HanziZoloman

@Rashidi as always it’s so useful and helpful! Thank you for the dedication and explanation. I just note my questions maybe you can touch one of them: - with a team less capable I find it difficult to shape the mentioned rest defence of 3-2 (IFB) - I often don’t have a Libero kind of player or missing a BPD while I found it easier to play a former CD in IFB role if he has enough pace. How to build with this kind of 3-2 with a less capable team (I am missing the lower league diary on your stream) - maybe it’s helpful to make notes how to interpret your explanations for strong teams first and then cut it down for less capable teams. as always: great advice, it makes me feel getting into FM instantly and watching the transitions of my team.

This would be of great help! Maybe you could also show how to use this with less capable teams as well as with stronger teams

Ok I managed somehow to hold our downfall and make Kalala work. He's getting better and better, Off the ball now 18. We noe control the ball much more and Churchus thrives as a DLP. I don't to change over everything again and want to stick to a system for longer. Kalala 6 matches 4 goals one assist

My set piece coach put the best jumper to take the set piece

I've reworked the Training Schedule: Got another one with Quickness and Resistance which are almost the same and especially the same pattern. Resting the day after a match I already do. Next on the list are passing maps. So I guess you would start Kalala nontheless (?) But Houston we have a different problem. As every year, the formation change brings better results, we turn things around but when the season kicks in, we lose again. Just have a look at goals conceded, opponents have a high xG against us like 3.x ... 2.x which is clearly much too high. Tactic remains the same no changes except going from fairly narrow --> standard and passing from shorter --> standard. If it were your team, which parameters would you check now? Here is a fantastic dtriker coming in. I don't want to suck in his development. What is on the agenda here? Anticipation, Finishing, Dribbling and Agility + Jumping and Heading. He can be a monster, he can even pass the ball. He is mentored by a highly determined player (18). I train him as an AF and try to make him a bit Quicker. I also focus and try to make him even more agile. He is played as a PF(A) at the moment.

I like that. A complete 6 is nowhere in sight. On the right side I have a WB(S) and to pacy options. O‘Reilly wants to leave and lost more of his mobility, I don’t play him anymore. I have one big 6 from the academy which I mentioned earlier: Gregory Myers who develops steadily. I don’t want to overplay him which is why I am looking for options and thus: Bruce Bullo looks like a decent. Also I try and play Jack Walsh (mentioned in the first post) in the big pivot, he’s a bit older and 1.81 meters high. Sharing the position between the three and watching who develops best. Loric Kalala and O‘Reilly were forcing a move away but the offers didn’t meet my expectations. Now they both still here and are happy again, as the clubs lost interest in them. O‘Reilly now has Acc 6 and Bal 7 I want to get rid of him. Kalala blocks the place for promising youngsters who I want to mould better, like Kilman, Adjej and Okur. How would you handle this? I can easily loan out one of them and share the game time between two and Kalala who then leaves at the end of the season. We could try him as a more goal scoring thread like AMC(A). But then how to bring him into play in this role? he needs to be fed. The W(A/S) can cross, the IF(S) passes, the WB(S) crosses, a ball from deep would be a nice touch. Aron Chirchus now plays as a FB(S) you remember the brilliant passer. He is a resolute personality and I don’t want to leave him out. McCormick does a better job centrally and the options for left FB are few. Sometimes I play Burness as a SV and put Churchus in a IWB(S) to play passes from deep.

The money is coming. That’s good! I even failed to sell my best player after he insisted on leaving us. Argh! Now he’s leaving on a free and I need the money

thanks again for going into the analysis. I read carefully and already took action. Points I need to address: development and training of U18 Players/ young first team players getting more in touch with a player profile and developing the stronger areas more identifying players with two complimenting key areas first: The training template this is a first draft to address quickness, which is a major issue in the class of 60 and 61. I have other templates for Endurance and Resistance which look similar. second: My players developed strong mental attributes because I put them into roles that address intelligence like Raumdeuter. Now I train them in roles that will train their strongest attributes further or to balance slight weaknesses. third: This is difficult for me but I'll try to improve with what you stated. Take this one for example: He is tall and his balance could be improved easily. He could protect central areas, he is a quick option which we are lacking centrally. As a WB his height is a bit wasted. I check on attributes that can't be easily trained: Work Rate (16) and Teamwork (12) is strong, Tackling (13) rounds the profile, he can jump and has a nice Natural Fitness ans Stamina. Decisions ist good. If trained in Balance, Anticipation and Def. Positioning he could be a good holding six. (correct?) He lacks Bravery which is important and can't be trained.

