Biggest All-Time Draft - R1: Stobzilla vs Synco

With players at their peak, who would win?

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Physiocrat

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Stobzilla

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Synco

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Stobzilla Tactics

A standard 4-3-3 with a false 9.

Irwin charged with giving us width on the right hand side as Salah drifts in off the left, Mihajlovic shifts across to give us a 3-2 build-up/rest defence structure with Busquets and Fabregas acting as a staggered double pivot. Iniesta pushes into the left half space and Overmars gives the width on the left.

We play with a high amount of possession making best use of all of the technicians in the side, looking to defend with the ball and recycle while looking for opportunities to penetrate. The positional flexibility all over the pitch allows to create overloads in all areas of the pitch, even retreating to the option of one of the best ball playing goalkeepers to ever live in Manuel Neuer. Whose speed, both physical and in thought, allows us to play an aggressive high line and Mihjalovic, Puyol and Ayala can all be front footed in their pursuit of the ball should we lose it.

We are even dangerous in transition with the pace of Overmars and Salah. Fabregas a willing and fantastic passer from deep to facilitate such opportunities.

HIdegkuti will float around and support all over whilst still being able to be a penalty box threat, also able to lead a press in any counter pressing opportunities along with other forward players who have played in a high intensity pressing system in their careers. The team is solid all over of carrying out a dominating, controlling game plan.

Synco Tactics

boniek-platini-training-juventus-aug-1983.jpg


Theme
Platini tribute team (teammates / Juve/ Serie A), but no remake. Surprise appearance by Schumacher! Only exception is Mauro Silva, because he's brilliant and brings just what's needed.

General style
Serie A flavoured side intended to give Platini the best possible platform, who in turn enables his teammates. Flexible "modern" reactive style with pressing elements to counteract Stobzilla's (very likely) possession-oriented game.

Approach
Initially try to spoil Stobzilla's possession flow by pressing his backline. If the opponent secures possession, retreat to a combative mid- to low-bloc defense. Lots of graft, intelligence & aggression inside this team to win the ball in any scenario.

Forceful transitions through Platini's passes, Charles's presence up top, and the mobility and intensity of our forwards & fullbacks. Deliberate emphasis on ball-playing ability from the back to play around potential counterpressing and get to the open spaces behind.

Technical ability throughout the team also allows for recycling the ball situationally, thus changing the rhythm of the game & forcing the opponent to fall back and defend. Think roughly Mancini's 2020 Italy side, who could switch opportunistically between all of these tactical elements.


Spotlights
  • The Platini – Boniek axis is the heart of the team.
  • Ancelotti will be a great foil to Platini in midfield: either positionally disciplined DLP, or mobile Tigana-like passing outlet/ball carrier when Platini comes deep to orchestrate.
  • Mauro Silva is one of the best wave breakers in the draft, aided by the defensively competent Ancelotti and a hardworking collective.
  • Platini's long passing will enable the fullbacks to launch sudden penetrating runs down the flanks. Benarrivo lives for this.
  • Tevez has freedom to do his thing and will drift between the left side and 2nd striker positions. Together with Platini's, Boniek's, Ancelotti's variability, this can create temporary 4222 or 4132 shapes.
 
problem with what stobz did is that you always end up with the worse team then the original, its a nice side though....

but reckon synco has this, side looks brilliant.
 
Good luck @Stobzilla, first of all!

Beautiful team with a very strong core of Neuer, Busquets, Iniesta. To me, they're the #1 choices for their respective positions in that system. Most of the rest fits very well too, as far as I can tell (especially love Overmars); I dig the Salah pick, as I think he's overdue to become a draft regular. Dedicated pressing player too, which is important here.
 
The only spot where I can see a potential disadvantage is CB (on the ball): Both Puyol and Ayala are fine for themselves, but I think at least one truly ball-dominant modern centerback (the Piqué to your Puyol, if you will) would have added a crucial quality to such a full-on possession side. I admit I'm not sure how good an idea it is to pick guys like Boateng, Marquinhos, Dias, as I think they're quite underappreciated. (Dias has made a few appearances as of late.) But my opinion is that they'd be among the very best options here, especially Boateng, who played on an all-time great level, albeit only for a few seasons.

My team will try to capitalize on that, with short counterpressing bursts, and midfield/defensive pressing on the backline if your team is parked high. I reckon we can (to a degree) hamper the buildup circulation that's so essential to possession dominance. And ideally even provoke the odd bad pass, which can be used to launch a counterattack. The sharpness in midfield & defense to jump on any imprecision is certainly there.
 
How much work did Tevez do outwide? I remember him being quite central in the main. Otherwise Synco's side is exceptional.
 
