retired_caseelig

I was managing Bayern Munich for 4 seasons. For the first two seasons I used a 5-3-2 (or a 3-5-2), and when I got the right players I switched to a 4-4-2 where the M L/R are on AM L/R positions. It was a fairly basic tactic, low closing down on CBs, normal closing down on the rest of the team, almost even mentality for all players etc. etc.

I had massive success with that tactic - in the two seasons that I've used it (both seasons official 8.01 patch), out of 68 matches in the league I won 55, drew 9, lost 4, scored 186, conceded 40 goals. I also won the Champions League - vs. Real Madrid in the first round (1-2,4-1), vs. Milan in the quarter finals (2-4,5-1), vs. Valencia in semi-finals (0-0,3-1), and vs. Arsenal in the finals (2-1).

After I won the CL, I moved to Man Utd which were positioned around the mid table and lost all of the ambition. So I brought in fresh blood that would fit into my Bayern 442, and the rest was even better than my Bayern team. So I started to play, destroyed my opponents in friendly matches, but when competitive matches came along - about 45% of the time I was totally outplayed, my defense was ripped apart, and my goal difference was nowhere near to my Bayern record.

Later on, I changed my tactics and my performance did improve, but still it is a shadow of my period in the Bundesliga.

I realize that the Premiership isn't the same as the Bundesliga, but top quality teams in Bundesliga had powerful players - a lot of them were a lot better than the players that play in the average Premiership teams, and even the average teams ripped me apart. So I ask you, where was the failure of my Bayern 442 in the Premiership? Do the Premier League teams collectively have a different approach to football?

retired_lohse55

Where was your Man u side predicted to finish?

Apart from the EPL being of a higher standard than the Bundesliga (At least in my opinion), it could also have something to do with confidence.If you play a very attacking tactic with a team that's not entirely confident, there will be stupid errors and the opponent will look to us those errors against you, and when they succeed your confidence will be even lower. It's kind of the same with home and away matches. Where you're more confident at home surrounded with you're fans, you'll be able to play more daring tactics with more attacking players, leaving some gaps in your defence, but you'll be attacking more than defending and when ball loss occurs, your players will be motivated to regain possession. Away the same tactic might fail because your opponents are playing more attacking and will be motivated more than your players to win the ball, thus winning more duels and exposing your defensive weakness.

To summarize, if your players are confident and winning a lot of games easily, they will play better and cover up weaknesses in a tactic more easily (be it a defensive or an attacking weakness). If they're not confident, they may not succeed in one of the cornerstones of your tactic (for example, retaining possession) and it may all fall apart.

Another explanation may be that you have the quality to beat the german top teams because they are big matches and your players are more pumped up, thus enhancing their play, while they won't be as motivated when playing a team that's just as good but is sitting in mid table, and they might not be able to uphold their performance throughout the season.

Lastly, it could just be that there's an important attribute your players had in your Munich team, but not in your Man U team. Maybe your Munich team midfield had high work rate and team work, but your ManU side doesn't. These stats could also be hidden.

All in all, there's so many possibilities that it's very hard to forge a tactic that will work very well on any team regardless of league and players.