Hammer Head Tactic

Hello Friends!

I've been playing FM since last year and have been working on all sorts of tactics. Some won me championships while a few others threw me down relegation hell.

Trying all sorts of different tactics this year, I came up with my best tactic yet.

Let me present to you the Hammer Head Tactic !

I wont go into much detail on the specific technical aspects of the tactic but I will share with you the kind of players that would give optimum performance. Let me warn you though, this tactic is very "player type dependent", meaning, having a 5 star Striker wont necessarily give you good results if he is not a great Target Man.

GK Sweeper Keeper

- Any competent goal keeper would do for as long as he has good passing and ball control.

SW/DC Libero/Ball Playing Defender

- I used the editor to make some of the defenders SW as there are very few in the game. Alternatively, you can change the SW to DC as Ball Playing Defender. Get a defender with speed and good tackling.

DL & DR Full Back

- They are your main overlap weapons so get players with good dribbling and crossing. Defense stats are not as important.

DM Defensive Midfielder

- De Rossi is one of the best at this position because he has great defensive stats and passes the ball well. He also has a powerful long shot in his arsenal. Look for those stats when choosing a DM.

MC Deep Lying Playmaker

- You have many choices. Fabregas, Xavi, Melo etc.

AMC Advanced Playmaker

- This is the easiest position to fill as there are many competent AM to choose from. Choose your favorite as this guy will be your second TOP SCORER.

AML & AMR Winger

- Much like the full backs, choose dribblers with good crossing. If you can get a few with good heading ability, that would help as well to chip in a few goals.

ST Target Man

- The most crucial piece of the puzzle and for me, the most important player in the team, your Striker should have height, strength, dribbling, heading and finishing. The likes of Eto'o and Ibra, not to mention Fernando Torres are the best at this. Expect a 40 goal season from your striker with this tactic.

So there you have it. Try it if it fits your team and feel free to give your feedbacks. Download below.

Hammer Head

Looks very similiar to the tactic I used with Liverpool but mine was assymetrical (DMCR, MCL, AMCR, FCL) and not so advancing fullbacks. Works very well with the right team

i think it's very interesting how you have everyone in a support role except for the striker. Do you see this affecting how they play together? where do you find you ahve the most possession? also ... against strong teams, where do you see your oppo having the ball the most and are the fb's ever caught out?

It does seem like the type of system aresenal would use, and I think i might give it a go with my man city team.

I can't tell who you have in their for your cb's, but do you think players like toure and lescott would fit the bill? I also have onuoha who is very fast (~18 pace/acc) if lescott is a bit too slow. fb's are maicon/richards/zabaleta and bridge/sylvinho/monzon/zander

I have dejong/kompo for dmc slot, barry for deep playmaker, ireland/robinho/vukcevic for amc, petrov/robinho/tevez for left, swp/weiss/salvio/tevez for right and ade/bellamy/fleck/tevez/lukaku up top.

typing that out, I realize I have a very deep squad ... and that put a smile on my face

i think it's very interesting how you have everyone in a support role except for the striker. Do you see this affecting how they play together? where do you find you ahve the most possession? also ... against strong teams, where do you see your oppo having the ball the most and are the fb's ever caught out?

It does seem like the type of system aresenal would use, and I think i might give it a go with my man city team.

I can't tell who you have in their for your cb's, but do you think players like toure and lescott would fit the bill? I also have onuoha who is very fast (~18 pace/acc) if lescott is a bit too slow. fb's are maicon/richards/zabaleta and bridge/sylvinho/monzon/zander

I have dejong/kompo for dmc slot, barry for deep playmaker, ireland/robinho/vukcevic for amc, petrov/robinho/tevez for left, swp/weiss/salvio/tevez for right and ade/bellamy/fleck/tevez/lukaku up top.

typing that out, I realize I have a very deep squad ... and that put a smile on my face

Hey there. It is very nice of you to ask.

On your first question, a very unique aspect of this tactic is yes, the only attacking role is given to the Target Man, but the reality is that even as the others have supporting roles, I score a LOT of goals from my AMC, AMR & AML. Just imagine when the ball is on one wing and a cross comes in the box, you will have the ST, (AMR or AML... depending of which side) and AMC ready to attack the ball. At other times, even the DM joins in.

