After an anxious and excited wait, I finally discovered who Madero Mayhem FC will face in our first season.

We’ve been placed in Flint League 49 for MFL Season 13 and, after a quick look through the squads and their players, it’s immediately obvious that this division is going to be fiercely competitive.

The clear favourites appear to be Dutch Gooners, with Atlantis, AS Evo Sale, All Stars FC and ourselves all looking capable of mounting a challenge.

According to MFL Coach’s squad strength rankings, we sit firmly in the mix. Not favourites, perhaps, but certainly not outsiders either. For a brand-new club built in only a matter of days, I’ll take that.

Whilst all the squads aren’t yet full (at the time of posting) the encouraging thing is that I believe we have one of the deepest and most flexible squads in the division. Given how important rotation, fatigue and player development are in MFL, that could become a major advantage over the course of the season.

A Few More Additions

Just as with Football Manager, I couldn’t resist a few final tweaks before the deadline.

Here are the latest arrivals at Madero Mayhem FC.

Gunnar Bork – LM – 64 OVR

Gunnar may prove to be the most exciting signing of the lot.

He has good pace, excellent dribbling and should form a dangerous partnership down the left with Cambier, our left wingback. Between them, I’m hoping we have the pace and direct running to hurt teams on the counter and create overloads in wide areas.

At 5% revenue share he is not cheap, but I think he has genuine match-winner potential.

The biggest reason for my confidence? Last season he played 16 matches in Spark League – one level above Flint – and still managed 11 goals and 5 assists. If he can produce anything close to that for us, he could be one of the players of the season for our first season.

Ramon Plaza – CB – 64 OVR

Whilst browsing the marketplace, I noticed a couple of Limited Player packs available below the usual price. Naturally, curiosity got the better of me.

At $7 each, I decided to take the gamble.

The first produced Ramon Plaza, who immediately becomes our second-best central defender.

He lacks the pace to play on the outside of a back three, but in the middle he could be ideal. He’s physical, despite only standing at 5ft 10in, and I think he’ll do well in the centre of the defence, where positioning and strength matter more than recovery speed, I think he could be a very useful addition.

Petter Haga – RM – 56 OVR

The second $7 pack brought Petter Haga.

On paper he is a right midfielder, but interestingly he actually rates higher as a right winger, where he reaches 62 OVR.

That gives us some much-needed tactical flexibility. Whilst he will mainly act as backup to Espindola, he also gives me the option of switching shape if required and moving to a more attacking system later in the season.

Fredrick Green – ST – 61 OVR

Finally, thanks to Trequinho securing the outstanding Victorio Andrade on loan, he kindly offered me Fredrick Green instead.

Fredrick will become our first backup striker and gives us something very different to the other forwards in the squad.

He is strong, physical and hard-working; the sort of striker you can throw on late in a game when you need somebody to occupy defenders, win long balls and make life uncomfortable.

Tactical Tinkering

Unless disaster strikes, the plan is to stick with a 5-3-2 throughout the season.

That may sound stubborn, but I want Madero Mayhem FC to have a clear identity from day one. Rather than constantly changing shape, I would rather make small tweaks within the system depending on the opposition.

The challenge is that Flint League 49 contains a wide variety of styles. So far, it looks like we will face:

• Two variations of a 4-3-3
• A 4-2-3-1
• Two very strong narrow 4-2-2-2 systems
• A 4-4-2 diamond
• A 3-5-2

Some of those shapes can cause real problems for a 5-3-2, particularly the narrow systems which try to overload the middle.

Looking for Inzaghi-esque 5-3-2 mastery

Because of that, I’ve spent the last few days running friendly after friendly, testing different versions of the system against comparable opponents.

The good news is that the signs have been encouraging.

Against wide formations like the 4-3-3, the back five gives us natural protection and allows the wing-backs to engage their wide players aggressively.

Against narrower systems such as the 4-2-2-2 and diamond, I’ve adjusted the midfield shape to keep us tighter in the centre and force the opposition into areas where they are less dangerous.

Most importantly, I now feel I have three clear versions of the 5-3-2:

• A balanced version for evenly matched teams
• A more aggressive version to use when we should dominate
• A narrower, more cautious version for the strongest opponents

That means we can keep our identity whilst still adapting to what is in front of us.

Perhaps the biggest test will come against Dutch Gooners, who look by far the strongest team in the division and are expected to finish first. They use a narrow 4-2-2-2, which could be a nightmare match-up on paper.

But after a number of practice matches against similar teams, I’m quietly optimistic that we’ve found a way to compete.

A draw would be a good result. A win would send a message to the rest of the division.

Have I Missed Anything?

Before the season starts, there are still a few things I need to keep an eye on:

• Rotation. With fatigue penalties in MFL, I cannot simply play the same XI every game.
• Young player development. Several of the squad are long-term projects, so I need to make sure they receive enough minutes to maximise their progression.
• Striker combinations. I still need to work out which pairings work best in different matches: pace against high lines, physicality against stronger defences, and pressing against weaker teams.
• Match plans. Because you cannot make substitutions during MFL matches, I need to make sure my pre-set tactical plans are spot on before kick-off.

Other than that, I think we are ready.

Tomorrow, the waiting ends.

Closing Thoughts

What started as a bit of curiosity has quickly turned into something far more serious. In the space of a few days we have built a squad, shaped an identity and prepared for a season that suddenly feels very real.

Its AMAZING how nerdy this game allows you to be if you want to!

Will Madero Mayhem FC win Flint League 49? Probably not.

Could we surprise people, develop a few stars and give the favourites a bloody nose along the way?

Absolutely.

And if you’ve enjoyed following the journey so far and fancy starting your own club, now is the perfect time.

If you want to join MFL and build your own club, you can use this referral link!! I

Season 13 starts tomorrow. Let the Mayhem begin!