Today's very short blog is a break from the recent Fame & Fibra series. Instead, I want to take some time to introduce Ángel Bastardo, my new persona for FM17, and also present the Manager attributes I will give him and why.
It's been a year since I wrote 'Investing in the right places: Manager attributes in FM', it's now a good time to resurrect this before many of us embark on our managerial careers on Friday 04 November. But more importantly I want to detail why A.Bastardo will be exceptionally strong in some areas and notably weak in other areas of his managerial makeup.
Bastardo
I have spoken in great detail as to the type of player I want to attract and develop at Estudiantes de La Plata (EdlP). These players must have a certain type of 'fibra' and work within a high tempo Counter Attacking system. In my imagination, Ángel Bastardo was a player of near perfect fibra...technically not amazing, but with the passion and workrate to carve out a career in the Argentine Primera División (with Boyhood Club: EdlP) as a tough tackling Centre Back.
Since retiring at 35 he has applied himself within the Argentine coaching structure, and after turning 40 this March, Ángel seeks immediate employment with a Continental Pro License. I will therefore be starting FM17 with a Continental Pro License and Professional Football National Level. This gives me 181 points to invest in either Coaching or Mental attributes. Here's how I look going into FM17:
Manager Attributes in detail
Now I will run down why I have scored each attribute accordingly. You will notice that nothing is rated 20, with the hope that Bastardo is long enough in the job to improve attributes to 20 over time...
Coaching
A.Bastardo is more of a tracksuit manager than anything else. He is at best in the faces of his players on the training field, educating them on the finer (and darker) arts of anti-fútbol.
Attacking 10 - One of the weaker attributes here. Mainly because I hope to be playing more conservative football...with only one or two attackers in a 1st XI. For this reason I prefer to invest in Defending.
Defending 18 - Because every positive result is built from a solid base. My players need to be a strong defensive unit for the tactic to succeed. By investing in Defending, I can improve my holistic defensive training.
Fitness 17 - A high tempo approach to games requires good stamina and quickness. This is even more important because I am likely to be conceding possession for long periods of the game. The Counter Attack requires explosion & speed: fitness is key.
Goalkeepers 1 - I figure that I can probably get a good Goalkeeping coach here to take the burden away from me. I would give this 0 if I could!
Tactical & Mental 18 - For the reasons why Defending & Fitness are key, I have put 18 points in both Tactical & Mental. My whole game is based around managing fibra and using it to my advantage. I would be foolish to take points away from these coaching attributes.
Technical 10 - I am not overly concerned by the technical attributes of my players. Fibra will be key in how the players work within the system. More learned coaches can come in an help with this aspect, I have therefore scored 10. Bastardo can do 5 kick ups on the training field...nothing more.
Working with Youngsters 18 - I love Youth Development and I really hope I can develop a few good youngsters from La Plata. Part of the reasons for choosing EdlP was to also produce a Homegrown XI, sending eleven EdlP graduates to Europe to grace Western Europe.
Mental
Adaptability 1 - Bastardo is a One Club man. I don't care for other clubs to come in for him and his wish is to remain in La Plata for all of FM17. I therefore need no score in this Mental attribute whatsoever.
Determination 17 - This attribute governs how successful you are with Board requests. I need to be a tough negotiator with a certain Juan Sebastián Verón around as Club Chairman. "The only thing that gives order, is balls" - Tony Montana.
Player Knowledge & Youngster Knowledge 1 - I play without Attribute Masking on. Some consider this to be cheating, but I really do not (so deal with it). (1) I don't have the real life time to do a preliminary scout anymore and (2) why should I [have attribute masking on] seeing as the AI doesn't have it on either? Nevertheless all targets will be scouted anyway, especially seeing as I am searching for a finite type of player in FM17 and I love to see more about players behind their front-facing attributes. No need to have points invested here at all.
Man Management, Level of Discipline & Motivating 17 - I like to be in control with all matters of personnel conversation: players angling for a better contract, PPM development or simple tunnel interviews with the media. I therefore want A.Bastardo to be a good talker, communicating a strong level of discipline and get the troops motivated.
One week to go...
So just over one week to go before Ángel Bastardo faces the media on Friday 04 November for the first time. It is surely going to be one hell of a roller coaster. Stay tuned for plenty of Twitter updates (@FM_Grasshopper) throughout the day, which I've taken off from work. If all goes to plan, I will most likely play a good 10 hours of FM before I have to pick up my two year old daughter from day care. It's the one day of the year devoted to ME...it's Christmas, New Year, Birthday, Everything all rolled into one! I can't wait :-)
I hope this article has been thought provoking and will help in some way when thinking about what manager to create. As always thank you for reading & sharing,
FMG