As for the possession, it differs from team to team as the stronger sides seem to always attack me from the wings. The middle is clogged for them. 2 Defenders, 3 Midfielders, and 1 Striker = 6 players in the middle, as compared to just 2 on either side of the wings.

Yes, this team is made for those few who have lots of great AMs, wingers and decent Target Men. One down side of it is that you will have to tweak a bit if your Target Man gets injured. You can use the same formation but make sure to change some Support Roles to Attacking.

Regarding your question, for DC, Toure would definitely fit the bill and you can use Lescott as his support as well. Bridge and Richards would be okay but if you can, get a Clichy-type of DL, as Bridge and the others might lack the kind of pace needed.

Best Target Man would definitely be Adebayor as he has the strength and the height but feel free to rotate your strikers (Ade, Bel and Rob) with the ST, AMR & AML positions.

Ireland would be okay as AM but I feel like he might be better as a super sub for either the MC and AMC position. If you can get a Kaka-type of AMC playmaker, go for it.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Looks very similiar to the tactic I used with Liverpool but mine was assymetrical (DMCR, MCL, AMCR, FCL) and not so advancing fullbacks. Works very well with the right team

I think it would please you if I say that the Liverpool formation was my inspiration in making this as I saw Fernando Torres kick in 40 goals in the BPL.

I just added a little more attacking flair to it, while still keeping the defensive solidity.

Hi,

I'm gonna try your tactic with Arsenal as wel because my tactic doestn't work.

I looked at the formation but couldn't see which players you are playing with, can you tell me that?

Thx

Hi,

I'm gonna try your tactic with Arsenal as wel because my tactic doestn't work.

I looked at the formation but couldn't see which players you are playing with, can you tell me that?

Thx

Sure.

Can you tell me your current line-up? I would be able to suggest the best positions for your players.

As for my line-up (a few seasons after)...

GK- Alphonse Areola

DL- Clichy

DR- Sagna

DC/SW- Vermaelen

DC/SW- Gallas

DM- De Rossi

CM- Fabregas

AMC- Kaka

AMR- Van Persie

AML- Arshavin

ST- Balotelli

Of course, my squad is a very edited squad already but if you can tell me your current line-up, we can make something work out of it.

Started using this as Wigan

Beat Stoke 3-0 and Tottenham 2-0 away. i like the style.

Rodallega is surprisingly good as a target man - lisandro lopez would be good there.

Started using this as Wigan

Beat Stoke 3-0 and Tottenham 2-0 away. i like the style.

Rodallega is surprisingly good as a target man - lisandro lopez would be good there.

That's GREAT! and Yes! You are correct with Rodallega. Last season as the Target Man for Wigan, he racked up 20+ goals.

Working well for Fulham here.

My first game as arsenal manager with this tactic.

I'd recommend this tactic It's really transformed my team Man United team this last couple of weeks. I had been playing terribly, not scoring and not playing well. My top scorer (at the beginning of January) in the premiership was Dzeko, with just 4 goals. Not a record you want to have. Now, at the end of january, he has 11 premier league goals, meaning he has scored 7 in the league just this month, and I only started using it about half way through. The team as a whole seems to play better, with Nani and Valencia being more involved, the latter scoring the winning goal against Fulham

Overall, its been a really good tactic so far! I will have to wait and see how it copes with the bigger teams.

Great feedback you guys! I am very pleased to see that is it working for your teams.

@ jornada... At first, I thought this tactic would only apply to a limited array of teams but I am very very pleased to see that it can work for almost any other team as well. Fulham have strong players so I wish you all the best and enjoy using the Hammer Head Tactic.

@ Brachers... Thank you for posting a picture to show that it really has worked well for you. Much appreciated. Great that it's working well for you.

@ Braundjoh... Continue to use it and aim to let Dzeko win the Golden Boot... you never know... hehe. Good job with your Man U!

This is how my team was against Inter in the Champions League in my second season in charge.

By sherdil_nba

http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/6758/arsenalinter.jpg

As you can see, the two teams were more or less evenly matched except that I had a lot more SET PIECES compared to Inter. This gave my team more opportunities to score which led to 4 goals.

