"The Battle of Old Trafford" - Inter is coming #FM17 #WeAreTheCommunity

June 5, 2017

03 June 2023

Dubbed 'The Battle of Old Trafford', Ángel Bastardo's Inter Milan side fought hard but ultimately lost their way in the 2023 Champions League final. Losing 2-1 to the riches of Arsène Wenger's Paris Saint Germain (PSG). It's time to painstaking review this bastard match, in what was Ángel Bastardo's 1st European Cup Final...vamos!

Pre-match

So the team pretty much picked itself on the day. The front three of Pavón-Colidio-Ivan (who I wrote about in my previous blog post) had been a dream together all season with a combined total of 59 goals and 38 assists (all comps). I also didn't want to disrupt the midfield engine room of Cataldi, Ascacíbar and Newgen Fabio Faccin:

I was confident Wenger would play his preferred 4-2-3-1 wide formation, which he had played in every previous game of the 2022/23 Champions League campaign. A creature of habit as every Arsenal fan can testify!

Recently I was asked for my advice in countering a 4-2-3-1 formation. In short, it's pretty hard to deal with if your opponent has a vastly superior team...but the vital thing is nullifying the threat of their AML/AMR and AMC. In my case, I was up against: Coman (AML) - Coric (AMC) - Dybala (AMR)...that's an incredible €184.5m of transfer fees!

As a team we went deep and put both Full Backs on Defend duty. The deeper natural positions also meant Ascacíbar was now on top of Ante Coric, suffocating him whenever he was on the ball. Our average positions in the 1st half:

1st half

The game started well, Inter dominating early possession but neither side could find that clear cut chance. Until the 22nd minute that is, when Golden Boy Facundo Colidio finished off a great move:

'Colidigol', as he is now popularly known in Milano, has come of age this season. The goal on the big occasion was his 28th in all comps this season and the 60th goal from the prolific front three mentioned earlier. There's a long way to go until it can ever be considered a Messi-Suarez-Neymar trio, but this is their first season together...the signs are good!

45+1 mins

There was only ever meant to be 1 minute of 1st half injury time, but that didn't stop my Newgen CB Abubakar Abubakar (Abu for short) going in hard on Ante Coric. A straight red card and a menacing stare from Bastardo across the pitch:

2nd half

So the half time adjustments I had planned were ripped up and we now had to find a way to keep the lead. Coping with the 4-2-3-1 was working well with 11 players, but with 10 men we had to once again revisit tactical plans. With a man down, I decided that we would have less of the ball...so we went even deeper as a defensive unit. This also meant I had to do away with players in the AML/AMR positions. The game was to be won (or lost) on the flanks...so I dropped Pavón deeper to ML but Ivan had to be replaced, as he couldn't play MR. The dream trio was ripped apart, which ultimately ended any chance of an attacking masterclass from Inter.

On came Antonio Candreva as an Wide Playmaker at MR. All I wanted from him was one last piece of magic in his final professional game of football. We were now a 4-4-1, by necessity...not by choice! I told the boys to channel their inner-fibra...we would have to fight our way through this final.

My tactical plans couldn't have started any worse, two quick fire goals from Kelechi Iheanacho, the World's most highly valued player at €78m on 47 min and 50 mins:

Kelechi's first goal was a great turn and finish, but the 2nd is a truly disgusting deflection from a Marco Verratti freekick. I was gutted...and we were sinking fast. I brought Kanté on to add more energy into the midfield, but Colidio was still isolated for much of the game. We had no real threat, just the one Candreva through ball...which gave a half chance to Colidio. But PSG's kepper, Gerónimo Rulli, was up to the task.

We lost 1-2, and I had a bizarre mix of frustration and pride with my players. We were very good for 44 minutes, but the sending off changed things. The 4-4-1 switch up worked well...apart from that disastrous 3 minute spell! Did I make the right changes? I will never know, that's the glory of Football Manager: the pain and suffering, the learning and reflection.

2nd half positioning makes grim viewing!

Season 2022/23

Despite the Champions League final loss, we can look back on another successful Serie A season. We defended the Scudetto and bettered our points total by 9 from the following season:

We improved our goal difference by 38 from last season: 93 goals for and 20 against!

Two trophies for 2022/23: The Serie A title and an Italian Super Cup.

Unfortunately we went out at the Quarter Final stage of the Coppa Italia, losing 2-1 away to Serie B side Vicenza (who actually went on to the final before losing to Torino in extra time). Nevertheless, a Serie A win and an epic Champions League run concludes a good season of progress and rewards.

Looking ahead

I've now got the task of spending Inter's riches, €70m transfer kitty to be precise. A central midfielder, full back and winger are on Bastardo's shopping list...whilst I may also look to move on some players to boost that transfer kitty. Kasper Dolberg, Jeison Murillo & Marcus Coco could all be available for the right price.

Stay updated via my Twitter feed or on Slack (just search #fmgrasshopper).

Thanks for reading/sharing,

Ángel Bastardo/FM Grasshopper

"En unión y libertad" - Inter is coming #FM17 #WeAreTheCommunity

May 20, 2017

22 December 2022

After 24 goals & 14 assists in the 2021/22 Double winning season, Antonio Candreva was rewarded with a 12 month contract extension. The ink was still dry on the paperwork as he rolled back the years once again with a goal and an assist, helping Ángel Bastardo to a third domestic trophy: the Supercoppa Italiana (Inter 3-0 Bologna).

Featuring in 9 out of the 10 pre-season games (contributing 4 goals and 3 assists), Antonio was ready for his 19th season in professional football. But disaster struck with just 6 minutes remaining in our final pre-season game (Vs Spanish 3rd Division side Zamora), Candreva was ruled out with a broken foot. Not career ending, but the next four months would see Candreva battle back to full fitness.

