Subject: Ireland Vs...

I'm guessing the idea is that defs will need to be a lot more like mids now to be able to deal with the passing side of things. Because of that it will be hard to get defs with huge pace and defending like you get presently so it will be easier to break through defences. The fact people are still playing with the high def and low pm/passing defenders makes it look like it does atm. Shevlin would be an example of this new type of defender. While he wasn't faultless in his passing he seemed more comfortable than any of the opposing full backs in possession. On the other hand the winger broke through his tackles a few times...

Shevlin wouldnt have played if Hanrahan had been available. I was hoping Serbia would go down the opposite wing but he managed to cope anyway.
What i really dont like about this engine is how unwilling the midfielders are to pass the ball forward. There were a couple of occasions where i was shouting at Barry-Murphy because Curley was totally unmarked but he just ran with the ball, unlike everyone else who just passed it backwards.

That was where it didn't look so clever alright. I think an adjustment to through balls might sort that out. Since the last big change the through ball doesn't work so well which is why everybody is playing the high lines in defence. If it was more similar to that old engine people would have to drop the defence a bit which would give a lot more space to play in rather than the 20 meters each side of the half way line and would give more space for strikers.

I thought our midfield was great today btw. Your positioning gave them an out ball most of the time and apart from Barry-Murphys odd runs into nowhere they pinged the ball about really well. Like you said tho it would have been nice to see the odd forward pass :)
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I think that diamond might work better with a 2nd striker or by removing Coyne. Because Serbia pushed up he was always too close to Curley.

Definitely. 2 strikers might also give the mids more options for forward passes (sometimes there was no forward pass for Barry-Murphy with a DM blocking the route to the striker). On top of that the strikers will probably pass more to each other rather than passing back to the mids.

There are plenty of things to change and test but as we're not using this engine during the week it's a bit difficult. I'd like to try expanding that diamond to give a little more width, couldnt do it today because of how Serbia played. I've only got 5 games left to take the formations i have an adapt them and 2 of those games are Welchy's.

I think you're ahead of the game atm at analyzing what is and isn't working. Everyone else is in the same boat but I think a lot of teams will be too set in their ways to abandon their 5-3-2 for the first half of next season.

Another point that's worth mentioning is that you've always tried to play an expansive game so it's less of a leap for you to adjust.

What we will need from the looks of things is more defs with mid skills. Teams like polska will just have to pick differnt players but we'll have to develop them. Shevlin would be an option if his defending was better but I'm not planning on training defending any time soon. I don't suppose we'll be able to find someone who'll give a season of defending to a 25 year old? On the flip side do we have any defs young enough to benefit from some passing and PM?

We only have 1 good defender coming through although i forget his name. Clayton Kinsella i think.
As for expanding the middle, i think Type ... er 3 i think, the one with 1 defensive mid and deep wingers, that would work but when am i supposed to test these formations? I'm not a fan of experimenting in the national games because if i get it wrong i wont be in charge for long. I'll have to wait for Week 14 and 15 when we get to use it at club level.
I need to organise my formations really and tweak them all, I've lost count. 8 general for my club, 2 team specific, i know the national team formations were full until earlier this week but there are 6 or 7 there, 2 or 3 are original and need recording somewhere.

I think the 442 teams like GB Rovers and ajrisze use will be pretty strong. The DM would hopefully receive most of the backward passes (esp if you placed him between the ball and defence at all times) and the 3 mids in a line would be able to pass around well while waiting for the strikers to be clear.

GB Rovers would be a good example of spreading the ball around, especially with their midfield. I'd probably look to crowd their central mid and cut him off as much as possible. I think Sultans could benefit from it as well now they've sorted their defence out.
Something occured to me earlier. I've been pushing the defence up recently but i wonder whether the midfield would be more inclined to pass it forwards if the defence was further back.

but i wonder whether the midfield would be more inclined to pass it forwards if the defence was further back.

An interesting idea. In Canada vs. Romania, Romania played their defense quite deep, and the mids - when no other option presented - passed it back anyway. The ME has been tweaked a little since then. I would think that if you had a DM that was open, then a pass to a deep back line would be less likely. But I haven`t tried it. :D

maybe an offensive midfielder is the way forward so... a diamond midfield as such...

stevediamond doesnt seem to have a bad defender coming soon... 2x formiddable in the main skills and the rest are okish although need work... could easy reach 2x incredible with good secondaries in 2 seasons i figure with a good trainer

I'll have a Formidable pace and outstanding def 19 year old after next weeks training. And I'm expecting great things from Colin Martin

Minimum requirements for defenders are Formidable defending, formidable pace, adequate technique ideally higher, average passing and playmaking.

You might be in charge for the game next week if i can find a suitable team for you. I'd rather take Cambrants Iceland in Week 12.

I'm actually a bit pissed off really. The idea behind you taking charge of 4 games this season was to get someone ready for taking charge of the national team. With the engine changes, the 2 games you've played are now a bit of a waste.
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