OK, so this is the first tactic I have ever uploaded to FM Scout - mainly because I've always used downloaded tactics in the past until I've found one or two I really liked. However, for this edition of Football Manager, I was determined to tinker and play until I'd found a tactic I really liked and had tweaked to perfection and could proudly call it all my own work. Using these tactics, I have won the Championship with 5 games to go and I am through to the Semi Finals of the FA Cup, having already knocked out Manchester City, Norwich and Leicester City. So here it is, the three tactics I have been using as Derby County manager over the course of my 1st season.
The Plan:
Taking over as Derby manager, I knew I had the squad to allow me a good season with the right tactics at hand. The board had set me the target of making the playoffs and being the ambitious manager I am, I set myself the higher target to gain automatic promotion. The board backed me with a good transfer budget of £4 million, plus a weekly wage budget of £440k. I looked over my squad and decided I would create a tactic that suited the players at my disposal to start with.
The Squad:
So I believe the most important thing any manager should do when taking over a new team is look at your squad, and pick out your 4 key players - ensure that they are playing in their most proficient positions/roles and then build the rest of the team around them. So for Derby, in my opinion, that started with...
GK - Scott Carson (a Premiership standard goalkeeper playing in the Championship)
DC - Jason Shackell (the player I had already established would be my captain for the season with high ratings for determination and leadership)
AMR - Tom Ince (Young, talented, fantastic ability dribbling on the ball, with a very good finishing attribute)
ST - Chris Martin (in my opinion one of the best centre forwards in the Championship)
Will Hughes (CM) would of been in this top 4 instead of Carson but he starts the game injured for 9 months. Will is one of the upcoming English talents in the country that I would expect to see playing in the Premiership over the next couple of years.
Signings:
The other thing I do early on is establish which players I need. I like to have 2 players for every position in an ideal world. Mostly, I am covered with Derby for this - the only thing I was missing was a big CB with the ability to play as a Ball Playing Defender so I set out to spend most of my transfer budget on one player to fill this void. Following extensive scouting, I found Matthew Connolly at Cardiff - 6ft 2" tall, with ratings for tackling, marking, heading, passing, jumping reach all over 13, and half decent pace and accelaration - he fit the bill perfectly and I forked out £2.6 million to get him in! The fans were delighted!
With Will Hughes being out for most of the season, I also needed some extra cover in the CM (especially as I would be playing 3 players through the middle), and I wanted a youngster with lots of scope for development and drive to succeed. I didn't feel the need to fork out a permanent transfer fee at this time with Will Hughes returning at some point, so I turned to the loan market and found 20 year old Harrison Reed at Southampton - a versatile midfielder that could play pretty much any role through the middle - perfect cover for what I needed.
The Main Tactic:
Time to build the rest of the team and put a tactic together. So here is each position, with my explanation for each role and how it would fit into the tactic.
GK - Goalkeeper (Defend) - No special instructions. Keep it simple, let the goalkeeper do his job and have certain amount of autonomy over the decisions he makes.
DR - Wing Back (Attack) - I wanted an attacking wing back who would get wide, get forward A LOT. Put lots of crosses into the box. It's important to have this player pushing forward up the wing and playing high up the pitch as I set my AMR as an inside forward and playing narrow into the pitch.
CBR - Ball Playing Defender (Defend) - Must be a tall commanding defender. Someone who is a strong tackler of the ball, who can win it back, but then has the ability and technique to lay off decent passes into the midfield to set off counter attacks quickly and efficiently.
CBL - Central Defender (Defend) - This is what I call your safety net defender. He wins the ball and plays simple safe passes out wide, back to the GK or uses the ball playing defender as an outlet. He will also play safe passes into the midfielders feet. Never trying to be too adventurous, he is safe and simple. If I can, I would get a player in here with high leadership and determination and set him as your captain as he can see the whole game ahead of him!
DL - Full Back (Support) - This full back does not need to get as far forward as the DR as I play my AML as a winger and so he will provide the wide outlet in the final third, allowing the DL to stay further back and help out with defence. I found that you wont be left so open down both wings all game with this set up. Also, the DL will still play in crosses from deep (which works well with my team tactics of hit early crosses). But he wont focus on running down the wing all the time, instead focusing on working with the CM's to keep posession as his first priority.
