The pivot midfield – making it work in FM
The ‘double pivot’ is a term used to describe a fluid partnership in midfield where two players make attacking or defensive decisions in relation to each other’s movements. The simplest form of this partnership is one player making an attacking run, and the other staying back to cover the space opened up by his partners forward move. But there is greater complexity at play, which has to do with anticipating moves and creating space for others.
The pivot isn’t restricted to the midfield either; several other partnerships on the pitch have a natural pivot functionality. A common pivot setup is the classic target man/poacher partnership between strikers, but you will also find pivot partnerships in central defence, like the Stopper/Cover setup from FM.
In this article it’s all about the midfield pivot though, so lets go through the different variations.
The classic pivot
There are several variations to a midfield pivot, and the ‘classic pivot’ is the most traditional one. This pairing consists of a defensive midfielder and an attacking midfielder, with fairly standard instructions for each position. For obvious reasons, the attacking midfielder is the most advanced of the two, and the defensive midfielder has a holding role, allowing the attacking midfielder greater freedom to venture forward.
This was a very common partnership in traditional 4-4-2 formations, like Man Utd’s classic midfield partnership of Paul Scholes and Roy Keane, or Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso.
The ‘classic pivot’ doesn’t allow as much creative freedom as the modern variations, but it is probably the best option in a 4-4-2, where the central midfield is fairly exposed, especially when up against more exotic shapes.
It’s also debatable whether or not the ‘classic pivot’ actually is a pivot, as the positions were fairly strict in terms of defensive/attacking instructions, but in the examples given, the players did cover each other in a dual role.
The double pivot
This is a more fluid form of the ‘classic pivot’ that allows both players a higher level of creative freedom. The difference between defensive and attacking midfielder is blurred, and both players are allowed to go on attacking runs, provided their partner is in a good position to cover the space they open up defensively when doing so.
In the modern game, where 4-2-3-1, 4-5-1 and 4-2-1-3 are fairly common shapes, the ‘double pivot’ is probably the most common central midfield setup. Although more fluid than the ‘classic pivot’, this partnership still often contains one player who is more defensive-minded than the other, even though both players are allowed to go on attacking runs. The player’s personality and instinctive behaviour controls the overall movement for the most part, regardless of positional instructions from the manager (which is true for most positions on the pitch, to be fair).
The ‘double pivot’ also comes in a couple of different forms – defensive and normal.
The defensive variant often consists of two traditional holding midfielders, with the starting positions fairly deep. Examples include the recent Brazilian partnership of Felipe Melo and Gilberto Silva at the 2010 World Cup, or AC Milan’s concrete wall of Andrea Pirlo and Genaro Gattuso. Needless to say, this option increases defensive stability, but lacks some forward movement.
The normal variant often consists of two traditional central midfielders, and starts out at roughly the same height on the pitch as a ‘classic pivot’. As opposed to the defensive variant, this system will naturally provide more attacking options. A typical example would be the 2003/2004 midfield partnership of Cesc Fabregas and Patrick Vieira.
The complete pivot
Although highly unusual in midfield (more common in central defence), some teams have employed two very similar players in a midfield partnership, often strengthened by a holding midfielder operating behind them – making this arrangement usually more attacking by nature.
The best example here is the current Barcelona midfield pair Xavi and Andres Iniesta – two very similar players in terms of directional preference and forward approach, backed up by Sergio Busquets sweeping up behind them in a holding role. Same rules still apply though; if one goes forward, the other covers, and vice versa. But in the ‘complete pivot’, no player is more defensive than the other.
It could also be labelled ‘attacking pivot’.
The triple pivot
In many 4-2-3-1 formations, the ‘double pivot’ gains an extra man; the central attacking midfielder, forming a ‘triple pivot’. This is essentially just an extremely fluid ‘double pivot’ + one. Mostly evident in systems where the central attacking midfielder has a tendency to drop deep, e.g. Cesc Fabregas at Arsenal, the midfield triangle pivots and gets skewed depending on opposition movement, rotating on its axel to switch between a 2-1 and a 1-2 shape fluidly throughout the match.
It’s also very common for players to fluidly swap positions around in a ‘triple pivot’, echoing a simple form of total football.
FM2011 – Player types
So now that we know what a pivot is, it’s time to apply it to Football Manager 2011. The first thing to do is to make sure we have the right players for the job. In this article I will focus on creating a normal ‘double pivot’ – two central midfielders: one more defensive-minded than the other. But many of these instructions can be applied to a ‘classic pivot’ as well, if you’d rather try that.
