fmcalciomaestro
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Hi guys, this is my emulation of Antonio Conte's 4-3-3, the tactic he is using at Napoli after he switched from the initiali 3-4-2-1.
Antonio Conte's Napoli: A Football Manager 2024 Guide
In this guide, we will focus on implementing Conte's 4-3-3 in Football Manager 2024, analyzing in detail the characteristics of this formation and how to best adapt it.
1. In possession
The width of the pitch is fairly wide, to have good coverage of the field both in possession and out of possession. The instruction pass into spaces is very useful to exploit the spaces that open up between the opponent's lines as Conte wants. The full-backs Olivera and Di Lorenzo often overlap, so we use the overlap instruction for both sides. Conte, in both low and high build-up, wants the team to prioritize central areas to always maintain numerical superiority in the midfield, moving many players to the center. For this reason, the instruction focus play through the middle should be selected. The passing style is standard, to combine build-up from the back and vertical passes. Since Conte wants to start building from the back, play out of defense must be selected. The tempo of the game is slightly higher, allowing for quicker transitions from defense to attack. In the final third, crosses should aim to exploit a physical and aerial-capable striker like Romelu Lukaku, so they should be whipped, while Napoli players will try to work the ball into the box patiently, without forcing the play.
2. In transition
Conte seeks to implement a high-pressing, high-intensity style, forcing the opposition deep into their own half and winning the ball as high up the pitch as possible to initiate swift counter-attacks. Hence, we select the instructions Counterattack and Counter. Regarding the goalkeeper's instructions, Meret can decide whether to distribute short to the defenders or launch long balls towards Lukaku for flick-ons, depending on the game situation. Consequently, we do not provide specific instructions for the goalkeeper.
3. Out of possession
Napoli uses a high pressing line to regain possession as quickly as possible, but if they fail to regain the ball quickly, they don't hesitate to close down in a more compact mid-block. For this reason, against stronger teams, we can rely on a medium block while keeping the defensive line higher, thus reducing the spaces between the two lines (defensive line and pressing line of the midfielders). This arrangement guarantees compactness in the defensive phase, closing all spaces to the opponent's attacks, especially through the central areas. Against weaker teams, we can eventually opt for a high pressing line and also change the mentality from balanced to positive. The pressing is intense, so we select more often, in addition to prevent the goalkeeper's short distribution, step up more, trap outside, to force the opposing ball carrier to play along the flanks and use the flanks as additional defenders. In this position, the opposing player will be forced to pass back or make mistakes and our team can easily recover the ball.
Now let’s take a look at the roles and instructions for the individual players. Antonio Conte's base formation for Napoli in recent matches is as follows (4-3-3):
Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rahmani, Buongiorno, Olivera; Lobotka, Anguissa, McTominay; Politano, David Neres, Lukaku. Coach: Conte.
Let’s now examine the roles and instructions for each individual player in Football Manager 2024.
Defense
Meret: goalkeeper (defensive): no instructions.
Di Lorenzo: inverted wing-back (support): get further forward, mark tighter, close down more.
Di Lorenzo, when building from the back, moves closer to the central defenders and then advances through the central channels, acting as an additional midfielder while leaving Politano the task of covering the right flank in both phases of play. The get further forward " instruction directs Di Lorenzo to push forward into the opposition's half, often positioning himself just outside the penalty area to create density in the final third and confuse opposing defenders.
Rahmani, Buongiorno: central defenders (defensive): take fewer risks, close down more.
The two central defenders play it safe, avoiding advancing too far when in possession but pressing high against opponents. The instructions close down more and take fewer risks are specifically used to ask our defenders to avoid risky passes and mistakes during build-up play while maintaining high pressing on opponents.
Olivera: wing-back (support): stay wider, close down more.
Olivera also pushes forward but stays wider on the flank, providing width to the play. This is why the stay wider instruction is used. In the defensive phase, he focuses on pressing the opponent directly in front of him.
Midfield
Lobotka: deep-lying playmaker (defense): take more risks
The take more risks instruction is used to encourage our deep-lying playmaker to attempt vertical through balls whenever the opportunity arises. Do not use this instruction if the playmaker is not highly skilled at passing.
Anguissa: box-to-box midfielder (support): get further forward,
Anguissa is our box-to-box midfielder, tasked with both defensive and offensive duties. The instructions given ask the player to support the attack and try to make runs into the spaces in the opposition’s final third, particularly in the gaps between the full-back and the central defender.
