Quickfire Questions and Answers Thread (Tactic and Training Questions Only)

[CaptCanuck]

@Seb Wassell - and just to confirm for my remedial self (all things being equal and once you figure out which ones you need) when trying to focus in on an attribute or attributes to improve your players' ability to excel within your tactic generally and their role specifically, it is as simple as the broader you get the more watered down the increases maybe?

[mouli]

What should I shout when my team score in the beginning of a game they're expected to lose so that they don't get complacent? Every time I shout "Concentrate", they get " Overwhelmed by the feedback"

[Experienced Defender]

34 minutes ago, mouli said:

What should I shout when my team score in the beginning of a game they're expected to lose so that they don't get complacent? Every time I shout "Concentrate", they get " Overwhelmed by the feedback"

You don't need to shout anything. Especially if you have already noticed that they tend to react negatively. Shouts are not compulsory. 

[Mr_Demus]

How would you apply a split block to a team with a False Nine? My setup is False Nine, IF, IW, CM, AP.

My thinking is, that setting the F9 to close down more, could result in him ending up too far up the pitch instead of going deep. So far, I have used the IF, IW and AP.

[XuluBak]

33 minutes ago, Mr_Demus said:

How would you apply a split block to a team with a False Nine? My setup is False Nine, IF, IW, CM, AP.

My thinking is, that setting the F9 to close down more, could result in him ending up too far up the pitch instead of going deep. So far, I have used the IF, IW and AP.

I'd still press with your F9. Otherwise, opposing CBs will have too much time/space. Any effective press has to start up front. 

[Bunkerossian]

Does the use of a high line mean intense closing down is mandatory as well?

[glengarry224]

6 hours ago, Seb Wassell said:

 

There is currently no way to see this. Fatigue is a hidden variable on each player which is made visible when it hits a certain point (the point you need to consider taking action), "Jaded".

The goals of the Match Tactics session are "fully focused on preparing the team tactically for the upcoming match", so you'd hope it did more for Tactical Familiarity than a generic Overall or Outfield session! 

The amount of attention any single item receives (be that an Attribute or individual Familiarity) is determined, all else being equal (coaches, players, workloads etc.), by how many total items are included in the session. This allows some sessions to be broad, covering a large number of things, and others to be specific, tightly focusing on specific areas.

@Seb WassellThank you for this and all of the great feedback in these forums.  You and the rest of the SI team should be proud of this incredible and complex game, which has brought a lot of fun to so many, especially during the pandemic.

I assumed that fatigue is a hidden variable.  nit-question:  does that make sense?  I'm not saying that we should get a 1-for-1 metric which shows us precisely how much we've built up each player's resistance to fatigue or how near he is to fatigue/jaded, but isn't that something which a physio or sports scientist could give us "narrative" info on?  Variable to their abilities, of course.  [sorry if I missed that feature someplace]

Also, that's what I assumed about tactical familiarity training, but I noticed that in most training guides, in pre-season, there were very few, if any, Match Tactics sessions:  even in the presets, in Tactical training, there is 1 Match Tactics session per week.  I know that this is a fun-strategic question (so possibly more for forum users than product development):

I was thinking that when I have a team that is very unfamiliar with a tactic, I could populate pre-season training with Friendlies (2-3 per week), max out Match Tactics sessions and maybe even add Match Practice, Overall and Outfield, then make the secondary focus physical.  I realize that this would sacrifice attribute development and possibly physical, but I suspect that tactical familiarity is paramount either when you take over a team and introduce a new tactic, or after you bring in a lot of new players.  I'm thinking 2-3 friendlies per week because then I can rotate both the squad and the newly trained tactics.

Also, because low Team Cohesion is often correlated with poor Tactical Familiarity, maybe max out training sessions of Teamwork and Team Bonding. 

In pre-season, I"m thinking even to go Double Intensity and three sessions per day, except on match days.  It's a lot and I would have to make exceptions for older and injury prone players plus monitor the Medical Centre.

 

[lfc7]

How important is balance for a central defender ?

