by MaddFM.
A while back I wrote an article for Football Manager’s The Byline which focuses on Retraining Player Positions in FM and how best to go about introducing players to a new position or role and implementing as quickly and as smoothly as possible.
The premise is that players don’t always have to be “Natural” or “Accomplished” when it comes to positions and players roles in FM, meaning that if a player possesses the right attributes and characteristics then they can be retrained to play a certain role and deployed there very effectively, giving you additional depth and flexibility across various roles in your tactical setup as well as allowing you to be a bit more nimble and shrewd when it comes to filling gaps in your squad (as retraining an existing player can often prevent you from having to spend funds on a new one for that role).
Back in the days of Championship Manager it was common to see players with slightly more unusual versatility and ability to play in multiple dissimilar roles - namely players with the ability to play at Centre-Back or Centre-Forward as was often the case when “big meaty men” were often the player of choice and these profiles had often grown up playing in both roles due to their size and strength on the field.
CM Heritage
Since then we have seen a gradual shift towards retraining players once they reach the latter stages of their careers wherein they may no longer be as effective in more attacking roles that require pace and stamina etc, but can still contribute heavily further back the pitch using their ability, experience and read of the game to successfully transform into a new role - examples of this have included the likes of Ashley Young, Febian Delph, Antonio Valencia, James Milner, Victor Moses all of whom spent much of their careers in more advanced roles before being deployed as full-backs or wing-backs accordingly.
In contrast to this - there are of course occasions where a player has simply been deployed in the wrong position all along and a position change is needed to actually unlock their ability and potential as was clearly evident with the likes of Philipp Lahm, Gareth Barry, Joshua Kimmich and Gareth Bale who all went on to play their best football following a role change.The same can be said even now in modern day football where the likes of Joelinton and more recently Alex Iwobi, both of whom initially started out as Forwards/Wide Players and have since been coached and retrained into highly effective Box-to-Box Midfielders for Newcastle and Everton respectively.
So what does all of this mean? As “Football Managers”, it’s essential to be able to diagnose and understand what and where a player’s best role may be, and that this is not necessarily always the more obvious or most evident role as recommended in-game. If you find you have a player who appears to be largely ineffective in a role or you have a specific gap to fill within your squad and tactical setup, it can be highly beneficial and rewarding to look in-house at these players to assess if there is potential to retrain them in order to both maximise their impact and contribution to your squad, as well as providing some much needed cover or competition for a particular role or position.
Based on this, here are 10 players that could be successfully retrained into a completely new role in Football Manager based on their in-game attributes and characteristics - not to say that these players are not effective in their natural or normal roles currently, but rather they may be better suited in another role based on these attributes and/or can offer a somewhat unexpected solution or outcome upon being retrained in said role thereafter. All I’ll say is..please keep an open mind, won’t you? 😏.
1. Kevin Volland (Monaco)
Current Role (Pressing Forward): While Volland possesses the Determination, Stamina, Fitness and Work Rate to be an effective Pressing Forward, it’s unlikely you will see much from him in terms of goal return. Relatively low in terms of Finishing, Composure, First Touch, Technique and Decisions, it’s hard to see any real form of goalscoring instinct which is somewhat replicated in his goal scoring record for club and country and one feels that deploying him in a forward position is slightly wasteful when might be better suited using a player with better predatory instincts and natural goal scoring ability.
Proposed Role (Box-to-Box Midfielder): The attributes we mentioned above as his strengths while not much help in terms of goal contributions are most certainly assets to a BBM role, wherein you need that player who never seems to stop running, pushing forward on attack and harassing opposition players in possession while also working back when under pressure and closing down/protecting his back line accordingly. Volland has all the Physical and Mental attributes to perform this role (did we mention Aggression 18?) and when you add that he has 14 Passing, 14 Vision and 14 Dribbling, there’s little doubt that he can slot into a midfield duo or diamond and more than hold his own both defensively and in attack.
2. Pablo Fornals (West Ham)
Current Role (Attacking Midfielder Left/Centre): At 26 Fornals has plenty of football left him, however in terms of Physical and Technical attributes (in FM terms at least) it’s fair to stay that he lacks any real star quality to make a big impact in the Attacking Midfield strata, particularly if you are looking for game-changing moments and that extra layer of dominance in the match engine either on or off the ball where he is unlikely to beat players for pace and may be easily dispossessed in a crowded midfield.
Proposed Role (Inverted Wing-Back Right): Picture it - a player with all-round good Technique, First Touch, Vision, Passing and Flair cutting inside from a wide full-back or wing-back position while also having the necessary defensive attributes (Anticipation, Tackling, Positioning, Stamina and Work Rate) to operate in a defensive role - giving you options on the attack where he will support and contribute towards ball progression and creativity, while also covering for the player ahead of him and defending whenever needed. I like this one a lot.
