Idiot Manager

[skim172]

So, my squad stormed through Eredivisie with a counter-attacking 4-3-3 formation and seized the crown. I led the league in both goals and assists. We started off the next season with a 5-0 drubbing of NAC Breda; the next game was 2-0.

And then, inexplicably, our manager switched us to a 4-4-1-1 formation, with 2 DMFs, and a defensive possession game. So, on attack, we only have two players moving forward.

And after 60', we always switch the lone AMF to a third DMF. Which leads to a personnel problem: we don't have 3 players who can play DMF. This doesn't stop the manager though - instead, some random midfielder wholly unqualified to play the position gets plugged in.

And another problem: we have nine attacking players on the squad and only an AMF and a CF position. And these are decent players - mostly in the high 60 and low 70s. And most of them are on the bench.

We haven't won a single game since we switched over to this absolutely useless formation. In fact, some games we can't even get off a single shot. I've taken to just shooting from distance in hopes that something happens.

Is there any way to force the team into another formation? Because I'm almost sure I'm gonna have to leave the team if it doesn't change.

 

[Ali]

So, my squad stormed through Eredivisie with a counter-attacking 4-3-3 formation and seized the crown. I led the league in both goals and assists. We started off the next season with a 5-0 drubbing of NAC Breda; the next game was 2-0.

And then, inexplicably, our manager switched us to a 4-4-1-1 formation, with 2 DMFs, and a defensive possession game. So, on attack, we only have two players moving forward.

And after 60', we always switch the lone AMF to a third DMF. Which leads to a personnel problem: we don't have 3 players who can play DMF. This doesn't stop the manager though - instead, some random midfielder wholly unqualified to play the position gets plugged in.

And another problem: we have nine attacking players on the squad and only an AMF and a CF position. And these are decent players - mostly in the high 60 and low 70s. And most of them are on the bench.

We haven't won a single game since we switched over to this absolutely useless formation. In fact, some games we can't even get off a single shot. I've taken to just shooting from distance in hopes that something happens.

Is there any way to force the team into another formation? Because I'm almost sure I'm gonna have to leave the team if it doesn't change.

The tacitcal inpetitude of the AI managers never fails to amuse me. In BAL, I'm a fairly short SS/CF/AM... yet I've been plonked in a 3-man defensive midfield before. I've also played as a loan striker. It's not just BAL where the AI tactics are rubbish. I mentioned in another thread. I was playing Chelsea, the brought Forlan on, they scored to go 2-1 up, then they INSTANTLY took him off for another defensive mid. He'd been on for about 5 mins.... match time!!!

I stopped playing BAL, because I was sick of the manager playing the rubbish players out of position, and playing me out of position too.

 

[skim172]

Yeah, I get stuck in the DMF all the time, despite being a striker. Or, they put me up as a lone CF, even though I'm 170 cm.

What really boggles my mind is that the manager switches to the 3-man DMF every game, no matter what the situation. Leading, tied, losing - he always switches to this defensive formation that we don't have the personnel for. We're down 2-0 in an elimination tourney match - he still parks the bus.

I've managed to win a match - I've been intentionally passing the ball backwards to the DMFs and the backs to get them moving forward and involved in attack. Sorta works.

 

[skim172]

You know what's really frustrating? The formation does nothing to help the defense. At all. My team is playing 4 backs, 2 DMFs, and 2 CMFs, yet the opposition scores as easily as ever. Part of the problem is that they never mark, they never cover, and when they do get the ball, either they slowly jog in a circle or they pass it randomly, usually to the opposition. They don't join the attack, but they don't pressure the opponent in defense unless you tell them to. Basically, I've got 9 guys on the team who don't do anything but sit there and watch the ball.

I just lost to Juventus in Champs League. Yeah, Juve is a great team. But the way they scored was moronic. Once because there was no defenders on the right, so Krasic just dribbled in and scored. Twice because Iaqinta went unmarked in the box. TWICE. Both were on corners and both were headers and both were uncontested. No one even near him. No one to challenge him. Yeah, they're a great team, but we didn't lose because of that. We lost because the friendly AI is dumber than a sack of rocks and less useful.

What really pisses me off is that clearly the opponent's AI is smart enough to play decently, but your AI has been somehow lobotomized, presumably to make it more challenging, but since I can't control 10 of the players, it just feels like cheating.

 

[Zorac1979]

I think I played BAL for about 2 seasons before giving it up. When you start off you pick a team that acquires your position, I was a WF, when I found one we played 1 match with a formation with WF then switched to 4-4-2 and I kept getting messages saying "The team doesn't play the position you play, learn another position" So I learnt SMF, and after 3 games switched again to 4-3-3 with 3 CMF, 2 SS and 1 CF.

Pissed off as I was playing either SS or CF which my player was shit at as he gets knocked off the ball all the time. I switched clubs at the first opportunity, for the same shit to happen, absolute garbage.

Although PES 2010 was a far inferior game at least when you played out of position you would eventually learn the position without having to use focus points out of training to learn it.

 

[Ali]

Yeah, I get stuck in the DMF all the time, despite being a striker. Or, they put me up as a lone CF, even though I'm 170 cm.

What really boggles my mind is that the manager switches to the 3-man DMF every game, no matter what the situation. Leading, tied, losing - he always switches to this defensive formation that we don't have the personnel for. We're down 2-0 in an elimination tourney match - he still parks the bus.


I've managed to win a match - I've been intentionally passing the ball backwards to the DMFs and the backs to get them moving forward and involved in attack. Sorta works.

This is pretty much what every team does against my in my ML league, even teams like Arsenal, Man U and Chelsea! Start with 2 def minds, change to 3 in the second half.

You know what's really frustrating? The formation does nothing to help the defense. At all. My team is playing 4 backs, 2 DMFs, and 2 CMFs, yet the opposition scores as easily as ever. Part of the problem is that they never mark, they never cover, and when they do get the ball, either they slowly jog in a circle or they pass it randomly, usually to the opposition. They don't join the attack, but they don't pressure the opponent in defense unless you tell them to. Basically, I've got 9 guys on the team who don't do anything but sit there and watch the ball.

I just lost to Juventus in Champs League. Yeah, Juve is a great team. But the way they scored was moronic. Once because there was no defenders on the right, so Krasic just dribbled in and scored. Twice because Iaqinta went unmarked in the box. TWICE. Both were on corners and both were headers and both were uncontested. No one even near him. No one to challenge him. Yeah, they're a great team, but we didn't lose because of that. We lost because the friendly AI is dumber than a sack of rocks and less useful.

What really pisses me off is that clearly the opponent's AI is smart enough to play decently, but your AI has been somehow lobotomized, presumably to make it more challenging, but since I can't control 10 of the players, it just feels like cheating.

Oh, I've seen some truly daft goals in BAL, scored against me. One where Sergio Ramos (now at Bolton.... obviously) for no reason just decided to smash the ball into the back of my own net, with no pressure whatsoever from oncoming attackers.

Another thing that really annoys me on BAL, is that if you're on the attack, as soon as one of your players enters the opponents box, they'll shoot. It doesn't matter if it's from a shitty angle and you're right open in the centre! :realmad:

 

[0zz]

Best combination I've encountered was 4 backs, cmf, 2 amf 2 smf and a striker. I was playing as CB so basically I was our midfield and defence, because everyone was hanging near the opposition's penalty box.And the funniest thing is that they couldn't score for shit.