FM21: NISSA — 2020/21 Season Analysis
After playing FM21 for 114 hours, I am finally in the position to be able to present to you my analysis of the first year at the helm of OGC Nice.
As some of you may know this is the first time I have ever delved into French football and it is fair to say that I am thoroughly enjoying this save, yes it is likely that we will never be in a position to loosen PSG’s grip on the domestic front, however there is no harm in trying.
Overview
Presented with the initial objectives from the board to secure a top half finish, it was clear to see after the initial settling in period that I had all the tools necessary to not only achieve this objective.
I would agree that the run of fixtures during the start to the campaign could have been more demanding, however it was clear to see that at the half way point OGC Nice certainly could be present a challenge for the two other Champions League spaces.
Despite bringing in a few faces in January, which certainly added significant depth to the squad, it is fair to say that February was the sticking point for the save.
A defeat to AS Saint-Etienne was followed up by the club securing only the single point from the 15 available.
With six games left in Ligue 1 there was still all to play for with only a point separating 2nd place and 4th. With the finish line and the holy grail within touching distance, back to back games against the top three teams in the league did not go to plan as my side failed to win any of these key fixtures.
Fortunately, Les Aiglons still has a Europa League Final to play against Feyenoord. The final itself was a close encounter in which I provided updates over Twitter (Thanks to @martyfm4 for sharing the experience with me). The spectacle went deep into extra time before we managed to score from a long throw routine (The corner set up that became a throw in routine) which I borrowed from @MerryGuido.
OGC Nice had secured their return to the Champions League!
Expected Goals (xG) Analysis
After reading through my very brief summary of the season above, I am certain some of you are thinking along the same lines as myself.
Either the playing squad at NISSA lack the ‘big game’ mentality, necessary to come away from these big games with all three points or that we had lady luck sitting on our shoulder (Kasper Dolberg).
Taking this into consideration I opted to carry out an analysis into our expected goals, both for and against over time.
As you can clearly see from the above data visualisation, there were only a few games across the span of the Ligue 1 season where our opponents accumulated a bigger xG than we did.
This is a good indicator as to the quality of chances we are creating in relation to our opposition. The fact that this is also the trend across the duration of the season also leads me to believe that the brand of football which Magnus has brought to the club is an attractive one.
Squad Profile
As many of you will now know, the squad profile is another attractive visualisation which can be used as a tool to analyse your squad.
I have decided to create a squad profile for OGC Nice, this will help me to make some key decisions in relation to personnel in preparation for the 2021/22 season.
As you can see from the above visualisation the core of this team fall into the ‘Youth’ category, with eight players from within this segment securing above average playing time.
These individuals are key to the club and will be offered long-term deals over the summer, which hopefully see them progress into their prime (24–29) with Les Aiglons.
The players in the bottom half of this section excluding Melvin Bard (Should have been blue) and the blue dots (New Signings) will need to be assessed as they aren’t securing enough game time in order to develop. Could loan deals be arranged or will their time at the club be over?
The players within the ‘Peak’ section speak for themselves, these will all be staying with the club unless an offer comes in from one of Europe elite, as this will help to boost the clubs stature, which is owner Jim Ratcliffe’s ambition.
Players who sit within the ‘Experienced’ segment on the far right should look to be offloaded, however Dante is one of only three leaders within the club hierarchy and his willingness to accept a decreased contract will mean that he stays on with the club as he can still contribute off the field.
Player of the season
Fans player of the season was Rony Lopes, the winger on loan from Seville has an option to buy for £18m, with the Portuguese players market value now sitting at £35.5m it would be ludicrous not to activate this option to buy clause.
The OGC Nice young player of the season was free scoring Kasper Dolberg, the 33 goals scored by the Danish striker was enough to break the goal scoring record at the club for the most goals scored in a season. The youngster is still a long way off breaking the all time scoring record, currently held by Joaquin Valle who represented Nice from 1937–48, scoring 186 goals.
A scout report on Kasper Dolberg will be created later, as I look to document my key performers across the duration of this save.
Goal of the season
Rony Lopes (90+2) vs CSKA Moscow — Europa League First Knockout Round Second Leg
This goal from Lopes was the one goal this season which made me jump out of my seat in the office and run around the house like a child on Christmas Day, it is fair to say that this goal from Rony was the game changing moment in our quest to securing the Europa League trophy, yet another reason to offer the man a contract at the club.
U19s
The U19’s squad won the National title, which again is credit to the level of young talent which is available within the club. I am going to look to add all French leagues to the save with the hope that the fixtures for the reserve squad will help to provide me with a place to nurture this talent and integrate them within the first team squad.
Eyes on next season
The success in Europe and finishing fourth paired with the frozen transfer window bug levelling out has handed me a significant financial backing for the campaign ahead.
I have already touched on the topic of activating the option to buy for Seville’s Rony Lopes and will look to create a bespoke recruitment blog next which will show how data can be used to maximise input from your scouting team.
