Fabian Hürzeler's Shining Seagulls – FM24 Tactical Recreation (WINS TREBLE)

Recreate Fabian Hürzeler's Tactics in FM24 | Brighton's 4-2-4 Mastery | Download & Results.

Recreate Fabian Hürzeler's Tactical Brilliance in Football Manager 2024

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On the 15th June 2024, shockwaves were sent around the footballing world as Brighton & Hove Albion appointed Fabian Hürzeler as their new Head Coach, making him the youngest permanent boss in Premier League history, at the age of just 31! This appointment arose questioning and speculation from fans and media alike, as they wondered if the German was fit to manage such an ambitious club. However, these questions have been quickly swept under the carpet, as Hürzeler has Brighton 6th in the Premier League table after 11 games, following a stunning 2-1 comeback victory over champions Manchester City. In this article, I’ll be talking you through my recreation of Hürzeler's tactics at Brighton and showcasing my exceptional results achieved with said tactics. Firstly, let’s have a look at some of the core principles in this system:

De Zerbi Similarities

In 22/23, Roberto De Zerbi took both the English game and European game by storm as he implemented an incredibly brave and intriguing style of play, mostly centred around build-up methods. Here, he’d ask his team to remain patient throughout build-up, and complete as many passes as necessary in the first phase, until an opportunity occurred to pass into the feet of a central attacker. From here, the team would use third-man passes and triangles to bypass opposition pressure. The aim of this was to create artificial counter-attacks, by drawing the opposition’s defensive line high and then exploiting that high positioning. This season, Hürzeler has adopted this style of play and has refined and adapted it slightly to exploit transitional moments more frequently. As aforementioned, De Zerbi would want his team to play loads and loads of quick, short passes until a gap opened for a vertical pass. Hürzeler, on the other hand, has two other ways of opening these gaps for vertical passes. One of the ways is straight from the ‘keeper, who can play a clipped/fizzed ball into a central target, who can then use players around him to facilitate third-man combinations. The other way is the use of carrying, particularly seen with van Hecke, who’ll look to carry the ball some distance to draw the press in from the opposition.

Persistent Possession & Probing

Under De Zerbi, Brighton would rarely look to work the ball into the box. In fact, they’d often pass the ball all the way back to the ‘keeper, in an attempt to draw the opposition’s defensive line high again. However, as teams began to understand the ideas behind this, they would avoid pushing up to close down Brighton’s ‘keeper and centre-backs. This meant Brighton often struggled to break down teams, especially in a low-block. Under Hürzeler, however, Brighton are now far more willing to persist with possession in the opposition’s final third, and are finding multiple ways to beat low-blocks.

Loading the Box and Emptying the Midfield

One way Brighton looks to break down teams is by using crosses to their advantage. Brighton regularly loads the box with three, four, five or maybe even six players, whilst at least one player will camp outside the area, anticipating a loose ball. On a few occasions, this has seen a Brighton player score/have a shot unmarked in the opposition area. Another way Brighton has had attacking success this season is through Hürzeler’s idea of emptying the midfield. At Brighton, Hürzeler looks to achieve this by encouraging at least one in his double pivot to venture forward, with no-one replacing him in the midfield, until Brighton arrive in the final third. In the final third, Hürzeler inverts his right-back to a deeper midfield position to make up for the lack of bodies centrally and to create a strong rest defence.

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Let’s Break Down the Tactic

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• Disclaimer
• There are three tactics to download, all three are in the folder you’ll download on this article. Later in the article, I will provide instructions for when to use the three tactics. This tactic I’ll be breaking down is the 4-2-4 version.

In Possession

Brighton look to build up play from the back, using a good mix of quick, short passing and rapid vertical passes. Often, Brighton looks to use wide areas to create these third man combinations, the left side has proven particularly fruitful. Brighton are very potent in the final third, as they use a few different methods to work the ball into the box. Finally, Brighton are instructed to carry the ball very often. Therefore, I felt the team instructions seen in the picture above were most appropriate.

