The long-awaited new edition of Football Manager is almost here but what are the best tactics for managers in control of Aston Villa?
Villa transfer trio Unai Emery, Damian Vidagany and Monchi have constructed the squad for Emery’s preferred system, making 4-2-3-1 the obvious place to start if your plan for the new game is to unseat the Villa boss from his seat in the dugout and show him how it’s done.
FM25 was infamously cancelled last year. Sports Interactive studio director Miles Jacobson pulled the plug because he wasn’t happy with the quality of the game, admitting that the team had tried to do too much in too short a time with their planned changes to the game engine.
FM26 will launch on 4th November with the new Unity engine in place to deliver smoother animations, improved ball physics and sharpened player movement, and a redesigned user interface for simpler and clearer access to information.
For Villa supporters with the Football Manager bug, the idea of taking control of the mighty Lions is too much to resist. Here are the best Aston Villa tactics to use in FM26.
The obvious place to start is with the formation for which the players you’ll have at your disposal were acquired out here in the real world, namely a 4-2-3-1 with three attacking midfielders in support of a lone striker and backed up by a midfield double pivot.
Two full-backs provide width on the right and left, with a sturdy back two aiming to keep the door shut in defence. You might choose to bring in full-backs who can hold that width and produce goal contributions, but that’s up to you.
Despite not looking like it on real turf at the moment, Villa have an off-the-peg eleven for the system, with Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings in the middle between Lucas Digne and Matty Cash on the flanks.
Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans are the obvious selections in the defensive midfield double pivot, with Morgan Rogers or Harvey Elliott ahead of them in the number 10 role. Rogers or Jadon Sancho start on the left, John McGinn or Elliott on the right, and Ollie Watkins at centre-forward.
The team instructions that should get the best from this line-up include going fairly wide and fairly direct, or with a mixed passing style, and a quick tempo. A high or normal defensive line and closing down often are advised along with zonal marking and an overall attacking mentality.
Villa dropped into a 4-4-2 without the ball in their Carabao Cup tie against Brentford but could a classic version of the formation work with their players in FM26?
Cash, Konsa, Mings and Digne remain the back four and Tielemans and Kamara would keep their places in the centre of midfield, but Villa’s lack of outright wingers make those two positions more questionable. McGinn on the right is less than ideal in terms of genuine width, while the clear choice on the left is not Rogers or Sancho but Ian Maatsen, whose play as a left-back often shows winger-like tendencies.
Rogers or Elliott could find a home playing up front alongside Watkins, or as a second striker in something more akin to a 4-4-1-1.
In terms of team instructions, a deeper defensive line might make sense in a 4-4-2 that’s designed to provide defensive solidity throughout the team and demands the creation of enough space for four players in midfield.
Of course, the joy of Football Manager is that you’re not really a football manager. There’s no pressure on your results and you have the freedom to experiment with your tactical approach.
Villa have very rarely tried playing with a back three under Emery, in friendlies almost exclusively, but there’s scope within the squad to deploy it in pixel form by using a very bold 3-4-1-2 formation.
The back three picks itself: Konsa, Mings and Torres get the nod ahead of back-up option Victor Lindelöf. Digne or Maatsen operate as the left wing-back in the midfield line, Cash on the right. Kamara and Tielemans anchor the midfield again.
Watkins is the clear first choice up front but finding the right pairing behind him would be the trickiest decision for aspiring Villa bosses on FM26.
Captain McGinn has to be in with a shout, while Rogers will also be in the running. But what then of Elliott, Sancho and others? McGinn on the right in place of Cash could be more of an option on screen than in reality, freeing up a spot in the attacking midfield line.
Team instructions here could focus on a moveable defensive line depending on the quality and style of opposition, while a direct passing style and counter-attacking added to the mix.
The post The best Aston Villa tactics to use in Football Manager 26 appeared first on AVillaFan.com – Aston Villa Fan Site.
