FM22 Leicester City - Fluid Counter Attack 5-2-1-2 Tactic | Team Guide

Football Manager 2022 Leicester City tactic and team guide. Club culture and board requirements, key players, youth prospects and transfers in FM22.

Football Manager 2022 Leicester City tactic and team guide. Club culture and board requirements, tactics, key players, youth prospects and potential transfers in FM22.

Here is a brief analysis of the Leicester squad, their club structure, relationship any potential managers will have with the board, expectations and possible tactics any FM22 manager can use.

About Leicester City

In an astonishing story of rags to riches, Leicester won the Premier League in 2015-2016 just 2 years after their promotion from the 2nd tier of English Football. The club were in the doldrums in 2008 when they were relegated to the 3rd tier of English football. Their climb to being the eventual Premier League champions which took 7 years is the fastest ascension in the entire PL Era. Now Leicester are considered an established PL side with decent quality in their ranks and constant top half finishes even pushing for Champion's League spots.

Leicester came very close to securing a UCL spot in the 2020-2021 season but could not quite get there and ended up finishing in 5th place. They are in the Europa League and the minimum board requirements once you take over will be,

· Get a top 6 league finish (Automatic Qualification to the Europa League)
· Reach the QF of the FA Cup
· Reach the QF of the EFL Cup/Carabao Cup.
· Reach the QF of the Europa League.
· Be recognized as the best of the rest

Additionally, you will be required to play attacking entertaining football and develop players using the club’s youth system.

The club have very good training facilities and adequate youth facilities. You will definitely have to work on improving the facilities available if you slowly wish to build an empire and attract big names. However, Leicester do have a very good scouting network and youth recruitment which will definitely help the manager in identifying potential.

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Squad, Formation and Tactical Style

The Leicester squad are a blend of young players and seasoned campaigners, your challenge will be to keep a hold of the stars from other big clubs while attracting talent.

There are quite a few tactical setups you could deploy with Leicester, however, the most suitable tactic will be a fluid counter attack. Leicester rely on quick breaks and burst of pace, especially from their frontman Vardy and this could be the most suited tactic.

A 5-2-1-2, or 3-4-1-2 if you prefer, is the most ideal formation for Leicester. This is how they line up currently in real life too and will be most suitable for their squad of available players. You could also opt for a 4-1-2-1-2 diamond if you wish to opt for a more compact formation.

A rough example of what your line-up would look like in a 5-2-1-2 formation is as follows,

Kasper Schmeichel as a sweeper keeper.

Caglar Soyuncu, Johny Evans & Wesley Fofana as the 3 centre backs, Soyuncu & Fofana as the 2 wide centre backs & Evans as the ball playing centre back.

Ryan Bertrand & Ricardo Pereira as wing-backs. They are extremely good fullback options with them contributing to a lot of attacks.

Wilfried Ndidi and Youri Tielemans as the 2 central midfielders, former as a ball winning midfielder, latter as a deep playmaker.

James Maddison as an attacking midfielder in a No 10 role.

Jamie Vardy & Kelechi Iheanacho as the 2 front men with Vardy playing as a deep lying forward and Iheanacho as an advanced forward or poacher.

Alternatively, when you change to a 4-1-2-1-2 diamond or play a 4-3-3 making use of Barnes who can be a quality option from the bench.

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Key Players

Jamie Vardy

Vardy is your key man in attack, he is a natural goalscorer and is a talismanic presence for Leicester upfront.

James Maddison

The English playmaker is one of the best from set piece situations and can contribute immensely to the Leicester attack by creating chances.

Youri Tielemans

Tielemans despite his young age is an enterprising presence in midfield. He also has the ability to perform in big games making him a dangerous player for Leicester.

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Youth Prospects

There are a few exciting young prospects in the ranks who have the potential to be some of the best players in the league. A few examples are,

Wesley Fofana

Fofana had a stellar debut season at Leicester and is already one of the most important players in defence for the club. With time, he could easily be a club legend.

Patson Daka

Daka is a new signing at Leicester and is touted to be a successful goalscoring presence in the league. Daka is already good enough to be starting a few games and in time can be the perfect replacement for Vardy.

Luke Thomas

Thomas who is of a similar mould to Ben Chilwell is considered as one of the jewels of the Leicester academy. In a few years time, he can be a top player for the club.

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Weaknesses

· The overall squad depth outside the first team is pretty mediocre so injuries to key players will result in a serious drop of quality.
· This is overall a very young squad and could take a few seasons for the youngsters to hit their prime.
· Bigger clubs could always poach your stars as the allure of playing for a bigger club will always be tempting.

Potential Transfers (in)

Leicester are not the best squad in the league with respect to squad depth, these players could be welcome additions to the side.

· Ruben Loftus Cheek
· Said Benrahma

Potential Transfers (Out)

These players maybe surplus to requirements at the club or may not be of the expected quality.

· Daniel Amartey
· Hamza Choudhary

Summary

Leicester are a decent side for most FM22 managers, they are a side that are constantly improving and have achieved stability off late. Can you take the next step with Leicester and help them compete for silverware regularly?