FMDelicious

FM Tactics Lab
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[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

Before starting the solo shot, I ran the structure through simulations.

One Arsenal run finished:

🏆 Premier League Champions

📈 96 points
✅ 30 wins
🤝 6 draws
❌ 2 defeats

⚽ 94 goals
🛡️ 14 conceded
💥 +80 GD

The home/away split is also interesting:

🏠 Home:
18W 1D 0L
70 scored
6 conceded

✈️ Away:
12W 5D 2L
24 scored
8 conceded

Obviously Arsenal are an elite team, so this doesn't tell us what the tactic will do with the type of squad Jakirović actually works with.

That is the next part.

The simulations were stable enough for me to move on to a proper solo shot.

Now I want to see what happens with a more realistic team profile, where the structural strengths and limitations should become much clearer.

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Sergej Jakirović Hull City | 3-4-3 → 5-4-1 Recreation 🇭🇷

I’ve been studying Jakirović’s work and using this project to explore a type of football I normally don’t build very often.

This is not simply “park the bus”.

The football is direct, but there are two very different phases.

In possession, the structure is deliberately asymmetric.

⬅️ Left:
IF + AWB, with much more aggressive occupation of the flank and half-space.

➡️ Right:
W + FB, creating a completely different relationship.

The back three stays underneath the action, while the midfield has to connect the direct progression with the front line.

And for this football, the striker profile matters.

You need a real reference up front.

A Target Forward. A CAO, as we call it at Delicious. 😅

Out of possession, everything changes.

The 3-4-3 becomes a very compact 5-4-1:

→ PFB – WCB – CB – WCB – PFB
→ two WDMs centrally
→ two TWMs dropping alongside them
→ one CFD remaining as the first reference

That is where some of the structural limitations of this type of football also become visible in FM26.

You protect a lot of space behind the ball, but naturally you give up players higher on the pitch.

So when possession is recovered, progression has to be fast and purposeful.

It is defensive football, yes.

But defensive does not automatically mean passive.

The whole idea is to adapt to the phase of the game rather than dominate every phase in the same way.

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Sir Alex Ferguson 2006-09 🇾🇪

One of my Ferguson-inspired recreations, built around the principles of that 2006-2009 Manchester United period.

The league ended in probably the most frustrating way possible:

🥈 Premier League: 2nd
📈 87 points
✅ 27 wins
🤝 6 draws
❌ 5 defeats
⚽ 88 goals
🧱 28 conceded
💥 +60 GD

We actually finished LEVEL with Manchester City on 87 points.

They won the title on goal difference. 😭

But we still finished the season with silverware:

🏆 FA Cup Winners
🥈 Carabao Cup Runners-up

Across all competitions:

🎮 51 matches
✅ 38 wins
🤝 7 draws
❌ 6 defeats
⚽ 121 scored
🧱 42 conceded
💥 +79 GD
📊 74% win rate

And yes... that 8-3 against Brighton on the final day is also part of the save. 😂

Not every recreation needs to become an unbeatable meta tactic.

Sometimes the interesting part is seeing how the football, roles and structure translate into FM26 over a full season.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/YHqfd4kCxN

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Gian Piero Gasperini Roma | 3-4-1-2 Recreation VI 🇮🇹

🏆 Serie A Champions
🏆 Europa League Winners
🥈 Coppa Italia Runner-Up

Serie A:

📈 88 points
✅ 26 wins
🤝 10 draws
❌ Only 2 defeats
⚽ 99 goals
🛡️ 37 conceded
💥 +62 GD

And this time, the part I enjoyed most wasn't simply the result.

It was trying something I had never really used before:

🧠 Double Half Back
🧠 Double OCB

I wanted the midfielders to help the build-up and then participate underneath the attack, while the OCBs could step forward and support the wing-backs more naturally than I was getting from other roles.

It is aggressive.

At times, extremely aggressive.

There are situations where Ndicka can effectively become the last real defensive reference while the rest of the structure moves forward.

That risk was intentional.

FM26 obviously cannot reproduce every Gasperini rotation we see in real football, so this remains a recreation through the tools the engine gives us.

But the relationships became very interesting.

And the output from the wing-backs says a lot:

🔥 Wesley: 6 goals + 30 assists
🔥 Angeliño: 6 goals + 21 assists

51 assists between them.

