"Las Joyas de Bastardo: Tercera Parte" - Return to La Plata #FM18 #WeAreTheCommunity

Previously in Return to La Plata, Ángel Bastardo ceded some of his power in La Plata.

Intro

I have always said that Football Manager gets easier as the in-game seasons drag on.  You build a squad, improve it year-on-year and eventually prosper.  But what happens when you go beyond that cycle?  When the powers of the heroes you once relied on begin to wane?  Ángel Bastardo always earmarked 2025 as 'the end', and he intends to honour that.  But 2023/24, his penultimate season, was his most difficult in management.  Estudiantes de La Plata are clearly not the team they once were, and perhaps it is now Barstardo's powers waning.  Too loyal to his warriors, too frugal in the Transfer Market and perhaps too stubborn to change.

We have a few months to fix it, and 'Succession Plan' is in full operation to help us do that.  But before we begin Season 8, it's time to reflect on Season 7 and after that we will conclude the "Las Joyas de Bastardo" trilogy: looking at some of the players Bastardo shaped throughout his tenure in La Plata.

Season 2023/24

Argentine Superliga

It's so painful when you look back at the results in 2024.  We just were not good enough.  I have said it a few times in my Slack channel and on Twitter, the Argentine Superliga is actually gaining competitiveness year-on-year.  Players seem to be prolonging their stay in Argentina longer than in real life, perhaps this is because I don't have any European leagues loaded in the game, so it has resulted in many strong squads.  Even Boca Juniors, retaining the title once again, dropped points in 15 of their 38 games.

It's our worst league finish in 5 years, but it's still enough to qualify for the 2025 Copa Libertadores.  Looking at the league in isolation, it's clearly not good enough for a trophy laden squad such as ours.  Reinforcements needed!

Copa Libertadores

For the sixth year in a row Bastardo’s Estudiantes reach the Knockout Stages of the Copa Libertadores.  A scare in the away match Vs Emelec meant topping the group was not a formality going into the final group match.  But Emelec’s draw away in Uruguay and our confident 3-0 at home meant Estudiantes once again topped a Copa Libertadores Group Stage.  Botafogo up next in the Last 16.

Copa Argentina

Can we retain it for a third time running (after winning 2022 & 2023 editions)?  We're working on it, wins against lower league Guillermo Brown de Puerto Madryn & Liniers de Bahía Blanca see us into the 7th Round.

Supercopa Argentina

The 10th trophy arrived with a 2-0 win against Boca Juniors.  Maxi Romero coming on in the 60th minute to bag two late goals (79' & 90+4').  In truth, it was a dull affair but made sweeter seeing as I had to give a debut to Newgen Goal Keeper, Darío Cuevas, a Director of Football January signing.

I joked at the time that I was finally fulfilling Bastardo’s 'Décima Dream', an expression made famous by Real Madrid's pursuit of 10 European Cup triumphs.  But 10 trophies in seven years is quite an achievement, and something I will look back fondly when returning to re-read these posts in years to come #GraciasBastardo.

Las Joyas de Bastardo: Tercera Parte

Over the previous two posts I’ve introduced 8 youngsters who have passed through the La Plata Academy.  You can re-read my previous decision making on them here: 

Part One

Part Two

Four of the eight have moved on to Europe: Carlo Lattanzio, Nico Rosales, Carlos Aparicio & Renzo Taborda.  The other four have all made 1st appearances and remain tied to Estudiantes, they are: Lucas Pessarini, Mateo Allione, Ignacio Fernández & Kevin Lizaso.  We'll start with the former group first and re-cap on their time with Bastardo and what they went on to do in FM18...

Carlo Lattanzio - 26 years old - West Ham United

Lattanzigol's rise surprised me in this save.  An injury crisis in early 2019 and a failed loan spell in Argentinos Juniors meant he finally got his chance to shine.  To be fair to him, he has never looked back.  Now at West Ham, Carlo is lighting up the English Premier League with goals, reaching double figures in his 3 seasons there.  The spirit of Mariano Pavone is in him too, his Resolute mentality passed on to young Carlo after successful tutoring in 2018.

Carlo eventually learnt the 'Places Shot' Player Trait with me in his final season (2020/21), something I wanted him to do for many years.  At 26 years old he still has so much to do, he is still yet to win a trophy since his 2020 Copa Libertadores title with Estudiantes but maybe West Ham isn't the club to do this at?

Nicolás Rosales - 23 years old - FC Porto

Nicolás Rosales was 19 years old when he made his International debut for Argentina.  At that moment in time, he had already made the move over to Europe (to FC Porto).  It was a then record sale for Bastardo: €6m, which was made even sweeter by the International cap which earned a further €850k.

