[FM24] Football Italia

[_Ben_]

Prologue Part 1:

"Football Italia" was a television show dedicated to Italian football, primarily Serie A, which aired in the United Kingdom on Channel 4 from 1992 to 2002. The show became a cultural phenomenon, bringing Italian football into British homes and greatly influencing the perception of Serie A in the UK.

In the early 1990s, Italian football was regarded as the pinnacle of the sport in Europe. Serie A boasted some of the world's best players, including the likes of Roberto Baggio, Marco van Basten, and Diego Maradona. Despite this, there was limited coverage of foreign leagues on British television. Channel 4 saw an opportunity to fill this gap.

"Football Italia" was launched on September 6, 1992, capitalizing on Paul Gascoigne’s high-profile transfer to Lazio from Tottenham Hotspur. The show's format included live coverage of Serie A matches, a highlights show, and various feature segments. It was initially hosted by James Richardson, who became iconic for his witty presentation style and deep knowledge of Italian football. The live matches were broadcast on Sunday afternoons, a slot that became synonymous with Italian football for many British fans. The highlights show, "Gazzetta Football Italia," aired on Saturday mornings, featuring the previous week’s action, interviews, and previews of upcoming matches.

James Richardson’s charm, fluent Italian, and insightful analysis endeared him to viewers. The sight of Richardson with a cappuccino and a copy of "La Gazzetta dello Sport" in front of a picturesque Italian café became a signature image. The program showcased Serie A’s biggest stars and games, bringing the likes of Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Del Piero, and Gabriel Batistuta into the living rooms of British fans. Beyond football, the show offered glimpses into Italian culture, cuisine, and lifestyle, further enhancing its appeal.

"Football Italia" had a significant impact on British football fans. The show played a crucial role in making Serie A one of the most followed leagues in the UK. It contributed to a broader understanding and appreciation of European football among British viewers. The success of "Football Italia" demonstrated the potential for international league coverage, paving the way for the extensive broadcasting of foreign football leagues in the UK.

The show’s popularity began to wane in the late 1990s, partly due to the increasing dominance of the Premier League and the emergence of other European leagues. Channel 4 decided to end the show after the 2001-2002 season. The final live match broadcast was the Rome derby between Lazio and Roma on May 5, 2002. After Channel 4, the rights to Serie A in the UK were picked up by other broadcasters such as British Eurosport, Bravo, and Setanta Sports, though none achieved the same cultural impact as "Football Italia."

- - -

I am home.

I have played Football Manager since before Football Manager, which is over twenty years now. In that time, I've been obsessed with Italian teams: Venezia, Como, Pescara, Pistoiese, Castel di Sangro, Messina, Citta di Messina, Treviso, Gallipoli, Catania, Atletico Catania Palermo and Bellaria are all saves I can remember. Some have stuck. Some have not. Some were played with minimal details, simming through seasons, editing my then-teenage desires to achieve everything, including copious editor usage. I haven't properly returned in detail.

A short-ish spell at Atalanta in FM23 soothed last year's desire but, given the completion of some goals set in my previous save - The Norseman - I now find myself unable to quell my desires any longer.

[_Ben_]

N.B. I always write my posts in first person, as under the moniker of the character I’m using as my manager. However, I do enjoy creating a backstory, rather than a whole monologue that progresses through the save. This is the story of Francesco D’Anzo. A name that, if you’ve followed my FM24 escapades so far, you may remember.

- - -

Francesco D'Anzi stood at the edge of the field in Stadio Teofilo Patini, the very place where his love for football had taken root. The crisp air of Castel di Sangro was filled with the echoes of his childhood, a time when the impossible had become reality. He was just eight years old when the local club, Castel di Sangro Calcio, had made their miraculous ascent to Serie B in 1996. With a population of just over 5,000, Castel di Sangro’s rise to the second tier of Italian football was nothing short of a fairy tale. The whole town was electrified by football fever, and for eight-year-old Francesco, it was the spark that ignited a lifelong passion.