[Experienced Defender]

@josel15 You have to start a separate thread topic for that kind of questions and preferably post a screenshot of your tactic there. This thread is only for simple quickfire questions that can be answered by a short and simple answer. Your question is definitely not from that category and so cannot be asked here. 

Thank you.

[Experienced Defender]

1 hour ago, Bunkerossian said:

Does the use of a high line mean intense closing down is mandatory as well?

No. 

[Experienced Defender]

3 hours ago, Mr_Demus said:

How would you apply a split block to a team with a False Nine?

Split block has nothing to do with the role of your striker, whatever role that may be. If want to you use a split block as such, the striker(s) should be regular part of it, regardless of their role(s). 

If you want any further discussion about this, please start a separate thread.

[Experienced Defender]

33 minutes ago, lfc7 said:

How important is balance for a central defender ?

It's certainly welcome. But it's hard to tell exactly how much it is important.

Is it listed among either key or preferable attributes for the role? If it is, then is definitely important. 

[HUNT3R]

8 hours ago, lfc7 said:

How important is balance for a central defender ?

You will need to decide 'how' important it is.

I can tell you why it's important though.

Balance is:

• Used for deciding what type of shot and the power of it is possible when moving at speed, overhead kicks, how well they can cope with a change of momentum through performing a pass/cross/tackle/dribble.
• Used in combination with Strength when checking if a player can stand their ground in a collision between two players
• Used in combination with Strength deciding delay resulting from going to the ground
• Used in combination with Strength when scoring dribbling attribute when the player is under pressure
• Used in combination with Strength when scoring decisions on controlling ball, creating space on receiving ball, turning on ball or holding up ball

So both come in to the equation, but you'll need to consider whether the player's physical strength is high (strength) or are they good at shielding the ball and dribbling under pressure from defenders (Balance).

[Mr_Demus]

8 hours ago, Experienced Defender said:

Split block has nothing to do with the role of your striker, whatever role that may be. If want to you use a split block as such, the striker(s) should be regular part of it, regardless of their role(s). 

If you want any further discussion about this, please start a separate thread.

Cool, thanks. That makes sense

[lfc7]

10 hours ago, HUNT3R said:

You will need to decide 'how' important it is.

I can tell you why it's important though.

Balance is:

• Used for deciding what type of shot and the power of it is possible when moving at speed, overhead kicks, how well they can cope with a change of momentum through performing a pass/cross/tackle/dribble.
• Used in combination with Strength when checking if a player can stand their ground in a collision between two players
• Used in combination with Strength deciding delay resulting from going to the ground
• Used in combination with Strength when scoring dribbling attribute when the player is under pressure
• Used in combination with Strength when scoring decisions on controlling ball, creating space on receiving ball, turning on ball or holding up ball

So both come in to the equation, but you'll need to consider whether the player's physical strength is high (strength) or are they good at shielding the ball and dribbling under pressure from defenders (Balance).

Thank you the reason i asked is i have a CD who is 33 (near 34) who i plan to replace with a 32 year old and they have similar stats except 33 yo has 14 balance and 11 strength is 6"2 and the player replacing him has 7 balance 14 strength and is 6"5 based on what your saying as his strength is 14 even though his balance is low he could still be adequate.  Would i be right in saying not to use him if using a higher line and just for more for tougher/away games where i have a standard line and his strength and height can be valuable ? thanks

Edited August 13, 2020 by lfc7

[lfc7]

18 hours ago, Experienced Defender said:

It's certainly welcome. But it's hard to tell exactly how much it is important.

Is it listed among either key or preferable attributes for the role? If it is, then is definitely important. 

Only just seen this reply sorry the role is Central Defender Defend which doesn't have balance highlighted, but i assumed along with agility it meant any balls over the top he would be too slow to turn or lose balance as he went to turn

[HUNT3R]

2 hours ago, lfc7 said:

Thank you the reason i asked is i have a CD who is 33 (near 34) who i plan to replace with a 32 year old and they have similar stats except 33 yo has 14 balance and 11 strength is 6"2 and the player replacing him has 7 balance 14 strength and is 6"5 based on what your saying as his strength is 14 even though his balance is low he could still be adequate.  Would i be right in saying not to use him if using a higher line and just for more for tougher/away games where i have a standard line and his strength and height can be valuable ? thanks

Can't say with that info. It could be just fine. If you want more detailed advice, it's worth starting a new thread.