You can go and read Part One and see what I did with him in the little time we had together.  I think the most satisfying moment was having him learn 'Dictates Tempo' from Walter Erviti, another milestone in successful tutoring in La Plata.  Nico was always too good for me, such a composed Deep Lying Playmaker even as a young lad.  If he had stayed another 2-3 years, he'd have been as decorated as the likes of Maxi Romero & Fernando Zuqui in my squad.  But instead, he found his trophies in Portugal: 3 straight league titles with Porto and 5 domestic cups.  Well done Nico.

Carlos Aparicio - 22 years old - Benfica

Carlos Aparicio was introduced in Part Two of my youth development posts.  He was recruited from 2nd Division Peruvian team Sport Loreto on a Free Transfer.  After spending 6 months in my Academy and u20s, he was quickly loaned out to Newell's Old Boys for 1st team football.  He did well in Rosario, so I slotted him straight into the Estudiantes 1st team from 2021/22, replacing his previous tutor, Maxi Pereira, who altered his personality to Fairly Professional.

He was quite reliable and steady at Right Back so I had no hesitation starting him in the 2021 victorious Copa Libertadores Finals against Grêmio.  He then went on to win a further 5 trophies in our club's golden period. 

He asked to leave for Benfica in January 2024, and I simply couldn't say no.  €8m straight up cash later and he was with the Portuguese giants.

Renzo Taborda - 22 years old - FC Barcelona

The last of our alumni overseas is a big one, Renzo Taborda rocking the blaugrana colours of FC Barcelona.  Not only is he just there, he's their Number 10 and boasting a '1 in 2 record' for goals in his 1st season.  Ladies & Gentlemen we created a worldie talent!  A record sale in a deal rising to €12.5m, Renzo never looked out of place in the Estudiantes team after his loan deal at Temperley.  He went on to score 61 goals in the La Plata shirt and surpassed everything that Carlo Lattanzio did before him.  Trained as an Advanced Forward from the day he entered in the Academy, we added a few Player Traits to help his game.

At 22 he is unstoppable.  I dread to think what he will be like after a few more years at Barcelona's training facilities.

Now on to those Academy players that remained in La Plata: Lucas Pessarini, Mateo Allione, Ignacio Fernández & Kevin Lizaso.  I won't post their career stats, seeing that they all remain with Estudiantes...

Lucas Pessarini - 24 years old

Despite me noting down 4 seasons ago in Part One, that Lucas would likely be sold on....he is still here!  The only clubs to come in for him made loan offers, so instead he has carved out a career as Estudiantes' 4th choice Centre Back.  Lucas has played 63 times for Bastardo's Estudiantes after a year on loan with Huracán in the Argentine Superliga.  I suppose there is realism here, Lucas clearly isn't quite good enough for a move away to Europe but he's a handy guy to have called upon over the years and proven value for the Free Transfer 6 years ago.

Mateo Allione - 23 years old

Like Lucas Pessarini, Mateo Allione was another 18-year-old freebie from the lower leagues of Argentina.  I was naturally drawn to his high fibra scores in Aggression, Bravery, Teamwork & Work Rate.  His Potential Ability is probably quite low, or he is close to reaching it...as I haven't seen significant gains in his attributes over the last 12 months.  But believe me this guy has been extremely reliable at Full Back, amassing 106 Estudiantes appearances and not really putting a foot wrong.  He has been the undisputed No.1 Left Back for the last 2 seasons and is supporting evidence for the need to find the right player-type for your system.  The only wish I had was that he had more of an output offensively, just the one assist in the 2023/24 season.

Ignacio Fernández - 21 years old

Now on to a true Homegrown player, coming into the Estudiantes setup in the 2018/19 intake.  Ignacio Fernández has only managed 10 appearances in the Estudiantes shirt, being loaned out to Defensa y Justicia, Banfield & Newell's Old Boys (on 2 occasions).  His last spell at Newell's Old Boys has been his most productive, playing 39 games (all comps) as a DLP in Newell's successful season, finishing 3rd in the Superliga and reaching the Last 16 of the Copa Libertadores.

I expect Newell's to be in contact about extending this loan for the remainder of their Copa Libertadores campaign, but Bastardo needs him.  I fully expect him to come into the side now and compete.

Kevin Lizaso - 22 years old

Kevin Lizaso had two disappointing loan spells with Independiente Rivadavia & Colón over the last few years (and 13 Estudiantes appearances sandwiched in between), but his 2023/24 loan with San Lorenzo has been a big surprise.  Kevin has been ever present with El Ciclón: 44 appearances (all comps).  He now has one final pre-season to impress Bastardo with his lovely physicals and two footedness.

