BOOM!
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool (2016/17)
[video=youtube;yxelK1W4r9Y]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxelK1W4r9Y[/video]
[video=youtube;yjwCJFlBTYM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjwCJFlBTYM[/video]
After watching Liverpool's 6-1 thumping of Watford, I decided that the next manager on my list to emitate after Jose Mourinho on FM17 was to be none other than the German we've all learned to love, Jurgen Klopp.
There's a lot of fascination currently regarding his play style - which he refers to as Gegenpressing, how he has transformed Liverpool to look like title contenders yet again without spending much money.
Also, I decided to do one better to Jurgen and thrash Arsenal 6-1 instead. Sorry Arsene!
THE FORMATION
I know, I know. Some of you are looking at this and thinking what on Earth is this formation? Well, it's a very flexible 4-3-3 that sometimes looks like a 4-3-3 with a V shaped midfield (similar to how Liverpool have set up this season) and sometimes due to the fluidity can also turn in to a 4-2-3-1.
The reason why it sometimes turns in to a 4-2-3-1 is because you'll find that due to the fluid style and individual player expression settings, when one central midfielder bombs forward, the other stays more passive and covers the space near the more defensive midfielder.
Next you're probably intrigued at the fact that there is no striker in this formation (I'm looking at you Mr. Strikerless, Guido Merry). Yes, that is true. Even though Liverpool at the moment are playing with Firmino as a false 9 who sometimes switches with Sturridge (when he's not in hospital) or Mane, I found it extremely difficult to get that individual striker to actually press the opposition in any striker role. Therefore, to aid trying to achieve Klopp's "Gegenpressing", it works best to utilise a Shadow Striker. The front three will be extremely fluid as the Liverpool players are in real life. The idea is to confuse the opposition defenders and be extremely difficult to be man marked. As one striker comes deep, a defender will follow leaving space for another striker to run in to, leading to more room for an overlapping full back to run in to and even a central midfielder to ram forward towards. You will notice very quickly that your opposition defence will just stand by and watch as they get stampeded by so many players passing and moving forward, it's beautiful to watch at times.
Next you're probably looking at the three in midfield and thinking, blimey... three Ball Winning Midfielders? Don't they all wander off and you end up with no midfield? Why on earth would you even consider this? Well, the only central midfielder role within the game that has "Close Down More" enabled for players, is in fact the Ball Winning Midfielder. So, try to ignore the role on the pitch and focus more on understanding that the role is crucial in achieving our "Gegenpressing" style and that due to there being 3 central midfielders and a fluid team shape, the midfielders react to each other and ensure at least one of them is back at all times. The left and right players of the front three also man mark the opposition wide players, which again increases the constant pressure on the opposition to allow us to win the ball back.
WTF IS GEGENPRESSING?
Now, I'm no expert in German, however I'm lead to believe it essentially means "Pressing Against". Klopp believes that there are no need for specific playmakers in a side such as Ozil at Arsenal whom players all look to pass to in order to open up a defence or start an attacking move by moving the ball in to the final third because he believes everyone in the side can be a playmaker.
What Klopp means is, by playing with a very high line and constricting the space your opposition has to move the ball around and simultaneously constantly applying a high amount of pressure towards the ball, you significantly increase the probability that you will either make a tackle and win the ball back high up the pitch to counter attack from in a position that favours you, or force the opposition in to playing a long ball towards your defence and thus allow you to retain the ball to begin an attacking move with. Therefore as everyone in the side is capable of catching the opposition out and winning the ball back in a dangerous area, that essentially makes them all playmakers as they themselves can instigate an attacking move like so. Rather than waiting to win the ball back in your half of the pitch and passing it to your playmaker to start an attack.
It's actually a very simple concept and with the right personnel in your side, it can be very effective.
THE TEAM INSTRUCTIONS
THE PLAYER INSTRUCTIONS
GK - Distribute to RB (can be changed to whoever you want)
LB - Mark Tighter
CB - Close Down Less
RB - Mark Tighter
BWM (S) - Dribble More, Mark Tighter, Get Further Forward, More Risky Passes
BWM (D) - Mark Tighter
AP - Get Further Forward, Roam from Position, Move into Channels
SS - Roam from Position
AM - Dribble More
THE OPPOSITION INSTRUCTIONS
Set all wide players except full backs or wing backs to be always tightly marked. Set all players to always be closed down. Set all wide players to be shown on to their weaker foot. Note that these should be set by default in the tactic file you download.