[lfc7]

1 minute ago, HUNT3R said:

Can't say with that info. It could be just fine. If you want more detailed advice, it's worth starting a new thread.

Its ok i don't think it warrants a whole new thread just wanted a bit more info on the balance attribute which you have provided thank you

[safcrhys]

Can a complete forward pretty much play in any system?

[Experienced Defender]

1 hour ago, safcrhys said:

Can a complete forward pretty much play in any system?

Any role can play in any system (if by system you mean formation), the only question is how well it fits into it. When it comes specifically to CF, my experience is that the role tends to work better in formations where he is not surrounded by many teammates, so that he has enough space to operate and express himself properly. For example, 442 or 4411 or 532 and the like (as opposed to top-heavy systems like 4231). 

[Seb Wassell]

On 12/08/2020 at 20:11, glengarry224 said:

@Seb WassellThank you for this and all of the great feedback in these forums.  You and the rest of the SI team should be proud of this incredible and complex game, which has brought a lot of fun to so many, especially during the pandemic.

Very kind, thank you. Delighted to hear you're enjoying the game!

On 12/08/2020 at 20:11, glengarry224 said:

I assumed that fatigue is a hidden variable.  nit-question:  does that make sense?  I'm not saying that we should get a 1-for-1 metric which shows us precisely how much we've built up each player's resistance to fatigue or how near he is to fatigue/jaded, but isn't that something which a physio or sports scientist could give us "narrative" info on?  Variable to their abilities, of course.  [sorry if I missed that feature someplace]

 

It is made visible in the form of a player becoming 'Jaded', which is denoted by the 'RST' icon. There's a few levels of this, the first being "slightly jaded", with specific descriptive text to accompany them and recommendations from your staff on any actions you should consider taking. Up until the point at which a player is visibly jaded, they are considered to be anywhere from 'fresh' to within the realms of 'normal' fatigue. This deteriorates with match/training workload (some scenarios excepted, see the brief training guide for that) and is restored with rest.

On 12/08/2020 at 20:11, glengarry224 said:

Also, that's what I assumed about tactical familiarity training, but I noticed that in most training guides, in pre-season, there were very few, if any, Match Tactics sessions:  even in the presets, in Tactical training, there is 1 Match Tactics session per week.  I know that this is a fun-strategic question (so possibly more for forum users than product development):

I was thinking that when I have a team that is very unfamiliar with a tactic, I could populate pre-season training with Friendlies (2-3 per week), max out Match Tactics sessions and maybe even add Match Practice, Overall and Outfield, then make the secondary focus physical.  I realize that this would sacrifice attribute development and possibly physical, but I suspect that tactical familiarity is paramount either when you take over a team and introduce a new tactic, or after you bring in a lot of new players.  I'm thinking 2-3 friendlies per week because then I can rotate both the squad and the newly trained tactics.

Also, because low Team Cohesion is often correlated with poor Tactical Familiarity, maybe max out training sessions of Teamwork and Team Bonding. 

In pre-season, I"m thinking even to go Double Intensity and three sessions per day, except on match days.  It's a lot and I would have to make exceptions for older and injury prone players plus monitor the Medical Centre.

Sounds like a reasonable approach to me. The default training schedules were designed to be effective but relatively balanced. There are certainly marginal gains to be made by taking control yourself 

As you say, I'll leave you to find and refine your preferred approach with the community!

Worth noting however that one of the key ways a player and/or team gain tactical familiarity is by playing matches, so you could potentially compensate for a low tactical familiarity focus in training by upping the number of matches. Alternatively, you could compensate for a low match load by upping how much attention tactical familiarity receives in training (obviously would not compensate for the other benefits a match brings). Of course, you could also compound these effects in either direction by combining/omitting both.