My favourite FM18 Youngster...

Despite all the incredible Newgens above (and some non-Newgens), there's one guy that stands out from the rest.  He came between the two Youth Development posts and slotted straight into the 1st team for season 2020/21.  I never thought of myself as developing him in any way, he simply turned up and started dreamweaving.  His name is Raúl Rolón.

Raúl joined for a then club record transfer fee of €3m from Libertad, Paraguay.  He was the replacement to Nico Rosales at DM and quickly became a key component of my 4141: as a Deep Lying Playmaker.  We added some Player Traits to help him flourish and in turn we got back-to-back Copa Libertadores titles and a 2022 Superliga title.

It was not long before a European Club came in for him...and in July 2022 he made the move to La Liga with Sevilla.  His only piece of silverware there so far is a European Super Cup.

Spoiler: the 2024/25 Estudiantes home shirt as designed by Keysi Rensie #GraciasBastardo

Closing Comments

There are so many other players who have been sold that I could have written about today, either those originally from the Academy or those stopping by for 1-2 seasons.  We’ll likely mention them at some point next time out, as I plan to conclude my ‘Dollars Trilogy’.  A post about the financial gains the clubs has made during the Bastardo-era.  Look out for that during September, but until then...

Thanks for reading/sharing/caring.  It seems crazy that we’re already embarking on our final season, FM18 has been a blast!

Vamos.

FM Grasshopper

"La Sucesión" - Return to La Plata #FM18 #WeAreTheCommunity

Intro

Badge.jpg

Ángel Bastardo ousted Juan Sebastián Verón in October 2017, during a contentious election campaign that changed the political landscape of Argentine football forever (read about it here).  For the first time, a rumoured drug trafficking Manager became bigger than the club and city he resided in.  After that infamous melee with Estudiantes' greatest ever player, Bastardo installed puppet President Mariano Del Bono to become the political face of leadership.  Del Bono effortlessly served two unchallenged 3-year campaigns (2017-2023), allowing Bastardo complete autonomy in La Plata and free reign in all facets of the club.  When Del Bono spoke, it was Bastardo’s words.  When Del Bono listened, it was with Bastardo’s blessing.  The arrangement signalled Estudiantes return to power: two Copa Libertadores titles, one Superliga and five other domestic and continental titles. 

However October 2023 arrived like an ice cold wind.  Del Bono had to leave under AFA regulations, and with Bastardo announcing his intention to leave the following season in 2025, the Estudiantes shareholders were quick to relinquish some of Bastardo’s power.  A new President came in, Lucas Fischer, whose first act was to grant more power to Director of Football, Daniel Enríquez and his team of Scouts.  Bastardo would leave, and Estudiantes would have to find a way to cope.  This is la sucesión...

Season 2023/24

Before we discuss the Estudiantes backroom politics, we first need to discuss what happened in pre-season and the formative months of season 2023/24.  In short, we broke our transfer sale record twice: Sandro Acuña (who was clearly too good for Argentine football), departed for Manchester United after only one season in La Plata.  €11m the fee.  He also continues the rich success I have with developing tidy young playmakers (after Nico Rosales and Raúl Rolón made previous moves to Europe).  Acuna's sale was also notable in that it finally allowed me to face-off against Manchester United (read my concept of FM Anti-Destiny).  His tribute friendly was played out on 12 August 2023, and for the most part Estudiantes contained the English visitors, who are still managed by José Mourinho.  An evenly contested game was ended in the last ten minutes with European class/José mastery eventually rising to the surface.  Two late goals from Jorginho 83' & Henrikh Mkhitaryan 90+2' made it Estudiantes 0-2 Man Utd.  Despite losing, I am glad I finally found closure with the whole Estudiantes-Man Utd obsession.

Sandro Acuña at Manchester United.

Renzo Taborda at Barcelona.

Our second major sale was one that cut me deep: homegrown La Plata hotshot Renzo Taborda sealed a dream move to Barcelona for €12.5m.  He'd been our top scorer with 31 goals last year (all comps) and for all of his raw ability, he had that devastating concoction of Acceleration/Pace and Finishing.  I was gutted to lose him, but to see a homegrown player in the Barcelona jersey is pretty cool.  We would move into 2023/24 with two strikers: Maxi Romero and Bolivian Newgen José Velasco and hoped it would be enough in the usual 4141 and panic station 442 systems.