Born into a modest family, Francesco grew up with his parents and two younger sisters in a small house near the mountains. His father, a factory worker, and his mother, a schoolteacher, instilled in him the values of hard work and perseverance. Every weekend, his father would take him to Stadio Teofilo Patini to watch Castel di Sangro play, fostering Francesco's deep connection to the game. As a child, Francesco spent countless hours kicking a ball around the dusty streets and grassy fields of his hometown. His talent was evident even then; he had an innate understanding of the game, a sharp tactical mind, and a natural grace with the ball at his feet. By the time he was a teenager, local scouts had taken notice, and his dream of playing professional football began to take shape.

At 16, Francesco's life took a dramatic turn when he was scouted by Bayer Leverkusen. The German club saw immense potential in the young Italian and offered him a place in their prestigious youth academy. Leaving his family and the familiar surroundings of Castel di Sangro was a daunting prospect, but Francesco was determined to seize the opportunity. In Germany, Francesco thrived. The rigorous training and high level of competition pushed him to new heights. He quickly rose through the ranks, and it seemed only a matter of time before he would break into the first team. His technical skills, combined with his tactical intelligence, made him a standout player in the academy.

But just as his star was rising, fate dealt him a cruel blow. During a training session, Francesco suffered a severe knee injury that would ultimately end his playing career at just 23 years old. The diagnosis was devastating. For a time, he struggled to come to terms with the end of his dreams of playing professionally.

Despite the setback, Francesco's love for the game never waned. Determined to stay connected to football, he turned his focus to coaching. He returned to Italy and enrolled in the prestigious Coverciano, the Italian football coaching institute. There, he immersed himself in the study of modern football tactics, drawing inspiration from the new wave of managers who emphasized high pressing and fluid movements.  He learned from some of the best minds in football and developed his own coaching philosophy. He believed in a dynamic style of play that relied on teamwork, intelligence, and relentless energy. His approach was a blend of Italian tactical discipline and the attacking flair he had admired during his time in Germany. He delved deep into the intricacies of tactical analysis, sports psychology, and team management. His instructors were seasoned professionals, including former Serie A managers and national team coaches, who provided invaluable insights and mentorship.

[_Ben_]

The date is 26th October 2024.

Man City won the Premier League from Liverpool and Arsenal chasing, with Crystal Palace, Luton and Sheffield United going down, Barca retained their La Liga title as did Napoli in Italy, Paris Saint-Germain in France and Bayern in Germany with Real making it two Champions League titles in three years, beating PSG in the final. Football, finally, came home as Rashford and Bellingham saw off Italy in the final as Gareth kept his job.

But this isn't about that. My passion with all things Italy actually stems from a love of all things southern Italian. I don't really know where it came from but I've thoroughly explored the footballing landscape of Sicily with the knowledge that there is a huge financial and success divide between the north and south of the country. My first, and, potentially, only foray into this country has landed right here. Giacomo Modica was relieved of his duties as Messina manager and this has presented me with my chance.

A club, struggling at the bottom of the third tier, but with huge potential and a really interesting history.

- - -

A.C.R. Messina, officially known as Associazioni Calcio Riunite Messina, is a historic football club based in Messina, Sicily. The club was founded in 1900, making it one of the oldest football institutions in Italy. Messina's early years were marked by local competitions and regional leagues, reflecting the nascent state of Italian football at the time. The club underwent several transformations and name changes before adopting the A.C.R. Messina moniker, which it retains to this day.

The 1930s and 1940s were a period of gradual growth for Messina. During this era, the club participated in Serie C, the third tier of Italian football, with varying degrees of success. The post-World War II period saw Messina striving for stability and progress, leading to their first notable achievement: promotion to Serie B in 1949. This promotion marked the beginning of a more competitive phase for the club, as they established themselves as a formidable side in the second tier of Italian football.

The 1960s heralded a golden era for A.C.R. Messina. The club achieved promotion to Serie A for the first time in its history in the 1962-63 season. This milestone was a significant achievement for the club and its supporters, as they had the opportunity to compete against Italy's top teams. Although their stay in Serie A was brief, the experience laid the foundation for future aspirations. The club spent the remainder of the 1960s oscillating between Serie A and Serie B, demonstrating their resilience and capability to compete at high levels.

However, the following decades were challenging for Messina. The club faced financial difficulties, management issues, and inconsistent performances, which led to their relegation to the lower divisions. The 1980s and 1990s were particularly tough, with the club spending significant time in Serie C and even Serie D, the fourth tier of Italian football. Despite these challenges, the club's passionate fan base and the city’s support kept the spirit of Messina alive.

