I hope what follows is a what you consider a plan for the tactic I made.
My best Leeds players in (my opinion) are: Byram,Bellusci, Cook, Mowatt, Adryan,Sharp.
- Byram can play full back, wingback and complete wing back. I think he can successfully play all of the three roles. Looking at his attributes I incline to the FB(A) and CWB(A), but I think he may be a better CWB then an WB do to his technique; first touch is not bad either for a full back at this level, his composure seems also good. His decision making is poor in my opinion, only at 10, so this makes me consider playing him as a FB(A). But this will not make properly use of his technique, first touch and composure which are very good for a player playing in his position in this league. So maybe I'll have an advantage over opposition by playing him as a CWB(A).
- Bellusci - due to his lacking in passing , first touch and composure the BPD is out of question. I have to choose from limited defender and central defender.Because I want to play an attacking style of play , which is supposed to be more aggressive, he should have good technique and composure which he doesn't. The other problem in my opinion is that he lacks concentration ( it's even more important , knowing that one of the other contenders for the first team central defender place , Bamba, severely lacks concentration and this may lead to conceding more than i want). So the limited defender seems to stay.
- For the other spot in central defense I have to choose from Bamba and Cooper. Bamba lacks positioning and concentration. I also believe that Bamba is a better LD(D) and Cooper is a better CD(D). So, i will either play Bamba/Bellusci as LD(D) or Cooper/Bellusci as CD(D). I don't want to use stopper/cover combination because i'll use a high block and i want better use of the offside trap.
-On the left side of defense I don't think I have a good enough player to start regularly, so I may look to loan someone. For now I have to choose from Berardi, Taylor and White. Taylor looks like he can become a good full back but doesn't seem quite ready for first team football.Berardi is a good full back, a bit injury prone, but he's not natural on the left, he is much better on the right where I already have Byram.
- In the midfield we have lots of central midfielders and no wingers. Any formation with wingers is out of question. Still, in the central area of the pitch we are the strongest : we have two dm's, four cm's and two am's so the diamond midfield stands up.
- In the dm position , both Austin and N'Goyi are described as BWM. They can also play DM. N'goyi is the more consistent one but Austin has better mental attributes which seems to be very important for the BWM role. As an anchorman N'Goyi is clearly better than Austin. If I choose to start with a DM or A role I should start N'Goyi but if I choose to play with a BWM Austin is my first choice. The BWM may be a good choice to cover for the right attacking full back , just because he lacks positional discipline.Due to poor passing of both midfielders, and less suitability for the other roles, I may want to play with a BWM who can greatly contribute in defense( at the expense of team shape of course).
- On the right side of the central midfield i have Cook. He will start most of the games. Has the potential to be a first team star player. My assistant believes him to be an AP, RPM, BBM but I rather play him as a DLP due to his competence in defense and better link up play with the BWM. The DLP will drop deeper, hold his position and offer cover for the BWM who will hurry to close down opponents. Also Byram , which is my attacking full back on the same side will have better cover provided by the BWM/DLP combination.
-On the left side I have to choose from Mowatt, Murphy and Bianchi. Mowatt has the best chance to become a good premier league player but the other two seems to be better developed than him at the moment. I'm inclined to play all my three more creative players like some sort of play makers ( I consider them to be the strongest part of my team and I want tha ball to go mostly to them). My assistant rates Mowatt and Bianchi as a RPM while Murphy is an AP. While Cook is pretty good in defense , Austin will close down opposition players and try to win the ball in the center of the pitch, as a RPM Mowatt will be my runer , driving forward if the team is attacking or tracking back in defense. I also have Bianchi and Murphy who can step up and perform as a RPM if Mowatt gets injured or is in bad form. So the RPM looks like a good choice.
- Behind the two strikers I will play Adryan over Sloth. He is natural in this position. Both players can play as T, AP or AM. But, Adryan, if injury free and in good form, can be a key player for my team. A trequartista may be more involved in goal scoring than an AP or an AM. So I'll play him as a T.
- Upfront I think we have three decent players for this level in Sharp, Antenucci and Doukara. My initial assessment is that Sharp and Antenucci are more ready for the first team than Doukara.I think that, played in a system that suits his abilities Sharp can be a natural goalscoarer. My assistant recommends playing him as an AF or poacher. Because I mainly want from him to score goals and I'll be judging his performances based on this I'll play him as a poacher.
- Choosing the next starting striker is harder. Antenucci is a more complete player while Doukara is a better defensive forward, a role that I personally enjoy having in my team. My assistant says I should play Antenucci as a F9, T or DF. I'm thinking of playing him as a F9, hoping that Adryan and Sharp can use the space created by him. And I believe he will link up with the midfield. I'm also considering DF(S) and DLF(A). I don't know until I see them playing.
- I forgot about my GK. Silvestri will start up, playing as a sweeper keeper mostly due to the attacking mentality i wish to implement and the use of a high block.
So my initial strategy looks like that( nothing I ever played or tested was like this one, never):
View attachment 220352
Because I want to play offensive football I'll choose an attack mentality. It seems the easier and more logical choice for me at this moment. I don't care we are not currently the best team in the league, but we will be, this is the mentality i wish to implement at Leeds. Having a lot of specialised players, which i want to do their assigned duty I'll choose the very structured team shape to start with. This could change in a structured or even flexible shape if I'll change player roles.
I will start with no TI's because I want to see my team playing for the first time firstly but I'm already inclined to use:
- play out of defense - because I want to use my central defenders to their best of their abilities ( the reason they are LD) but I don't like bombing the ball forward and throwing possession to the opposition
- offside trap - i use a high block and in championship there are lots of fast strikers... maybe we can defend better using the offside trap
- close down more- already active for the aggressive mentality I'm using , but I will like to try and win the ball higher and faster , immediately after we lost it , forcing the opposition to mistake in their own half.
- My midfield setup: in the midfield my DLP is strong at positional discipline while the RPM and BWM are very weak ( which I would like to compensate by using the very structured team shape). All three of them have a good defensive contribution ( so maybe we will attack without conceding a lot). The DLP and RPM will contribute to attack while being a strong creative force in the team. Even if he's quite a lazy lad and not helping in defense the trequartista has other duties, like being a strong attacking and creative outlet. My strikers won't do to much defensively but their main job is to score goals. The poacher has a good positional discipline so my midfield will know where to search him for a deadly pass while the F9 has good creativity and brings a strong contribution in attack.
- My attacking mentality is supposed to use a high defensive line, a fast tempo, more expressiveness and the roles selected in the midfield ( play makers) should take care that the ball circulate mostly throw there - they will not be skipped, we won't play long balls due to the more direct style of play).
Good or bad this may be a plan! Probably that we will be trashed by the reserve team in the first game but at least we had an idea and a plan and it was completely ours!