It was another prudent period of business for Bastardo.  Four Newgens came in for a combined value of €3.5m, the pick of the bunch was Juan Pablo Mugnaini from San Lorenzo (more on him later).  Undoubtedly, the big news in La Plata was the return of 34 year old Pablo Piatti though.  Home at last to finish his career in the red & white of Estudiantes, a dream Free Transfer...

15 years away from La Plata, the boy wonder returns.

So for 2023/24, we'll go with the 4141.  We can't change who we are at this stage and it will be the preferred formation I finish up with on this save...

Season 7 squad numbers.

Argentine Superliga

I'll be frank, we had an awful start domestically.  Winning just once in the first six games of the season.  It has meant that we have always been chasing the leading pack, but a strong run over November and December has seen us climb the table. 

Annoyingly it took me a whole month to realise the errors of my ways during that period of appalling form.  Placing newboy Mugnaini into midfield and moving the DLP on Support role from DM to MC was a big mistake.  It resulted in him clashing with Reynoso (CM-A) far too often and the whole recycling of the ball from defence to midfield was off.  Both Mugani and Reynoso would frequently run into the same spaces, resulting in them being too close to one another to create anything meaningful.

I kept it going for around a month because (1) I am a stubborn little bitch and (2) Mugnaini had no knowledge of the DM position whatsoever.  But luckily this changed relatively quickly and moving Mugnaini deeper into DM has worked wonders.  Suddenly the whole Estudiantes engine was running smoother, despite the drop in numbers from Mugnaini (assists, key passes etc.)...the balance is better.  He's now doing the needful, being the link between defence and midfield and keeping it simple.

Lesson learned: place a player straight into the position that suits your system, regardless of his supposedly lack of knowledge there.  Sink or swim, it's not worth upsetting your whole tactic.  It only took Mugnaini about 3 months of playing there to become accomplished in the DM position:

Mugnaini July 2023.

Mugnaini December 2023.

Copa Libertadores

For the first time in 5 years we failed to reach a Copa Libertadores Semi Final, which shows how consistent we have been in South America's elite club competition (until now *cries*).  It also shows that we are perhaps not quite the team we were 2-3 years ago (when Estudiantes won back-to-back titles in 2020 & 2021).  In all honesty, neither team deserved to go through and it feels like an opportunity missed for Estudiantes after getting such a positive result away in Brazil.  Grrrr.

Copa Argentina

However a resilient team is one that responds to disappointment, which is exactly what Bastardo's Estudiantes did in the 2023 Copa Argentina.  We had an easy run towards the showpiece final against River Plate who hardly threatened us on the day.  The pivotal moment occurred when Maxi Romero played in Jesús Medina who weaved his way into the penalty area to cross deep, there was only one outcome: a Fernando Zuqui goal on 33 minutes.  Our club captain winning his 9th trophy, who has been with Bastardo through it all.  Final score: Estudiantes 1-0 River Plate.

Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuqui.

La sucesión de Bastardo

So now let’s talk about the succession planning for when Bastardo leaves Estudiantes (in 18 month’s time).  Thematically (in my warped mind) I’ve twisted the relinquishment of Bastardo’s power to be a shareholder decision.  In actual fact, I just want to play about with the Director of Football (DoF) functionality in FM18.

Now I must apologise to people like Oliver Jensen, James and even my beloved podcasting co-host, Dan Gear, here.  I laughed off ever using this playstyle, for the apparent absurdity of giving away a vital part of the transfer and contract negotiations process.  But it does add realism, those bastards are probably right...and it’s something I want to use in FM19 more.  So what better way than to try it out for my last season and a half in FM18?

Here are my staffing responsibilities going forward:

Ángel Bastardo - The Boss

  1. All aspects of staff recruitment
  2. Finalising all incoming transfers
  3. All aspects of player sales
  4. All aspects of training
  5. Capable of hiring/firing the DoF

Daniel Enríquez - Director of Football

  1. All aspects of player and non-player staff retention (except for himself)
  2. Bidding for players and their subsequent contract offers

Victor de los Santos - Chief Scout

  1. All aspects of scouting
  2. Handles scouting meetings

Staffing responsibilities from 2024: Board, Transfers, Contracts & Scouting areas.

Anybody using the 'DoF mode' can tailor and shape how the backroom staff support them, which can actually streamline the gameplay quite nicely.  So for the remainder of my save, I still want Bastardo to oversee the sale of players in order to conclude my Dollars Trilogy next season (read Part 1 and Part 2).  I aim to make as much money as I can, whilst doing my best to remain competitive...I simply do not trust the AI to do this.  So these responsibilities remain with me.

It is not my favourite part of the game but it certainly makes sense for me to also oversee the backroom staff recruitment.  I want to leave this club with the best personnel in place to continue to push Boca & River year on year, and our growing reputation in South America may mean that I can pluck a few good coaches in my last year or two.