A resurgence occurred in the early 2000s. Under the guidance of new management and with a reinvigorated squad, Messina achieved back-to-back promotions, culminating in their return to Serie A in the 2004-05 season. This period was marked by memorable matches and impressive performances, including a notable victory against the illustrious A.C. Milan. The 2004-05 season ended with Messina finishing in a respectable seventh place, their highest-ever finish in Serie A.

Nevertheless, financial instability once again plagued the club, leading to their relegation and eventual exclusion from professional leagues due to bankruptcy in 2008. A.C.R. Messina was refounded and had to start anew from Serie D. The journey back was arduous, but the club demonstrated resilience, gradually climbing back up the Italian football hierarchy.

In recent years, Messina has oscillated between Serie C and Serie D, striving to regain its former glory. The club’s history is a testament to its resilience, embodying the struggles and triumphs of a small yet passionate football community. A.C.R. Messina continues to aspire to return to the upper echelons of Italian football, driven by a loyal fan base and a rich history that spans over a century.

- - -

I'm going for a full send here. I have spent time creating kits, with the home kit's homage to the Sicily, where they are based and made by legendary Italian manufacturers Kappa. My choice is to use a slightly older club logo as I prefer it but my job, a I continue posting about Messina, is to build a club identity in terms of these graphics, changing kits and corporate things where necessary.

[Robson 07]

You know where it's at @_Ben_, that's more like it.  For some reason I want to say you were once Padova maybe 15 years or so ago?  Maybe the mind plays tricks, and I got that all wrong?  Of course one of my all time favourites is Pescara, and what is not to like?  Put a dolphin on your badge and you're already winning in life.  Good luck buddy.  I still look at your threads from time to time - not as much as I should - and they're every bit as good as they always were.  Better in fact.  A LEGENDARY FM'er and storyteller.  Take care, man.

(from England Away or EA, as the artist was formerly known on The Dugout )

[adam_otbfm]

@_Ben_ Can't wait to follow along on this journey! Italian football is so iconic and with the passion you have for it, combined with your unbelievable content, this is going to be an unbelievable read! 

[El Payaso]

I'm speechless with the start. Absolutely fantastic writing and appealing graphical presentation. Really nice to see you in Italy too. Going to follow this very closely. 

[CameronFM]

Really excited to be following along on this journey! Was brought up on Football Italia also, so Italian football always has a place in my heart. 

[danyates8]

Loving the graphical style chosen! Will be following from now on! 

[danielgear]

A great introduction as always Ben. Love the background and foundations already laid for this save. Best of luck in Italy 

[coach vahid]

Top.

[PequenoGenio]

[_Ben_]

@Robson 07, @adam_otbfm, @El Payaso, @CameronFM, @danyates8, @danielgear, @coach vahid and @PequenoGenio - overwhelmed by the support here! Thank you so much. As I've said - Italy is my spiritual footballing home and I hope that I can do it justice in my style of FM! Don't expect too much more stories of D'Anzi's childhood but, hopefully, expect plenty of charts, data viz and other graphical stuff as I deepen my obsession with Playground AI!

[Jogo Bonito]

Great intro, and I love the visual graphics in your story banner with your manager profile pic.

After being in Sicily recently myself (and drinking the odd Birra Messina Cristalli Di Sale) I'll absolutely be following this along with the other lower-league Sicily story on these pages.

Whilst researching and setting up my own FM24 story in Italy, I got a fair few iconic James Richardson images ready for inclusion, so hope you won't object when some of them appear in my own updates. Football Italia was iconic for us of a certain vintage where absurdly Serie A was the only live league football we got to see.

Hoping you will have a great time in Sicily (and/or Italy).

[_Ben_]

Season 1: Welcome to Messina.

Time to get my feet under the desk and see what I am working with! The interview process was fairly straight forward and, without any experience, I wasn't able to bring in any changes to staff. With just under €100k given to me in January, I might be able to spend but, honestly, I want to 'coach' this team and, from an early insight into the actual playing squad, I think that is what has been lacking!