In Transition

From goal-kicks, the ‘keeper will usually put his studs on the ball in an attempt to draw in the opposition’s press. Once the ‘keeper deems necessary, he’ll mainly look to distribute short passes, however, there is no particular target to aim these passes to. Finally, Hürzeler’s Brighton are very transitional and attacking-minded, and will look to amplify these transitional moments using counter-attacks. This goes for when they lose the ball, as they’ll look to win it back immediately. Therefore, I felt the team instructions seen in the picture above were most appropriate.

Out of Possession

When Brighton don’t have the ball, they are incredibly complex and nuanced in their methods to win the ball back. Firstly, they hold an incredibly brave high-line. They do this to close the space the opposition has to build-up, however, it has proven to be Brighton’s Achilles heel so far this season, with multiple teams taking advantage of it. They combine this high line with an intense, narrow high press, as they look to force the opposition into wide areas. Finally, Brighton can be quite aggressive in their ventures to win back the ball. Therefore, I felt the team instructions seen in the picture above were most appropriate.

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Player Instructions

Sweeper-Keeper – Attack:

In this system, the ‘keeper has a large onus both in possession, and out. From build-up, the ‘keeper has to be very comfortable on the ball, and has to have a good passing range to find players with more direct passes. He also has to form a back-three with the two centre-backs in build-up. Out of possession, the ‘keeper has to be able to close the space given to the opposition by Brighton’s high line. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate. No additional player instructions.

Inverted Wing-Back – Defend:

The right-back in this system has to be quite versatile, comfortable moving into midfield areas once Brighton are in the final third, comfortable out wide, creating third-man combinations, and finally, he has to be comfortable forming a back-three in possession, with the two centre-backs. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate. No additional player instructions.

(DCR) Ball-Playing Defender – Defend:

The two centre-backs in this system have slightly differing traits. The main difference being that van Hecke, the right-sided centre-back, will often carry the ball forwards to draw in the opposition press. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instruction pictured below:

(DCL) Ball-Playing Defender – Defend:

On the other hand, Dunk is a more functional ball-playing centre-back, as he looks to stay more stationary with the ball at his feet. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, without any further player instructions.

Full-Back – Attack:

On the left-side, the left-back is very important in this system, as he has to have a good relationship with the left-winger, along with feeling comfortable both holding the width and inverting slightly. The left-back has to make third-man runs off the ball, whilst providing dangerous crosses into the penalty area. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instruction pictured below:

Deep-Lying Playmaker – Defend:

The deepest midfielder in this system has to be the connector-point for central progression, popping up on both sides to pick up the ball when needed. He also, along with his midfield partner, has to provide the final passing option for the central third-man combinations between a centre-back, an attacker, and a midfielder. Once he receives the final pass in the combination, he has to play a pass forward, usually looking for a winger holding the width. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, without any further player instructions.

Segundo Volante – Attack:

On the other side of the double pivot, the right-sided midfielder is usually the one emptying the midfield; by pushing high and making late, box-crashing runs into the penalty area. Like his midfield partner, however, he also has to provide the final passing option in a central third-man combination, and also has to spray a pass forward, usually to a winger. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instruction pictured below:

Attacking Midfielder – Support:

This role is absolutely crucial to this system, and is usually the driving force of the attack. João Pedro, in this role, has probably played the best football of his career, as it allows him to drift between the opposition’s defensive and midfield lines to pick up the ball and drive with it forward, using his immense carrying skills. The player in this role, whether it’s Pedro or Rutter, has to create a front-two with the striker and provide vertical passing options. Once he receives the ball, he’s given licence to run with the ball, pass it short to complete the third-man combination or to create for attackers ahead of him. Finally, you’ll usually see Pedro, in this role, roaming from his position and moving into wide areas to create qualitative/numerical overloads. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instructions pictured below:

Inside Forward – Support:

The wingers in this system are very similar with their movements in possession, however, there’s a slight differentiation when they both have the ball. On the right-side, the winger tends to be more conservative with his carrying and ventures forward, hence the support mentality I selected. Along with that, the right-winger will look to be more direct in his ventures towards goal, looking to work angles to shoot. Both wingers, however, primarily hold the width in possession, and are both given licence to move inside at times to form wide third-man combinations. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instructions pictured below:

Inverted Winger – Attack:

The left-winger's difference on-the-ball is that he’ll regularly drive at an opposing full-back, before providing the final pass or cross. Mitoma is, arguably, the perfect winger for this role, as his immense dribbling ability is perfect for a means of progression on this side. Like the right-winger, Mitoma will hold the width initially, but has licence to roam inside to provide attacking support/third-man combinations. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate, with the added instructions pictured below:

Complete Forward – Support:

Danny Welbeck has probably seen the most success, individually, with Hürzeler in charge. Under De Zerbi, Welbeck was used more as a deep-lying forward, dropping deeper to receive between the lines and link play. He still does this under Hürzeler, however, is encouraged to make runs in-behind at times, and to be a vocal point for crosses/cut-backs into the penalty area. Therefore, I felt this player role was the most appropriate. No additional player instructions.

Opposition & Tactic Instructions

Opposition instructions:

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• Disclaimer
• Only apply these instructions when using the ‘Big Team’ tactic. When playing a ‘big team’ that plays a 4-3-3 formation, add ‘Tight Marking’ to their most advanced midfielder. Do the same with the ‘AMC’ in a 4-2-3-1. Example:

AMC, Szoboszlai, with ’Tight Marking’ applied on Opposition Instructions

Tactic Instructions – When to use each tactic?

4-2-4 version:

Vs teams that play a 3-2-5 in possession (IFB/IWB role as full-backs).

4-4-2 version:

Vs teams that don’t play a 3-2-5 in possession (WB/FB/CWB role as full-backs/wing-backs)

Results

I’ll be posting individual match results from two tests with Brighton, including multiple 7-0 wins, on my Twitter/X profile @AshtonGgmu.

However, let’s have a look at the results I achieved in both seasonal tests with Brighton, using this insane tactic on FM24!

Premier League:

In both tests, we won the Premier League! In the first season/test, we won the league with 91 points! In this test, we won 29 games, drew 4 and lost only 5. We scored the most goals in the league with 93, and conceded the third-least with 31 goals. In the second season/test, we won the league again – this time with only 83 points as multiple teams heavily underperformed. In this test, we won 25 games, drew 8 and lost only 5 again. Finally, we scored one more than the first test (94), but also conceded one more (32). Both seasons can be seen in the pictures below:

First Test

Second Test

Domestic Cups:

In the first test, we won both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup – meaning we won a historic treble with Brighton! In the former, we beat Spurs 2-1 in the final, following wins against Man United, Luton, Liverpool, Newcastle and West Ham in the path to the final! In the latter, we beat Man Utd 2-1 in the final, following wins against Bristol City, Liverpool, Newcastle, Plymouth and Burton on the way to the final.

In the second test, we won the FA Cup, however, we failed to repeat the Carabao Cup success, following a loss in the third round to Liverpool. As mentioned, we did win the FA Cup, following a 1-2 win vs Chelsea in the final. On the way to Wembley, we beat Man City, Fulham, Watford, Wolves and Tranmere.

Competition overviews of both tests can be seen in the pictures below:

 

First Test

Second Test

Conclusion

It may be early days for Fabian Hürzeler at Brighton, however, the early signs are very positive and the Seagulls look set to push for European football for a second year in the last three. His adaptation of De Zerbi’s build-up style is taking the Premier League by storm, however, his system’s defensive issues could still prove to be the side’s Achilles heel. On FM24, I have recreated Hürzeler's tactics at Brighton and have achieved some magnificent results with them, as we won the treble! If you want a taste of this fantastic tactic, make sure to download the tactic using the link attached to this article and follow FM Blog and myself on our respective socials. I hope you have enjoyed this article, and I wish you much success with this tactic on your saves! Thanks for reading!