I've left it up to Uruguayan DoF Daniel Enríquez to go and find players.  He will go and negotiate with clubs and then, if successful, offer contracts.  He has Judging Player Ability of 15 and Potential of 17, so I am confident he will make good decisions.  But on the safe side, I am ensuring Bastardo has the final say on whether or not we sign players.  I will also set up a few lists too via Transfers/Create New Group and add players to these lists based on Position.  Oliver Jensen does something similar, so without repeating this methodology, I'll just point you in his direction here.

Another Uruguayan, Chief Scout Victor de los Santos, heads up all facets of Scouting.  He is strong in Judging Ability & Potential (17 for both) and can just be left to 'get on with it'.  Here are the two amigos:

The succession plan will hopefully be a real insight into the workings of the DoF and ensure that I will use it in a way that's right for me on Day 1 of my FM19 save.  Additionally, if anybody else is using the DoF with added responsibilities, I'd be keen to hear your testimonials.  What you like/dislike about it etc.

The Beginning Of The End

Now that succession is sorted, it really does feel like the beginning of the end now for Bastardo & Estudiantes in FM18.  We've won 9 trophies and the 10th, if I can do it, will feel extra special.  The next opportunity to reach 10 trophies is actually quite soon: the Argentine Supercopa in February 2024.  The opponents?  Boca Juniors of course.

As always stay updated on the progress of Season 7 via the snippets of info I post over on my Twitter feed or here on the blog where I recap whatever goes down in 2024.

Thanks for reading/sharing & caring.

FM Grasshopper

"Zone 13.5" - Return to La Plata #FM18 #WeAreTheCommunity

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Intro

It is impossible to talk about Bastardo's Estudiantes without mentioning Jesús Medina & Emanuel Reynoso.  Two players who have lit up the Estadio Único turf, in what has become a trophy laden period at the club.  We therefore focus on these dreamweavers in today’s post, who hold a special place in my heart.  Think of this as a eulogy/tribute as we enter into the Autumn of this save.

But first I’ll update readers on the business end of Season 2022/23, which has been yet another roller coaster ride...

Season 2022/23

Argentine Superliga

I was desperate to retain a league title, it usually settles debates between what makes a good team and a great team.  But it shows just how great you have to be sometimes, Boca Juniors were consistent all season.  Our 2023 form was solid: 13 wins, 4 draws and 1 loss.  But it was not enough to prevent final day heartbreak, where Estudiantes drew 2-2 against Sarmiento de Junín only to see Boca Juniors win 1-0 away at Vélez Sarsfield.  The title returning to the Capital, after a one year stay in La Plata.  1 point the difference.

Copa Libertadores

For the first time in 6 years we've finished up with a maximum of 18 points (6 wins) in the Copa Libertadores Group Stages.  Bastardo has always been blessed with easy groups (the perks of those underhand payments to CONMEBOL), and as a result we've come close to achieving this feat three times before (16 points, 5W & 1D).  But to finally get that 100% record in the groups is rewarding.

The usual Argentine and Brazilian powerhouses go through into the Knockouts (including last year's winners Corinthians, who knocked Estudiantes out at the Semi Finals), so the real battle awaits.

Copa Argentina

It's lowly rated in Argentina, but we've made it to the 7th Round of the Copa Argentina.  Comfortable wins against Club Sportivo Las Heras de Concordia & Cipolletti de Río Negro mean the dream of retaining this trophy goes on.

Supercopa Argentina

We also won our 8th trophy in the February of 2023: the Argentine Supercopa.  You can re-read the Twitter thread of this glorious hammering of River Plate below.  4-1 the final score, Renzo Taborda scoring his 49th, 50th and 51st goal in a La Plata shirt.  He has come a long way since I introduced him back in Season 4 (read more here).  What a boy!

Zone 13.5

Background

Traditionally, football pitches have been split up into three parts: the Defensive Third, the Middle Third and the Attacking Third.  Over the years in Football Manager simulations, we've had this presented to us in this way too:

Action Zones splitting the pitch into three.

But as football analytics has evolved, there has been a greater demand to split the pitch further.  This trend has filtered into the later Football Manager simulations, where there is now a plethora of statistical information displayed graphically.  Such as this on the Tactics/Analysis page:

Assist Locations splitting the Attacking Third into 4 [Estudiantes' last 50 games in 2022/23, all comps].

