Exploiting the extra man

Ten minutes to go, 1-0 up, the other side have a player sent off.

Now I'm in trouble.

Result: 1-2. I always struggle to beat ten men.

Any tips for exploiting the "advantage" of the extra man?

Depends on the circumstances but I usually look to 'control' the game, use the shouts 'retain possession', 'take a breather' and maybe 'pass to feet'.

Basically, look to slow things down, play keep ball and gently probe for any openings. If you've got the ball and you keep it well, you'll tire the opposition and hopefully break them down at some point.

I rarely struggle against 10 men with this kind of patient approach.

C.

Overload without offside trap and set your defensive line up normal,find the second goal and then return to normal.works for me,a little bit risky though

crouchaldinho's idea is also very useful

With 10 mins left I'd probably opt for crouchy's idea. But Zebanumut's idea has worked for me a couple of times where they're down to 10 men earlier on in the match.

I always increase width significantly. With one less player it creates more space to attack and gives the ten men further to cover when closing down.

1. Play a 4-4-2 with more width, short-passing game so that opposition players are dragged out of position and tire more easily. I use this for teams weaker than mine.

2. Counter-attacking. Yes, counter-attacking with a 4-5-1 / 4-3-3. Let the opposition players come at you, then attack swiftly to exploit the space behind. I use this for teams stronger than mine, even if they are down by one man.

Strangely I've found that if you are down by one man yourself, and utilize a counter-attacking style, you tend to play better. I'm not the only one to observe this apparently. The opposition just don't know what to do with an extra man.

The other simple idea might be to push more players forward if you feel confident of getting another goal to seal the points.

I quite often adjust my usual 4-2-3-1 formation and push the two DMs to become MCs, and convert the AMC to ST, to create a 4-2-4 style formation.

Another thing is to look at what changes the opposition make to their formation. If the AI manager sacrifices width when down to 10 men, then you could 'exploit the flanks'. If the opposition sacrifices an attacking player instead, you might then feel free to really push up and attack.

I still feel that my patient 'retain possession' tactic is probably best to see out the game and keep the pressure on when looking for the second goal.

Some other good suggestions on here from other posters such as opening up the space more by perhaps using the shouts 'play wider' and 'play deeper'. Might be better for earlier in the game if the opposition are down to 10 and you need to open them up for another goal.

C.