CMR - Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend) - This player has a defend duty to allow him to provide cover for the marauding wing back at DR. He will sit deep, marking any AMC that the opposition might have. It is important to have a player here with good tackling, but also very good passing and vision too as when he gets the ball, he will be responsible for playing risky passes into the final third to kick start attacking moves. I set this players special instructions with 'Tackle Harder' and 'More Risky Passes'.
CM - Ball Winning Midfielder (Support) - This is your workhorse in the midfield. Constantly chasing down the opposition midfielders, not allowing them time on the ball to pick passes or get off long shots on goal. He must have high work rate and good tackling attribute. Some aggression isnt necessarily a bad thing here either. I have him set on support as he can close down higher up the pitch as he has the deep lying playmaker sitting behind him to cover any mistakes. I set special instructions for this player as 'Fewer Risky Passes' as all I want him doing is winning the ball and laying it off to more creative players.
CML - Centre Midfielder (Attack) - This is your central midfielder that will drive forward from midfield, support the attackers, get into the box, score goals etc... I would expect this player to be your Lampard/Gerrard of the team that you could expect a good 10+ goals from each season. So they should be competent in passing, vision, work rate etc.... But also possess good finishing ability - after all, whats the point in sending a midfielder forward if he cant finish when he gets the chances.
AMR - Inside Forward (Attack) - Even though we have a lone striker in this tactical setup, I see this position offering the best goalscoring threat! This is your Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi type player that will cut in from the wings, can score great goals, drive at players, basically make things happen out of nowhere. He should have good attributes in dribbling/flair/pace/acceleration to beat players. But must also have good finishing ability as he will find himself in a lot of goalscoring positions. Basically I want this player picking up the ball, and running at the opposition defence as much as possible. He does not need to be a good crosser of the ball as that is not his job! He hasnt even got to be the most fantastic passer of the ball, as long as this attribute is adequate that he wont keep giving it away. I set special instructions for this player as 'Sit Narrower' and 'Shoot More Often'.
AML - Winger (Support) - So on the right side, you have your DR as your crossing threat. Well on this side its the AML. As a winger with support duty, he will support the MCL who drives forward throughout the game, he will get down the winger and put crosses in, and he will hit the box himself trying to score.
CF - Complete Forward (Attack) - The complete forward is the perfect role here as he will hold up the ball for the oncoming midfielders, he will run at the opposition, he will shoot when required, he will get to the wing if needed to chase down loose balls. This player must have good positioning, off the ball and decisions attributes.
I set this tactic up in mind that my goals over the course of a season would come from:
CF - 15-20 goals
AMR - 15-20 goals
AML - 10+ goals
MCL - 10+ goals
CB - 5 goals between them both from corners etc...
MC and MCR - average 5 goals each over the season
DR and DL - chip in with the odd goal
I figure if I can score 70+ goals over the season I will stand a good chance of promotion.
My Players:
The players I play in each position are:
GK - Scott Carson/Lee Grant
DR - Cyrus Christie/Chris Baird
CBR - Matthew Connolly/Richard Keogh
CBL - Jason Shackell/Jake Buxton
DL - Martin Olsson/Stephen Warnock
CMR - George Thorne/Will Hughes/Harrison Reed
CM - Bradley Johnson/George Thorne/Harrison Reed
CML - Jeff Hendrick/Craig Bryson/Jacob Butterfield
AMR - Tom Ince/Johnny Russell/Andi Weimann
AML - Abdoul Camara/Tom Ince/Johnny Russell/Andi Weimann
CF - Chris Martin/Johnny Russell
Team Instructions:
The aim is to play a high tempo passing game, keeping possession predominantly. Close down the ball whenever we dont have it to get it back as quickly as possible. 'Stick the boot in' to rattle the opposition and show them who's boss in the game. And focus on getting the ball into the box as often and quickly as possible when in possession ourselves.
Set team instructions as follows:
Tempo: Higher
Width: Fairly Wide
Defensive Line: Normal
Closing Down: More
Tackling: Get Stuck In
Passing: Play Out Of Defence
Passing Directness: Shorter
Final Third: Hit Early Crosses
Utilizing all three tactics:
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 IF Right: Used when playing at home - or when playing a much weaker opposition away
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 Counter Attack: Used when playing a similar or better team away
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 Inverted: Used when injuries played a part in the team and I had to switch my Inside Forward to the left instead of the right. I sometimes switched to this during a game and changed things up if we struggled to penetrate the opposition down the right side of the pitch.