At the start of each match, ensure your AMCR is MAN MARKING the oppositions AML/ML. Also ensure your AMCL is MAN MARKING the oppositions AMR/MR. Ignore wing backs.
THE TRAINING REGIME
In previous football manager iterations, I've normally put a lot of focus on my training regime. However in FM17 I've found that tactical familiarity degrades over time, so I just strike a decent balance between always having tactical familiarity set on match preparation alongside whatever I think the team needs in general training on a high workload. For the entire season with Liverpool in the tactic building test save, I left it on Balanced.
THE RESULTS
Please note that up until the Hull match on the 22nd October 2016, all the matches up to that point were used to tweak the tactic. The final tactic you are downloading should be judged on all results after that point. I imagine that if the finalised tactic was used from the start of the season as well as pre-season, we would have won the league more comfortably as well as scored more goals.
It is worth noting that Sadio Mane won a few personal awards such as Player of the Year, etc. He was out injured a few times though which reduced the number of goals he could have scored. In fact if it wasn't for his terrible finishing & composure, he probably would've scored double. It makes me think that a world class striker such as Aguero could be absolutely deadly with this tactic.
You will concede a lot of sloppy goals due to the high line that is played - just like Liverpool in real life. You may wish to drop the line slightly when up against teams with pacey strikers such as Bournemouth (Callum Wilson...) but that is micromanagement that I'll leave to you. As with all my tactics, I don't expect you to think you can plug & play everything anymore.
THE PLAYERS
THE DOWNLOAD
1st Mirror: DOWNLOAD
2nd Mirror: DOWNLOAD
THE CONCLUSION
Just a few tips. As you build your side, the pacier your center backs are, the better. The high line can really take its toll on them if they are slow. Your full backs are very important in this tactic as they will be expected to provide width and assists. Also, when it comes to the central midfielders, think Wijnaldum - Henderson - Emre Can/Lallana. Don't sign three actual ball winning midfielders, ignore the role. As for the front three, just think Coutinho (cuts inside) - Firmino (false 9) - Mane (fast, direct striker). The combination of three different players creates an incredibly effective unit up front that is very difficult to mark.
I often stream when I'm messing around with new tactics on FM17, so if you're in to Twitchy things, feel free to drop me a follow on there too:
www.twitch.tv/KYAN1TE
Thanks!
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool (2016/17)
[video=youtube;yxelK1W4r9Y]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxelK1W4r9Y[/video]
[video=youtube;yjwCJFlBTYM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjwCJFlBTYM[/video]
After watching Liverpool's 6-1 thumping of Watford, I decided that the next manager on my list to emitate after Jose Mourinho on FM17 was to be none other than the German we've all learned to love, Jurgen Klopp.
There's a lot of fascination currently regarding his play style - which he refers to as Gegenpressing, how he has transformed Liverpool to look like title contenders yet again without spending much money.
Also, I decided to do one better to Jurgen and thrash Arsenal 6-1 instead. Sorry Arsene!
THE FORMATION
I know, I know. Some of you are looking at this and thinking what on Earth is this formation? Well, it's a very flexible 4-3-3 that sometimes looks like a 4-3-3 with a V shaped midfield (similar to how Liverpool have set up this season) and sometimes due to the fluidity can also turn in to a 4-2-3-1.
The reason why it sometimes turns in to a 4-2-3-1 is because you'll find that due to the fluid style and individual player expression settings, when one central midfielder bombs forward, the other stays more passive and covers the space near the more defensive midfielder.
Next you're probably intrigued at the fact that there is no striker in this formation (I'm looking at you Mr. Strikerless, Guido Merry). Yes, that is true. Even though Liverpool at the moment are playing with Firmino as a false 9 who sometimes switches with Sturridge (when he's not in hospital) or Mane, I found it extremely difficult to get that individual striker to actually press the opposition in any striker role. Therefore, to aid trying to achieve Klopp's "Gegenpressing", it works best to utilise a Shadow Striker. The front three will be extremely fluid as the Liverpool players are in real life. The idea is to confuse the opposition defenders and be extremely difficult to be man marked. As one striker comes deep, a defender will follow leaving space for another striker to run in to, leading to more room for an overlapping full back to run in to and even a central midfielder to ram forward towards. You will notice very quickly that your opposition defence will just stand by and watch as they get stampeded by so many players passing and moving forward, it's beautiful to watch at times.