But sometimes in life when one door closes, another opens. As is the case with newly acquired widemen, Andrei Ivan & Cristian Pavón, who have lit up Inter's 2022/23 season so far. Never has the attacking play under Ángel Bastardo been so good. It's time for a mid-season recap...

Ivan & Pavón

In the early months of the 2022/23 season, the attacking trio Pavón-Colidio-Ivan have weighed in with 28 goals and 18 assists. We set up with a Striker as a Complete Forward on Support, an AML as Inside Forward and a AMR Winger both on Attack duty. The approaches therefore leads to asymmetric combinations between left & right and a degree of variety in the attacks the AI has to defend over the course of 90 mins.

I identified last time out that Cristian Pavón (a €26m signing) was the primary attacking transfer target for 2022/23...but the Candreva injury forced my hand once again. Andrei Ivan joined on a season long loan (with a view to a permanent deal of €15m) from PSG:

The link up between both Pavón (Number 15) & Ivan (Number 18), despite being on opposite sides of the pitch 'on paper', has been delightful. Here are a few goals:

I have set the crossing Team Instruction to 'Mixed Crosses', in order to add variety and spontaneity to our attack. But what enhances the setup is Ivan's PPMs combined with his Attributes & Role/Duty:

Runs With Ball Down The Right (Good for a Winger)
Knocks Ball Past Opponent (Good for those with great Acceleration)
Avoids Using Weaker Foot (Encourages direct wing play)

We also have Pavón, suited to the Inside Forward role. The role instructs him to Dribble More, Cut Inside and Get Further Forward. All suiting to his makeup in FM17:

Cristian Pavón, probably my best signing so far in FM17.

So we have Ivan running down the right flank, direct in his play and looking to get past his man. We also have Colidio being a nuisance and moving well off the ball...but it's Pavón's surging runs to the far post, which grab the headlines. He's Inter's top scorer with 11 goals in all competitions!

An additional benefit of these two wingers is the ability I have to switch things and keep the AI second guessing itself. So when I see Pavón as the IF OR Ivan as the Winger struggling, I can switch the two players (they are both Natural in either AML/AMR slots). Furthermore, it causes the AI to adapt their own Player Instructions and re-think man marking/pressing strategies. Providing my boys with an immediate opportunity to take advantage.

Serie A 2022/23

So with the above in mind, we've had an incredible start to the Serie A season - where we look to defend our 2021/22 Scudetto. 15 wins, 2 draws and 0 losses...we're top of the Serie A with an 8 point cushion:

Our run is so good at the moment, that Bastardo's bastards are on a 23 match unbeaten stretch. I think our best league goal has to be Facu Colidigol's solo run Vs Chievo. It's vindication for me professing my love for him during one of my early FM17 posts, where as an 18 year old he was doing some great things in my 2018 Estudiantes team. But perhaps never quite this filthy:

Champions League 2022/23

Three games without a win saw Inter in last place of Group G at the mid-point of the Champions League Group Stages. Yet we recovered, with big wins home and away...phew:

We finished 2nd in the group, meaning a date with Portugual's best team: Benfica - who topped a group with Bayern after beating them home and away. Bastardo needs to be cautious, but those sclintating performances mean that Benfica should also be wary. The highlight of the European goals has to be when N'Golo Kanté put through Cristian Pavón Vs Villarreal in a 3-0 home win. A simply breathtaking goal:

"En unión y libertad"

The 44 players from Argentina to represent Inter Milan in Serie A (March 1908- May 2017)

This took a while, but for all the FM Grasshopper stat fans out there: during Inter's illustrious 109 year history, they've fielded an incredible 44 players of Argentine nationality* (this figure includes 'Oriundi' - players who represented another International team in place of Argentina, think Mauro Camoranesi or more recently Gabriel Paletta & Dani Osvaldo). Inter's historical relationship with Argentina is so great the figure of 44 actually represents 15% of all 'Argentinos' to have played in Serie A (291 players)**, far greater than the likes of Juventus (7%) and cross city rivals AC Milan (5%).

Disclaimers:

*Inter's website excludes some Argentine loan players but does include Hernan Paolo Dellafiore, Marcello Pagani & Sixto Raimundo Peralta, who despite wearing the Inter shirt, never played a minute of Serie A. They also class some Oriundi to their adopted nation e.g. Dani Osvaldo shown as Italian.

**Definite figures are rather sketchy due to the Oriundi, especially during in the 1930-50s, but I am reasonably happy with the Inter figure of 44...and an overall figure bordering 300 for Argentinos in Serie A.

It's therefore only fitting that Argentine Ángel Bastardo continues to maintain the legacy between Argentina and Inter Milan. We have 4 current players (all signed by Bastardo) in the Selección Argentina (taking Inter's now virtual total to 48): Santiago Ascacíbar, Facundo Colidio, Andrés Cubas & Cristian Pavón.

But behind the scenes I have started to build something special:

Annoyingly I lost Inter legend Esteban Cambiasso, who left for the manager's post at Mallorca in La Liga. Esteban (or Cuchu as he is known) was always destined to be Bastardo's No.2 in a few years. Opportunity missed. Nevertheless, it's a dynasty I am building here and the Inter Board have finally accepted a request to look for a foreign affiliate club. Please make it a club from Argentina!

For now, it's time to get back to playing this save and finish the 2022/23 season. In the meantime, if you need to find me...I mingle on Twitter (@FM_Grasshopper) and in my Slack* channel: #fmgrasshopper.

*What's Slack? See below tweet from FM Samo...