A. Staff

I quickly established a hierarchy within the staffing structure and have largely been impressed at what is on offer here. Below are my key staff at this point:

 

Chairman Pietro Sciotto's job here is to hire DoF and Technical Director, which does present a challenge to me as Domenico Roma or Michael Tosi are particularly strong at their job but, given the historical figures that have popped up in Italian football leadership before - cough, Palermo's twenty-four managers in ten years, cough - I feel that I need to stay on his good, and realistic side. Tosi's role is  hiring and firing non-coaching staff and, honestly, he's going to struggle at being able to bring in the best of the best for me and, originating some 950km from Messina - I do worry as to whether he's going to have that Sicilian DNA that I will likely dip into later.

Hailing at just four hundred kilometres away, right at the bottom of the boot of Italy, Domenico Roma is an experienced lower level director of football and his task is to identify players for the first team, something that he's not terrible at. My concerns are his absolute lack of tactical knowledge but an attacking style might be what I want and I'm not against using three at the back if necessary.

 

Stefano Fiore is a former Italian professional footballer and current coach, born on April 17, 1975, in Cosenza, Italy. He's currently the assistant manager here and, despite his Pro Licence, I'm not overly sold on his as a member of staff - a cautious mentality with a 433 shape isn't probably the style I'll be going for. But, right now, for nostalgia sake, he's not bad. He just embodies this whole Football Italia vibe so I felt appropriate to also include a video of his goals.

Primarily an attacking midfielder, he was known for his creativity, vision, and ability to score from midfield. Fiore started his professional career with his hometown club Cosenza before moving to Parma, where he contributed to their UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia victories in the mid-1990s. Fiore's career saw him play for several top Italian clubs, including Udinese, Lazio, and Fiorentina. At Udinese, he emerged as a key player, which earned him a move to Lazio in 2001. During his time at Lazio, he won the Coppa Italia in the 2003-2004 season. Fiore also had brief stints with clubs outside Italy, including Valencia in Spain. On the international stage, Fiore earned 38 caps for the Italian national team, scoring two goals. He was part of Italy's squad for UEFA Euro 2000, where they reached the final, and also represented his country at UEFA Euro 2004. After retiring as a player, Fiore transitioned into coaching and football management. He has taken on various roles, including working with youth teams and serving as a technical director.

Stefano's roles are largely around support in terms of player liaison and reporting on training.

Mike Terranova is the current head of player development, tasked with identifying players for the future - a role that he should be strong at, given his eye for identifying talent and then working with them. He doesn't offer too much in the way of coaching expertise, despite his Pro Licence and, again, his styles and formations probably don't fit in with my longer term plans. However, he's highly adaptable and isn't going to be too bad as he's able to operate with discipline, able to motivate the players and has a positive personality, to boot. Whilst not an entirely different continent, I do wonder how the German-born and bred in him with cope with the Sicilian heat!

That leaves me, Franco D'Anzi, with an oversight of all training and set pieces. My strengths have been built around tactical and mental coaching across the attacking and defensive phases of play. The fact that both of my right hand men are more qualified than I, possess better man management skills and are more determined to succeed - on paper - than I does worry me. But I'm hoping that my coaching staff, which is already surprisingly strong for this level, will help out:

 

As a team employed before I joined, I must say I'm impressed at the international credentials (as well as nostalgia) of Hugo Campagnaro - an Argentinian centre back nicknamed The Bull in his playing days, Swiss international keeper Diego Benaglio and once Juventus u23 coach, renowned for his goatee and sideburns - in his younger days - Cristiano Lupatelli. It's odd that two of the three are ex-keepers and that Benaglio has little to no interest in now coaching keepers, but there's over 1000 games in professional football here - even with Lupatelli, a self-made number two for pretty much all of his career! I think that this experience, plus three strong personalities and room to grow is key for where I want to go with this team.

- - -

B. Players

From the Sicilian national team to stories of the culturally rich area intertwined with financial mismanagement, Sicily is abuzz with footballing heritage. I want to create, in the long term, a team that embodies every ounce of what it is like to be Sicilian. However, in the short term, I've got to work, and coach, the group of players that has left us deep in relegation trouble!

Each shirt is clickable for a full profile of the player, created in a new version of my skin for this save.

