the best out of them. You can bring in squad players for pretty cheap who can do a job .

Thank you for your reply! If it’s not too much to ask could you give me an quick example of what you mean by number 2 the one about building around your best players? 

[Cloud9]

2 hours ago, silentventus said:

Thank you for your reply! If it’s not too much to ask could you give me an quick example of what you mean by number 2 the one about building around your best players? 

Sure! This is something you'll get a feel for as you play more. Until you pick that up, I'd recommend the following: 

• Set your squad selection to show stars based on current ability and make sure you've got a half decent staff member judging it. The stars lie frequently, based on value to squad/form, but can be good starting point to see who is in that top bracket of the club. Again, as you play more you learn to look for attribute combinations for specific positions but consistency (or at least no red consistency) is a must for these guys you'll build around. 
• They don't have to be good at everything. A really talented playmaker w/ limited mobility (passing, technique, visions, flair, composure, decisions) is the type of player who you might look to put in the 10 (closer to goal) with two hard working, less talented midfielders behind him to make up for his physical deficiencies. 
• For a squad like Arsenal I think your best formation is a 4-2-3-1. You'll want to field that entire talented front-line whenever you take to the pitch and that system will let you do it. 

I would also suggest looking at the Fullback/wingbacks at the club when you take over. One of the first decisions is 4 vs 5 at the back. If you don't have players capable of playing in the WB strata it's a 4 at the back system 100%. Checking who your best striker is, and how he will best score goals is a good reference point as well. 

Edited July 2, 2023 by Cloud9

[toshimitzou1]

When I arrive at a club there are two ways you can go:

1) Implement your own style and from here recruit and train appropriately.

or 

2) Assess your squad, their strengths and weaknesses and build from there.

Your question pertains to number 2) and all of the advice given so far is sound, especially with regards, to media prediction of finish For me however, I believe the best tool is the squad comparison tab in the Analyst report. 

My team is predicted to finish 3rd and here is what I would do if I just arrived at the club and I wanted to use your approach.

In the first instance, to get an accurate comparison with the other teams in the division, ensure your first team squad contains only players that will be getting ample game time (you can ghost save and move some players out of the squad for comparison purposes).

From here you can get a good look at what your team is capable of.

Here is an example of what you can see and how too use it:

From this starting point I can make a few assertions:

- We are not blessed wit Flair, Composure or Off the Ball ability relative to our expectation so I may be looking to limit either creative freedom or individuality. Translated to Team instructions this means may avoid general instructions like; Be more expressive or Work Ball into Box  and may be inclined to adopt an mentality that seeks to mitigate these flaws (Defensive, Cautious or Balanced). 

- Looking deeper, it may be more profitable to build from the back (possibly Play out of Defence):

 

As they are showing the technical and mental attributes really control the game. Contrarily, the strengths could be used to instigate faster progression of the ball forward with defenders capable of passing longer distances consistently well. After assessing the technical ability of the midfielders:

With a relatively poorer First Touch and Passing ability this (TI, More Direct Passing). May seem a sound decision. You would of course need to ensure your attacker were capable of receiving direct passes (either into space, in the air or into feet): let's check:

Decent pace and exceptional strength lend well to this approach and technically:

An elite level first touch suggest the players may be more than capable of handling this More Direct approach. 

This comparison method works for me and does not only ever lead to one conclusion. Indeed, good first touch, strength and poor passing could encourage a higher tempo, short passing game.

The choice is your. Hope this helps.

[silentventus]

8 hours ago, Cloud9 said:

Sure! This is something you'll get a feel for as you play more. Until you pick that up, I'd recommend the following: 

• Set your squad selection to show stars based on current ability and make sure you've got a half decent staff member judging it. The stars lie frequently, based on value to squad/form, but can be good starting point to see who is in that top bracket of the club. Again, as you play more you learn to look for attribute combinations for specific positions but consistency (or at least no red consistency) is a must for these guys you'll build around. 
• They don't have to be good at everything. A really talented playmaker w/ limited mobility (passing, technique, visions, flair, composure, decisions) is the type of player who you might look to put in the 10 (closer to goal) with two hard working, less talented midfielders behind him to make up for his physical deficiencies. 
• For a squad like Arsenal I think your best formation is a 4-2-3-1. You'll want to field that entire talented front-line whenever you take to the pitch and that system will let you do it. 

I would also suggest looking at the Fullback/wingbacks at the club when you take over. One of the first decisions is 4 vs 5 at the back. If you don't have players capable of playing in the WB strata it's a 4 at the back system 100%. Checking who your best striker is, and how he will best score goals is a good reference point as well. 

Thank you for taking the time to explain that to me, really made it a lot more clearer and now I can go on ahead put this into practice really appreciate it!

[silentventus]

2 hours ago, toshimitzou1 said:

When I arrive at a club there are two ways you can go:

1) Implement your own style and from here recruit and train appropriately.

or 

2) Assess your squad, their strengths and weaknesses and build from there.

Your question pertains to number 2) and all of the advice given so far is sound, especially with regards, to media prediction of finish For me however, I believe the best tool is the squad comparison tab in the Analyst report. 

My team is predicted to finish 3rd and here is what I would do if I just arrived at the club and I wanted to use your approach.

In the first instance, to get an accurate comparison with the other teams in the division, ensure your first team squad contains only players that will be getting ample game time (you can ghost save and move some players out of the squad for comparison purposes).

From here you can get a good look at what your team is capable of.

Here is an example of what you can see and how too use it:

From this starting point I can make a few assertions:

- We are not blessed wit Flair, Composure or Off the Ball ability relative to our expectation so I may be looking to limit either creative freedom or individuality. Translated to Team instructions this means may avoid general instructions like; Be more expressive or Work Ball into Box  and may be inclined to adopt an mentality that seeks to mitigate these flaws (Defensive, Cautious or Balanced). 

- Looking deeper, it may be more profitable to build from the back (possibly Play out of Defence):

 

As they are showing the technical and mental attributes really control the game. Contrarily, the strengths could be used to instigate faster progression of the ball forward with defenders capable of passing longer distances consistently well. After assessing the technical ability of the midfielders:

With a relatively poorer First Touch and Passing ability this (TI, More Direct Passing). May seem a sound decision. You would of course need to ensure your attacker were capable of receiving direct passes (either into space, in the air or into feet): let's check:

Decent pace and exceptional strength lend well to this approach and technically:

An elite level first touch suggest the players may be more than capable of handling this More Direct approach. 

This comparison method works for me and does not only ever lead to one conclusion. Indeed, good first touch, strength and poor passing could encourage a higher tempo, short passing game.

The choice is your. Hope this helps.

Wow this was really in depth and gave me a different insight how to use the comparison page, so thank you very much for explaining your process of analysing your squad. This was really helpful.