Howdy there Soccermanagerite! Welcome back to the 2nd episode of season 7 within The Soccermanager Blog. In this season, we’ll be taking a look at every world class player within Soccermanager Worlds and identifying what are the key elements of their game that will give us an insight into how to get them playing at their best game after game.
Today, we’re starting off with a proper baller and mammoth of a man as we take a look at many people’s best D(C) in world football right now: The Dutch International and Liverpool giant Virgil Van Dijk.
PLAYER BIO
Although on the verge of his 32nd birthday, VVD is arguably still within his prime as he will be looking to get over an average season (based on his own high standards) during the 22/23 campaign. Big Virj stands at a whopping 6’4″, and is one of the best defenders in the air within the game. Surprisingly, I would’ve expected him to be a double footed player since he can pick a pass with his left foot, but I guess that is not the case for Invincibles Studio? 🤷♂️
BEST ATTRIBUTES WITHIN SM23
As I’ve been mentioning religiously for what seems like years, the attributes within SM23 are VERYYY important to the way our players perform within SMW, and it is very important that we have an understanding of what each represent so that we can identify the best role for every player within this season. So, here are the big man’s best attributes…
BEST ROLES
Based on VVD’s best attributes above, he is comfortable playing as a ‘Ball Playing Centre Back’ primarily. However, if you ever needed him to simply play as an out and out defender without having him get unto the ball to start off your attacking play, you can also play him as a ‘Stopper’ (which will be determined by the player you choose as his partner, as well as your tactical set up). For the most part, VVD will tend to automatically be playing as a BPD
HOW TO BEST USE HIM
VVD is one of those D(C)’s that can operate in any formation due to some of his best attributes, but if we were to identify his best system to play in then it would be within a back 4, with him playing as the LCB, as well as being tasked with the BPD role
WHO ARE THE BEST TEAMATES?
In this section, we will be explaining what players you should be considering partnering Virgil Van Dijk next to in order to truly get the most out of him. Since Verge is a D(C) who preffers playing on the left in a back 4, it is imperative that you focus on 3 other positions within your starting X1 who will complement VVD perfectly. These three positions are your D,DM(L), D(C), and DM,M(C).
In the image above, we see the best type of players to partner VVD with. Take note here since this is the most important area within the entire blog…. Virj is a player who wants to be involved in the game. He wants to be on the ball, spraying passes, getting involved in build up play. So, he will need a partner next to him who is okay with not always having the ball and only focuses on his defensive responsibilities. At LB, VVD needs an attacking style player who wants to get on the overlap consistently in order to free up more space for Virj to play since the Wingback is effectively dragging the rest of the opposition back with his attacking movement. In the DM or M(C) position, rather than having a player who will dictate the tempo of the game, VVD needs a player who will fill in for him whenever he ventures forward to get into the attack hence why it is best to play a Ball Winning Midfielder within this position
I hope this was helpful enough and that it makes some sense, lads (lol). I’ve thought long and hard about this season and it would be great if I could receive some feedback pertaining whether it is helpful or simply a waste of your time. Anyways, thank you as always for reading and stay tuned, cause tomorrow we’ll be taking a look at one of my favorite players within Soccer, David Alaba 🇦🇹
The Soccermanager Experience 