FM22: DIE WERKSELF — THE QUEST TO SHAKE THE ‘NEVERKUSEN’ TAG
Five-time Bundesliga runners-up and losing finalists in the 2002 UEFA Champions League and DFB Cup, there’s a reason why Bayer Leverkusen have been nicknamed ‘the Eternal Bridesmaids’.
Club History
Founded in 1904 by workers of pharmaceutical company Bayer AG, Bayer 04 Leverkusen have become a part of the Bundesliga furniture, playing their trade in the German top tier, although Die Werkself have failed to win a Bundesliga title despite spending 42 uninterrupted seasons in the German topflight.
Leverkusen, who are exempt from the league’s 50+1 Rule because Bayer had backed the club financially for over 20 years, were regular European competitors by the mid-1980s and even lifted the UEFA Cup for the first and only time in 1988.
The club’s greatest period of success, though, came around the turn of the millennium as the team’s all-time top scorer Ulf Kirsten fired Leverkusen to four second-placed finishes in a six year period.
The last, in 2001/02, will go down as the most famous as the team led by Michael Ballack finished runners-up in the Bundesliga, DFB Cup and Champions League. It was a campaign that gave rise to the club’s unfortunate nickname ‘Neverkusen’.
This history, paired with the ever growing financial gap between FC Bayern, are all the more reasons why this save will allow the club to quietly operate in the shadows in the attempt to end the barren stretch and hopefully lift some silverware.
The Squad
After an active summer in the transfer market, bringing in no fewer than seven new signings with an average age of 21.5, Bayer Leverkusen are a good fit for any Football Manager who is looking to the Bundesliga for a challenge.
The above paired with the retiring of the 32-year old Bedner twins, 30-year old Aleksandar Dragovic departing for Red Star Belgrade and long standing servant Wendell opting for a new challenge at FC Porto, Leverkusen will need for current senior players to step up and provide much needed leadership within the dressing room, their squad have the third lowest average age in the Bundesliga at just 24.4 years.
When comparing squad values on Transfermrkt.com Leverkusen have the fourth highest market value at £377 million, a value which is boosted by the likes of Florian Wirtz (£63 million) Moussa Diaby £40.5 million and Patrik Schick (£36 million). Bayern lead the pack with a whopping £734 million, followed by Dortmund (£519 million) and RB Leipzig (£412 million) respectively, whilst SpVgg Greuther Fürth find themselves bottom of the pile with a value of £28 million.
Attribute Comparison
The squad comparison, which sits under the Squad Menu>Analyst Report is as good a place as any to assess the capabilities of the players within the squad, it is from here that we can break down the units (Defence, Midfield and Attack) and compare their attributes against the league average, providing the manager with a flavour of what his/her players can and can not do.
First up looking at the defence we need to establish if the defensive unit have the ability to support a high line (pace, acceleration and tackling) or a deeper defence (positioning, marking, heading and jumping).
Looking at the above I think it is fair to say that we have a pretty solid defence with nearly all attributes above the league average. I think the attributes favour a higher defensive line, given the fact that we possess above average acceleration and pace.
For me the below average positioning score is a concern and one which surprises Gerardo Seoane’s choice to implement a low block in real life.
Moving onto the midfield you will note that all attributes are above average. However, the following ones stand out for me due to them all being at least 0.6 above average. Passing (+0.62), Vision (+0.67), Stamina (+0.98) and Technique (+0.67). Passing, Technique and Vision are the gold standard of a possession based game, therefore we will look to play shorter passing in order to starve the opposition of the ball. The exceptionally high score in relation to Stamina will allow me to adopt a Counter-Press in transition, whilst having an aggressive press when out of possession.
The below is an analysis into the starting eleven’s mental attributes, this information will help me to see the core individuals mental drivers, this can be of use when selection team instructions or embedding a DNA into the save.
Bravery: How willing a player is to choose to perform an action that risks pain or injury. (Great given the fact that a large proportion of players within the squad are fairly susceptible to injury!).
Composure: How unaffected a player is by mental pressure when making a decision or performing an action.
Determination: How much a player tries to succeed in his actions during a match even in mentally exhausting circumstances (losing position or performing badly).
Teamwork: how closely a player follows his tactical instructions and how aware he is of the positions and movements of his teammates.
Work Rate: How much physical effort a player puts into his actions during a match.
Bayer’s Tactical Approach
With a front four built to attack with pace and precision, Leverkusen have the hallmarks of a side capable of absorbing pressure and pouncing on mistakes. Looking at possession statistics, Die Werkself hold just the 7th most possession (53%) of any team in the Bundesliga, but their lethal ability on the break has seen them score 49 goals after 20 matches, a first for the club at this stage.
This isn’t to say that Leverkusen are one dimensional, they do not implement a hoofball brand of anti-football. Individuals such as Charles Aranguiz, Jonathan Tah, Exequiel Palacios and Kerem Demirbay are more than adept at unlocking a deep block through patiently circulating possession.
Current Manager Seaone has seen his side switch between both possession based football and reactive counter attacking, both of which I am hoping I will be able to implement within this save, through the use of creating overloads and utilising Moussa Diaby’s (Pace 18, Acceleration 18), Karim Bellarabi’s (Pace 17, Acceleration 16) and Jeremie Frimpong’s (Pace 17, Acceleration 17) attributes.
Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number
I mentioned earlier how a lack of leadership/experience in the squad was a major concern, seven of the starting eleven are all aged under 23. Given this factor it is important to understand that these individuals will make errors as they are still in the developmental years leading up to their primes.
The tactic deployed will need to enable these youngsters to play with the freedom to make these errors in the final third, liberating them from the fear of making a mistake.
Florian Wirtz is perhaps the best example, on average completing just 75% of his passes, and producing the third most unsuccessful touches per 90 in the squad. Nevertheless, the 18-year old has been on fire this season, sitting second in the Bundesliga in relation to assists (9) and second in relation to key passes (46).
The Initial Tactic
Will Bayer Leverkusen end their title-drought across this save? And if so, which competition do you think will be the most achievable for Die Werkself?