...and thanks for reading, FM Grasshopper :-)

Join #FMSlack @MerryGuido ✅@FMAnalysis ✅@thehighertempo ✅@TheDeepLyingPod ✅
Even @Cleon81 himself! 😀https://t.co/8EZ2ctaa36 pic.twitter.com/SYe4bbvS7B
— FM Slackmo (@FM_Samo) May 17, 2017

"Walking in a Candreva Wonderland" - Inter is coming #FM17 #WeAreTheCommunity

April 30, 2017

Ángel of House Bastardo, Prince of La Plata & Warden of the Alps.

22 May 2022

This post brings readers up-to-date with saved game's date...and what a season we've had! The 'Domestic Double' should never be frowned upon in any league, and we did it: the 'Scudetto' and a Coppa Italia 'at a canter'. But there's challenges ahead: we were outclassed in Europe and the younger players will need to step up as 'golden oldies' fizzle out due to age.

But for now, settle back and bask in some long overdue success for Ángel Bastardo. Inter is coming and trophies come with it...

1 city, 2 clubs, 3 managers

The fight for the Milanese throne has seen some of the greatest managers face off in the Derby della Madonnina:

Nereo Rocco Vs Helenio Herrera 1961-1963

Arrigo Sachi Vs Giovanni Trappatoni 1987-1991

Carlo Ancelloti Vs Roberto Mancini 2004-2008

Yet it feels a little underwhelming in 2021, when we have the battle between Gordon Strachan Vs Ángel Bastardo. Yes, you read that right, Scotland’s greatest ever national team manager is with A.C. Milan. I say greatest, because he took Scotland to the brink of a Euro Championship win in 2020. Losing out to Switzerland in the London final.

Both Bastardo and Strachan joined within a weeks of each other during the final months of the 2020/21 season. But sadly for Milan, Strachan was definitely the wrong appointment. Being sacked 255 days later in the December of the same year, with A.C. Milan languished in 11th place…just as Bastardo’s Inter were occupying 1st place for the seventh consecutive week.

Bastardo's statistics on 12/12/2021, the day of Gordon Strachan's sacking.

Gordon Strachan is a minor blip in A.C. Milan's illustrious history.

Barstardo’s record against Stratchan is a 1-1 draw and 1-0 win…hardly dominating. But it was time for Milan to appoint a new manager…and once again they turned to another ex-Celtic boss: Northern Irishman Brendan Rodgers. Incredible. From there the Inter-Milan rivalry became more competitive (with Rodgers besting Bastardo in a 1-0 win)…Milan subsequently pushed for European football under Rodgers…playing good football and were 4th with 10 games to go. But in those 10 remaining games they crumbled: 2 wins/3 draws and 5 defeats, resulting in Milan finishing the 2021/22 season in 9th place. Bastardo rubbed his hands with glee…his cross-city foe humiliated and a Serie A title resting in the darker part of Milan once more…trophies have cometh!

The red circle is Strachan's last match...the yellow circle is Rodger's 1st game.  Progress? — The red circle is Strachan's last match...the yellow circle is Rodger's 1st game. Progress?

Walking in a Candreva Wonderland

One of my ex-managers of an 11-a-side team once told me that "football was a young man's game, and 'the winger' was an even younger man's position". He isn't wrong, the need to run the channels box-to-box for 90 minutes takes copious amounts of fitness and stamina. Think Ryan Giggs in his heyday and then think of him again at 35...he was an entirely different player, fulfilling a different role and position in his team. The winger role was too young for him, he had outgrown it. Yet 35 year old Antonio Candreva in 2022 has defied this footballing status-quo, he played 31 matches in either the AMR and AML slots. He was my Winger on Attack duty or my Advanced Playmaker on Attack/Support when the roles suited. The results were incredible:

Antonio was the driver of our success, Inter's top scorer and top assister in a truly remarkable season. His best EVER:

I am a firm believer that the Advanced Playmaker role helped get the best out of him in 2022...physically his powers may be waning, but his Mental and Technical attributes are still top quality...something the Advanced Playmaker requires. Candreva's best game was Vs Bologna in the Coppa Italia final. Two goals topped off a wonderful performance whereby as an Advanced Playmaker he was able to get a good feel of the ball, receiving the ball (80 times!) in central areas and generally wrecking havoc:

Antonio Candreva heat map and passes received Vs Bologna (2022 Coppa Italia Cup final).  Playing AML Advanced Playmaker. — Antonio Candreva heat map and passes received Vs Bologna (2022 Coppa Italia Cup final). Playing AML Advanced Playmaker.

So next time you see a 34/35 year old winger in your squad, do not discard him without any thought. The results of a suited role within your tactical set-up can be devastating, as the case of Candreva shows. I certainly wouldn't be sitting here writing about a Serie A and Coppa Italia double if it was not for him. Thank you Antonio.

Domestic Success

So domestic success went hand-in-hand with Candreva's exploits, an incredible 27 consecutive gameweeks at 1st position. 25 wins, 8 draws and 5 losses brought the title home:

The Coppa Italia Gods were with Bastardo too, who permitted a penalty shootout win against Roma and some favourable matches en route to a final with Bologna:

Euro pains

Europe didn't quite go to plan, although we cruised into the groups with a big win Vs CSKA in the Qualifiers. From there we were always going to be second best to Paris Saint Germain...who boast the four most valuable players in the World: Coman, Dybala, Iheanacho & Martial:

Top 6 most valued players.  La france, elle est forte. — Top 6 most valued players. La france, elle est forte.

