Leeds United - a tactical experiment

Looks like throughout this thread you've made a lot of progress and to see you managed to complete two seasons and get yourself into the Premiership is a good sign of you know your tactic and what works and what doesn't. Good luck with your new season and hopefully you keep up!

Just don't be too disheartened if you lose a few games in the Prem as you are probably going to be in the relegation candidates!
 
The reason why I don't like to get promoted in the first season

Because if you stay at least two seasons in championship and build your team for the future things like this may happen:
View attachment 191651
View attachment 191650
View attachment 191649

Of course the bad run will start, of course it will be a long one, but at least it's a good start to our first year in Premier. I wonder how it will have been if i had bought a striker , currently Grabban is my first choice and has 3 goals and a kid transfer listed by Bolton when they got relegated in League 1, Zach Clough is his backup with one goal scored. Anyway, I made a mistake with him, buying him, and i would probably let him leave in the future- not because he doesn't have potential , he has, but he won't ever be what i need in that spot. For my striker to score , he has to be someone like Drogba, Ibrahimovic, maybe Lukaku ... i need one strong, with decent heading ... anyway , he was the cheapest i could find.
 
A few things i learnt on my journey...until now

I'm trying to be very short( lack of time unfortunately):

1. It's a good idea to have a vision on how do you want to play , or for what type of football you'll like tour team to be known for. Work your system onto that vision. And be patient, the players may not be entirely suited to your vision from the start ( so base the transfer policy on the way you would like to play). It's good to have some base principles which stands no matter what- mentality may change in matches, some role or duties may change but my main way of playing stays the sames - and the players i buy are brought to consolidate my system.
2. I now watch all my matches in comprehensive mode and I don't need to spend much time analyzing it( if at all) because I'm mostly seeing it when it actually playing. But until the system is set up I think matches should be watched in full. And analyzed.
3.It's good to read guides BUT i think you can do mostly anything you want. But when you go on this road you should know what you are trying to achieve.
4. Small in match changes can make huge differences. For example , if I'm playing against Burnley , my full back on the side where Andre Gray plays , gets instantly a defend duty- and from this small change I'll win the game.
Sometimes the D-line has to come deeper , other times it has to go higher. And sometimes my DLP has to become an anchorman. Sometimes the opposition wingers ( and full backs) must be closed down before they approach my own box... this kind of changes. But , my style is clear: short passes, closing down, aggressive play, attacking and score first , close the shop as the match is approaching to end. Striker who mostly support , IF who should be my main scorer , full backs supporting play , a bursting central midfielder and another one who's the guy "good at all" .
5. I started with a control variant. On the way i figured out it was to adventurous, so I made a step back and changed to standard BUT i kept my vision of being aggressive and closing down. And in some matches even this is to much. So, sometimes we go defensive. Or counter. Or even contain for something like ten minutes, and then counter again or even attacking. The base philosophy is the one that never changes.
After I'll finish my third season ( it will take me a little more due to work related stuff) I know that for my fourth one I'll have to improve my counter and attacking strategies because , if i'll finish in the first half the AI teams will play different then they do now against me. It will be harder. But I'm also looking for pacey players and a powerfull striker to break them down :)

Just a few ideas. Maybe if I'll have the time in the near future I'll go into more details.
Anyway, thank you very much to all of you who helped me. Thanks WJ.
 
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I came across this thread yesterday and it was a really good read.Explained a lot on the importance of player roles and mentalities! Thanks for the information everyone! Also good job aramis on not giving up, especially when it seems impossible.
 
I'm glad you're getting the hang of things now. Now don't get complacent. ;)
 
WJ said:
I'm glad you're getting the hang of things now. Now don't get complacent. ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks. I finished 3th season and now I'm preparing for the fourth one ... it will be harder because i finished the third one on fourth place.
 
End of third seson

League table:

View attachment 189899
Finished eventually on 4th place after a hard fought battle for the title. It seems that when they really should concentrate and avoid mistakes my players do the opposite. We had the usual slump in form at the end of the season:
View attachment 189895

And this are the players brought this year:
View attachment 189894

Now I have to prepare for the fourth season which i really believe it will be a lot harder.
 
Pressure may have been partly responsible for the slump at the end. There's more pressure on players as the season comes to a close. You need to be aware of that and ease the pressure they feel, if it is affecting them.
 
Quick update

This is a quick update for the ones who pm me for the save- if you still want the save after you read this update please pm me and i'll upload it or send it to you, whatever you want.

So, the in game date is currently 12 dec 2018. I'm just before the january transfer window, with not so much funds available but you can make if you want. I have a future transfer arranged for a 18 year old argentinian central defender scouted by my scouting network ( which I finally really organized this year).

My squad has 21 players. I don't have youth or reserve teams. My focus on youth development begins after the 5th season. Still, the first team, U21 and u18 coaching teams are good and I'm watching for the last two seasons some people to develop the coaching teams more.

My team DNA is based on DETERMINATION ( only 3 players are under 14 for this). This is important and you have to know how to use it in your favor. I also focus on work rate, teamwork, technique, passing and first touch ( having a technical capable squad, who works hard like a unit is essential for the football we play). Also, I believe determination to be one of the most important attributes( to give an example - usually i encourage my players and I do everything I can to make sure morale stays high. But when I have to make sure we will win a game , let's say against Manchester or Chelsea or anyone I doubt my team in the press conference- then I go and drink a soda and we win 3-0! Or at half time, when we go down a goal, two, three if you say the right thing - ask them to show you more, or show some passion, or just be disappointed - they come up really fired up and maybe you won't turn the game around every single time but believe me , the opposition will play the entire half in their own half of the pitch).

After 14th games we are on the third place in Premier, three points behind Arsenal. We qualified for the first knockout round of Champions League and are in the semifinals of Capital League Cup.

Squad:
View attachment 186724
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Transfers:
View attachment 186722


Also, on the counter tactic, switch the DLP to DM(D) and remove get stuck in. You can increase the tempo and/or passing range. Also you can choose to pass into space.

On the control one , remove get stuck in, and tick retain possession. You can also slow down the tempo. And you may want to change the winger to an AP(S). The DLF may become a F9.

This are usual in match changes I do. I will probably change them from the start.

For the standard one, watch the match and adapt. Actually, this is true for all of them.

After the 5th season I usually start making money and sell players. I invest in youth and bring mostly freebies( my rep will allow for good players on a free). In the first 5 seasons I mostly invest in the first team.

Let me know if you still want the save.
 
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View attachment 169481

The meanest defence in Championship!

Berardi Bellusci Cooper Taylor

7 goals conceded in the first 14 matches played in Championship!

Undefeated at the moment, just started a new save on the new update.
 
I'm in 2026 with my Leeds team. Five consecutive Premier league titles , only one Champions League trophy, multiple national cups. ( runner up in Premier a few times, runner up in Champions league multiple times).
I've started a few saves until I really got into one , I've changed lots of things during games etc but I have a stable tactic for quite some seasons now.
 
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