The Plan:
Taking over as Derby manager, I knew I had the squad to allow me a good season with the right tactics at hand. The board had set me the target of making the playoffs and being the ambitious manager I am, I set myself the higher target to gain automatic promotion. The board backed me with a good transfer budget of £4 million, plus a weekly wage budget of £440k. I looked over my squad and decided I would create a tactic that suited the players at my disposal to start with.
The Squad:
So I believe the most important thing any manager should do when taking over a new team is look at your squad, and pick out your 4 key players - ensure that they are playing in their most proficient positions/roles and then build the rest of the team around them. So for Derby, in my opinion, that started with...
GK - Scott Carson (a Premiership standard goalkeeper playing in the Championship)
DC - Jason Shackell (the player I had already established would be my captain for the season with high ratings for determination and leadership)
AMR - Tom Ince (Young, talented, fantastic ability dribbling on the ball, with a very good finishing attribute)
ST - Chris Martin (in my opinion one of the best centre forwards in the Championship)
Will Hughes (CM) would of been in this top 4 instead of Carson but he starts the game injured for 9 months. Will is one of the upcoming English talents in the country that I would expect to see playing in the Premiership over the next couple of years.
Signings:
The other thing I do early on is establish which players I need. I like to have 2 players for every position in an ideal world. Mostly, I am covered with Derby for this - the only thing I was missing was a big CB with the ability to play as a Ball Playing Defender so I set out to spend most of my transfer budget on one player to fill this void. Following extensive scouting, I found Matthew Connolly at Cardiff - 6ft 2" tall, with ratings for tackling, marking, heading, passing, jumping reach all over 13, and half decent pace and accelaration - he fit the bill perfectly and I forked out £2.6 million to get him in! The fans were delighted!
With Will Hughes being out for most of the season, I also needed some extra cover in the CM (especially as I would be playing 3 players through the middle), and I wanted a youngster with lots of scope for development and drive to succeed. I didn't feel the need to fork out a permanent transfer fee at this time with Will Hughes returning at some point, so I turned to the loan market and found 20 year old Harrison Reed at Southampton - a versatile midfielder that could play pretty much any role through the middle - perfect cover for what I needed.
The Main Tactic:
Time to build the rest of the team and put a tactic together. So here is each position, with my explanation for each role and how it would fit into the tactic.
GK - Goalkeeper (Defend) - No special instructions. Keep it simple, let the goalkeeper do his job and have certain amount of autonomy over the decisions he makes.
DR - Wing Back (Attack) - I wanted an attacking wing back who would get wide, get forward A LOT. Put lots of crosses into the box. It's important to have this player pushing forward up the wing and playing high up the pitch as I set my AMR as an inside forward and playing narrow into the pitch.
CBR - Ball Playing Defender (Defend) - Must be a tall commanding defender. Someone who is a strong tackler of the ball, who can win it back, but then has the ability and technique to lay off decent passes into the midfield to set off counter attacks quickly and efficiently.
CBL - Central Defender (Defend) - This is what I call your safety net defender. He wins the ball and plays simple safe passes out wide, back to the GK or uses the ball playing defender as an outlet. He will also play safe passes into the midfielders feet. Never trying to be too adventurous, he is safe and simple. If I can, I would get a player in here with high leadership and determination and set him as your captain as he can see the whole game ahead of him!
DL - Full Back (Support) - This full back does not need to get as far forward as the DR as I play my AML as a winger and so he will provide the wide outlet in the final third, allowing the DL to stay further back and help out with defence. I found that you wont be left so open down both wings all game with this set up. Also, the DL will still play in crosses from deep (which works well with my team tactics of hit early crosses). But he wont focus on running down the wing all the time, instead focusing on working with the CM's to keep posession as his first priority.
CMR - Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend) - This player has a defend duty to allow him to provide cover for the marauding wing back at DR. He will sit deep, marking any AMC that the opposition might have. It is important to have a player here with good tackling, but also very good passing and vision too as when he gets the ball, he will be responsible for playing risky passes into the final third to kick start attacking moves. I set this players special instructions with 'Tackle Harder' and 'More Risky Passes'.