The attack was also distributed:

⚽ Malen: 34 goals + 11 assists
⚽ Soulé: 29 + 7
⚽ Dybala: 24 + 14
⚽ Dovbyk: 15 + 2

Even Cristante finished with 10 goals + 8 assists.

Across the whole season:

🎮 57 matches
✅ 42 wins
🤝 12 draws
❌ 3 defeats
⚽ 152 goals
🛡️ 53 conceded
💥 +99 GD
📊 73% win rate

And I don't want to hide the underlying numbers either.

Serie A:

📊 87.53 xG
⚽ 99 actual goals

🛡️ 37.92 xGA
📈 78.28 xPTS
🏆 88 actual points

So we clearly overperformed both our xG and xPTS.

That matters.

This wasn't some perfect underlying-data monster. We were extremely efficient, especially in decisive moments.

But that's also why I liked the project.

The structure worked, the behaviours were recognisable, and I didn't need to turn it into a generic meta tactic just to chase another 10 points.

This VI version is simply the more experimental one.

Double HB.
Double OCB.
Huge wing-back production.
A lot of movement.
A lot of risk.

And somehow only 3 defeats in 57 matches. 😅

🔗 https://t.co/RsSDDRGWej

TI/PI video included for console players.

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Mendilibar – Athletic Bilbao Solo Shot 🇪🇸

After the Olympiacos recreation, I wanted to see how Mendilibar’s ideas would translate to a very different squad.

The result was a strong season:

🥈 La Liga: 2nd
📈 85 points
⚽ 88 goals
🧱 40 conceded
💥 +48 GD

🏆 Spanish Super Cup: Runners-up
⭐ Champions League: Quarter-Final
🏆 Spanish Cup: Quarter-Final

Across all competitions:

🎮 55 matches
✅ 36 wins
🤝 10 draws
❌ 9 defeats
⚽ 124 scored
🧱 64 conceded

No trophy this time, but another useful example of why I like taking coach-inspired recreations outside their original environment.

Same tactical principles.
Different player profiles.
Different results.

Every match was played.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/EQKirczowv

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Gasperini Roma update. 🔬

I tried something I had never really used before:

Double Half Back + double OCB.

The previous version was already working and I still like it, so both tactics will remain available. But after watching more footage and studying Gasperini’s approach, I wanted to experiment with a different way of reproducing some of the movements.

The biggest problem is obvious: Football Manager cannot reproduce all the rotations we see in real football.

So this is about recreating principles, not pretending we can copy every movement exactly.

Why OCB instead of WCB?

Because the WCB simply wasn’t giving me the behaviour I wanted.

I wanted the outside centre-backs to move closer to the AWBs and support their runs more aggressively.

The OCB gives me something much closer to that.

Then comes the strange part:

Two Half Backs.

In possession, both HBs help the build-up and then reconnect with the rest of the structure as the attack develops.

The result is a very unusual shape.

At times Ndicka is basically the only defender left behind. 😅

So yes, it is risky.

But visually and structurally, I really like some of the sequences it creates.

The problem is that the HB is still not as aggressive offensively as I would ideally want, so the OCB movement becomes even more important.

I am also still thinking about the midfield.

Double HB?

HB + DLP?

Something else?

Because when I watch Roma, I don't really see two traditional CMs, but I don't see two static DMs either.

That is exactly where FM26 still limits us.

Real football gives coaches far more freedom with rotations and positional exchanges than the game currently allows.

Up front I also kept Dybala and Malen on the sides that make more sense for their preferred foot, even if the real-life interpretation can be more fluid.

And Soulé is another interesting case.

Roma can become very asymmetric, and he doesn't behave like a perfectly fixed central player. He can drift, start from the right and attack different spaces.

So this 3-4-1-2 is not meant to be a literal screenshot recreation.

It is another attempt to reproduce some of the mechanisms.

And for now, I really like what I am seeing.

Some matches still become difficult to unlock, so I am continuing to tweak it.

But double HB + double OCB is definitely one of the most interesting experiments I have tried in FM26.

The previous version will stay available too.

Video I used as part of the tactical study:
https://t.co/tTpPhrvdtI

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Gasperini Roma Update 🔥

The 3-4-1-2 recreation is starting to click.

