FM20 Team Guide & Tactic - Swansea

Here is a brief FM20 team guide of the Swansea squad, their club structure, relationship any potential managers will have with the board, expectations and possible tactics any FM manager can use.

Here is a brief FM20 team guide of the Swansea squad, their club structure, relationship any potential managers will have with the board, expectations and possible tactics any Football Manager 2020 player can use.

About the club

Swansea are a team from Wales that play their Football in the English League. Swansea’s footballing history is a troubled one where they were never really able to achieve any sort of consistency.

However, they moved to their new Liberty Stadium in 2005 and the results gradually started improving. They eventually were promoted to the Premier League in 2011, becoming the first Welsh team to playing in the English Premier League since its inception in 1992.

The Swans were able to enjoy relative success in the PL even qualifying for the Europa league by winning the English League cup by beating Bradford 5-0, the competition’s biggest win in the final till date. After selling some of their accomplished stars, the performance started deteriorating with Swansea finally getting relegated at the end of the 2017-2018 season.

The board's expectations

Promotion is what the fans and the board will want making it the main focus for any manager taking control over the Swans, the board requirement should be;

1. Making the playoffs of the championship.
2. Making the 4th round of the FA cup
3. Making the 4th round of the Carabao Cup.

There will not be any specific philosophies for which you will be judged on, promotion is the main agenda of the board. The wage and transfer budget is relatively healthy considering Swansea are playing in the Championship.

For a Championship level club, the club have decent training and youth facilities. However, you will definitely need to work on these if you achieve promotion.

Squad, Formation and Tactical Style

A controlled possession style of play suits the Swans the best as they are a team that is quite good in retaining possession and creating chances. Alternatively, you can deploy a fluid counter attacking tactic if you wish to be more solid at the back.

A 4-2-3-1 formation is what suits the Swans the best. This will enable them to hold on to possession by recycling the ball between the midfielders and also will help in quick counters through the pacy wingers.

A rough example of what your line-up would look like in a 4-2-3-1 is as follows;

• Freddie Woodman as a sweeper keeper.
• Mike Van Der Hoorn as Ball Plating Defender & Ben Wilmot as Central Defender.
• Connor Roberts & Jake Bidwell as the 2 full backs with Bidwell given increased crossing instructions.
• Matt Grimes as a defensive playmaker & Jay Fulton as the central midfielder.
• Kristoffer Peterson & Andre Ayew as the 2 attacking wingers. Ayew to given a freer role to contribute more in attacks.
• Bersant Celina as the central attacking midfielder, he can pick out crucial passes and should have the option of playing risky passes turned on.
• Borja Baston as the lone striker in a Deep Lying Forward role.

Alternatively, when you wish to play with wide midfielders or counter attacking wingers, you can play Nathan Dyer & Wayne Routledge in those positions and move Ayew higher up the pitch.

Key Players

1. Borja Baston



Borja Baston represents good quality up front with the Spanish striker already netting 6 goals this season. He will be the main source of goals in your quest for promotion.

2. Andre Ayew



Andre Ayew was the African Footballer of the year in 2011 and is an excellent goal threat from the wings.

3. Mike Van Der Hoorn



Mike Van Der Hoorn has won the Eredivisie title with Ajax in 2013 and is a commanding presence in defence. He can also contribute crucial goals from set pieces.

Weaknesses

1. The overall squad depth is also quite average outside the first team and meeting the board demands may be hard without bolstering the squad.
2. This is an ageing squad with some important players are nearing the end of their careers.
3. The defence particularly is not very strong especially outside the first team and any injuries could see the team leaking goals.

Youngsters to keep an eye on

There are a few exciting young prospects in the ranks who have the potential to be good players in the league, they are;

• Ben Cabango (CB)
• Jordan Garrick (AMR)
• Kees De Boer (CM)

FM20 Swansea Team Guide - Summary

To summarise, Swansea are a decent Championship team that have all the ingredients to fight for promotion, however do they have the quality so sustain in the PL once that target is achieved?