CM - Ball Winning Midfielder (Support) - This is your workhorse in the midfield. Constantly chasing down the opposition midfielders, not allowing them time on the ball to pick passes or get off long shots on goal. He must have high work rate and good tackling attribute. Some aggression isnt necessarily a bad thing here either. I have him set on support as he can close down higher up the pitch as he has the deep lying playmaker sitting behind him to cover any mistakes. I set special instructions for this player as 'Fewer Risky Passes' as all I want him doing is winning the ball and laying it off to more creative players.
CML - Centre Midfielder (Attack) - This is your central midfielder that will drive forward from midfield, support the attackers, get into the box, score goals etc... I would expect this player to be your Lampard/Gerrard of the team that you could expect a good 10+ goals from each season. So they should be competent in passing, vision, work rate etc.... But also possess good finishing ability - after all, whats the point in sending a midfielder forward if he cant finish when he gets the chances.
AMR - Inside Forward (Attack) - Even though we have a lone striker in this tactical setup, I see this position offering the best goalscoring threat! This is your Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi type player that will cut in from the wings, can score great goals, drive at players, basically make things happen out of nowhere. He should have good attributes in dribbling/flair/pace/acceleration to beat players. But must also have good finishing ability as he will find himself in a lot of goalscoring positions. Basically I want this player picking up the ball, and running at the opposition defence as much as possible. He does not need to be a good crosser of the ball as that is not his job! He hasnt even got to be the most fantastic passer of the ball, as long as this attribute is adequate that he wont keep giving it away. I set special instructions for this player as 'Sit Narrower' and 'Shoot More Often'.
AML - Winger (Support) - So on the right side, you have your DR as your crossing threat. Well on this side its the AML. As a winger with support duty, he will support the MCL who drives forward throughout the game, he will get down the winger and put crosses in, and he will hit the box himself trying to score.
CF - Complete Forward (Attack) - The complete forward is the perfect role here as he will hold up the ball for the oncoming midfielders, he will run at the opposition, he will shoot when required, he will get to the wing if needed to chase down loose balls. This player must have good positioning, off the ball and decisions attributes.
I set this tactic up in mind that my goals over the course of a season would come from:
CF - 15-20 goals
AMR - 15-20 goals
AML - 10+ goals
MCL - 10+ goals
CB - 5 goals between them both from corners etc...
MC and MCR - average 5 goals each over the season
DR and DL - chip in with the odd goal
I figure if I can score 70+ goals over the season I will stand a good chance of promotion.
My Players:
The players I play in each position are:
GK - Scott Carson/Lee Grant
DR - Cyrus Christie/Chris Baird
CBR - Matthew Connolly/Richard Keogh
CBL - Jason Shackell/Jake Buxton
DL - Martin Olsson/Stephen Warnock
CMR - George Thorne/Will Hughes/Harrison Reed
CM - Bradley Johnson/George Thorne/Harrison Reed
CML - Jeff Hendrick/Craig Bryson/Jacob Butterfield
AMR - Tom Ince/Johnny Russell/Andi Weimann
AML - Abdoul Camara/Tom Ince/Johnny Russell/Andi Weimann
CF - Chris Martin/Johnny Russell
Team Instructions:
The aim is to play a high tempo passing game, keeping possession predominantly. Close down the ball whenever we dont have it to get it back as quickly as possible. 'Stick the boot in' to rattle the opposition and show them who's boss in the game. And focus on getting the ball into the box as often and quickly as possible when in possession ourselves.
Set team instructions as follows:
Tempo: Higher
Width: Fairly Wide
Defensive Line: Normal
Closing Down: More
Tackling: Get Stuck In
Passing: Play Out Of Defence
Passing Directness: Shorter
Final Third: Hit Early Crosses
Utilizing all three tactics:
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 IF Right: Used when playing at home - or when playing a much weaker opposition away
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 Counter Attack: Used when playing a similar or better team away
Chris Ball's Derby 4-3-3 Inverted: Used when injuries played a part in the team and I had to switch my Inside Forward to the left instead of the right. I sometimes switched to this during a game and changed things up if we struggled to penetrate the opposition down the right side of the pitch.