After 10 Serie A matches:

🥈 2nd place
✅ 7 wins
🤝 3 draws
❌ 0 defeats
⚽ 28 goals scored
🛡️ 7 conceded
📈 24 points

And in the Europa League:

🥇 1st place
✅ 4 games
✅ 4 wins
⚽ 16 goals scored
🧱 0 conceded

So across Serie A + Europa League so far:

🎮 14 matches
✅ 11 wins
🤝 3 draws
❌ 0 defeats
⚽ 44 goals
🛡️ 7 conceded

What I like most is that I haven't had to turn it into a pure FM26 meta adaptation.

The structure is still very Gasperini-inspired:

→ back three with aggressive wide defenders
→ wing-backs providing the width
→ two midfielders with different behaviours
→ Soule between the lines
→ Dybala + Malen with different movements up front

And the defensive phase is probably the most interesting part.

The Europa League numbers are crazy so far: 16 scored, 0 conceded.

Still early, and Inter are ahead of us in Serie A, so I'm not calling anything yet.

But for a recreation-first project, this is a very strong start.

Now let's see if it survives the full season. 👀

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Rui Borges – Newcastle Solo Shot 🏴

After the Sporting run, I wanted to see how the same Rui Borges-inspired idea would translate to the Premier League.

The answer: pretty well.

🏆 Champions League Winners
🥈 Premier League: 2nd
📈 84 points
⚽ 98 league goals
🧱 33 conceded
💥 +65 GD

We finished only 2 points behind Manchester City.

The interesting part for me was seeing the same tactical principles survive in a completely different environment.

Same starting idea.
Different squad.
Different league.
Still competitive at the highest level.

This is why I like taking recreations beyond the original team. It tells us much more about how the structure actually behaves in FM26.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/SeFPG8dv25

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Gasperini Roma 2026-27 | 3-4-1-2 Recreation 🔥

Next project: Gasp.

This time I wanted to move closer to a real recreation and further away from the more engine-oriented adaptations I’ve used in the past.

The base is a wingerless 3-4-1-2 with two strikers.

That creates a few problems in FM26, especially with the double midfield line, but I didn’t want to solve every problem by simply choosing the most meta roles available.

The front three are also deliberately flexible.

Depending on the players used, I want to reproduce different movements for profiles like Dybala, Malen, Soulé and the striker combinations rather than forcing everyone into the same behaviour.

The same applies to the back three.

I spent quite a lot of time on the defenders because I wanted something closer to Gasperini’s aggressive Wide Centre-Back behaviour rather than immediately moving toward the combinations that I know can be stronger for the Match Engine.

Could I probably make it more meta with different CB roles?

Yes.

But that isn’t really the point of this project.

The first goal is to reproduce the idea.

Then we see how competitive it can become without losing its identity.

The early testing has been interesting and, from the data so far, I haven’t seen a huge performance difference between some of the alternatives I tried.

Now the real part starts.

We take it to Roma and see whether this 3-4-1-2 can reproduce some of the principles and attacking behaviours that Gasperini has been building for years.

From Atalanta to Roma.

Recreation first.
FM26 adaptation second.

Now let’s see what happens. 👀

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Massimiliano Allegri Napoli 2026-27 🇮🇹

Probably one of the most honest recreations I’ve made.

🥈 Serie A: 79 pts
⚽ 60 GF
🧱 18 GA
🤝 13 draws
🏆 Champions League Semi Final
🏆 Coppa Italia Semi Final

Across all competitions:

🎮 57 matches
✅ 31 wins
🤝 18 draws
❌ 8 defeats
⚽ 94 GF
🧱 39 GA
📊 54% win rate

This is NOT a meta adaptation.

The defensive side worked extremely well. Only 18 goals conceded in Serie A.

The attacking limitation is just as obvious.

We won plenty of 1-0s, but we also drew far too many games. Once we conceded, finding the extra goal was often the real problem.

Interestingly, the AI-controlled Allegri side in the same save scored 72 league goals and conceded 26.

Mine scored 60 and conceded 18.

More security. Less attacking output.

Could I make it more aggressive and probably stronger inside FM26? Absolutely.

But at some point it would stop being the recreation I wanted and become another meta adaptation.

Sometimes an imperfect recreation tells you more about a football idea than another tactic producing 110 points and 160 goals.