Synco said:
.My team will try to capitalize on that, with short counterpressing bursts, and midfield/defensive pressing on the backline if your team is parked high. I reckon we can (to a degree) hamper the buildup circulation that's so essential to possession dominance. And ideally even provoke the odd bad pass, which can be used to launch a counterattack. The sharpness in midfield & defense to jump on any imprecision is certainly there.
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I think you are underrating Ayala in this instance, and I can't envision a situation whereby the front 4 are going to be able to take advantage of any sloppiness from any of the 6 they would.be up against (Neuer through Busquets) this is to say nothing of the presence of Hidegkuti being able to drop deeper to either become a 7th or allowing Fabregas and Iniesta to do the same.

If Benarrivo or Cabrini jump in, those vacated areas are then easy pickings.
 
Not a big fan of John Charles but move Tevez center and get another on that left and I love the rest of Synco's team.

Stobz has a great variation on a Spain/Pep inspired tactic but not sure on the defense keeping out Synco's attack.
 
Stobzilla said:
I think you are underrating Ayala in this instance, and I can't envision a situation whereby the front 4 are going to be able to take advantage of any sloppiness from any of the 6 they would.be up against (Neuer through Busquets) this is to say nothing of the presence of Hidegkuti being able to drop deeper to either become a 7th or allowing Fabregas and Iniesta to do the same.
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Wouldn't rule that out, and he is neat on the ball, good technique, no question - but my picture of him is not that of a natural, dominant playmaker from the back, like Piqué, Boateng, etc. We can disagree on that, or on the question if such a type is even needed for a modern high line possession game. But that's where I'm coming from; it's not about sloppiness, more the level of ultra-reliable precision required to constantly dominate under pressure, or play progressive balls into a compact defensive bloc. I think that concept is special, and it needs specialists in certain key areas to really work. (Busquets and Neuer I acknowledged as the best options imaginable.)
Stobzilla said:
If Benarrivo or Cabrini jump in, those vacated areas are then easy pickings.
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Don't think that's a given. Covering with the CB and DM on that side is standard procedure when a fullback pushes up. That's how I saw Benarrivo being covered in Sacchi's back 4 system when he pushed up, and it worked. Same for Cafu on the other side of the '94 final.

But to be clear, the pressing part is not the main idea (think I'd need a different CF for that anyway), as I tried to indicate in the OP. The idea is to add some forward defending to a compact defense. You will have more possession, but I simply don't think my team should passively watch you rotate the ball in peace, but try to be proactive and aggressive out of possession to win the ball. I think it's in the nature of these players anyway.

The rather careful terminology was meant to say that direct success in pressing is a bonus that may happen or not ("potential", "will try", "to a degree", "we may"...).
 
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Physiocrat said:
How much work did Tevez do outwide? I remember him being quite central in the main. Otherwise Synco's side is exceptional.
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It's not supposed to be a primarily wide role, see the OP:
  • Tevez has freedom to do his thing and will drift between the left side and 2nd striker positions. Together with Platini's, Boniek's, Ancelotti's variability, this can create temporary 4222 or 4132 shapes.
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He's therefore depicted half-left in the graphic, with arrows both to the inside and outside. (Tevez being Tevez, it would need arrows in all directions, but two is the maximum in SMT.)

The idea is to give him license to roam inside a very variable front four of two forwards and two attacking midfielders, supported by FBs who can push up and Ancelotti, who is great balancing out others and exploiting free spaces in attack.

So this setup can quickly morph into different temporary shapes. Here are various examples with Tevez being central (and he could also move into midfield and to the right side there):
Cabrini_stretching_play.png
4132_shape.png
Magic_Square.png

On the break there'll be no positional play anyway, just improvisation depending on situations and spaces.
 
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Himannv said:
Yeah, Tevez seems like he's playing in a strange position. Has he played in a similar role @Synco ?
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I modeled his role on this '06 WC performance:



Majority of action is on the left, usually attacking Friedrich, but also operating centrally and occasionally on the right.
(Chronology is fecked up, he makes deep runs in offense & defense, and there's extra time, so one can get confused about the direction of play at times. For example, 1:26 to 1:47 and 1:53 to 2:19 are all left-sided, but in different directions.)
 
oneniltothearsenal said:
Not a big fan of John Charles but move Tevez center and get another on that left and I love the rest of Synco's team.
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May I ask why? Learning more about him, I'm impressed with about everything. Exception so far being him playing as a true central midfielder - great in the sense that he really played everywhere, but what I saw performance-wise was rather meh.

But anyway, moving Tevez to CF is certainly an option.
 
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