The Quadruple-Winning FM24 Tactic That Transformed Manchester United

Discover the FM24 tactic that led Manchester United to a historic quadruple in just one season.

Success Beyond Expectation; How I Stumbled Upon this QUADRUPLE-WINNING Tactic in FM24

Included in Premium Members Area: Extra Downloads & Benefits Premium: Extra Benefits

Believe it or not, but in my spare time, I tend to play Football Manager as a hobby. And as a Manchester United fan, watching our downfall in recent years, the idea of trying to rebuild my club invigorated me, in the hope the digital success would somehow translate to real life success! However, it was in my rebuild of Manchester United where I accidently stumbled across a scintillating tactic that ended up winning the quadruple in the first season! In this article, I’ll be explaining and releasing the tactic, along with showcasing the excellent results achieved in the save. Firstly, let me explain what I wanted from the tactic.

Raising the Physical Floor

Over the last 10 or so years, the side’s physical floor has decreased exponentially. This has seen United become almost completely incapable of successfully adopting an intense high press over a sustained period, mostly due to the type of signings made over the last decade. Signings such as Casemiro, Antony and Fred were indicative of United’s lack of vision and strategy over the last decade. Along with that, signings like the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo, and the long-term retaining of the likes of Nemanja Matic, Juan Mata and Victor Lindelöf have all lowered the physical floor. Therefore, my main objective in the early years of the rebuild was to raise the physical floor of the team. In my opinion, if you raise the physical floor, you ultimately raise the technical floor in the long run, as you’re able to sustain possession for longer periods.

Maximising Individuals

When Erik ten Hag first joined the Red Devils, he utilized MarcusRashford in the half-spaces very regularly, and this positioning saw his goal output increase dramatically to 30 goals in 22/23! However, in 23/24 and the last few months of his reign in 24/25, ten Hag utilized Marcus Rashford as a touchline winger. This change saw Rashford’s form plummet and, coincidently, United’s form plummet. It wasn’t the only time the Dutchman mis-profiled a player in his time at the club, with ten Hag using the likes of channel forward Rasmus Hojlund and link-up striker Joshua Zirkzee as target men. Therefore, a key objective I tried to achieve was to get players into favourable positions. This more pragmatic, player-focused approach saw our players return to their stunning best and our youngsters achieve fine seasons:

• Rashford – 30 goals, 10 assists
• Fernandes – 18 goals, 41 assists
• Højlund – 37 goals, 5 assists
• Garnacho – 13 goals, 12 assists
• Mount – 11 goals, 15 assists
• Amad – 11 goals, 8 assists

Laying Down Foundations

My aim from this tactic was to ultimately lay down foundations for a future tactical set-up I envisioned us using in the next 3-5 years. That tactical set-up would be my dream approach:

• 4-2-3-1/4-3-3
• 3-Diamond-3 in possession
• De Zerbi-inspired build-up (baiting the press)
• Vertical adaptability/pragmatism
• Transitional based final third
• Incessant pressing
• Very high line

However, for the first season, I wanted to focus on the physical side of our squad. Therefore, I was (needlessly in hindsight) comfortable with short term pain, as I knew it’d convert to long-term gain as we grow as a team.

All three of these ideas ultimately created THIS tactic:

In Possession

Early emphasis on building from the back – not married to the idea. Emphasis on quick, vertical build-up to adopt our in-possession shape quickly. Mainly focusing on transitional moments so our risky 2-wide 3-5 (2-3-5) in-possession shape isn’t exposed to counter-attacks.

In Transition

Distributing to our comfortable ball-players to reliably build-up from the back. Quicker distribution further encourages efficiency in transitional moments. Counter-pressing and counter-attacking goes hand-in-hand in this ideology.

Out of Possession

Forcing a very high line to test/expose our centre-backs to my ideology’s physical demands. High pressing incessantly – exposure in a baptism of fire. Getting stuck in to amplify our intense pressing preferences.

READ ALSO: Recreating Rúben Amorim’s Tactics for Man Utd in FM24!

Player Instructions

Sweeper Keeper – Attack

Emphasis on consistent early build-up play methods. Also utilizing a top-3 ball-playing ‘keeper in his preferred, ball-playing focused role. Huge responsibility to sweep loose balls in-behind. No additional instructions.

Inverted Wing-Back – Support

Exposure to a possession-based role, with extra exposure to a role with major defensive responsibility. Also places Dalot and Mazraoui in comfortable areas. No additional instructions.

(DCR) Ball-Playing Defender – Defend

De Ligt is a solid ball-playing defender as he has suitable abilities in this role, and has previous experience in ball-dominant systems (Ajax, Bayern etc). Introduces Leny Yoro to the technical demands of a modern centre-back. Both centre-backs, of which, are encouraged to dribble more in order to draw in, and ultimately bait, the press (slight exposure to ‘De Zerbian’ build-up philosophy). Finally, they are also asked to stay wider to provide wide passing angles for central bounce passes from the technically limited Manuel Ugarte in the centre. Therefore, these instructions will encourage this:

(DCL) Ball-Playing Defender – Defend

Practically the same role with the same ideas, however, with less licence to carry forward and bait the press due to a lack of close passing options out wide (Luke Shaw vacates his LB position as a Wing-Back). Therefore, this instruction should encourage this:

Wing-Back – Support

I want the left-back in this system to support the left-winger, along with providing a secondary attacking threat from deep positions. I ask him to stay wider to take up the left wide channel, which also allows him to be available for bounce passes higher up the pitch. When he has the ball, I want him to amplify the left-winger’s (Rashford) game by providing consistent overlaps and playing through balls in-behind for him to chase, in turn creating more transitional moments. I was also inspired by Arteta’s automatism with Ben White and Bukayo Saka, where the former would run wider with the ball and play a pass into the latter, who was already initiating a movement inside. Therefore, as the latter received the ball, he was already on the half-turn and attacking on the inside of his full-back. Therefore, I tried to recreate this in my system/ideology. Ultimately, I felt these instructions were best suit to execute my vision:

Ball-Winning Midfielder – Defend

From the holding midfielder in this system, I just wanted a player who had the energy to cover wide spaces and confront opposition attackers on the counter-attack, but who could also shield the backline and further force long, speculative passes into empty space. Ugarte and Casemiro perfected this, with the former’s energy being a massive plus in this system. No additional instructions.

