The role of the Winger in football has changed dramatically over the years. No longer are they just expected to hug the touchline and whip in lofted deliveries for tall, old-school centre forwards. Now, just like their teammates in other positions, they have to be much more versatile.

Modern wingers now serve a variety of roles across the pitch, something reflected in the growth in attacking and defensive outputs delivered by top wingers year after year.

Here, SteinkelssonFM uses Brighton & Hove Albion to break down all of the different winger roles in Football Manager 2024 and how you can effectively build your tactics around getting the most from them.

Kaoru Mitoma has been nothing short of sensational for Brighton since joining the south coast club from his native Japan in 2021.

What makes him so special? Like most players, it’s a unique combination of skills.

His biggest strength, and the thing that’s wowed fans and pundits the most, has been his movement and ability with the ball at his feet; his Dribbling Attribute of 18 is one of the best in the entire FM24 database.

He’s also mobile, with Attribute scores of 16 for Pace and 17 for Acceleration, while his rating of 16 for Flair highlights his natural talent for the creative and unpredictable.

These scores reflect his natural game, wherein he’s constantly working to create one-on-one situations with opposition defenders. In this way, he very much embodies all of the things that teams need modern wide players to be.

We’ll start this run-through of the modern winger roles with the one that’s alphabetically first, the Inside Forward.

Players used as Inside Forwards are typically those whose strongest foot is the opposite to the flank they’re being used on, allowing them to regularly cut inside from the flanks and run at the opposition defence. This movement can open up space for overlapping Full-Backs/Wing-Backs as well as overloading a retreating defender.

For this example, we’ll be using Mitoma as an Inside Forward on a Support duty, as this will encourage him to cut diagonally into the space behind the defence and play through balls or take long shots if the opportunity arises.

Mitoma’s strong Off the Ball Attribute (15) is important for him being successful in this role, as it means he’ll be constantly moving while not in possession, scanning for avenues to receive the ball and create attacking opportunities. It also likely means he’ll have more touches in the box when compared to the alternative roles covered in this post.

His strong scores for Pace and Acceleration make it easier for you to use a Support duty as he’s still likely to be able to break free beyond the opposition’s defensive line - even if his runs start from deeper positions.

With Mitoma in this role on the left, you’ll need something complementary on the right. The best option is using Solly March as a Winger on Attack. In this role, he’ll often look to play balls into Evan Ferguson as the Deep Lying Forward, who can slow the pace of the game with the instruction ‘Hold Up Ball’ as he waits for support. Due to Mitoma’s deeper starting position, he is already at full tilt when Ferguson plays the pass through the defensive line, meaning that he’s got a great shot of goal and João Pedro supporting for any rebound opportunities.

In FM24, the Winger aims to beat their opposite number on the outside, either through technical skill, speed or a combination of the two. Typically, you will see the winger hugging the touchline when their team is going forward, ready to surge into space and attack the byline.

When deployed with an Attack duty, the Winger will be much more direct in their runs in the final third, aiming to cause panic and indecision before shooting or attempting to make a through ball/cross to a teammate.

Mitoma’s previously outlined strengths make him a great fit for the Winger role but you need to make sure that he gets the requisite space to be able to run at the opposing full-back. To create this within a tactic, Pervis Estupiñán has been deployed as a Full-Back on Support to reduce the number of overlapping runs made. This is a fairly accurate representation of how Brighton plays out from the back in real life, with Mitoma being Brighton’s leader in terms of progressive passes received.

You will note the other players' roles highlighted within this tactical set-up all emphasise making runs into the box. Danny Welbeck, operating as the lone complete forward, will be supported through the late runs of Julio Enciso (Attacking Midfielder), and Simon Adingra (Inside Forward), as both roles have the ‘Get Further Forward’ instruction.

Last but not least is the Inverted Winger, whose primary aim is to cut inside to open up space for overlapping full-backs and overload opposition defenders. With an Attack duty, the Inverted Winger will run directly at the defence with the options of shooting, passing or crossing as he moves into the attacking third.

By being a bit more direct and having a naturally wider starting position than the Inside Forward, a player in this role is likely to face more direct resistance in terms of pressing when attempting to progress play.

In this role, Mitoma’s Attributes of 14 for Balance and Agility allow him to move between defenders to create a shooting opportunity or draw contact, resulting in a potential free kick or penalty. Mitoma also has 14 for Decisions, enabling him to make the correct choice more often or not in wide areas.

Much like in the example above, the roles of your defenders and wingers on the same side should be in tandem. As such, in this example, Estupiñán is deployed as a Wing-Back on Support to take advantage of the space vacated by Mitoma cutting in.

Again, I have opted to ensure that Mitoma has two players occupying the defensive line – namely Enciso and Ansu Fati. The Advanced Forward will look to exploit any vacant space behind and also take an opponent away from the defensive block, thereby leaving space for the Attacking Midfielder. March, meanwhile, ensures that width is maintained on the other flank.

These simple relationships will potentially help Mitoma’s attacking contribution, improving the likelihood of him playing a key pass into a goalscoring position.

While the default roles in FM24 will cover most of the things that we want our players to do, it’s sometimes worthwhile to add some additional Player and Team Instructions to give things a helping hand.

Regardless of which wide player roles you choose to use him in, Mitoma’s effectiveness is enhanced even further by the Shoot Less Often and Take More Risks Player Instructions. These will encourage him to be patient while in possession, particularly further away from the goal, meaning he has more avenues to pursue either mazy dribbles or lower-percentage passes.

To ramp up Brighton’s effectiveness down the left, you could also add in the ‘Focus Play Down the Left’ Team Instruction to create more overloads and opportunities.

Wide players are integral to almost every tactic in FM24, and with this guide, you should have a greater insight into whether a Winger, Inverted Winger or Inside Forward is best for your next career.

