Paredes was where I revolutionized my tactic and style of play. The Paredes job came with 2 strong defensive midfielders, 2 strong strikers, including Leandro Cardoso, and a strong complete wing back. This is how my tactic was set up
A goalkeeper on sweeper keeper to cover for our high defense line. The right side stands out as it has two odd roles. On the right wing, instead of a wide player, we played with an advanced playmaker. He would cut inside and drop in behind the striker while the ball was moved upfield then, instead of playing narrow, we stretched the entire pitch wide and had our right back play as a complete wing-back on the attack and cover space out wide and create chaos to overload the opposing left back. While this was happening, our left defensive midfielder would arrive late in the box to pick up any scraps from rebounds, blocked shots, and unsuccessful crosses.
The tactic wasn’t perfected, but it was definitely effective. Arriving in Portugal, I realized there were a lot of youth players from FC Porto and Sporting CP that were being released for free. I took a chance on one named Alfa Balde, a Bissau-Guinean winger who had yet to make a professional appearance. Best gamble I could have taken. The winger tore up the league with 9 goals and 11 assists in 26 matches and a 7.53 average match rating, becoming the highest in the club’s history. In my first season at the club, aided by my new star boy and my new 4-2-4, we won the league with flying colors. This was my first trophy of the save.