We needed just a little more luck in that home leg Vs Tottenham. 4 Clear Cut Chances to their 0...yet it was 2-1 and Spurs went back to London with that vital away goal. We did well in the away leg, only conceding in the 80th minute. But I have regrets, I sat on the 2-1 lead and decided against pursuing the away goal in London, which may have changed the tie. Tottenham went on to win the Champions League, so I can't complain too much about pushing them all the way. Oh well, we reinforce in the Summer of 2022 and we go again...which leads me to transfer planning...

Squad building for 2022/23

In FM, I always aim to have two players per position and then a 3rd youth option. At Inter, I am lucky that some of the Academy players are already good enough to step up and compete into both the 1st and 2nd XI (those in yellow below). The likes of Belfoire, Dimarco, Marcheggani & Zanini are already pushing their more experienced team members for starts. A homegrown back four is certainly a possibility from 2022/23 onwards.

If we assume nobody leaves (which may be difficult as Gomes & Luchkevych are already targets for top clubs), then I can see that we need another central midfielder, as we wave goodbye to fibra God Gary Medel. Ivan Perisic has also departed for the MLS, so it wouldn't hurt to bring in another versatile winger...whilst questions remain over Kasper Dolberg's fitness and Leandro Bazan's ability (who is relatively young and inexperienced). Despite my growing attachment to Antonio Candreva, we also need to address his role in the team longer term.

Luckily for me, Mexican club Tigres have the two perfect players I am looking for: midfielder Andrés Cubas and versatile winger Cristian Pavón who graduated from Boca Juniors a few seasons ago. Both are 26 years of age, fit the Argentine profile that suits Inter Milan and have enough fibra. It's too early to say whether we'd be able to do a deal...but I am sitting in excess of €50m disposable transfer cash. We will do our best to fill our two non-EU quotas on this Argentine duo.

We also say good riddance to Karim Benzema, who never scored a goal in his 10 Inter appearances, he was seriously poor. I have also misused Mauro Icardi...who couldn't oust the young talents of Eduardo Colautti and Facundo Colidio from the team. Saying 'addio' to these two forwards probably means I need another striker. Meet: Adam Trojan...Jan Koller reincarnate...

18 years of age and already so powerful!

Trojan has had a year in Belgium, where he has really impressed.

Adam Trojan joins in the Summer of 2022 for a BIG deal which is likely to rise to €23m. At 18 years of age he already looks monstrous, and I can only imagine what a few years of Bastardo can do to him!

Bastardo flanked by loyal fibra followers: N'Golo Kanté & Santiago Ascacíbar. — Bastardo flanked by loyal fibra followers: N'Golo Kanté & Santiago Ascacíbar.

Thanks for taking the time to read my latest piece, any RTs/Favs/Comments are appreciated. I will keep followers updated via my Twitter and Slack channels as we move forward into Season 2022/23 with the aim of winning more trophies. Speak soon.

FMG

"Signing Santiago" - Inter is coming - Intro #FM17 #WeAreTheCommunity

April 16, 2017

"Il più grande imbroglio che il diavolo abbia mai escogitato è stato convincere il mondo che Ángel Bastardo non esistesse più"

06 March 2021

Intro

"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the World that Ángel Bastardo no longer existed" read the article in La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Ángel Bastardo is back in club management, 639 days (1 year, 9 months) after leaving Estudiantes de La Plata in Argentina. During his downtime, he went to the Middle East, Japan and England...broadening his outlook on the beautiful game. Now F.C. Internazionale Milano have answered the call, a club with rich history and at the summit of Worldwide fame. A club that has a special relationship with Argentina, with players such as Cambiasso, Crespo, Milito, Samuel, Simeone, Verón, Zanetti and legendary manager Helenio Herrera (who brought home back-to-back European Cups for Inter in 1964 & 1965).

Luckily I managed to get some hours into this save before blogging about it...covering the final 3 months of the 2020/21 season through to the start of the 2021/22 campaign. I wanted to make sure I survived those initial 3 months before re-commencing the blog, which were also played inconsistently over the months of February and March (whilst I battled late night newborn sessions).

Today's blog therefore outlines the task at hand: (1) what's happened to Internazionale during the 4.5 seasons of play-through in my Football Manager 2017 save, and (2) hopefully where they will be going under Bastardo's stewardship...including some fabulous Newgen love near the end of this blog post.

Oh Ángel, I have missed you.

What happened to Internazionale?

2016-2021 - 2nd best in Milano

In FM17 Frank de Boer lasted a lot longer at Inter than he did in real life. Four full seasons were completed under de Boer's management, and all four of his Serie A finishes guaranteed Champions League football: 3rd in 2016/17, 2017/18, 2018/19 & 2nd in 2019/20. However the runners up medal in 2019/20 may have been bittersweet...losing out on the title to arch rivals A.C. Milan.

Three straight years of being the 2nd best team in Milan :-(

In the Champions League, Inter never made it past the Last 16. However they did make the Euro Cup Semi Finals on two occasions, losing to FC Schalke 04 in 2017 and going out on away goals to Liverpool in 2020.

Frank de Boer also made some high profile sales, Gabriel Barbosa leaving for PSG in a huge deal for €61m (possibly rising to €95m) and João Mário who swapped Milan for Munich in a €43.5m deal (possibly rising to €48.5m). In terms of incoming transfers the signings made were pretty low key, although Kasper Dolberg (€22m) and Danilo Cataldi (€37.5m) are particularly tasty.

The deal between Inter & PSG for 'Gabigol' in focus...

It feels like Inter were a 'nearly team' under de Boer. Certainly good enough to qualify regularly for the Champions League in Serie A...but not quite good enough to compete past the Group Stages.

2020/21 - Chasing Bielsa

The nearly team lost its way under de Boer during his 5th season in charge. With 12 games to go, Frank de Boer was sacked 4 points from the Champions League qualification spots and 17 points away from Marcelo Bielsa's inspired league leaders Roma.

