been testing it for a dozen games now
Team: Helsingborg If
Season: 2016
League: Swedish Premier League - match 1-8
European Competition: EURO Cup - first and second elimination rounds
Key players: GK (CA 159) - LMC (CA 142) - MC (CA 154)
My HIF has been built in order to compete with European Top Clubs in five or six years time. The result has been reached, with a couple of Champions League quarter finals in the last two seasons. This year the draw has not been nice to me, and i got Barca and Man City in round one. Result is, i went straight to EURO cup. So, considering the three months hiatus in Swedish Premier League, i decided to test this tactic that suits very well my football philosophy.
The results, so far, has been very good.
The Swedish PL is a pretty easy competition when your team has got a high potential. Nonetheless, the match results were far better than the ones of the past five years and the football played was a joy to behold. Eight games won, with 4 or 5 goals scored each game and a couple of goals conceded on the overall. Ball possession was incredible, with peaks of 75% in a couple of games. The goals scored were almost equally divided among players, with midfielders banging it in quite often, wide wingers getting the occasional cross on the second post and central defenders scoring from set pieces. Why my left winger often finds himself being the last defender on counter-attack, it is still a mystery to me, but it's part of the joy of totaal voetbal, so i accept it quite gladly
Anyway, the real test was obviously going to be the matches of EURO Cup. The draw sent me to Stade Louis II to meet AS Monaco of current Player of the Year Paulo Henrique and former Champions League finalist. The first leg was home. The result, 3-2, should not create confusion. Monaco scored from a corner in the first minutes, but from that moment on, my HIF pushed them in their own area, banging three goals in in 70 minutes, with a couple of woods in the process. Then Riviere took a gift of my right-back to score again, but the sense of the game was clear. The return leg was opened by a header of my centre-back and their equalizer only came at minute 89, when I already changed three key players.
The second round gave me an even worst challenge. Napoli won three Serie A since 2010 and Cavani is an absolute monster when it comes to scoring. The home leg was a nightmare. My strikers got plenty of CCCs but never converted a single one (the Cruyff-like complete striker is what i miss the most in my team). The defence, on the other side, didn't concede either, mostly due to my almighty keeper. That's until minute 79 when my right-back (yeah, him, again!) grounded Cavani on the left side of my penalty area. El Matador duly converted and it's 0-1. Thank god i've got quite a good rightwinger myself, who did exactly the same thing Cavani did to my defender, giving us the equalizer. But a home 1-1 it's not the best result when playing a world class team. At least, if you play conservative football, of course. My totaal voetballer didn't give a **** of the first leg result and went straight of for napoli's net. 65% of ball possessions, 20 shots (8 of which on goal), one wood and 0-2.
i don't know if this run will continue and what will happen when i play teams such as barca or man utd with this tactic, but at the moment i'm loving it and i'll keep giving feedback to you!