The readers have spoken! The new YouTube story will revolve around 1 team's tactical pilgrimage through football history.
The team that will tell that story is Southampton FC from the Barclays Premier League. As for the first tactic that we will be replicating, I'll leave that to be revealed in the first video of the series. It was a close call, but the winning tactic took 28.5% of the votes. Fear not! If you were banking on one of the other tactics, we will get around to it at some point in the story! Make sure to follow from the start so as not to get lost along the way. This promises to be an entertaining journey through the great teams of Football past! Hope to hear from you along the way!
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The first ever FM Copycat long-term YouTube story is coming!! This should allow for a more relaxed approach to my videos as well as a more in depth perspective on how I approach the game. Before the series begins........... I'd like to get a feel for what YOU, the viewers/readers would like to see in the story! At the moment I'm considering a format where I take over and develop a team with the aim of recreating a tactic over 3/4 seasons. (This would allow for the time to source suitable players and to develop the squad and tactic to mirror the chosen team as closely as possible). In relation to this format I have 2 vital questions which need answering: A.C Milan 2004/2005VIDEO & TACTIC BELOW
The deterioration of A.C Milan; one of European footballs powerhouses; has been the great tragedy of this decade in football. From 2002-2007, Milan featured in 3 Champions League Finals. Of those, they won 2 and threw one away in dramatic fashion in Istanbul, following perhaps their most impressive display. That is the A.C Milan that I remember; where genuine world class footballers went to strut their stuff on the San Siro turf. A squad full of Pirlos, Kakas, Schevchenkos and Maldinis has since given way to a revolving door transfer policy amongst financial troubles and mid-table anonymity. Milan have never been entirely consistent in Serie A, but 8th, 10th and 7th placed finishes in the past 3 years is unforgivable and unfamiliar territory for the Rossoneri. In this post, we're going to break away from the obscurity of the present and set the delorean to 2005. That season Milan succumbed to 2nd place at home and in Europe, but arguably possessed their greatest team of that period. The first FM Legend we looked at was Thierry Henry. In this post we look at his former teammate Patrick Vieira and the role he played in the success of Arsenal's greatest side. Without players like Vieira to back up the Henry's of this world, the game as we know it would surely fall into chaos. Vieira is best remembered for his fierce battles with Manchester Uniteds own midfield dynamo; Roy Keane. For a time in the late 90's and early 00's, the 2 represented everything that was great about one of the Premier Leagues greatest rivalries. Vieira was probably the more technically gifted of the 2; a part of his game which is not generally given enough recognition. He provided a physical presence in midfield that at times put the fear into opposing players. In the Invincibles side, Vieira was tasked with being the creative force in Arsenals midfield 2. With GIlberto providing the main source of cover for the back four, Vieira covered every inch of grass that the hosting ground had to offer. At this point in time, Vieira is the midfield hero that The Emirates needs..... Va....Va......Voom....... The first player up in the new series of 'FM Legends' is Arsenal's record goalscorer; Thierry Henry. The Frenchman was a unique talent and oozed class in everything that he did on the football field. His awareness, technique and blistering pace were integral to the most successful spell in Arsenals Premier League history. Things could have been so different..... Henry came through the youth ranks at Monaco as a winger. He joined Italian giants Juventus in January of 1999 following a period of form including a place in France's World Cup winning squad. The season before, Henry had set a French record of 7 goals in the Champions League. This form did not cross over to Serie A however, and after just 3 goals in 16 games, Juventus cut their losses (or so they thought). £11m later, Henry arrived at Arsenal where he was reacquainted with his former Monaco mentor Arsene Wenger. It was here that he would undergo the renaissance which re-launched his career. Wenger immediately decided that Henry's best position would be up front and after a difficult first couple of months re-learning his trade, he ended his first season with 26 goals. It was all uphill from there on in...... The Invincibles (Arsenal 2003/2004)VIDEO & TACTIC DOWNLOAD BELOW
As we discussed in the first part of this recreation, 'The Invincibles' played in a 4-4-2 shape; the go-to formation at the time. This had the potential to morph into an asymmetrical 4-2-3-1 of sorts, with Bergkamp dropping deeper to leave Henry as the sides main attacking outlet. What we'll be looking out for in the highlights sequences of games is: (i) A team that is happy to give the opposition time on the ball in their half (ii) and then break at speed with the ball to punish any mistakes. Arsene's Invincibles (2003/2004) Having been denied back to back Premier League titles in the 2002/2003 season by their fierce rivals Manchester United, Arsenal’s 2003/2004 side would go on to make up for it in devastating fashion.
Over the course of the 03/04 season, Arsenal accomplished quite possibly the most daunting achievement in the history of the Premier League, going unbeaten for all 38 games on their way to claiming the title. Almost a year ago I started FM Copycat; a Football Manager blog dedicated to tactic recreations.
The blog received a surprising amount of traffic over just a couple of weeks of content, far surpassing my initial expectations and it still gets many hits today. Unfortunately I couldn't continue with the original series..... However, the time has come for the relaunch of FM Copycat! I will be revisiting and modifying some tactics that were previously posted and adding new teams to the mix as the blog develops. ‘FM Legends’ will accompany the tactical posts. In this section of the blog I will choose modern legends of the game and make recommendations on players within the Football Manager database who have the potential to fill their shoes. This time around there will be a video-element to the posts through a new YouTube channel, as well as an increased focus on social media content. I would very much like the blog to become an interactive breeding ground for ideas regarding teams and suggestions for future tactical/player posts etc. So if there's something you'd like me to cover, make sure to comment. Watch this space, FM Copycat |