Inter's Indonesian Chairman Erick Thohir called time on de Boer's contract, after a disastrous 0-1 loss at home to Genoa. Inter were still in the Champions League Last 16 however (albeit being 0-3 down against PSG from the 1st leg).

It was time for Bastardo, who kicked off with a typical conservative approach to life in Milan. 6 clean sheets in the first 8 matches saw us move into contention for the Champions League places. I was playing a 4-3-3, because my usual bastard 4-4-2/4-4-1-1 (with two banks of four facilitating 'La Plata anti-fútbol') was not possible due to the current Inter personnel [or lack of]:

You will see that I was not so good in the big games against A.C. Milan, Roma & Juventus. This meant that I had to beat Fiorentina on the final day to qualify for the 3rd Champions League spot (via a better head-to-head record):

Bielsa's Roma stormed their way to the 2020/21 Serie A title.

Now I am not sure if I would have been sacked if I had fluffed that final game (as the Board tasked me with a Champions League finish)...but to win 5-0 away from home AND with such panache was joyous. Special mention must go to hat-trick hero Danilo Cataldi...who repaid the €37.5m fee that de Boer paid in the previous Summer. However I couldn't overturn that 0-3 loss to PSG in the 2nd leg of the Champions League tie...but I did give PSG a real test and it left me with hope for the future. With a few additions to the squad, I could build a powerhouse of a team. It was time to start planning for the 2021/22 season...

2021/22 - Signing Santiago

One of the standout stories of my Fame & FIbra in La Plata series was the sale of Santiago Ascacíbar from Estudiantes to PSG, I even dedicated a blog post to it (See: "Selling Santiago"). The deal was £50m, rising to £55m (€64m). Now the story does not end there, I was able to loan him back to La Plata for the next 4 seasons. He then subsequently went to Sampdoria in Serie A on a season loan (2020/21) for the final year of his contract. To my astonishment, in the lead up to Summer 2021 he was available to discuss terms...because the fools in Paris had not renewed his contract. Maybe they'd forgotten all about him? Anyway, Santiago is mine...forever mine. He signed a pre-contract agreement coming in to compete with Gary Medel (another reunion from my 2019 Chile stint) for the traditional ball winner/defensive midfielder slot. It seems that Ascacíbar and Bastardo are forever united.

After Ascacíbar, a mix of big names and talented youth followed...largely dictated from my fibra policy ('fibra' - what's that? Read more here). 33 year old Karim Benzema is the one exception, recruited prior to my arrival on a €758k per month pre-contract agreement by de Boer. Luckily it's just a 1 year deal. Here are their fibra scores:

Karim Benzema - 33 year old Striker - 41 fibra
Santiago Ascacíbar - 24 year old Midfielder - 56 fibra
Sérgio Gomes - 20 year old Goalkepper [Newgen*] - 57 fibra
Eduardo Colautti - 20 year old Attacking Midfielder [Newgen*] - 47 fibra
Facundo Colidio - 21 year old Striker - 48 fibra
N'Golo Kanté - 30 year old Midfielder - 60 fibra
Leandro Bazán** - 20 year old Winger [Newgen] - 62 fibra

*More about those Newgens later on in this post.

**Leandro Bazán immediately loaned back to Argentina (Argentinos Jnrs) for 1st team football.

The huge outgoing deal was for 28 year old Geoffrey Kondogbia, who returned to AS Monaco in a deal rising to €55m. He is a great all round midfielder but sadly couldn't outshine Danilo Cataldi as the primary playmaker in midfield. €55m was simply too tempting. Overall our profit/loss on transfer fees stands at €48.5m, which has contributed to record highs in the club's bank balance: €175m.

Youth talents

Part of the decision to offload so many senior pros was because I saw a number of young talents, either those that have come through the Inter youth system or those that have been recruited externally. I am really excited by them, who all have the required personalities to make it at the top level. Let's have a look:

Abubakar Abubakar - 20 year old Centre Back - 50 fibra

So good, they named this motherfucker twice. French/Ghanaian 'Abu' was bought by de Boer for €20.5m from Montpellier. He's not the perfect defender yet, but he did a decent job partnering Jeison Murillo at the back during the 2020/21 season run-in. I'd like more Composure and Concentration but his Anticipation & Decisions are very strong. The 1st of three Wonderkid Centre Backs I am about to introduce you to.

Gianluca Belfiore - 17 year old Fullback - 48 fibra

Academy product Gianluca Belfiore is a speedy Fullback who can play on the left or right side. I need to work on some technical aspects of his game (notably Crossing), but he is already physically advanced for 17 years of age. I will certainly be training the PPM: 'Knock Balls Past Opponent' to make use of that Acceleration and Pace.

Eduardo Colautti - 20 year old Attacking Midfield - 47 fibra

I'm usually frugal in Football Manager's transfer market, but Eduardo Colautti is something special. In 2019/20 he spent the season on loan from Udinese at Celta Vigo in La Liga, scoring 12 top flight goals at 18 years of age. In 2020/21 he returned to Serie A and scored 15 goals for Udinese. Worth every cent of the €17.5m paid...I hope.

Nicolò Marcheggiani - 20 year old Centre Back - 50 fibra

Academy Nicolò Marcheggiani is the 2nd of 3 Wonderkid Centrebacks at Inter. I would like more Aggression and Composure, but his Anticipation, Decisions and Positioning are wonderful for his age. Combined with his physical attributes, he has massive potential.