Just amazing

Nice 1 @DazRTaylor

Kalalas development @Cloud9 Thank you, that is something I am struggling with, identifying a players future "task" but that helps. How are your training schedules for U18 can you tell about how you do it? Aron Kilman also looks promising

It’s just really challenging in England. It’s the same with my save. Championship then 4-x years EFL One again … but that makes victory taste even better in the end

Just noticed your recent development awesome!!!! @Padders

@XaW there is not much to say Season 60/61 There's not much to say either. We got relegated from Championship. Back in EFL 1 we made a solid year (59) and wasteful bad year (60) which brought us almost into EFL 2 again. We secured the league on the last matchday with a draw and in-favour results elsewhere. Campaign 61 started as the last ended and Ricay found themself deep into relegation battle from the beginning. The Earl was frustrated and helpless not to say hopeless and called for an emergency meeting within this Forum. The call was answered (hat tips to @Cloud9) and with a change from the demanding 433 back into a more solid 4231 gave a huge positive impact. We tried to build around Ricays Superstar player Loric Kalala who is surely the best we ever produced. The team got the engines running again and made into a respectable 10th place but Kalala failed to produce anything noteable. He shrugs when asked by the press why on earth a player of his calibre doesn't offer more to the team. Maybe he is already elsewhere in his mind, "I see what happens, football is a fast business. We are checking on all options". Loric Kalala the man who could be a hero but won't: On the other hand there was tremendously news breaking ... Billericay Town secured a plan for a new Stadium ... a 20k rock solid vessel which will give us a future. Just note the name of this "arena" The Rhys Platt Arena the legendary No 18 from the 2024. "That's football" The Earl comments. What about the training facility downgrade? "Well, we'll upgrade again, I'm sure" The Earl shrugs, "I just want to be the coach in 2064. I want to smell that grass."

Season is finished, we had one game left to try the changes. Chris Burness scored from the SV but Kalala didn't produce anything notable. Maybe I am overplaying him, he is 21y/o and played 30-35 matches per season. He got 4 goals and 5 assists in 35 games. Training Schedules are matched to train tech/ mental aspects of the game especially intelligence but are also filled with physical aspects. I started to train more physicals in the U18s now that I am aware of the deficit. I am tracking the progress in excel sheets and it produces positive results. The facilities are "good" since the last upgrade (just downgraded to "average"). I try to rotate the squad as often as possible, I want to give game time to all those promising youngsters and I don't like to play players with "high" match load. 21 players got 12 and more apps only the newest promoted youngsters and players returning from loans in January got fewer matches. I want to show you Kalalas greatest challenger who just returned from a successful loan spell: He can become even better than Kalala. I am tempted to cash in on Kalala as he won't sign a new contract. I sold Myles Pott (the big DM) and give game time to this youngster as the tower in the pivot: From the newest intake I try to retrain two defenders as DM and check on who is developing faster in that role. This one for instance:

Thanks for the reply, from what I saw I believe he is being marked out or struggles when pressed, he is easy to catch with Acc 10 (it went up one notch). Would you take him completely out or change his role into something AMC(S)? Isn‘t Chris Burness a mobile enough player? if I play Churchus as a DLP(S) Kalala should play AMC(A)? sadly the new intake brought no mobility into center midfield all players coming in are rather slow I check on the issues you presented

@Ghost77 I like the set up but the DLP just has one player to pass pinpoint passes to, the AF. I would add another one. He will link up play with the DLF who drops deep, the AF is a clear scorer up front maybe a poacher could do it more effectively. He can build a solid partnership with the WM(S) who offers support when pressed hard, he plays back forth and then a WB(A) pushes forward to receive a pass (?) You‘ll need another one who‘s breaking through, maybe a W(A) or a WB(A) on the right side (?) the left side also could need some thread another W(A), IW(S/A) or a FB(A) depending on the players you have but it could also work with just the right side.

Nice and great name. The Cat! I sadly can‘t make it work. I don’t like it and was happy to install a set piece coach but even the best didn’t produce. I have big jumpers in the team but I consistently find my smaller players involved in the box. I hope I’ll find a good one someday but I am 2061 …

But that’s a good start. How are his stats?

@Jorgen you should check the Youth Academy Challenge here, they do this kind of challenge without extra players and it works. I am doing this kind of challenge the first time and learnt tons on my way up from VNS into Championship, I am in the year 2061 though. It's really hard to find that winning formula for a player like me who is relatively unexperienced in how to make a team work and overperform on a consistent basis.

