Heineken Red Star FC: Open the Footballing World - Season 1 Midpoint

Following his appointment, FM Peels went straight to work looking through the makeup of the club as a whole. Note: these first few updates will be solely focused on managing results with the team, and making sure we are making progress towards promotion.

After lasts years success with my Between 2 Shadows (copied from @FM_Samo), the first tactic I made was a carbon copy of the aforementioned Between 2 Shadows. Upon fitting players into the tactic, I quickly realized that at current state, HRSFC are nowhere near suited to perform this tactic.

SQUAD ANALYSIS

Instead, after further evaluation of the squad, I decided that a 4-1-2-3 would much better suit the personnel that were currently available. After some tinkering with roles and duties, I arrived at our tactic for the first part of the season.

I wanted to build this tactic based on the tactic I used with success with Liverpool in FM17. Using an Inside Forward on Attack, I was looking to utilize the inside space behind the striker in the absence of a true Attacking Midfielder. This was also intended to create space for the Fullback for overlaps. The tactic, along with being based off the FM17 Liverpool tactic, was designed to highlight our two best players, Tunisian playmaker Idriss Mhirsi and Guinean goal-threat Sekou Keita.

First, we have our Inside Forward Idriss Mhirsi. I wanted to utilize Mhirsi higher up the first, in a more advanced position, without using an out-and-out Attacking Midfielder. Combining his passing, vision, and crossing, I was looking to have him be our main creator in the side.

Finally, the superstar striker for the side. The man who claims all of the glory. Sekou Keita. For a French National League striker, with these stats, he was tipped to be the league-leading scorer for the onset. Mhirsi the provider, S. Keita the beneficiary. The tactic solely aimed to create this beautiful partnership.

PRESEASON RESULTS

With the tactic in place, I was eager to dive into the preseason and begin finding and fixing the flaws within the club. Our fixtures..showed that problems were evident, and needed fixing.

First two matches = wake-up call for FM Peels. I genuinely believed the tactic + a newly relegated side with loads of highly rated players for our division would result in an influx of points. Changes were made, and then we hopped directly into the season, knowing that occasional changes would need to be made throughout.

Our first major shock did not come in the form of results, but instead in the form of a transfer. AIK came in with a massive bid for Mhirsi, who had arguably been our best player so far in the save. Unfortunately, due to the financial state of the club as well as adhering to the players interests, we had to let our Tunisian playmaker leave the side.

With the exit of Mhirsi, we saw an influx of cash, and needed further depth in our attacking area of the field. We took a look at fellow American, Timothy Weah, and brought him in on a loan, to add depth with a player that can play in the wide areas as well as central striker.

TRANSFERS

The club were also able to pull off two additional transfers after bringing in the money from the Mhirsi sale. Why are they not in the transfer history above you ask? They are absent for two reasons: first, the club signed 17 year old Inside Forward Jovan Kokir on a future transfer from Teleoptik in Serbia. The second, a new assistant manager in the form of 40 year old Swede Fredrik Ljungberg.

First, Jovan Kokir:

At first glance, Kokir does not shout out world-beater. When I found him, I was most excited about the mentals that this young Inside Forward already possessed. While looking to replace the recent transfer-away Mhirsi, I also wanted to follow-along with the boards objective of developing young players for the first team. Kokir showcases our first foray into this overall club objective.

Next, Fredrik Ljungberg:

Touting previous stints with Arsenal and most recently Wolfsburg, when I saw that Ljungberg was interested in joining the club, I jumped at the opportunity. A bit of a spoiler, but Ljung has been monumental in our turn in form, which you will see in the below midpoint fixture update.

RESULTS / LEAGUE POSITION

Above mentioned dip in form..

Midway through the season and we are sitting 9th in the table. Massively underachieving. The addition of Ljung has been massive for the club.

Check back soon for the season wrap-up with HRSFC and Head Coach FM Peels. To follow along with the save more regularly, follow @RattledCrossbar over on Twitter for steady updates!

-FM Peels