Preferred positions
Obviously we want to have both players completely comfortable in the MC position, but the more defensive-minded of the two should be at least competent in the DMC slot. The more attack-minded should equally be at least competent in the AMC slot.
Attributes – General
Both players should have as high values as possible in the following attributes:
Passing – This attribute is crucial when it comes to central midfield players – with high enough values they will be able to serve through balls to central forwards, and accurately distribute passes to the flanks.
Determination – This is a background attribute that will ensure the player keeps fighting until the end, which is invaluable in midfield.
Attributes – Defensive
For the defensive-minded player, make sure he has high values in:
Positioning – This is a defensive attribute that decides how well the player positions himself when the opposite team is in possession.
Long Shots – The more defensive of the pair will often end up in positions just outside the box, where he will attempt long shots.
Tackling – The level of tackling accuracy, self-explanatory.
Anticipation – This attribute decides how well the player reads the game. High enough value means that the player can predict play, and put himself in an advantageous position.
Aggression – The more defensive of the two should be more ferocious.
Attributes – Attacking
For the attack-minded player, make sure he has high values in:
Off The Ball – This is the attacking equivalent of Positioning – how well the player moves around on the pitch and puts himself in beneficial positions.
Creativity – The more attack-minded of the pair will end up in more advanced positions, where creativity basically means a bigger bag of tricks.
First Touch – How well the player controls the ball when receiving a pass, essential skill to have in a tight midfield with a high pressing opposition.
Preferred moves
If possible, try to instruct your players to learn these preferred moves:
Move into channels – This is an offensive move, making the player look for lateral space to receive through balls.
Comes deep to get the ball – Essential for a normal ‘double pivot’ – the players will pivot and collect the ball from a deep position.
Plays one-twos – Having this ticked will increase the midfield interaction with the attack – both players will quickly set up forwards or wingers in better positions than themselves.
FM2011 – Individual player instructions
The starting role and duty for both players in a normal ‘double pivot’ should be ‘Box To Box Midfielder – Support’. This default setting allows both players creative freedom to make attacking runs, and also describes the essence of the players in a ‘double pivot’ (this is the role description from FM);
“The non-stop dynamism of the Box-To-Box Midfielder enables him to contribute greatly to both defending and attacking. In attack, he pushes up to support the forwards, often surging late into the box to get on the end of crosses and pullbacks, as well as providing a threat from a distance. In defence, he harries attacking midfielders and helps protect the defensive line.”
As you can see, this description hits many of the pre-requisites we need to make a ‘double pivot’ work, but there are a couple of issues that we have to address in custom player instructions:
Mentality – For the defensive-minded player, lower the slider 4-5 steps below default. This will make him slightly more defensive in terms of positioning than his partner.
Closing Down – For the more attack-minded player, this can be lowered 4-5 steps below default.
Roam From Position – Depending on the quality level of your players, and their attribute values in Positioning and Off The Ball, you can experiment with this as you go. For a modern ‘triple pivot’ in a top level team, I’d suggest you have all three players able to roam. In a ‘classic pivot’ or a defensive ‘double pivot’ in a lower level team, I’d instruct the players to be more strict in their positions.
When it comes to instructions like Tackling or Long Shots, adjust them according to your players attribute values in those categories.
On a side note; you might argue that putting both players on a ‘Box To Box Midfielder – Support’ role and duty will make both players lunge forward at times, but the FM match engine does a pretty good job when it comes to players covering vulnerable space for each other. Making sure ‘Team Blend’ is ticked in the Match Preparation module, together with ‘Defensive Positioning’ for match days, will increase player symbiosis.
Player examples and recommendations
In terms of the defensive-minded player, the best player for that position on a new FM save is currently Roma’s Daniele De Rossi. He has at least 15 in all the required attributes, including very high values in Aggression, Determination and Positioning. Inter Milan’s Dejan Stankovic is a close second, also with high values in key attributes. Other players like Sampdoria’s Angelo Palombo and Palermo’s Antonio Nocerino also have excellent attributes.
When it comes to the more attack-minded of the pair, our options are far greater. Xavi, Cesc Fabregas, Joao Moutinho, Rafael van der Vaart, Wesley Sneijder, Andres Iniesta and Frank Lampard are the big names in this department, but there are lesser knowns here as well, like Santos’ Paulo Henrique or Cagliari’s Andrea Lazzari.
Good luck with your new midfield setup, and if you have any questions, fire away in the comments section below!