Inter, on the other hand, also had a lot of shots so I believe it is also vital against strong teams to have a very competent goalkeeper.

Anyone tried this tactic in the lower leagues yet ?

Just going to try with my Wigan team.

i have been woeful this year, Hopefully this will help

Can use with weak team in lower league senpai ?

I play Notts County

Hey there ive been so looking forward to play FM2010 and ive started about 6 different games never been past December and its really getting me down just cant get the right tactics with Arsenal , i am trying yours now , i no u use fanregas and AM as playmakers but what 1 do u use on the team instructions the AM or Fabregas in CM , i played 1 league game and just scraped through against Burnley 2-1 , they had better stats thoe :confused:

As i said just want to get into the game just cant seem to :o

Anyone tried this tactic in the lower leagues yet ?

Try it. Let us know if it works for you.

Just going to try with my Wigan team.

i have been woeful this year, Hopefully this will help

Good luck with that! Let us know what happens.

Can use with weak team in lower league senpai ?

I play Notts County

Of course you can try it.

Hey there ive been so looking forward to play FM2010 and ive started about 6 different games never been past December and its really getting me down just cant get the right tactics with Arsenal , i am trying yours now , i no u use fanregas and AM as playmakers but what 1 do u use on the team instructions the AM or Fabregas in CM , i played 1 league game and just scraped through against Burnley 2-1 , they had better stats thoe :confused:

As i said just want to get into the game just cant seem to :o

Playing as Arsenal for all these years, one thing that I have noticed with them is that when you choose a tactic, it's either it will work brilliantly or fail miserably.

In the past, I have been beaten by the likes of Birmingham, Stoke, etc 4-0 using the wrong tactics.

I suggest you give this tactic a try and if it works for you, let us know. Good luck!

Yeah but who dou use as playmaker on team instructions above the bit where target man is to feet ?

Didn't work for me

Yeah but who dou use as playmaker on team instructions above the bit where target man is to feet ?

It is set to whoever the AMC would be.

Didn't work for me

Awwww. Sorry to here that. Are your players attacking a lot?

you have target man supply to feet, yet you say striker should have high heading. that makes no sense.. i already switched target man supply off.. cuz i got heading striker..

you have target man supply to feet, yet you say striker should have high heading. that makes no sense.. i already switched target man supply off.. cuz i got heading striker..

"I wont go into much detail on the specific technical aspects of the tactic but I will share with you the kind of players that would give optimum performance." was the line I used in the first post, but for your sake my friend, I will explain.

The balls that are supplied from the wings are always lobbed balls hence it is safe to say that Good Heading Ability is a requirement for any Target Man. The Supply to Feet is for the Midfield Playmakers who pass the ball around. If they find that your Target Man is in a good position, they will feed him the ball and he has the option to shoot it from long, or dribble it inside the box.

Just tell me how many goals you have seen scored from a Header coming from lob pass from the Middle as compared to balls that come from the Wings. You will see that there is a big difference. When Fernando Torres gets the ball from Gerard, or when Fabregas supplies a ball to Van Persie, the best scoring opportunities come when it is played to their feet. Give them the ball, and they will take care of the rest.

Again, you are free to make any changes you see fit for your team, as when you download the tactic, it becomes YOURS.

Cheers!

Just tried this tactic with Man Utd. 1st game against Man City I was 1-0 up within 6 minutes. 1st half I dominated possession and territory, it was only poor finishing that stopped us banging in 3 or 4. Final score was 2-1 to me but we created 5 clear cut chances, just failed to convert them. Looks a good tactic.

Just tried this tactic with Man Utd. 1st game against Man City I was 1-0 up within 6 minutes. 1st half I dominated possession and territory, it was only poor finishing that stopped us banging in 3 or 4. Final score was 2-1 to me but we created 5 clear cut chances, just failed to convert them. Looks a good tactic.

Alright! That's Great! Man City are really annoying as opposition! They have just so many technically gifted players, FAST too.

Let us know how it went with the other fixtures.

Cheers

Alright! That's Great! Man City are really annoying as opposition! They have just so many technically gifted players, FAST too.