Matteo Zanini - 18 year old Centreback - 55 fibra

It's hard to believe this kid is only 18 years old. Matteo Zanini is another academy player and is the 3rd Wonderkid Centre Back in my team. He is Aggressive, Brave and Determined...my kind of bastard. I am hoping for some natural growth in Concentration and Decisions and then I will have a real beast. He is also a left sided CB, something I like to have combined with a right sided CB if I decide to play from the back.

That's 5 of the best talents, but there are a few more including Portuguese Goalkeeper Sérgio Gomes (57 fibra). Sérgio signed on a Free Transfer and has been given the No.1 jersey after Samir Handanovic retired...a bold move that is probably going to give me a heart attack. With Eccentricity 18, this guy is going to do some incredible things (both good and bad). The top target was A.C. Milan's Gianluigi Donnarumma who went to Liverpool for €28.5m...annoyingly I bid in excess of €40m...but my main rivals were having none of it. Wankers.

There's also versatile academy players like Christian Macrì (63) & Vito Serafini (60) who are likely to play some part in the 2021/22 season. Despite being raw...they have exceptional fibra:

Inter is coming...

Thanks for making it this far through the blog post, full of my ramblings and some [long overdue FMG] Newgen love. Also thanks must go to Thomas Paine (@Armchair_Gaffer) who helped me with the proper/native Italian translation found in my intro :-)

I am not sure how regular I will be playing/posting during the 'Inter is coming' series...but I will certainly be posting snippets about my save via Twitter and my channel on the FM Slack (just search #fmgrasshopper). I would also like to belatedly thank all those who passed on best wishes since the birth of my son 'Luca', the real life Newgen is doing great thanks...already over 2 months old :-)

Ángel Bastardo cannot promise Inter trophies, but he is certain to bring shitloads of drama and fibra.

Vamos!

FMG

"The Slivovice Set Piece" - A.Bastardo On Holiday - Chapter III feat. @KeysiRensie #FM17 #WeAreTheCommunity

April 14, 2017

Bohemistics/Bohemistika - The study of Czech histories, language & literature.

Slivovice - a Central or South-East European plum liquor, deriving from the slavic word for 'damson plum'. The Devil's drink. Drink with caution.

Intro

The FM Community is extremely privileged to have someone like Keysi Rensie around. Privileged because he is always available to help others, whether it's through a blog post/guide or answering a simple query via Twitter or Slack. In addition to helping anybody who asks, he also has amazing FM saves to share. His devotion to the 'One Club' save in the last two editions of Football Manager have been thoroughly enjoyable to see unfold. His latest save in FM17 with Reading is like a Diego Mendoza fine wine...or a Chirs Darwen kimono...'class'.

Reading, England was therefore the next logical destination in my ‘A.Bastardo On Holiday’ series, which concludes as a trilogy [for now]. If you are only just joining us now, re-visit Ángel Bastardo's exploits in both UAE and Japan below:

Chapter 1: "When Bastardo met Mendoza"

Chapter 2: "Osu"

A Bohemian Rhapsody in Reading

Ángel Bastardo had never met Czech born Keysi Rensie, undoubtedly Europe's most successful manager in the last decade. 28 trophies, including 4 Champions League and 3 Club World Cup wins for Reading FC had propelled many around the world to title Keysi Rensie as 'the greatest football manager EVER'. Respected Czech manager Zdeněk Zeman had even labelled Keysi the most influential Czech ever...in front of famous figures like Charles IV (the Holy Roman Emperor), Sigmund Freud & Martina Navratilova. Chris Darwen, the kimono wearing Englishman in Japan, who Bastardo had just left, had said that Keysi was writing his own 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in Reading. A clever play on words from the eccentric Englishman who had to explain it to Ángel Bastardo:

Bohemian - all things from Bohemia, Czech Republic's largest historical region.

Rhapsody - a musical term for a free-flowing, improvised, spontaneous piece...much like Keysi's style of attacking football, that had forced the World to take note of 'The Royals': Reading FC.

Now instead of writing a biopic about Keysi's time at Reading, a simple Infographic put together during the 13 hour flight from Tokyo to London Heathrow should suffice.

A 'world class' football manager from the Czech Republic was probably always going to arrive in the English Premier League at some point. The Czechs are 'probably' the most successful exporters of good-to-exceptional footballers out of the ex-Soviet Eastern Bloc countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania & Slovakia). Especially into England's Premier League: Milan Baroš, Patrik Berger, Petr Čech, Tomáš Rosický & Vladimír Šmicer to name 5 of the 25 Czechs to have ever played in the English Premier League. The Czech Republic, with a population of 10.5 million, seriously outperforms the bigger nations of Poland and Romania as the chief exporter of players into the Premier league. There are other exceptional Czech players that English fans were unfortunate not to see, like the supremely talented duo of Pavel Nedvěd & Jan Koller.

So there was a certain amount of trepidation when Ángel Bastardo walked on to the Reading FC training pitches for the first time. He was yet to meet Mr Keysi Rensie, who instead opted to let his entourage meet with Bastardo and bring him here. Bastardo was sure Keysi would be the traditional 'Tracksuit Manager', wearing a baseball cap and Diadora trainers...after-all Keysi was the author of the now famous publication: 'The Keysi Way'. A memoir of his training set-up that contributed to Reading's four Champions League wins.

Yet Bastardo couldn't have been more wrong. Keysi Rensie was a well suited man, but it wasn't the texture or the fabric which grabbed Bastardo's attention. The suit was bright blue...almost as blue as the February Winter sky. Furthermore, it wasn't just the blazer that was blue...trousers, socks, glasses and cuff links all shone in the sunlight. Illuminating the training pitch as if the flood lights were on. Despite the inappropriate training attire, Keysi Rensie oozed class: softly spoken and polite but still earning the attention of all 25 players and, of course, Ángel Bastardo who was here to learn from the master himself...