But for the purposes of talking about Jesús Medina & Emanuel Reynoso in today's blog post, I will be splitting the pitch up even further...into a six-by-three grid to be precise (18 zones).  A model developed by pioneering Sports Scientist, the late Professor Tom Reilly.  Reilly's model was born from the analysis of France's 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship wins.  Both victories were largely dictated by France's proficiency 'through the hole', in which Zinedine Zidane flourished as the Attacking Midfielder.

Football coaches obviously already knew of 'the hole', which is situated in Zone 14 (as shown below).  But by putting this into a statistical model, players could be analysed and evaluated.  It's perhaps the precursor of the shift into more popular False 9 type roles during the late 2000s and early 2010s, where more trickier players could drop from Zone 17 to 14 and cause problems with close control, short passing and quick movements.

Zones 1-18 (playing from left to right, of course)

Medina & Reynoso

Today is all about Zone 13.5 however: Medina & Reynoso.  I am a big believer in not looking at a role in isolation.  So much attention is placed on Player Roles and discussion about that specific player and how he will suit the role etc.  But his suitability is as much hinged on what is around him.  Think about it, what makes a Target Man function?  It's as much about what he has to work with around him (players running off him, or players supplying him with fodder etc.) than his actual suitability.  Both must be right for him to flourish.

Jesús Medina, a €975k signing from Libertad, Paraguay in December 2018.

Emanuel Reynoso, a €1.3m signing from Talleres de Córdoba, Argentina in January 2019.

It's what has been so beautiful in my Estudiantes 4141, two guys peaking together at the right time: a Central Midfielder and a Winger, both on Attack Duty.  Both complement each other really well which has led me to tailor my tactic to their strengths:

Medina & Reynoso in FM18: Player Roles, Player Instructions, Feet & Stats.

The white text in the above graphic shows their Player Instructions.  For Jesús Medina, he is simply an untouched out-of-the-box Winger on Attack but with Emanuel Reynoso I made use of his relative ambidexterity and strong Technical/Mental attributes to Dribble More and make More Risky Passes.  All perfect attributes for a player in and around Zone 14.

I also pay a lot of attention to where the strongest foot is in a player, especially my primary playmaker.  Reynoso is just magic at driving through Zones 11 to 14.  His body shape and stronger left side is naturally suited to make good use of Medina's left sided wing play.  I have tried to capture their artistry but have limited it to 4 GIFs (as there are sooo many good moments between these two guys):

Reynoso Body Shape 11 to 13.GIF

Body Shape

Zone 11 to 13

Reynoso 13.5 to 16 v2.GIF

Dribble

Zone 13 to 16

Reynoso to Medina 14 to 16.GIF

Movement

Zone 14 to 16

Reynoso to Medina 14 to 17 v2.GIF

Drive

Zone 14 to 17

When both Medina & Reynoso are hot, they are often top of the list at Full Time for passing combinations, as shown against Club Deportivo Morón in my final home match of 2022/23:

Zone 13.5 and the passing combinations between CM-A and W-A.

FM really is quite simple sometimes: get an agile and tricky player, one who possess good composure/vision and get him running around, or into, Zone 14.  Then place a runner or two around him, runners who have good movement off the ball and who have an output (crossing, finishing etc.)...then watch the magic happen.

The painful goodbye?

As much as I love these two guys, their relationship with me may be finishing two seasons too soon.  Medina has an expiring contract in one years time (2024), and he refuses to be realistic in his demands during contract renewal.  Similarly Reynoso is attracting strong interest from the riches of China.  If this is truly the end for both in La Plata, I’ve been blessed for 4 and a half years with these guys.  They will always be Estudiantes of La Plata.

Onward to Season 7

So, we sit on an overall balance of €20m and the Board is willing for me to invest all of this sum.  We all know that will not happen under Bastardo's stewardship, but handing over the title to Boca Juniors has left a bitter taste in his mouth.  It's time to invest in a couple of marquee signings and integrate a few more La Plata youngsters into the First Team, all in the attempt to bring more trophies home before the save is out.  Let's do it!

Thanks for reading/sharing/caring.

FM Grasshopper

"Total Recall: Surviving A Continental Final Against The Odds" - Return to La Plata #FM18 #WeAreTheCommunity

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Intro

You would think that after managing 5 full seasons in FM18 Argentina nothing would surprise me.  Think again.  Estudiantes de La Plata were defending their Recopa* crown, a first leg 2-0 victory away in the Estadio Libertadores de América Vs Independiente put my team in a really strong position.  Surely all I would need to do now is turn up and keep it simple in front of the La Plata crowd?

FM threw a curve ball: due to International fixtures 6 of the first XI would be unavailable for the second leg in 2 weeks time.  Furthermore, a total of 13 of the 25 registered to play in the Recopa were missing in the various u20, u23 & National Team squads.  I was left with a depleted squad, barely able to field an XI and incapable of calling up youth players in my squad.