Happy managing,

SteinkelssonFM

In football, it's about being at the right place at the right time - and few players are better at that than a Segundo Volante.

One of several roles to be impacted by Football Manager 2024’s new positional play changes[www.footballmanager.com], the Segundo Volante can perform a range of duties, from long-range passes to darting runs and shots from distance.

In this guide, we’ll be taking an in-depth look into the role, what makes it so good, and how you can make the most of it in your latest FM24 career.

Originating from the 4-2-4s that revolutionised football in the 1950s and 60s, the Segundo Volante was a player typically deployed as the more creative outlet in a midfield two alongside a defensive pivot.

In modern times, the Segundo Volante is still used as part of a double pivot, often in a 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2 or 3-5-2. Often paired with a pure ball-winner, the Segundo Volante will play a similar game to other defensive midfielders, focusing on recovery, holding their position and seeking to intercept misplaced passes or beat their man on individual duels.

However, the Segundo Volante has a more influential role in their team’s offence. Unlike a Regista or a Deep-Lying Playmaker, they don’t just influence games through passing. They also offer dynamic forward runs, attacking the box and offering passing options to their teammates with runs into space.

The Segundo Volante is a role that can complement your attacking approach without leaving gaps behind. However, that also means that you need a very complete player for the role to be effective in your tactic.

It’s not a specialist role per se but a good Segundo Volante is someone who can recover the ball, pass over a variety of distances, move well with the ball at their feet, and also offer a goal threat. That means you’re looking for a good combination of the following Attributes: Marking, Tackling, Positioning, Teamwork, First Touch, Dribbling, Agility, Passing, Vision, Decisions, Anticipation, Off the Ball, and Stamina. Not every player will excel in all of those but if their strengths lie in a few of them, they’ll be able to influence matches across the whole pitch.

To illustrate what a great Segundo Volante looks like in FM24 and how to use one, I’ve started a save with Yokohama F. Marinos. Why them? Well, their defensive midfielder Takuya Kida meets many of the requirements I laid out above.

As you can see from his profile screenshot above, Kida is a well-rounded midfielder. However, as with all roles in a tactic, it will only be as effective as it’s allowed to be by the supporting roles you’ve chosen in the rest of the team.

Given that movement is such a big part of the Segundo Volante’s game, they need to understand how their teammates shuttle around the pitch. For example, with Kida starting his runs from deep and arriving late in the opposition penalty area, you’ll need players on their side of the pitch like Wingers and Wing-Backs that will stretch the game and give them the space to arrive into.

With that movement, that also means that you also need to think about the risk of turnovers and opposition counter-attacks. As such, you need Kida’s defensive midfield partner to be someone who will cover the gaps left by him pushing forward and serve as the team’s primary ball-winner – think about using an Anchorman or a Defensive Midfielder on a Defend duty.

Further forward, you’ll need an aggressive striker that will keep the defence on their toes. Having a player that stays high up the pitch will occupy the opposition's central defenders, meaning that Kida will have space in behind. To achieve this effect, your best options are to use a Poacher, Advanced Forward, or Complete Forward on an Attack duty.

Taking all of those considerations into account, let’s head to the Tactics board to see how we’ve got the Yokohama F. Marinos lining up.

Using a slightly modified version of the Fluid Counter-Attack tactical preset, I’ve got Kida as a Segundo Volante alongside Eduardo as a Defensive Midfielder.

On the left, we’re taking advantage of the coverage provided by Kota Watanabe by deploying Katsuya Nagato as an overlapping Full-Back with Yan Matheus as a Winger on a Support duty.

However, on the right we’ll use Football Manager 2024’s new positional play features to maximise Kida’s impact as a Segundo Volante. Here, we’ve got Ryuta Koike as an Inverted Wing-Back on Support and Elber as a more attacking Winger. When our team is in possession, Koike will move into defensive midfield alongside Eduardo, meaning that Kida can push up freely without worrying about us losing a player through the middle.

Up front, Anderson Lopes will keep the opposition defence on edge as an Advanced Forward, while Kota Mizunuma as an Attacking Midfielder on Support will provide a passing outlet for all our runners.

Everything that we’ve discussed so far is the theory. Now it’s time to see how it all works in practice on a Matchday.

Looking at the screenshot below, it’s clear that the tactical shape and role combinations we’re using are working out perfectly.

Elber is staying wide on the right, keeping his opposition full-back occupied, while Anderson Lopes’ holding of a central position means that the centre-backs are keeping tight to him instead of spreading out more evenly across the pitch. This means that Kida can burst forward into the space created, ready to receive a pass from Mizunuma. Kida’s movement is also, as you can see, being covered by Koike drifting in centrally.

In each match, this space allowed Kida to push forward and arrive late at the edge of the box as we were attacking. This puts him in good position to finish off any cutbacks or, as in the screenshot below, take long-range shots with a clear sight of goal.

The Pass Map included below from one of our league games shows that the Kida covers a lot of ground in the Segundo Volante role. He consistently keeps the ball moving, using the space around him to open up the play and demonstrate his great range of passing.

The below image, meanwhile, is the converse – it’s a demonstration of Kida’s received passes during a match. Here, you can again see his movement across the pitch and the fact that he’s consistently making himself available as a relief option when his teammates come under pressure in the midfield.

The Segundo Volante is a special role and one of my favourites in FM24. Starting from deep positions, Segundo Volantes offer a unique blend of defensive coverage, ball-carrying, long passes and a scoring threat. While not all teams will have someone suitably versatile, this example with Takuya Kida and Yokohama F. Marinos shows how they can influence matches. Give it a try in your latest career.

Happy managing,

Rock’s End FM

YFM Squad