vs
Team Prolifik
Tactics
We've made a change up front with Rummenigge replacing Garrincha. Rummenigge is more of a natural fit alongside Di Stéfano with his pace and off-ball movement. He will mirror Stoichkov in the sense of starting out wide but frequently making runs infield to exploit the space created when Di Stéfano drops deep. Our attack now has more flexibility and unpredictability which will make it harder for defenders to hone in on individual players. Rummenigge is also a hard-working forward who will contribute to the high press, and more comfortable being involved in build-up play and maintaining possession than the more direct Garrincha.
Lahm also comes in for Djalma as we need someone who will consistently get forward and provide width, given that Rummenigge won't be hugging the touchline like Garrincha. The ability of Busquets to drop back between the CBs allows both full-backs more licence to push forward. As a bonus, Lahm also has the techinical ability and intelligence to participate in the possession game, as he showed under Pep towards the end of the time frame.
Otherwise, we will continue to rely on our possession game, looking to move the ball quickly through midfield and feed our attacking trio in space to do what they do best. This starts with our entire back five being excellent on the ball, and we have now reconstituted the GOAT possession midfield in Xavi, Busquets, and Iniesta, with Di Stéfano playing a similar role to false nine Messi.
Out of possession, we will play high up the pitch and try to constrict the opponent's time and space. Again, it starts with our mobile and athletic back five, with Van Dijk and Alisson in particular being experts at managing a high defensive line. Our midfield trio is well versed in the art of the high press, and Di Stéfano offers tremendous work-rate as well.
Team Viper
THE TEAM
First and foremost, every single player in the team was in their peak between the age of 26 and 30. So, we are getting the absolute best version of them. Now back to the tactics board, we will look to play an attacking-minded brand of football and maximize the ability of our players on the ball. Because Vogts aside, all of them were excellent playmakers on the ball who could impact the game either with their passing, crossing or ability to run with the ball at opposition defense.
In attack, we have an attacking quartet of Gerd Müller, Rivaldo, Luís Figo & Zico. Up-front we have Müller, possibly the greatest goalscorer ever leading the line for us, while Rivaldo will play off him as a left sided second striker. He would come off the left flank like he used to with Brazil NT and at Barcelona and link up with the other attackers as well as look to create and finish chances. On the right, we have one of the Top-3 wingers of all time in Figo. A chance creating machine with his wizardry and crossing, Figo is the perfect winger in this team. Zico will be the No 10 in this team. With the license to orchestrate the attacks from midfield as well as in final third, Zico can drop deep, grab the ball from midfield and find the openings, either to Figo or Rivaldo on the flanks or the through-balls for Müller to latch on to like Laudrup did for us in the previous games. However, unlike Laudrup, Zico has another gear in his game with his sensational scoring ability. He essentially was a No 10 who scored like a No 9.
In central midfield, we have Lothar Matthäus & Frank Rijkaard. The two greatest central midfielders of all time. Matthäus is universally considered the greatest central midfielders of all time while Rijkaard is, considered by many as the greatest defensive midfielder ever. Both were as complete as they come with no weaknesses in their game. Matthäus' penetrative runs with the ball, as well as the ability to make runs beyond opposition's midfield off the ball, positional sense, precise passing and powerful shooting would complement really well with the physicality, tenacity, energy and reading of the game of Rijkaard. And with Laudrup's ability and tendency to drop deep and carry the ball forward, Rijkaard, Falcão and Laudrup will link-up and create all sorts of havoc with "pass & move" football in midfield.
The defense comprises of Andreas Brehme, Franco Baresi, Elías Figueroa & Lilian Thuram with Gordon Banks as the goalkeeper. Whats even there to talk about Baresi? The GOAT "pure" defender. Anticipation and reading of the game second to none. A leader amongst men, Baresi would be tasked with marshalling and organizing our backline. Baresi was also very good on the ball and would look to initiate attacks from the back. And having his old mate Rijkaard there, along with whom he had great synergy, we would be very tough to break down. Partnering him at the back would be Don Elías. Like Baresi, Figueroa is one of the greatest defenders ever. What made him truly special was just how complete of a defender he was. Possibly the most complete defender ever. There was zero weakness in his game. He was quick on the ground and absolutely colossal in the air. Could go in for crunching well time tackles or stay deep and intercept the attack right before it reaches the penalty box. Could be given the task to man-mark the great Gerd Müller or play as a sweeper. Whatever you wanted and the team needed, Figueroa would do it and do it better than anyone. Also, like Baresi, he was excellent on the ball and would initiate swift counter-attacks from the back. On the flanks we have Brehme and Thuram. Two of the greatest full-backs of all-time, but both quite different from one another. However, they are exactly what the team needs. Brehme was an outstanding crosser of the ball and can create from deep at will. And with Müller lurking in and around the penalty box, as well as Zico, Rivaldo and Matthäus having the ability to make runs into the box, as we are a threat every time the ball is out on the flanks, be it with Figo on the right or Brehme on the left. Thuram as right back, offers us great balance with our defense, as having a defensive minded RB who can turn into a 3rd CB ensures we would have men behind when we get him on the counters. After all Thuram was a defensive wall and one of the greatest and most complete defenders ever with no weaknesses in his defensive game. Rounding up the team we have Banks in goal. A shot-stopping extraordinaire and a very commanding goalkeeper, who also is England's greatest goalkeeper ever.
v/s Prolifik:-
Prolifik obviously has a fantastic team and that midfield trio with Di Stefano dropping deep, would be quite a handful. But I feel we have the team to not only contain that midfield but also the perfect team to counter it. You have two physical and quick midfielders in Matthäus and Rijkaard who can overpower the Spanish midfield trio but also were extremely neat and good on the ball. So, when pressed they won't fumble like most of the modern midfields did. Having Baresi and Figueroa behind them also helps massively because they were fantastic on the ball. And then we have Zico, Rivaldo and Figo ahead of the midfield. Three excellent players obviously, but all three are some of the best dribblers the game has seen with outragerous close control to evade the press of Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta. As good as Busquets was, Zico is the kind of player who would trouble his lack of pace. Zico's burst of pace and close control will be a major issue for him. Similarly as great as peak Virgil was, Müller's movement is the kind of stuff that can be an issue as Virgil tends to play a bit conservative at times by holding the line which is extremely dangerous against a player like Müller who is a master at finding space and position himself from chanches that will be created by our team.