That’s a real issue in my save as well. I always try to have the best set piece coaches and got one with a 16 in League two which is clearly one of the best in the game in 2060 (there are not many) but despite having good jumpers I almost score no goals from set pieces. It’s annoying as I feel bored be tinkering in set pieces and I am not good at it also.

Hi I want to contribute some of my thoughts as well as the question is so eminent for me too @silentventus i think it depends on what your players can do first. If someone is playing with a superb team the players usually can perform the tasks demanded of them. It’s trickier when someone likes to play the underdog, like me. To check what players can do and cannot do has been a big issue lately for myself. One can check by two methods 1) individual attributes: I did the mistake to want dynamic running from players who are not mobile enough to do this, like Acc/ Agi/ Pac 7-9. to address the issue it’s good to put players with Acc 16 on attacking, penetrating roles and players with Acc 7 on holding, rarely moving roles and duties e.g. 2) statistics: @Cleon states that every player can perform every tasks but will do so individually. I‘ve seen players overperforming with low stats. Some like to play without attributes or stars, then you rely on stats and watching the game. You can check how many sprints or dribblings or progressive passes or any other stat a player or your team performs. this should show what a player can do and what it’s too demanding of him. the next step maybe could be like you did before, that you‘ll look for standout players, some players who perform a particular task very well, like movement or pace or passing and put them into a position to perform best. Which leads to the next step: imagining ways to support those players and who they will let shine on the pitch. If I have a poacher who is not the most mobile but has great anticipation and finishing and maybe some other aspects that suit a player who is waiting idly on his chance to present, then I need players around him which give him space, time and the ball. If I have a player who is not that mobile but can place a ball exactly where it should (pinpoint passes) I should place somewhere on the pitch to do so and give him enough support to play there even when pressed. I need to present options around him. Imagine a DLP(S) in MC or DM having a FB(S) on his side and a DM/ MC(S) in the other so that he can always play an easy pass to release pressure on him and play the pinpoint when an opportunity arises. Also of course he needs players to pinpoint pass to, e.g. a fast W(A) with acres of space in front of him or a fast AF sitting at the shoulder of a defender. just recently I had help from @Cloud9 with that. I have a player with outstanding movement but below average mobility and need to find a spot for him to shine.

I am doing so well now with all the changes and new promising players are already coming through. The one thing that is bothering me is, that in AP(S) all players seem to fail (except Chris Burness) especially Loric Kalala is piling bad matches. I am very inexperienced with a AMC role do you have some suggestions how to give him more impact? Usually he receives the ball and is easily dispatched from it shortly. It’s not like he is not trying. He even gained points in dribbling and Acc (10 both now). I mean AP(S) with roaming exactly plays to his strengths. We often face 442 or 433 btw @Cloud9 I have some ideas: Positional play could be of use. the IF(S) right sided should arrive first in the central area before the box, as the AP(S) drops into MC to help build up play. Then he turns and arrives next into the area in front of the box. Last I tell the DM(S) on the left to get further forward who is the third player to arrive in the area in front of the box. The IF(S) will attract an opponent’s Defender or the DM which gives the AP room to move into. Up front a Poacher is pinning the defenders back. I‘d like the opponents DM to attack the IF(S). The AP(S) now has options in front, the through ball into the Poacher, he could bring the W(A) into play or the IF(S) if the opponents DM tries and attack the AP(S). The DM(S) arriving late could finish off chances from the edge of the box. Does it sound good?

@ElJefe4 it’s amazing tinder all those creative solutions to really difficult problems in the game.

@Cloud9 thanks again for the feedback. O‘Reilly has been part of the CB and I‘d shy away from using him in midfield with Pas 7 but addressed it with shorter passing PI. The pace is clearly on the wings and up front. I have several players with Acc 14-16 and pace and mobility. In center it needs to be some kind of complete player, with good enough mentals and technique, which did not came through in the past years. I have a quick young one in the U18 but he is lacking tackling (4). both Tac and Acc are not easy to develop I feel. At the moment I am very content with the style of play. I‘ll try to keep Kalala here and maybe an VOL option evolves in the next years to give us some options up front. I am very loyal to many players which comes with the task. Nobody fits at first sight but develops when chances given. Maybe I am sometimes a little blind to the weaknesses of some players and keep them around for too long. anyone you would get rid of sooner rather than later in the list?