The Raumdeuter role is certainly one that not many wide players can pull off. Coined by Thomas Müller back in 2011 when describing his playstyle, it makes sense for the man to be the best Raumdeuter in FM.
Football manager describes the raumdeuter as a player whose main role is to find pockets of space in which to operate. Essentially a wide poacher, the Raumdeuter takes up seemingly harmless positions out wide. He waits for the opportune moment to burst through the defensive line for that telling shot or cross.
Despite being referred to as a wide poacher, the raumdeuter does not often push high up the pitch, often being ready to break the offside trap. Instead, he looks for spaces in all directions and might drop deep, move inwards like the inverted winger, or push high. The poacher is more one-directional in comparison.
This unpredictable movement will inevitably lead to the raumdeuter vacating his position in search of better spaces to operate in, which in turn might leave your fullback exposed if you do not have a strong defensive shape that compensates for the raumdeuter’s movement.
Since it is quite difficult to find natural raumdeuters in FM, training strikers with good mental attributes to play on the wing is a good way to have decent players for the role in your team.
The strikers should then be deployed like a winger rather than an inverted winger or inside forward. Meaning, play a right-footed striker on the right wing and a left-footed one on the left wing.
Contrary to other wide positions, the raumdeuter does not rely on his dribbling, trickery, and pace to be effective out wide. Instead, his mental attributes, primarily, off the ball movement is what make him effective.
Strikers generally have good off the ball movement, making them good candidates to be converted into raumdeuters.
Compared to inside forwards, Raumdeuters dribble less and will move into the channels without the ball, while the inside forwards prefer receiving the ball out wide, then cutting inside before taking a shot on goal.
Due to their tendency to move out of position in search of space, it is not recommended to have more than one raumdeuter in your tactic. Also, refrain from picking a raumdeuter if you already play two strikers.
Attributes For A Raumdeuter In Football Manager
The raumdeuter is equally expected to score and create goals. He will not be as prolific as an Advanced Forward, Poacher, or the Complete Forward, however, he will still be expected to chip in with a fair number of goals.
With this in mind, striker attributes like finishing, technique, composure, off the ball movement, and anticipation should be in the 15s and 16s region for a raumdeuter plying his trade in the top five leagues.
In terms of chance creation, Thomas Müller the de facto raumdeuter has dominated the assists charts in the past decade and this should also be mirrored by your player.
Passing, vision, technique, and crossing should be at a respectable level. Same as the finishing attributes, these attributes should be in the 15s and 16s regions.
The mental attributes as already touched on are what will make or break your raumdeuter. Your player should have the awareness and instinct to pop up in areas where he will be most effective to either play in the striker, deliver a cross, or take the shot himself. This is the most difficult part.
Thomas Müller and Bayern Munich in general do not lack in this aspect, but finding a suitable player after a few in-game years always proves a change. I have a guide here for setting up your scouting network, and another here for the method I use to scout for wonderkids.
As is always the case in FM, having a player fail to have one or two needed attributes is not the end of the world, but you have to tweak your tactic in order to hide his shortcomings.
Player Traits For A Raumdeuter In FM
With the raumdeuter expected to create and score goals, check the player traits suitable for strikers here, and for playmakers(advanced playmakers) here.
The player traits below will aid the raumdeuter in his movement;
- Moves into channels – Moving into channels is hardcoded in the raumdeuter role, but having this player trait increases the frequency in which he does so.
- Gets Forward Whenever Possible – The raumdeuter should pick and choose his moments to get forward or hold back, however, this player trait guarantees he will always be near the opposition’s 18-yard box
- Gets Into Opposition Area – This is normally not an issue when strikers are playing in their usual roles. But when deployed as raumdeuters, encouraging them to get inside the box is effective in increasing the team’s goal threat
- Plays one twos – Playing one twos increases the tempo the team is playing at, and might be useful in unsettling the opposition’s defence
When training new player traits on a player who was originally a striker, but you are now playing him as a raumdeuter, be careful to prevent him from getting a player trait that will reduce his effectiveness as a striker, such as “looks for pass rather than attempting to score”
Football Manager Tactic With A Raumdeuter
The tactic below features a lone striker system, with the raumdeuter expected to chip in with a few goals and assists of his own.
The deep lying playmaker will primarily dictate play from deep, while being mindful of the space the raumdeuter might leave on the right side of the flank. The fullback in the support duty will also never venture far from his position, only occasionally finding himself forward on the overlap.
This rigid structure is necessary as the raumdeuter is prone to neglecting his defensive duties.
On the left wing, the winger should provide the width, while the mezzala will move forwards and outwards, creating opportunities to have a good attacking partnership with the winger.
The fullback on this side is also fairly defensive, creating a solid defensive structure in addition to the Anchor Man just ahead of the central defenders.
The creative burden, therefore, lies on the mezzala and the deep lying playmaker to create chances for the team, while the winger and raumdeuter will play a part in both scoring and assisting.
The complete forward should be comfortable coming short for the ball, contesting for long balls from deep, and even chasing after through balls.
The long balls from deep might originate from the ball playing defender, or the sweeper keeper in the support duty, who will not shy away from trying low percentage passes.
For other specialized roles in football manager, you can take a look at the enganche here, the trequartista here, the libero here, or the shadow striker here.