Goalkeepers

 

Don't be fooled by the stats bar - Fumagalli hasn't played that well; he's just played two games! The veteran of my team and, amazingly, the father of a midfielder who plays for us, he's a truly experienced veteran who has done amazingly well to stay fit for so long. His contract expires at the end of this season and it'll be really interesting to see how he is dealt with. Moldovan Mitu is, actually, quite a decent footballing keeper and his 14% disparity between his expected save percentage and actual save percentage is largely down to the fact our opponent's shot quality is high and we're leaky defensively. There is evidence he's been tried as a playmaking keeper this year but it hasn't quite worked out, yet, as he's failed to record a single progressive pass.

Defenders

     

Ugo Dell'Orfanello and Damiano Lia appear to be the best full backs at the club but are both probably better attacking than defending. Neither of them seem to have had a license to get forward and deliver crosses and are both loose in possession. However, both are rounded and seem to have decent attributes for this level. Captain Marco Manetta, the cool named Groovj MacAnthony and Federioc Pacciardi round out a relatively slow, and weak quality area of the team. It's little wonder why we are conceding so many chances for Mitu in goal with these ahead of him.

Midfielders

      

Despite Firenze being '5', he's actually my archetypical Italian ten and could sit ahead of Frisenna, who I like the look of as a line breaking deep midfielder. I'm quite impressed with his 1.26 key passes per game, 64% tackle win ratio, 4.09 progressive passes and 1.47 interceptions - and, with the right coaching and system - the Catania born lad could flourish. Fumagalli and Franco are both sitters in this system whilst Leone is a mentally strong ten. Caso is just one of a number of promising youngsters, which includes Lucenti, who are going to form part of my development plans.

Forwards

   

Statistically, this group can be split into those who carry the ball and those who, well, just don't. Likewise, the groupings are the same for those who use their aerial threat and those who don't. None of them are taking many shots and their accuracy is also pretty shocking.

- - -

Tactically, I'm not too sure of what I actually want to achieve but my plan over the next months is to begin to establish a playing style, identify those in the youth teams who I feel could add something different to what we already have and then start to build some progression maps out for them.

Forza Biancoscudati!

[_Ben_]

2 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Whilst researching and setting up my own FM24 story in Italy, I got a fair few iconic James Richardson images ready for inclusion, so hope you won't object when some of them appear in my own updates. Football Italia was iconic for us of a certain vintage where absurdly Serie A was the only live league football we got to see.

Happy to have you following!

I was pleasantly surprised with what came out of the image generator when I asked for my AI manager to be reading a Gazetta della Sport.

[El Payaso]

Beautifully written and detailed post of the backroom staff and players. A nice addition as at least I didn't have a clue about either of them. Especially staff is often overlooked in career updates, so it adds a lot of depth. 

That AI tool that you are using seems interesting. Definitely going to check it out and see if it could produce some usable content for my own Torino career update. 

Looking forward to the first matches! 

[CameronFM]

The new skin look very sleek and smart!

Love the attention to detail with the non-playing staff; it seems a bit alien to me that the HoYD (well in your case HoPD) is in charge of signings as opposed to the DoF, but when you factor in your summary and logic, it makes sense!

Edited Wednesday at 20:25 by CameronFM

[Jogo Bonito]

10 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

Happy to have you following!

I was pleasantly surprised with what came out of the image generator when I asked for my AI manager to be reading a Gazetta della Sport.

It's awesome and so is your post on the staff supporting you and the squad review. Excellent stuff and you're capturing the real essence of the club already.

[Deisler26]

Love this. Some of my best saves have been in Italy (Empoli, Santarcanglo) so look forward to this.

[Carambau]

Wonderful introduction! Looking forward to this  

[bigmattb28]

You had me at football Italia. Incredible posts so far bro 

[_Ben_]

@bigmattb28, @Carambau and @Deisler26 - thank you for the kind comments. I loved Football Italia as a kid and that theme tune was something that I felt needed to be brought back to our ears in 2024!

21 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Excellent stuff and you're capturing the real essence of the club already.

There's a lot to like about this club. Hopefully I can do it properly with them and list them as another one of my 'favourites!'

21 hours ago, CameronFM said:

Love the attention to detail with the non-playing staff; it seems a bit alien to me that the HoYD (well in your case HoPD) is in charge of signings as opposed to the DoF, but when you factor in your summary and logic, it makes sense!