The Slivovice Set Piece

“I don’t think I would ever have played football if free-kicks had never existed" Siniša Mihajlović, Serie A legend

Osvaldo Zubeldía at training — **Osvaldo Zubeldía** at training

Creating an attacking set piece, whether it is a corner, freekick or throw in, is a chance to show tactical innovation in the attempt to create a goalscoring chance. Estudiantes de La Plata's legendary coach Osvaldo Zubeldía was one of the first coaches in South America to thoroughly exploit set pieces an win intercontinental honours, so much that it became a fundamental part of Estuidantes' play and subsequent success (three straight Copa Libertadores titles: 1968, 1969 & 1970). It was akin to a military option, with Zubeldía often motivating his players by taking them to watch La Plata commuters on their way to work prior to training, as recalled by Estudiantes midfielder Carlos Pachamé in Jonathan Wilson's 'Angels With Dirty Faces' book:

"When Zubeldía wanted to motivate us, he would take us all to Retiro train station at 6am to watch commuters. 'You believe you are workers', he would tell us, 'You are not, they are! Don't ever forget that'...and he was right"

Zubeldía manged a well drilled side, making the most out of set pieces...and Bastardo could see the parallels with Keysi Rensie. After all Rensie, like Zubeldía, had taken a relatively young team and made them great...before anyone had realised. The set piece was a vital part of the Keysi Rensie arsenal. The innovation to create that quick clear cut chance, was what Keysi called the 'Slivovice Set Piece'. When asked by Bastardo what he meant, Keysi replied:

"Set pieces are like brewing slivovice, the process in creating a good set piece could take months. Months of experimenting to see what works and doesn't, evaluating the players' suitability and then executing it on the pitch. Basically: find the right plums, harvest them and then let them ferment...sometimes the process can take months, especially if you have a cold Czech October & November"

Ángel Bastardo had heard Diego Mendoza talk of sieges and trebuchets in Abu Dhabi, Chris Darwen had been similarly crazy with his talk of kimono parties on Okinawa...but Keysi Rensie was definitely the next level of revolutionary in Reading. So, Bastardo decided to go with the slivovice idea and ask Rensie to help work on some routines...

The Short Freekick

3, 2, 1...Goal (Zanetti 45 mins +1). Three touches, two seconds, one goal. That's all that was needed when Argentina's Juan Sebastián Verón & Javier Zanetti combined to score against England in the 1998 World Cup. This is probably THE archetypal slivovice set piece: effective, simple & quick.

Like Bastardo, Keysi is a huge fan of this legendary goal and has built a lovely routine into Reading's play. One where the freekick taker has plenty of options with a player moving off the shoulder of the opposition wall. The opponents are expecting a deep cross or shot...not an intricate pass à la Zanetti in '98.

A relic from the very 1st draft of 'The Keysi Way'

How how does the routine look in Football Manager 2017? See Keysi's setup below:

We also need to consider the appropriate attributes to fulfill both the roles of the 'Dreamweaver' freekick taker (Verón) and 'Gunslinger' scorer (Zanetti):

Dreamweaver (FK taker): Passing & Vision

Gunslinger (Goalscorer): Finishing, Composure, Decisions & Off The Ball

Once you have the setup and the right players, it's then down to the match engine to do the work. Below is a nice example from Keysi's Reading. The freekick is further out than the Zanetti 1998 example, showing that short free kicks can be effective from just about anywhere in the opposition half:

The Short Throw In

When teams get desperate for a goal they usually go direct by launching a long throw into the box. How many times do we see teams end up doing this and how many times do we see it pay off? We probably forget the 99 times it fails and instead remember that one time where the flick-on takes it into the path of one of your players...who gladly rifles it into the net.

Keysi's teams are an advocate for the opposite technique: the short throw in. Maybe it's a few seconds longer than throwing it in direct style...but as the cliché states: "it only takes a second to score a goal". Keysi's methods on the training ground were about good movement, as shown from another page of The Keysi Way.

And the instructions:

And here is how it pans out in the FM17 match engine:

Offering the short option initially looks like the chance has gone...but in just a few interchanges we have our clear cut chance, from our slivovice set piece.

Keysi's training ground routines were lengthy, but time was made for an evening soirée in London with his coaching staff to discuss an upcoming game against Man Utd. Bastardo was the guest of honour, occupying the main table with Keysi. It was time for a Bastardo-Rensie Q&A...

Q&A

AB: Keysi, thanks for inviting me here. Seeing your commitment and dedication on the training ground, and devotion to Reading is inspiring. Did you expect to be here after 10 years?

KR: I have to say yes, I expected it. The reason is very simple as a board of Reading FC finally set the realistic expectations at the beginning of our first season together so there was not a big pressure. We overachieved all the expectations in the first season as we were in the Championship Play-off Final and this really helped me and the team itself because we get an enough time to work and develop young players. But mainly I'm the traditional and old-fashioned man who still believe in the "one-club" culture. And it doesn't matter if it's a player or a manager. I like to stay in one club for many years.

AB: Do you think not being promoted straight away from the English Championship actually helped your meteoric rise once in the Premier League? As a number of young players really grew for you in your early teams and were then able to cope with the demands of top-flight football.

KR: Definitely. You're right. If we were promoted in the first season I'm sure our first team squad would look absolutely different because we would need massive strengthening and that would mean a lot of money and I'm too big of a financial fascist and I don't know how to spend big money.

But back to our own players. They were perfectly prepared for Premier League after three seasons in Championship. Players as Liam Kelly, Jake Cooper, Josh Barret or John Swift developed themselves from promising youngsters to key players thanks to a lot of playing time in the second tier where you're able to play a lot of tough games.

