Today’s style of play brings us a lot of joy to explain since it is our personal favourite style of play and it was one of the very first systems we mastered in SM which led to the overall obsession with this game and the content you are currently reading 15 years later! 😎
When it comes to specialization, the Through the Middle and Direct is quite stubborn and requires only a selected type of player in order for it to truly work. To pass the ball swiftly through the centre of the field is not an easy task to perform consistently, but once your team’s got the hang of it the rewards are bountiful!
One of the best formations to use for this style of play, the 3-5-2 remains a Soccermanagerite favourite, and the personnel within this XI are oh so eager to explain why they deserve to be in this team...
DEFENCE
Alban LaFont in goal is a very reliable French Shot Stopper who has great reflexes and can play a little, but prefers to let the lads in front of him do most of the build up work.
This back 3 contains all players who are quite comfortable on the ball in various ways. The T.T.M and Direct needs D(C)’s who aren’t afraid to play riskier passes in tight spaces, as well as drive with the ball into the central regions (and let’s not forget spraying some good passes from deep). In Iñigo Martínez, we have a Spanish ‘B.P.D’ who epitomizes the term “underrated”. He is as solid as they get in every facet of play and will be responsible for making those risky passes from the central of the 3. On both sides of Iñigo, we have two D(C)’s who are capable of driving with the ball in Joe Gomez (the redemption arc), and Gonçalo Inácio, who is one of the most sort after D(C)‘s in world football and is considered to be a similar style to Manchester City’s Joşko Gvardiol. 3 at the back formations tend to bring times throughout the course of a match where the free men are the outside D(C)’s and since we’re playing this unique system, both Gomez and Inácio will have a key role in wether the ball gets progressed up the pitch successfully or not
MIDFIELD
We start things off with the newest member of Juventus in the French ‘B.W.M’ Khépren Thuram who is a technically superb tackler and reads the game exceptionally well for his age. His role in this team is not to progress the ball but his Positioning will be crucial as he’ll have to maneuver himself in spaces where he can drag opposition players with him in order to open up passing and dribbling lanes for the back 3. In front of him, we have two technical operators in Jacob Ramsey and Houseem Aouar. Aouar will be the main target for a lot of those passes coming from the back 3 as the main hub of this team and will be responsible for creating chances for his teammates. Ramsey’s responsible for making the box, while also showcasing both his technical dribbling skills in tight spaces and using his Workrate to make those gut wrenching runs into the box to create chances for himself and for others.
Outwide, we have two young and hungry attack minded ‘Wingbacks’ in the newest addition to Bayern Munich in the Frenchman Sacha Boey, and the Girona starlet Miguel Gutiérrez (now rated ’89’). Both will perform as you’d expect ‘Wingacks’ to perform in a more advanced position with the caveat being that they’ll need to drop back to form a back 5 when their team is out of possession
FORWARDS
We were contemplating the best role for Cody Gakpo (who is now a ’91’ rated player) in this team, but the Dutchman is so versatile that he’d perform well no matter what we tell him to do! He’ll seek to be a link between Midfield and Attack while also assisting the ‘Wingbacks’ every now and then. Let’s also not forget that Cody stands at a whopping 6’3″ and will be a threat in the box as well. Alongside him is the Arsenal goal scorer Eddie Nketiah who is a real “fox in the box” with his Striker instincts of always being in the right place at the right time. Like most ‘Finishers’, Eddie is a good explosive dribbler of the ball and won’t shy away from taking on his opposition whenever the chance permits, but will mostly be focused on putting the ball into the back of the net by any means neccessary
PLAYER INSTRUCTIONS
The Spanish D(C) leads this team, with Joe Gomez as his understudy; Houseem Aouar will utilize his set piece specialist badge as best as he can while also creating the most chances for his team. Cody Gakpo will be responsible for the penalty kicks, while Eddie will lead the line as best as he can.
In every one of our seasons there’s always one epsiode that stands head above the rest, and we’re proud to say that it’s going to be coming up next! 🌟🌟🌟
The Soccermanager Experience 