*For those unaware, the Recopa is a match between the winners of the Copa Libertadores Vs Copa Sudamericana, played out over two legs: home and away.
Today’s blog post is therefore a story of survival, tenacity and willpower: 5 things I did to fight against the odds.  Did we end up with the Recopa?  If so, how did we do it?  To find out, read on below…

(1) Total Recall

Well apart from being an awesome blog title, the total recall option was used for players out on International Duty.  In all my time with FM, I have never used this en masse.  I recalled EVERYBODY who was away from the club via the Squad Screen/International Friendly Availability.

"Call the Banners. They've all sworn to defend La Plata, have they not?"

So why the need for a blog post?  Well, only 6 players returned to me in time for the 2nd leg...notably those outside of Main National Team squads.  But still, 6 players boosted the eligible pool of players available to me by 50%.  We were now able to field an XI and have a substitutes bench for the Recopa final, but I was still left without a left winger or right back.

(2) The Makeshift XI

On the face of it, it doesn't look too bad...you could argue 4-5 of the first XI above are regular starters at Estudiantes.  However, in order to fill some positions a few tweaks/adjustments were made to the regular 4141:

(1) Diego Polenta (Full Back on Support) - was instructed to Hold Position.  

Diego Polenta is usually my 1st choice left-sided Centre Back.  However, for the Recopa 2nd leg I had to push him to Left Back in order to move reserve Left Back (Mateo Allione) forward.  Polenta is technically raw, and does not have the Physical attributes to venture back-and-forth on a regular basis.  So I wanted him to hold his position, doubly critical as I expected Independiente to play with an AMR.

The Hold Position is defaulted when on a Defensive Mentality, but passing directness is also increased and it absolutely killed Diego’s attacking instincts.  On this mentality he would be very insular and no threat going forward.  So I manually set Hold Position on a Support Duty instead, via Edit/Player Instructions.

(2) Mateo Allione (Wide Midfielder on Support).  

I switched Newgen Left Back Mateo Allione to Left Midfield because I was short of a left sided wide player.  However, the usual Winger-Attack role would have to change...Mateo is no winger. In fact, Mateo’s strengths are fairly strong Mentals in Positioning, Teamwork & Work Rate.  So I set him to be a Wide Midfielder on Support duty, which is a nice role for hard working players of a team ethic.  Due to Polenta's relative uneasiness at Left Back, I also thought it was worthwhile having someone disciplined and focused on keeping the team's shape.

Mateo Allione our makeshift Wide Midfielder.

(3) Fernando Zuqui (Winger on Attack).  

Usually Fernando Zuqui plays as my Wide Midfielder on Attack, but in order to add variety and reduce the risk of being too predictable/symmetrical in attack (as Allione is now plaing as a WM-S on the left) I switched Zuqui to the more advanced Winger role.  Zuqui has good crossing (14) and reasonable Acceleration (14), Pace (13) & Stamina (15) which shows he is suitable for the role.

Below are the Team Instructions, unchanged from the usual 4141 I use.  I figured I would have to go with my eyes and watch it play out in the FM18 match engine and adjust where needed.  In my opinion, there is no point changing something unless you see that it needs to be changed (more on this later).

My 4141 TIs.

(3) The Plan B (if required)

So despite having a makeshift XI and a general tactical plan, it's always best to have a backup plan...just in case things go sour.  In FM18, my panic reaction is to switch to a 442 formation.  I have a backup tactic loaded just for this event, and personnel to make it work (notably the combination of Target Man on Attack and the trusted Advanced Forward role).  Luckily, the players for my 442 remained in La Plata...so this was always an option, should we go behind.

I have managed over 250 games with this Estudiantes team, so I know from experience when it's likely the 442 needs to be called upon.  I know what my team struggles to play against, and it was plainly in sight as I entered the pre-match screens.  Independiente's formation: the 4231 DM Wide - there is something about x2 DMs that troubles my 4141.

Independiente's 4231 Wide formation.

Anyway, we would go with the 4141 on the basis that we were 2-0 up and Independiente needed to come out of their shell.  We'd assess on Comprehensive Highlights and go from there.  But first, there was a couple of extra tasks at hand...

(4) Target 'The Danger Man' + 'The Weakness'

Ezequiel Barco is a Football Manager 2018 wonderkid.  In my save he has remained loyal to his local club and has amassed over 180 league appearances at the age of just 23.  He is Independiente's Advanced Playmaker, as shown in the Player Screen (go to Reports/Form):

Lots of people worry about Strikers/Goalscorers and focus solely on stopping them, but I am more inclined to worry about the guy that's supplying them with chances.  Barco is that guy (aka 'The Danger Man'), and by taking him out there will be a lovely central void in the centre of the park.