There were another very important thing in our successful step from Championship to Premier League. Our tactic. I don't want to say my tactical approach is perfect or "The Best Tactic You've EVER Seen" but it was important that I changed our formation before we moved to the Premier League and we knew what we want to play for several months and we played both competitions with almost the same line-up and our players were used to all things.

AB: You mentioned you don't know how to spend BIG, what is the biggest deal during your time at Reading?

KR: The biggest deal so far was a transfer of midfielder David Iribar for a fee around 6.75M but he was sent for a loan spell because he did not receive work permit so there is a possibility he will be sold in the future if he will not receive work permit. If we don't count this transfer the biggest fee was 5M for central defender David Christie before the 10th season and 4.3M for midfielder Alfredo Acuna in 2022/2023 season. If you consider transfer fees around the world it's ridiculous

Danny Loader's development under Keysi can be read in this great post: click here.

AB: Danny Loader is obviously one of the greatest players ever to have played for Reading. Did you realise you were on to something special from Day 1 with this guy?

KR: I had a couple of young players in my mind before I started this journey with Reading and Danny Loader was one of them. I wanted to build a team around the trio including central defender Jake Cooper, attacking midfielder Liam Kelly and forward Dominic Samuel. They were my main men at the beginning.

Danny Loader was the youngest player in the club before the 2016/2017 season but I promoted him straight to the First Team at the age of 15. His development was gradual as he played mainly for youth and reserve team but he also got some playing team in FA Cup or EFL Cup.

And then, in our first Premier League season, some players were injured including Samuel and Loader got his chance. And he became our striker number one as he scored 16 goals in 35 matches. After the 10th season he is valued at 36,5M and he now has 230 goals in 395 appearances for the club with an average rating of 7.34 in all competitions. Meanwhile, players like Kelly, Obita, Cooper or Samuel are around their thirties, Loader is still 25 years old so he has a lot of years for scoring many goals...

AB: ‘The Keysi Way’ is now a commonly used term used to describe quick attacking football. What would be your one tip for managers looking to implement their own style on a club like Reading?

KR: Playing time. I know sometimes it could be hard to stay a little bit conservative and give your players enough time, especially when everything is not good in your eyes in terms of football you play or you would want to see more from them but I like to give my players some freedom and I like to give them a room they are familiar with their positions and roles.

Loader or Kelly will be not that good if I would change their roles every four or five matches. And don't be afraid to experiment. I've never played with the narrow formation with no wide players in previous editions of the game but I tried it this year with 4-3-3 and 4-3-1-2 and I was patient. Same as my players.

The Madejski Stadium has been Keysi's home for the last 10 years. But from 16 October 2026 Reading FC will be moving to the 58,628 capacity 'Robin Friday Arena'

AB: We’re around the mid-point of the FM17 schedule, with FM18 probably arriving sometime in Oct/Nov 2017…what next for Keysi Rensie during these next 5 months? Is staying at Reading for another Decade an option?

KR: I'm sure you'll find me here [at Reading]. My main aim is to continue with my favourite players until they will retire or they will want to go for a new challenge. Some of them already left Reading because they felt they achieved everything here and they're right. We won all trophies we were able to. I understand that a new challenge in the new club could be interesting but why not to stay and add some other trophies here?

I know we will not win every trophy every season, especially when players from the original squad grow older and older and we probably will fight in the mid-table but I still enjoy cooperation between Kelly, Loader, Barrett, Samuel or Cooper and some of the talented youngsters who can be our own stars in the future. And if everything will be to the liking I look forward to the time when we will have to start from the beginning and we will have to build a new team without players from the original squad.

AB: Could I ever convince you to come to South America?

KR: Never say never. My longtime real life friend moved to the South America recently and I talked to him about football there several times and it could be interesting. He also gave me a shirt of Atlético Nacional from Medellín in Colombia and I was really tempted to try to play with them. But I think my next steps will lead to home...

AB: Oooh. A return to Czech Republic, to 'Bohemia', the land of homemade slivovice. I'm sure many in the Football Manager Community will be waiting in anticipation. Keysi, thanks for your time...good luck for the next 10 years, wherever it may be :-)

[W]Inter IS coming

March

All things must come to an end, Ángel Bastardo thought, as the suitcase was packed ready for the return to the South American winter. His visits to the UAE, Japan and now England had certainly made him a more capable manager. But would Estudiantes take him back? Or would he have to leave Argentina and try some other South American nation? The future was undecided and it worried Bastardo. Had he been out of the game too long? Most likely, he had been on holiday for over a year, the Copa Sudamericana & Recopa past successes were distant memories. Fame & fibra were no longer the buzzwords around the area that Bastardo once knew. Fears of becoming the Argentine Alan Curbishley were all too real. Bastardo needed to relax...Bastardo needed wine!

The bottle of Mendoza red in his suitcase was from Abu Dhabi and was 'meant' to be opened back in La Plata, but Bastardo couldn't wait...he sat in the hotel room and drunk alone. He had said his goodbyes to Keysi Rensie a day earlier, who had travelled with his Reading boys to Old Trafford for a league game. The bottle was almost finished when his phone rung...an unknown number, from a dialing code that Bastardo did not recognise. Call ignored.

But it rung again. Then a third time. Bastardo finally answered on the fourth. It was Erick Thohir, Internazionale Chairman. They had sacked Frank de Boer and wanted Bastardo. Just like that, Bastardo had accepted the offer. Blame the Mendoza wine, or the fear or returning home. Bastardo was staying in Europe for a little while longer, the fibra Gods had answered the desparate plea.

Inter is coming...