I just like to try different things, to be honest. Ideally, I want to create Terranova an 'Academy Manager' kind of role where he'd be in charge of a lot of the youth stuff with my overview on what progressions we have to the first team. It's the closest I could really get to that model in my head but, actually, he's hopefully going to be quite good at bringing in these youngsters.

[Slipky]

So good to see you back!
I'm going to follow this closely as your last save really changed how I work regarding some areas of FM. Scouting, specifically.

That setup I made for Sporting CP? I "blame" you.

Anyway - Closely following. Good luck, man!

[_Ben_]

Season 1: Identifying the tactical needs and comparing them with the tactical wants

I really identify with a certain playing style and, over the last few FMs, have been able to make progress towards my goals. I would suggest that I do employ elements of relationist football, particularly with strong use of numbers 10s - and, now that I'm in Italy, that's virtually a given, plus fluidity, teamwork and space utilisation in my attacking shapes. That being said, I think that the functional elements of this fluidity are still not set in stone defensively as I like to ensure a particularly strong rest defence that you find in positional play. My fondness for roles such as inverted full backs, inverted wing backs and liberos in the defensive areas means that I do like to build numerical superiority in our transitions. My end goal is to go a little further than I did at Bayer Leverkusen and fully embrace all three areas of superiority:

• Numerical
• Qualitative
• Positional

And then intertwining that with chaos, fluidity of movement and intelligence whilst in the attacking third. Achieving this through a limited handle on player recruitment will be harder than it could be, but that is where my challenge of being the Head Coach comes in. Identifying tactical battles we can win and getting the best out of every single player is key for me and my enjoyment of this game.

- - -

But that goal feels some distance away at Serie C relegation candidates Messina! It is, however, a process and I want to see what things I can instill at this early age and look at how to progress this over time. Upon taking over a club, I always dig into their statistical outputs and this is no different:

No tactic would be complete without players and, in order to get an idea of what I want to achieve long term, what maybe can be achieved short term and then a really clear focus for the really-short term, I can start to position my best players within the confines of this tactical style. I'm going to steer a little away here from statistical outputs, given that - largely - the entire team has underperformed and it's likely that the style of my predecessor, Giacomo Modico, has and will continue to vary from my own. Therefore, I want to create a holistic look at player attributes in order to create shapes that work around and intertwine with my best players, rather than shoehorning them into styles, positions and roles.

Giulio Frisenna - Line breaking midfielder.

I really like Giulio and think he'll be a key cog in how we transition. Naturally a deep midfielder and possessing the Dictates Tempo trait along with a good engine and work rate, I see him as a segundo volante, assisting in the transition but also making use of his physical frame. Furthermore, I think that he's the perfect person to actually create that transition and I feel that he's just about the most press resistant player within the team, judging by the below attributes:

• Technical: First Touch (11), Dribbling (10), Passing (12), Technique (10)
• Mental: Anticipation (13), Bravery (12), Composure (13), Decisions (13), Flair (7), Teamwork (13)
• Physical: Balance (11), Agility (12), Strength (9)

For comparison, at this level, technical attributes, on average, vary between about 7 and 9, mental attributes between 9 and 11 and physical attributes between about 10 and 11. With space left to grow, I'm really hopeful that I can build the team around him.

Ugo Dell'Orfanello - 1v1 Defender

Initially, I saw him as a wing back and someone that'd be frail defensively given his lack of height - however that height issue is replicated elsewhere and I like his recovery speed, something that which can really help us from being caught on the counter. Heading is well below average for this level and I need to especially be careful with crosses coming in from the right hand side to the back post - going as far as looking at the individual matchups each game but, positionally he is above average, anticipates situations well and, as I said, has the speed to get back and recover. Compare that to his lack of passing ability, slightly blinkered vision and poor on-ball composure and I think I can make this work!

Marco Firenze - Progressive carrier

Another really well rounded attacking player who has the moves into channels trait combined with pretty good technique, vision and dribbling. I like his work rate and think that'll probably be the difference maker between his role and a true trequartista, who languidly would amble around the attacking third. Here, I see that Firenze can absolutely become the first line of defence with his surprisingly strong defensive attributes and a very vanilla role like the AM(s) could be a nice starting point for my tactical ideas.