3. Aymeric Laporte (Man City)
Current Role (Ball Playing Defender): There’s little to criticise of Aymeric Laporte as a Ball Playing Defender, as he clearly does possess the defensive, mental and technical attributes needed to operate successfully in this role (and has proven so quite effectively in real life). However in a world where Man City are blessed at Centre-Back (Dias and Stones are powerful in FM23 to say the least) and where City could occasionally find themselves short in the creativity department at Centre Midfield (with Gundogan ageing slowly, Rodri/Phillips on the more defensive side of the spectrum) and if you are reluctant to pull back one of KDB or Bernardo Silva, then Laporte might just be a viable option.
Proposed Role (Deep Lying Playmaker): The mind goes straight to Deep Lying Playmaker with a Defend mentality here. Operating in the space between defence and midfield, holding position, breaking down play when needed and then initiating/unlocking attacking moves or counter attacks through creative pinpoint passes - Laporte can do all of this, full stop.
4. Mikel Oyarzabal (Real Sociedad)
Current Role (Attacking Midfielder Left / Striker Centre): Having scored over double figures in each of his last five league seasons, Oyarzabal has proven himself to be a crucial element of Real Sociedad’s recent ascent in La Liga and has frequently featured for Spain either as a Striker or Attacking Midfielder in recent years - such is his stature in Spain over the past few seasons that he is arguably one of the most all-round attacking players in Football Manager this year with every single one of his attributes above 12 which is mostly unheard of in FM databases. That said - his main high scoring attributes mostly fall under his Mental ability, and a slight lack of speed means that at 25 (and unlikely to get any quicker) he may also find himself being outpaced by speedy full-backs or wing-backs similar to Pablo Fornals above.
Proposed Role (Inverted Wing Back Left): Though capable of playing in all forward roles in FM, surprisingly the boy can also contribute defensively with good Decisions, Anticipation, Positioning, Tackling and Work Rate - meaning that in a system which seeks to capitalise on talented wing-backs and relies on them for ball-progression and chance creation, Oyarzabal would add a ridiculous amount of quality that very few wing-backs in-game possess - did someone say break the match engine?
5. Tomáš Souček (West Ham)
Current Role (BWM/B2B Midfielder): Equally effective either as a Ball Winning or Box-to-Box Midfielder, Souček has all the attributes to be an absolute battering ram of a centre midfielder in Football Manager with outstanding figures across the majority of his Physical, Mental and Technical attributes. He has become a pivotal force of West Ham’s midfield alongside Declan Rice, enjoys a scrap and is one of those players who will nearly guarantee you 90 minutes at top gear in every game he plays..but can he do more?
Proposed Role (Pressing Forward): Let’s not forget that Souček scored 10 goals in his first full season at West Ham, and though he is primarily a more defensive player in-game his attributes suggest there may be more to his game than being a beast in the middle of the park. His exceptionally high Stamina, Work Rate and Natural Fitness, his Marking and Tackling combined with his Finishing, Off the Ball and Composure mean that he would work very well as a Pressing Forward - closing down opposition defenders and loose balls and more than capable of shooting and finishing in and around the box when the opportunity itself. Still only 27, a few months of training in the role could well have a big impact in a West Ham side that can always do with an extra layer of attacking threat when it comes to goal contributions. Get it done.
6. Marcos Alonso (Barcelona)
Current Role (Left-Wing Back): Alonso gets a lot of flack as a Left-Wing Back and some sub-par performances for Chelsea last season have definitely put his ability and status in the team under the microscope by fans and journalists alike. Though he managed to secure a move to Barcelona, the reality is that while he is commonly hailed for his attacking contribution, defensively he is seen as a liability (somewhat akin to TAA at Liverpool) and although he has decent defensive attributes in FM23, it might be time to accept that Alonso simply isn’t a good enough defender for elite level and therefore a new role is needed for his skillset.
Proposed Role (Attacking Midfielder Centre): What do David Silva, Mesut Özil and Juan Mata all have in common? All were of course elite Number 10’s during their prime and all have picked up honours at the highest level of football. More specifically though - all were left footed #10’s giving them a slightly more unique proposition as AMCs, and looking at Marcos Alonso one could argue that he can more than do a job in this role based on his all round attributes - physically, mentally and technically strong which means he shouldn’t be hugely difficult to retrain. We wouldn’t expect him to be a #10 for Barcelona, but with his contract up at the end of the first season in FM23, he could prove to be a shrewd and versatile signing for the right club at the right level.
7. Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace)
Current Role (Attacking Midfielder/Forward Right): At 30 years old Ayew is not as quick as he used to be however still offers a decent attacking threat with good Off the Ball, Dribbling and First Touch as well as good Stamina, Work Rate and Determination. In-game however he arguably lacks the required Vision, Technique, Flair and Finishing needed for a highly impactful Wide Player or Forward, however that’s not to say he couldn’t do a job elsewhere…
Proposed Role (Right Wing-Back): Interestingly Ayew has 14 Tackling, 13 Anticipation and 14 Acceleration which are all required attributes for a good wing-back - combine this with relatively good Positioning & Marking and the aforementioned Attacking and Physical/Mental attributes and we could be looking at a very effective wing-back in this match engine, wherein you would expect him to bomb up and down the right-flank offering a tricky attacking threat for opposition full-backs while also having the required Work Rate and Stamina to track back and defend when needed. While he probably won’t displace Tariq Lamptey at RWB for Ghana, he definitely presents an interesting option for a mid-level club favouring attacking wing-backs as part of your tactical style.
8. Kostas Tsimikas (Liverpool)
Current Role (Left-Wing Back): Widely regarded as the “best backup left-back in the Premier League”, it’s unfortunate that Tsimikas has to compete with one of the best in the world for his position in Andy Robertson and as such he finds first-team opportunities limited at Liverpool. That doesn’t take away from how highly rated he is by the FM researchers, with a very strong set of all round attributes and at 26 years old, still very much with his best football ahead of him..does it have to be at Left-Back though?
Proposed Role (Mezzala): Tsimikas has excellent technical attributes in-game and these need to be more utilised; I toyed with the idea of him as a Segundo Volante or Deep-Lying Playmaker, however when you look at the description of a Mezzala in Football Manager “a central player that likes to drift wide and operate in the half spaces…essentially a central/half-winger who likes to do his defending slightly further up the field” - I can’t move away from the idea of Tsimikas in this role; his physical and defensive attributes give him what most players might lack in this role, while his ability as a midfield technician (Passing 15, Technique 15, Dribbling 15, First Touch 15) mean he can link play and fashion chances for those around him particularly if he finds space which is key for a Mezzala. The lad can cross too, meaning he will be highly effective either centrally or when he finds himself out wide - I am here for this one.
9. Robin Gosens (Inter)
Current Role (Left-Wing Back): There’s not much to say here - Gosens is an exceptional player and was a critical part of Atalanta’s recent resurgence in Serie A wherein he and Joakim Mæhle were given express runway to attack at will from wing-back positions and primarily focus on attacking rather than defensive duties. Such was his impact that he has become a mainstay in the German national side (only getting his first cap in 2020 at the age of 25), and he has since earned himself a move to Inter who clearly also favour attacking wing-backs with Gosens and Denzel Dumfries both as attack-minded as you’ll find in a wing-back. I have other ideas for Gosens though..
Proposed Role (Advanced Forward): If I was to say 16 Pace, 17 Off the Ball, 15 Finishing and 14 Composure you would assume I’m talking about a Striker right? The man is a Left-Back! A bit of retraining and I have to think that FM defenders wouldn’t know what to do with Gosens, wherein you’d expect him to make runs off the ball, hassle defenders, look for balls to feet and ultimately end up finishing frequently on his favoured left foot - at 6’0” tall there are Robin Van Persie vibes all over this one.. 🔥.
10. Roberto Firmino (Liverpool)
Current Role (Striker): Though not usually known for his goal scoring ability, Firmino is one of the most effective and hard-to-mark strikers in European football and one would argue that the uniqueness of his role and style while highly valued at Liverpool is one of the main reasons he was omitted from Brazil’s recent World Cup squad. Overall he is physically, mentally and technically exceptional in-game but his low Finishing (11) is definitely problematic in-game..
Proposed Role (Wide Centre-Back): Ok ok, hear me out. I know this sounds crazy but let’s take a closer look..in FM the Wide Centre-Back is “encouraged to stay wide in possession and support the midfield”, and when set to Attack duty “is willing to make regular overlapping and underlapping runs to create 2 vs 1 situations, and also has a higher tendency to dribble with the ball”. Firmino has outstanding Fitness, Stamina and Work Rate to make these runs; his ridiculous Technique, First Touch and Composure (18, 17 and 17 respectively) make him comfortable on the ball while defensively his Anticipation (15), Balance (17), Marking (13), Positioning (13) and Tackling (12) make him well able to handle both the defensive and offensive responsibilities of the Wide Centre-Back role. He is decent in the air at 5’11” and should he be retrained effectively alongside the right defensive partner(s), I reckon we have a very interesting proposition on our hands that again could either make or break the match engine 🙃.
There we have it. 10 players who could (arguably) be retrained into a completely new role in Football Manager - some slightly more wild than others, but overall the idea of retraining players in-game is a sound concept and in this writer’s opinion an underrated/underutilised function in FM. Have you tried it yourself? Tell us your experiences either on Twitter or in the comments below - how crazy is the idea of Firmino at Centre-Half? 😄.
Thanks for reading.
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