Mc Tominay: central midfielder (attack): shoot more often, roam from position.
McTominay often positions himself almost alongside Lukaku against weaker teams, acting as a second striker capable of using his physicality to hold up the ball. By deploying him as a central midfielder with an attacking role and giving him the instructions get further forward (already preset in the attack duty) nd move into channels, we ask our player to push forward into the opponent’s penalty area. The shoot more often instruction is used to take advantage of McTominay’s long-range shooting ability but can be removed if a similar player is unavailable.
Attack
Politano: winger (support): cut inside with the ball, get further forward, roam from position, close down more, mark tighter.
In possession, Politano operates as a winger, providing width, supporting the attacking play, and leaving central areas open for Di Lorenzo’s overlaps. However, when he has the ball, he can cut inside through the central channels to attempt a long shot or a pass into the box. In the defensive phase, he acts as a wide full-back, covering the right flank while Di Lorenzo stays centrally. He presses and marks his direct opponent when necessary.
David Neres: inverted winger (attack): roam from position, close down more, mark tighter.
David Neres starts wide before cutting inside with the ball to attempt a shot or a pass into the box. He also presses and marks the opposing defender to force errors and win the ball high up the pitch.
Lukaku: complete forward (support): no instructions.
Lukaku is the typical complete forward who drops into midfield to help with possession, intercepts long goal kicks and defensive clearances, and acts as a target for his teammates’ runs.
Tactical Variations
To increase the flexibility of your team, you can try these tactical variations:
• 3-5-2: In difficult situations, you can switch to a 3-5-2 formation, with one midfielder dropping back to form a three-man defense. This will provide greater defensive solidity.
• 4-2-3-1: If you want to increase creativity in attack, you can deploy an attacking midfielder behind the striker.
Won the only two competitions Napoli is playing in this current season 2024-2025, Italian Serie A and Italy Cup. I used a datbase with a start date file that allows me to start the save game on June 10th 2024. I did not make any player transfers , I only used the fm editor to send Kvarashkelia to PSG, Folornunsho to Fiorentina on loan and Zerbin on loan to Venice.
You can see the screenshots and the video on my youtube channel for more details, highlights explanation and stats.
Thanks everyone
Antonio Conte's Napoli: A Football Manager 2024 Guide
In this guide, we will focus on implementing Conte's 4-3-3 in Football Manager 2024, analyzing in detail the characteristics of this formation and how to best adapt it.
1. In possession
The width of the pitch is fairly wide, to have good coverage of the field both in possession and out of possession. The instruction pass into spaces is very useful to exploit the spaces that open up between the opponent's lines as Conte wants. The full-backs Olivera and Di Lorenzo often overlap, so we use the overlap instruction for both sides. Conte, in both low and high build-up, wants the team to prioritize central areas to always maintain numerical superiority in the midfield, moving many players to the center. For this reason, the instruction focus play through the middle should be selected. The passing style is standard, to combine build-up from the back and vertical passes. Since Conte wants to start building from the back, play out of defense must be selected. The tempo of the game is slightly higher, allowing for quicker transitions from defense to attack. In the final third, crosses should aim to exploit a physical and aerial-capable striker like Romelu Lukaku, so they should be whipped, while Napoli players will try to work the ball into the box patiently, without forcing the play.
2. In transition
Conte seeks to implement a high-pressing, high-intensity style, forcing the opposition deep into their own half and winning the ball as high up the pitch as possible to initiate swift counter-attacks. Hence, we select the instructions Counterattack and Counter. Regarding the goalkeeper's instructions, Meret can decide whether to distribute short to the defenders or launch long balls towards Lukaku for flick-ons, depending on the game situation. Consequently, we do not provide specific instructions for the goalkeeper.
3. Out of possession
Napoli uses a high pressing line to regain possession as quickly as possible, but if they fail to regain the ball quickly, they don't hesitate to close down in a more compact mid-block. For this reason, against stronger teams, we can rely on a medium block while keeping the defensive line higher, thus reducing the spaces between the two lines (defensive line and pressing line of the midfielders). This arrangement guarantees compactness in the defensive phase, closing all spaces to the opponent's attacks, especially through the central areas. Against weaker teams, we can eventually opt for a high pressing line and also change the mentality from balanced to positive. The pressing is intense, so we select more often, in addition to prevent the goalkeeper's short distribution, step up more, trap outside, to force the opposing ball carrier to play along the flanks and use the flanks as additional defenders. In this position, the opposing player will be forced to pass back or make mistakes and our team can easily recover the ball.