Next you're probably looking at the three in midfield and thinking, blimey... three Ball Winning Midfielders? Don't they all wander off and you end up with no midfield? Why on earth would you even consider this? Well, the only central midfielder role within the game that has "Close Down More" enabled for players, is in fact the Ball Winning Midfielder. So, try to ignore the role on the pitch and focus more on understanding that the role is crucial in achieving our "Gegenpressing" style and that due to there being 3 central midfielders and a fluid team shape, the midfielders react to each other and ensure at least one of them is back at all times. The left and right players of the front three also man mark the opposition wide players, which again increases the constant pressure on the opposition to allow us to win the ball back.
WTF IS GEGENPRESSING?
Now, I'm no expert in German, however I'm lead to believe it essentially means "Pressing Against". Klopp believes that there are no need for specific playmakers in a side such as Ozil at Arsenal whom players all look to pass to in order to open up a defence or start an attacking move by moving the ball in to the final third because he believes everyone in the side can be a playmaker.
What Klopp means is, by playing with a very high line and constricting the space your opposition has to move the ball around and simultaneously constantly applying a high amount of pressure towards the ball, you significantly increase the probability that you will either make a tackle and win the ball back high up the pitch to counter attack from in a position that favours you, or force the opposition in to playing a long ball towards your defence and thus allow you to retain the ball to begin an attacking move with. Therefore as everyone in the side is capable of catching the opposition out and winning the ball back in a dangerous area, that essentially makes them all playmakers as they themselves can instigate an attacking move like so. Rather than waiting to win the ball back in your half of the pitch and passing it to your playmaker to start an attack.
It's actually a very simple concept and with the right personnel in your side, it can be very effective.
THE TEAM INSTRUCTIONS
THE PLAYER INSTRUCTIONS
GK - Distribute to RB (can be changed to whoever you want)
LB - Mark Tighter
CB - Close Down Less
RB - Mark Tighter
BWM (S) - Dribble More, Mark Tighter, Get Further Forward, More Risky Passes
BWM (D) - Mark Tighter
AP - Get Further Forward, Roam from Position, Move into Channels
SS - Roam from Position
AM - Dribble More
THE OPPOSITION INSTRUCTIONS
Set all wide players except full backs or wing backs to be always tightly marked. Set all players to always be closed down. Set all wide players to be shown on to their weaker foot. Note that these should be set by default in the tactic file you download.
At the start of each match, ensure your AMCR is MAN MARKING the oppositions AML/ML. Also ensure your AMCL is MAN MARKING the oppositions AMR/MR. Ignore wing backs.
THE TRAINING REGIME
In previous football manager iterations, I've normally put a lot of focus on my training regime. However in FM17 I've found that tactical familiarity degrades over time, so I just strike a decent balance between always having tactical familiarity set on match preparation alongside whatever I think the team needs in general training on a high workload. For the entire season with Liverpool in the tactic building test save, I left it on Balanced.
THE RESULTS
Please note that up until the Hull match on the 22nd October 2016, all the matches up to that point were used to tweak the tactic. The final tactic you are downloading should be judged on all results after that point. I imagine that if the finalised tactic was used from the start of the season as well as pre-season, we would have won the league more comfortably as well as scored more goals.
It is worth noting that Sadio Mane won a few personal awards such as Player of the Year, etc. He was out injured a few times though which reduced the number of goals he could have scored. In fact if it wasn't for his terrible finishing & composure, he probably would've scored double. It makes me think that a world class striker such as Aguero could be absolutely deadly with this tactic.
You will concede a lot of sloppy goals due to the high line that is played - just like Liverpool in real life. You may wish to drop the line slightly when up against teams with pacey strikers such as Bournemouth (Callum Wilson...) but that is micromanagement that I'll leave to you. As with all my tactics, I don't expect you to think you can plug & play everything anymore.
THE PLAYERS
THE DOWNLOAD
1st Mirror: DOWNLOAD
2nd Mirror: DOWNLOAD
THE CONCLUSION
Just a few tips. As you build your side, the pacier your center backs are, the better. The high line can really take its toll on them if they are slow. Your full backs are very important in this tactic as they will be expected to provide width and assists. Also, when it comes to the central midfielders, think Wijnaldum - Henderson - Emre Can/Lallana. Don't sign three actual ball winning midfielders, ignore the role. As for the front three, just think Coutinho (cuts inside) - Firmino (false 9) - Mane (fast, direct striker). The combination of three different players creates an incredibly effective unit up front that is very difficult to mark.
I often stream when I'm messing around with new tactics on FM17, so if you're in to Twitchy things, feel free to drop me a follow on there too:
www.twitch.tv/KYAN1TE
Thanks!
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