📥 Tactic, full save and TI/PI video for console players:
https://t.co/9wiQVbEopx

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Total Football 3-2-4-1 – Leverkusen 🇩🇪

One of my Total Football experiments, built around an aggressive 3-2-4-1 in possession and a very different defensive structure OOP.

The season:

🏆 Bundesliga Champions
⭐ Champions League Quarter-Final

Bundesliga:

📈 80 points
✅ 24W 8D 2L
⚽ 72 goals
🧱 22 conceded
💥 +50 GD

Across all competitions:

🎮 53 matches
✅ 36 wins
🤝 10 draws
❌ 7 defeats
⚽ 121 goals
🧱 50 conceded
💥 +71 GD

The interesting part is not just the formation on the tactics screen.

The roles completely change the structure between possession and defending, creating a very aggressive attacking shape without simply leaving everyone forward.

Another example of why in FM26 the formation is only the starting point. Roles and movements are what create the actual tactic.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/vxahoUfmLS

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 José Luis Mendilibar – Olympiacos 🇬🇷

A 4-2-3-1 recreation built around Mendilibar’s aggressive principles, without turning it into a pure meta adaptation.

The season:

🏆 Greek League Champions
🏆 Greek Cup Winners
⭐ Champions League Semi-Final

League:

✅ 24W 2D 0L
⚽ 90 goals
🧱 19 conceded
💥 +71 GD
📈 74 points

Unbeaten across the entire league season.

Across all competitions:

🎮 54 matches
✅ 42 wins
🤝 9 draws
❌ 3 defeats
⚽ 159 goals
🧱 50 conceded
💥 +109 GD
📊 77% win rate

The Champions League run ended only in the semi-final against Real Madrid.

A very aggressive recreation, with a lot of players attacking the final third and several different connections around the front four.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/yOWj1lHQa0

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

The Allegri experience. 😂

Not every game needs 25 shots, 70% possession and five goals.

Some of these matches are exactly the kind of games I wanted this recreation to be capable of producing:

✅ Genoa 1-2 Napoli
✅ Sassuolo 0-1 Napoli
✅ Sporting CP 0-3 Napoli
✅ Monaco 1-3 Napoli

Different games, different levels of control, but the same general idea:

score, manage spaces, defend the result, choose when to accelerate.

This is also why creating a more conservative recreation in FM26 is interesting to me.

It is much easier to keep adding aggression until the match engine gives you more chances.

The difficult part is trying to remain cautious without becoming passive.

Still tweaking.

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Massimiliano Allegri Napoli Update 🇮🇹

We’re getting closer.

I changed the structure quite a lot from the first version. The previous 4-3-3 simply wasn’t giving me the behaviour I wanted, so I moved toward something that visually and defensively feels much more like a 4-5-1.

The mentality stays CAUTIOUS.

I tested other options, but I don’t really want to move away from that. For me, Allegri has always been a very cautious coach, sometimes excessively so, and I want that identity to remain part of the recreation.

The new structure gives Politano more space and more metres to attack, while the midfield and wide players have very different responsibilities in and out of possession.

After 7 Serie A games:

✅ 4W
🤝 2D
❌ 1L
⚽ 11 GF
🧱 5 GA

And in the Champions League:

✅ 3 games
✅ 3 wins
⚽ 7 GF
🧱 1 GA

Still very much a work in progress, and I’m definitely struggling more with this than with most of my possession recreations.

But now it finally feels closer to what I was trying to build.

And the funniest part?

Some of the matches are becoming VERY Allegri. 😅

👇

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

@Pranay_180 They also have an editor workaround for real names, logos, etc., but you have to do it yourself because they don’t want to take any responsibility for it.

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

Nice words.

But where is the game?

I actually liked parts of FM26. That doesn't change my opinion: FM26 was a flop.

FM25 was cancelled. FM24 had to carry the series for two years. FM26 arrived with bugs, optimisation problems and a huge part of the community simply never moved on from FM24.

And after all of that, we're back to another video telling us:

“We listened.”
“We learned.”
“We know what you want.”

Fine.

SHOW US.

Show FM27.
Show the UI.
Show the match engine.
Show what has actually changed.

Because after the last two years, words are not enough anymore.

And I also think the FM community needs fewer cheerleaders and more people willing to say when something simply isn't good enough.