So I decided to apply every Opposition Instruction on him: Tight Marking (Always), Closing Down (Always), Tackling (Hard) and Show Onto Foot (Left).  Additionally we played with a Defensive Midfielder at DM, so I expected to have a player close to him at all times, in order to prevent him from dictating Independiente's attacking play.

Opposition Instructions are not all about stopping the opposition from attacking you, moreover...I always like to target a weakness in order to help our own play.  Luckily, for me at least, Independiente's Left Back has a Composure attribute of 4...so I decided to (always) Close Down.  Composure is the ability to make good decisions with the ball and keeping a steady head, so if a player is weak in this area I would want my Winger or Advanced Forward to be near enough to capitalise on 'The Weakness'.

(5) Watch The Match (& The Widgets)

It sounds like I am being condescending to you, the Reader, when I ask you to stay calm and just watch the match.  But it's true.  Sometimes it's best to see how things play out if you are uncertain about an aspect of your game.

But if you're still worried (like I was going into this Recopa Final 2nd leg), Football Managers in FM18 have a wealth of real-time information in front of us when watching the games.  The FM realism cult may look at it unfavorably, but here are the in-game widgets I use (and why):

Widgets everywhere!

  1. The Opponent's Formation - This is probably my most used in-game widget.  I am able to see how the AI is setting up, but can also see their tactical tweaks and adjustments whilst the game plays out.  That's right, if the AI changes the mentality of a player, you will see slight changes to their position highlighting a switch up has occurred.
  2. I am not sure how long Player Watch has been in FM, but it's really useful if you want to target a player.  You can dial right in to their Condition, Sharpness, Statistics & Body Language.  You can use it for one of your own players too, but I much prefer to target 'The Dangerman' and see if I am handling his threat.
  3. Player Ratings (for my team) - I want to see at a first glance the Condition & Match Rating of my squad members.  If I notice a drop in either, I can look into greater detail via the Player Stats screen.
  4. Match Stats - Not all of these are useful for during the match, but I pay particular attention to Clear Cut Chances & Possession.  I find both a good indication of how we are playing, the more CCCs the better...but possession is a mixed bag.  I am better at around 40-50%, anymore and I am likely getting too much of the ball...suggesting that the AI is sitting deep and attempting to anti-fútbol my anti-fútbol.

There are a number of additional widgets you can use.  For example, the Actions Zones and Focus of Attacks widgets are great indicators too - both offer an at-a-glance look at how your team is fairing compared to the AI.

The Result

We won!  2-0 on the night and 4-0 on aggregate, the Recopa Trophy stays in La Plata.  But did the 5 steps help us on the way?  Let's take a look:

(1) Total Recall - The return of Newgen Renzo Taborda, who ditched Argentina u23s to play this game, was a pivotal factor in our win.  He made a sublime assist to make it 1-0...and then scored the goal to make it 2-0.  I would say that Operation: 'Total Recall' was a total success :-)

1-0 Reynoso on 27 minutes.

2-0 Taborda on 79 minutes.

(2) Plan B - Not needed at all, we played 4141 for the whole 90 minutes.  But as the saying goes "Plan for the worst, and hope for the best"...we were ready to go 442 if need be.

(3) Targeting 'The Danger Man' & 'The Weakness'.  Barco was pretty quiet, it's always questionable as to whether this is my influence OR him simply having a bad day.  But his Heat Map & one solitary Key Pass are enough to make me happy:

Barco Vs Estudiantes.  Average Position, Heat Map & [solitary] Key Pass.

I don't really want to name and shame 'The Weakness', but he put in a 6.4 and was subbed on 79 minutes.  Completing 34 passes, but was all round pretty dull in possession.

(5) The Widgets always help.  I played on Comprehensive highlights, and I honestly wouldn't have it any other way for a final.  A trophy was on the line and we prepared well.  As a manager, I was able to see my Newgen Ignacio Fernández's condition deteriorate with 10 minutes to go.  So he was hauled off.  Thank you widgets!

A Return to La Plata

This post has been a venture from outside the usual seasonal updates that I have been running alongside my FM18 save (available to re-read at: fmgrasshopper.com/fm18).  I didn't include any of the other fixtures so far from Season 6 (mainly because we are only a few games in).  But I will be back, when a summary merits a blog post in due course.

Thank you for reading/sharing & caring.

FM Grasshopper