Let us know how it went with the other fixtures.

Cheers

Things were great to begin with, won the next 6 games. Then I started to get some annoying draws, struggled to score etc. I tweaked things a bit but it didn't help. I changed tactics for a bit and then went back to Hammer Head. Seems to have worked, we're back on a winning streak and heading to the Champions League final!

Things were great to begin with, won the next 6 games. Then I started to get some annoying draws, struggled to score etc. I tweaked things a bit but it didn't help. I changed tactics for a bit and then went back to Hammer Head. Seems to have worked, we're back on a winning streak and heading to the Champions League final!

Alright! I always suffer from bumpy streaks from time to time but more or less, this tactic has done it for me, especially in the English Premier League!

Good luck with the Finals!

Just an UPDATE at the end of the second season with just 2 more games remaining using the HAMMER HEAD TACTIC...

The TOP 6 positions have more or less been what would be predicted while just a surprise entry at number 7 but more or less, the rest of the league looks normal...

By sherdil_nba

I'm sure you guys have had at least once experienced a player from you team get the RATING OF 10 (TEN) in a competitive game!

I just had my FIRST EVER using the tried and tested HAMMER HEAD TACTIC!

By sherdil_nba

Scoring 6 goals!

By sherdil_nba

I'm having problems with this tactic, opposition seem to dominated possession, too many holes and defenders seems to only just about get the ball away.

I'm having problems with this tactic, opposition seem to dominated possession, too many holes and defenders seems to only just about get the ball away.

If the tactic doesn't work for you, I'm sure there are many more to choose from in the forum... just pick what suits you best!

Hey there

U may remember me from my earlier posts about a playmaker :o

Well done my first full season with my beloved Arsenal , Great results on this tactic , didnt really wanna win to much in first season lol , won League on goal difference ( joint top with United ) , beat Chelsea 2-1 in FA Cup Final , beat United 3-2 in League Cup Final , lost 5-3 on Agregate to Bayern in Semi of Champs league , so Really happy , Bendtner is awesome as a target man , signed De Rossi but thats my only problem i play him as the DM but he always gets bad ratings , Song seems to do better when i rotate them , Anyways thanx for this tactic really made me love this game Will post updates on Season 2 , dont think im gona sign ayone tbh

Sherdil, I like your tactic. Not only does its score a lot of goals but it also really excites the fans...to get all 190, 000 + of them to emirates!

Hey there

U may remember me from my earlier posts about a playmaker :o

Well done my first full season with my beloved Arsenal , Great results on this tactic , didnt really wanna win to much in first season lol , won League on goal difference ( joint top with United ) , beat Chelsea 2-1 in FA Cup Final , beat United 3-2 in League Cup Final , lost 5-3 on Agregate to Bayern in Semi of Champs league , so Really happy , Bendtner is awesome as a target man , signed De Rossi but thats my only problem i play him as the DM but he always gets bad ratings , Song seems to do better when i rotate them , Anyways thanx for this tactic really made me love this game Will post updates on Season 2 , dont think im gona sign ayone tbh

That's Great! Wish you all the best in the second season!

Hi,

Suggestions for young players(below 21) whom I can get for this tactic? for all positions.

Does this tactic work well with 10.2...cos if the tactic does not do well then ill understand the issue instead of screaming at the com

First game against girondins bordeaux...won 2-1. But its not the tactics fault...Had 25 shots,four of em clear cut...so its my players fault. This tactic is good defensively speaking since they only had six shots and four were blocked and that only goal was actually supposed to be an offside but ref din see. This tactic is also good for offside trap

Going to give this ago, what patch is this for?

any patch. Though I got a new tactic but it's a 4 4 2 variation for Arsenal.

Do you mind sharing in simple how to score on headers? Where do you deploy the crosses? Lukaku gets the ball, but knocks it over 10/10 times.

Ironically, Bendtner does a better job with the headers. One thing I also noticed was that more headers were being scored in the Lower Divisions as goalkeepers and defenders are weaker there.

As for the crosses, the settings is set to default but if you want, put it as 'floated' crosses and instruct the same to your full backs and wingers.

what patch?

The link doesn't work for me. Could you check if it's still working?