Advanced Playmaker – Support

In this position, I wanted a player who could become available for progressive passes into the half-spaces from the centre-backs. When the player (Bruno Fernandes) would receive the ball, I wanted him to be the creative driving force of our midfield, constantly supplying through balls into the path of the Inside Forward or striker. I also wanted to create enough vertical separation from the playmaker and Inside Forward, in the hopes that the playmaker would draw out a defender, in turn creating space for the Inside Forward to run into. Moving the playmaker wider would also create a fun and dynamic wide triangle, which could draw the entire opposition over to that flank. Therefore, I felt these instructions allowed for these things to occur:

Mezzala – Support

In this position, I was actually inspired by Pep Guardiola’s use of Kevin De Bruyne in a very similar role. For me, I wanted this player to be in the half-space to create potential passing angles inside. I also wanted this player to drag out a defender to create space for an attacker to run into. However, I did want him to also be in a position where he could be the second receiver in an ‘up, back and through pattern’. An automatism I wanted to create was one where a pass from the ball-playing centre-backs could be (first time) passed into this Mezzala, who could then (first time) play a ball in-behind for an attacker to chase, or to carry into the final third. Lastly, I wanted this player to be able to move into wide crossing opportunities, and occasionally overlap the Inverted Winger to create separation and confusion in the opposition’s back-line. Therefore, I felt these player instructions would encourage these things most:

Inverted Winger – Attack

To compliment the Mezzala making these movements, I wanted my right-winger to mainly hold the width and create separation. However, I wanted more fluidity in movement than a ‘Winger’ role, for example, could provide. As the Mezzala moves out wide and overlaps, I wanted the right-winger to temporarily swap positions and move inside – hence the choice of the Inverted Winger. Like on the left side, I wanted separation of the winger and midfielder, therefore I went with an Attack mentality. Finally, I also wanted my right winger to be able to play angled through balls and test the opposition’s backline, putting emphasis on transitional moments. Therefore, I went with these instructions:

Inside Forward – Attack

The main thing I wanted from the left winger in this system was to be the main goal-threat, especially so in-game, as Marcus Rashford has 16 finishing! I did, also, want to give him the freedom to float inside and out, in order to find pockets of space to exploit. Therefore, I only added this instruction:

Pressing Forward – Attack

Another one of my aims in the rebuild was to get Rasmus Højlund firing on all cylinders, as I believe he has the potential (in-game and real life) to be one of the best in the world. One of the issues with Højlund’s ealy United career has been the lack of shots he has taken, despite an impressive conversion rate. In an attempt to fix this, I allowed him to be slightly selfish and take more shots. I also wanted to exploit his blistering speed, so therefore, I allowed him to carry the ball on a more regular basis, in the hope his natural strength and pace would carry him through these long strides and get the team into dangerous positions more frequently. When we didn’t have the ball, I wanted him to use his excellent pressing ability to lead the press and hassle the opposition into submission. Therefore, this role and these player instructions were the perfect mix:

• [message]
• DISCLAIMER: 
• I applied an individual player role and individual instructions to Zirkzee, which can be seen below:

READ ALSO: Hansi Flick’s Barcelona Invincibles Tactic - FM24 Recreation

Results

• [message]
• DISCLAIMER: 
• I did actually holiday simulate the season with this tactic, so maybe if I had made tweaks, the results could’ve been even better! Either way, it shows you the raw results I achieved, without in-game tweaks/subs!

Premier League

In the Premier League, we ended up winning the league with ease, as we accumulated 91 points, finishing 14 points clear of our title rivals! We ended up winning 28 of our 38 games, whilst losing just 3 games all season. Additionally, we scored 107 goals (1st) and conceded just 30 (1st), finishing with a goal difference of +77!

Domestic Cups

In the Community Shield, we ended up losing in the final after a 3-2 loss to Manchester City. Things were much better in both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, however! In the former, we beat Everton 4-2 in the final, following wins against Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, Peterborough and Newcastle on the way to the final. In the latter, we beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 in the final. On the way to Wembley, we overcame Birmingham, Wolves, Man City, Stockport and Millwall.

UEFA Europa League

We ended up completing the famous quadruple thanks to a tight 1-0 win in the final against Italian outfit Lazio, courtesy of an Amad winner! On the way to Dublin, we beat Tottenham Hotspur, AC Milan and Eintracht Frankfurt 7-1, 3-7 and 0-4 on aggregate respectively.

Conclusion

In what was supposed to be a long-term save with my beloved Manchester United, where I aimed to take them back to the top of English and European football, I accidently stumbled upon a staggering system which ended up winning us the quadruple in the first season – practically rendering the rest of the save pointless! In this article, I have demonstrated my tactical vision for this rebuild and how I took my first steps to execute my vision, and I have presented the tactics behind this system which achieved Success Beyond Expectation, before showcasing the fabulous results the tactic achieved in my first (and likely only) season of this Man Utd save. If you want a taste of this extraordinary tactic, make sure to download the tactic using the link attached to this article and follow FM Blog and myself, @AshtonGgmu, 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!