Now let’s take a look at the roles and instructions for the individual players. Antonio Conte's base formation for Napoli in recent matches is as follows (4-3-3):
Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rahmani, Buongiorno, Olivera; Lobotka, Anguissa, McTominay; Politano, David Neres, Lukaku. Coach: Conte.
Let’s now examine the roles and instructions for each individual player in Football Manager 2024.
Defense
Meret: goalkeeper (defensive): no instructions.
Di Lorenzo: inverted wing-back (support): get further forward, mark tighter, close down more.
Di Lorenzo, when building from the back, moves closer to the central defenders and then advances through the central channels, acting as an additional midfielder while leaving Politano the task of covering the right flank in both phases of play. The get further forward " instruction directs Di Lorenzo to push forward into the opposition's half, often positioning himself just outside the penalty area to create density in the final third and confuse opposing defenders.
Rahmani, Buongiorno: central defenders (defensive): take fewer risks, close down more.
The two central defenders play it safe, avoiding advancing too far when in possession but pressing high against opponents. The instructions close down more and take fewer risks are specifically used to ask our defenders to avoid risky passes and mistakes during build-up play while maintaining high pressing on opponents.
Olivera: wing-back (support): stay wider, close down more.
Olivera also pushes forward but stays wider on the flank, providing width to the play. This is why the stay wider instruction is used. In the defensive phase, he focuses on pressing the opponent directly in front of him.
Midfield
Lobotka: deep-lying playmaker (defense): take more risks
The take more risks instruction is used to encourage our deep-lying playmaker to attempt vertical through balls whenever the opportunity arises. Do not use this instruction if the playmaker is not highly skilled at passing.
Anguissa: box-to-box midfielder (support): get further forward,
Anguissa is our box-to-box midfielder, tasked with both defensive and offensive duties. The instructions given ask the player to support the attack and try to make runs into the spaces in the opposition’s final third, particularly in the gaps between the full-back and the central defender.
Mc Tominay: central midfielder (attack): shoot more often, roam from position.
McTominay often positions himself almost alongside Lukaku against weaker teams, acting as a second striker capable of using his physicality to hold up the ball. By deploying him as a central midfielder with an attacking role and giving him the instructions get further forward (already preset in the attack duty) nd move into channels, we ask our player to push forward into the opponent’s penalty area. The shoot more often instruction is used to take advantage of McTominay’s long-range shooting ability but can be removed if a similar player is unavailable.
Attack
Politano: winger (support): cut inside with the ball, get further forward, roam from position, close down more, mark tighter.
In possession, Politano operates as a winger, providing width, supporting the attacking play, and leaving central areas open for Di Lorenzo’s overlaps. However, when he has the ball, he can cut inside through the central channels to attempt a long shot or a pass into the box. In the defensive phase, he acts as a wide full-back, covering the right flank while Di Lorenzo stays centrally. He presses and marks his direct opponent when necessary.
David Neres: inverted winger (attack): roam from position, close down more, mark tighter.
David Neres starts wide before cutting inside with the ball to attempt a shot or a pass into the box. He also presses and marks the opposing defender to force errors and win the ball high up the pitch.
Lukaku: complete forward (support): no instructions.
Lukaku is the typical complete forward who drops into midfield to help with possession, intercepts long goal kicks and defensive clearances, and acts as a target for his teammates’ runs.
Tactical Variations
To increase the flexibility of your team, you can try these tactical variations:
• 3-5-2: In difficult situations, you can switch to a 3-5-2 formation, with one midfielder dropping back to form a three-man defense. This will provide greater defensive solidity.
• 4-2-3-1: If you want to increase creativity in attack, you can deploy an attacking midfielder behind the striker.
Won the only two competitions Napoli is playing in this current season 2024-2025, Italian Serie A and Italy Cup. I used a datbase with a start date file that allows me to start the save game on June 10th 2024. I did not make any player transfers , I only used the fm editor to send Kvarashkelia to PSG, Folornunsho to Fiorentina on loan and Zerbin on loan to Venice.
You can see the screenshots and the video on my youtube channel for more details, highlights explanation and stats.
Thanks everyone