Constantly agreeing with everything doesn't help Sports Interactive.
Constructive criticism does.

I want FM27 to succeed badly.

First as someone who has loved this series for years, and then as a content creator whose work depends on Football Manager being healthy.

But trust has to be rebuilt with the PRODUCT, not with another marketing video.

Competition is starting to appear.
Players know where the refund button is.
And “Football Manager has no real alternative” will not protect the series forever.

I genuinely hope FM27 changes the direction.

But please, stop selling us promises.

Start showing us the game.

[Football Manager @FootballManager]

Preparing for kick off 👔

Hear from our Senior Community Manager, Chris, with the latest on FM27 plans and what to expect this year.

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

Pro Soccer Manager 27 is the one a lot of people are talking about. It’s clearly heavily inspired by FM and still looks very early, but the interesting part is that they seem to want to build the game together with the community rather than behind closed doors.

🔗 https://t.co/eJ38oZVfx7

I haven’t lost faith in FM, and I haven’t lost my patience either. I genuinely want FM27 to succeed.

I’m just tired of a marketing campaign built almost entirely around words without any real preview of the product.

After FM25 was cancelled and FM26 had the issues it had, I genuinely don’t understand what SI are trying to achieve with this approach.

I don’t need the game today. I just want to see the game.

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

FM26 Massimiliano Allegri Napoli 2026-27 🇮🇹

This one is taking me outside my comfort zone.

I have never been a big fan of Allegri’s football, and building a more conservative recreation in FM26 is actually proving much harder for me than creating another Control Possession system.

The idea is a 4-3-3 based on what I want to reproduce from his Napoli, but I would probably call this a recreation/adaptation rather than a literal translation.

And I’m trying to resist the temptation to simply make it stronger by turning everything into Positive or Attacking.

Right now I’m testing Cautious, and I may also try Balanced.

Some role choices still don’t completely convince me either. The double CHM, for example, is something I’m still evaluating.

But one Arsenal development run produced:

🏆 Premier League
📈 92 points
⚽ 86 goals
🧱 20 conceded

So the concept can clearly work without needing to score 120+ goals.

That is also part of the challenge here.

I want something more tactical, more controlled and more defensive than most of my recent projects, while still making it competitive inside FM26.

The home performances have often been very strong.

Away from home, however, the system seems much more vulnerable.

Now comes the important part:

Napoli solo-shot.

The squad is probably better suited to a different attacking structure, so there will be some adaptation involved.

Let’s see how far I can push it without losing the Allegri identity.

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

@FCBrakijator i did

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

@omarzalkendi Yup

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Norway 2026 🇳🇴 | Ståle Solbakken

One of the more interesting World Cup recreations I made in FM26.

Norway reached the FINAL with a very aggressive interpretation of Solbakken’s ideas:

✅ Iraq 6-1
✅ Senegal 7-3
❌ France 1-4
✅ Ecuador 2-0
✅ Scotland 4-2
✅ Croatia 3-0
✅ Paraguay 5-1
🥈 Austria 2-3

The structure evolves a lot between phases.

In possession, the shape becomes extremely aggressive around Haaland, with runners attacking around him and asymmetric support from midfield and the full-backs.

Out of possession, everything changes again into a much deeper and more compact structure.

That is exactly why I always say: don’t judge an FM tactic only from the formation screen.

The movements and role interactions tell you much more.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/sx1Z0cSDFt

#FM26 #FootballManager

[FMDelicious @FMDelicious]

From the archive 📂

FM26 Rui Borges – Sporting CP 🇵🇹

A Control Possession recreation built around Rui Borges’ ideas, adapted carefully to FM26 without turning it into a pure meta tactic.

The season:

🏆 Portuguese League
🏆 Portuguese Cup
🏆 League Cup
🏆 Super Cup

📈 89 points
✅ 29W 2D 3L
⚽ 107 goals
🧱 22 conceded
💥 +85 GD

Across all competitions:

🎮 59 matches
✅ 48 wins
⚽ 180 goals
🧱 51 conceded
📊 81% win rate

One of the projects I enjoyed the most because the structure is much more interesting than the formation screen alone suggests.

Roles, movements and connections matter more than the initial drawing.

📥 Tactic + save + screenshots + TI/PI video:
https://t.co/yytk7bs1M2

#FM26 #FootballManager