Damiano Lia - Creative defender

Despite being one-footed, Lia is an interesting experiment for me. At 26, he's not like to progress any further so I will have to try and mould what I have here. Defensively, he's really quite sound but looks like he'll want to get forward and isn't too bad carrying the ball. For a defender, his passing, vision and composure is actually really good and his top speed isn't going to hold him back from returning to his defensive duties. Similarly to Dell'Orfanello, he's short and that does pose a problem when defending wide - therefore, I think that it makes more sense to ask him to come centrally rather than bomb forward down the flanks. I'll try and IWB role and maybe look at some traits to try and develop his game.

- - -

Clearly - there are a series of issues that I need to work through in order to secure our league status, get us winning and - ultimately - keep my job. However, I think that this builds some clarity around my motives and gives me some strong data for comparison of are we getting better or worse? It also creates some ideas for roles and ways that I can measure our improvement of the key players.

My first objective is below:

Baseline xGA is 1.84 per 90 from first twelve games of the season.

Offences win games but defences win championships. Ok - so we're not winning anything this season - twenty points off the top of the league with twenty five games left. However, I want to come back to this idea after my first ten games, ensuring that I've acted on the leaky defence. As I mentioned when introducing the players, goalkeeper Mitu has faced so many high quality chances as our defence has been carved apart time and time again.

Therefore, my initial focuses are on solidifying our defensive shape tactically, ensuring that our training focuses on covering as many defensive areas of the game as possible and ensuring that our match preparation - both through the training block and through my own opposition instructions are set appropriately. Then, it's all down to game management to ensure that I see this through. It may mean we become somewhat pragmatic and overly cautious, but we need to instill some confidence in the defenders within the team.

My thoughts are, initially, that a safer build up would be through a 3-2 rather than just have two in the first phase and allowing us to become a bit more open to counter attacks. 

Slightly risky to include all of my truly defensive players on the left hand side of the defence and something that I will have to look closely at going forward, but, given the players at my disposal - and especially the pace and one-v-one quality of defender Dell'Orfanello - I think that this is the shape that could work. The positional play elements will see the left centre back shuffle over and the half back tuck in side when we are transitioning but, importantly, given a risk factor modifier - our mentality - we'll defend with a bank of six.

Defensively, I will also set up corners to include just one man on the counter. Whilst we then lose a bit of that transitional threat early on in my tenure, certain instructions like pass into space means that I still focus on that element of progression, just remove the already small chance of a successful counter from a corner.

With that, I have also set my training schedules to be heavily defensive orientation, firstly looking at disengaged defending - as I see this as a precursor to engaged defending - and then aerial defence. Given the height of my full backs and our back six, I see it sensible to push the opponents centrally but do need to be able to defend crosses if they come in.

With the next ten games taking around three months, I also wanted to track the impact that this defensive heavy training - plus individual foci when I get round to them - will have on the defensive attributes within the team. I know that, sadly, these training sessions - aside from match tactics - don't impact directly what you see on the pitch but, if we can improve those attributes, I think that we will naturally improve what we have on the pitch as the players will be better.

I've taken an average of all players using the game's identifier of defensive attributes.

Interestingly, for tackling, we rate above average in the league comparison but have the worst heading ability out of anyone and every other attribute sits below average at this level. Again - this is why I am the Head Coach - how can I make this better? How can I minimise the impact of this?

Forza Biancoscudati!

[AlfieLucas]

LOVED Football Italia, besides from going back every summer, watching it every Sunday was religious in our household. Goodluck with Messina, great writing thus far. Looking forward to seeing how this goes.

[_Ben_]

@AlfieLucas - it does seem to have pulled the nostalgic heart strings of many a member here! I saw this on X last night and it just makes this whole thread feel more right, to me!

 

 

23 hours ago, Slipky said:

So good to see you back!
I'm going to follow this closely as your last save really changed how I work regarding some areas of FM. Scouting, specifically.

That setup I made for Sporting CP? I "blame" you.

Anyway - Closely following. Good luck, man!

Thanks @Slipky - always a pleasure to have your input on my threads.

That looks a really solid approach and it has made me think - quite hard actually - about how I will do this kind of thing with a far more hands-off approach to recruitment. I've got some plans and have put them into my Gantt Chart (yes, I do really have one) of objectives I want to set in place/achieve here.

Edited 3 hours ago by _Ben_

[Deisler26]

God that's such a good advert.