[Seb Wassell]

On 12/08/2020 at 15:42, CaptCanuck said:

@Seb Wassell - and just to confirm for my remedial self (all things being equal and once you figure out which ones you need) when trying to focus in on an attribute or attributes to improve your players' ability to excel within your tactic generally and their role specifically, it is as simple as the broader you get the more watered down the increases maybe?

Obviously it's very important to stress the all else being equal bit here, which they never are, but yes, number of items trained (not just attributes) is inversely proportional to the amount of attention each item receives. Worth noting that not all items (or attributes) will be equal though, so even by itself it is not a linear scale. Whether an attribute increases or not also has a number of other factors feeding into it.

[CaptCanuck]

3 minutes ago, Seb Wassell said:

Obviously it's very important to stress the all else being equal bit here, which they never are, but yes, number of items trained (not just attributes) is inversely proportional to the amount of attention each item receives. Worth noting that not all items (or attributes) will be equal though, so even by itself it is not a linear scale. Whether an attribute increases or not also has a number of other factors feeding into it.

Thanks for that. Totally appreciate it's never that simple when getting down to the potential for specific attribute improvements, I just wanted to confirm the broad model :-)

[CaptCanuck]

In friendlies (preseason or otherwise) do AI teams play with the same mentality, tactics, and style they would in a competitive match?

Fulham are the worst of the worst bus-parkers in my save and next preseason I want to schedule a match or two against them to work on breaking them down. But if they don't go about it in their usual manner it'd be pointless.

[Gee_Simpson]

3 hours ago, CaptCanuck said:

In friendlies (preseason or otherwise) do AI teams play with the same mentality, tactics, and style they would in a competitive match?

Fulham are the worst of the worst bus-parkers in my save and next preseason I want to schedule a match or two against them to work on breaking them down. But if they don't go about it in their usual manner it'd be pointless.

Pre season games mean nothing. Neither side is trying 100%, they are purely for fitness. 

[CaptCanuck]

25 minutes ago, Gee_Simpson said:

Pre season games mean nothing. Neither side is trying 100%, they are purely for fitness. 

Oh sure, but will they retain their typical formation and tactics?

Whether they go for it is another matter :-)

[Gee_Simpson]

4 minutes ago, CaptCanuck said:

Oh sure, but will they retain their typical formation and tactics?

Whether they go for it is another matter :-)

I'm not sure on that one, sorry.

[bartex55]

On 12/08/2020 at 19:11, glengarry224 said:

I could populate pre-season training with Friendlies (2-3 per week)

I used to do it all the time until I realized on how many training sessions you're missing out. Your players do not train on a match day and you want them resting/recovering the day after. With 3 friendlies arranged in a week there's only 1 day of proper training. Even if you don't care for attributes growth, a hard preseason training is crucial for a long-term fitness of your squad (early training sessions high in fatigue create a buffor for jadedness). And I believe it is actually training, not match practice that matters more in building up tactic familiarity. Friendlies give you more cohesion but it's no worth it. I arrange so few as 3-4 in the whole preseason, just to get my players into match rhytm. Also keep in mind that each additional match extends your season making your players prone to jadedness much more, especially when it's combined with this neglected training approach.

[lfc7]

Besides adaptability is there anything else to look for that could give clues to how quickly a player will adapt to a new country ? 

[Hovis Dexter]

34 minutes ago, lfc7 said:

Besides adaptability is there anything else to look for that could give clues to how quickly a player will adapt to a new country ? 

Pure guess but if he can speak the language I'd have thought that it must help.

[lfc7]

14 minutes ago, Hovis Dexter said:

Pure guess but if he can speak the language I'd have thought that it must help.

Ah yes makes sense i shall check. I have a player who is what i have been looking for as a no 1 ST but the only negative is adapting to the country, but as i am not a big club with a large transfer budget then am thinking he could take to long to adapt and the risk be too much.

[rsihn]

I'm a few years into my save and I've started going through the all-time progress my academy players have been making over the years which has not been in the areas that suit my style of play (control possession).  Instead, my younger players are getting nearly double the gains in their physical stats compared to technical and mental.  This is something I'm looking to change.

I've been leaving these things up to my assman and the youth head coaches to create the training programs so my question is this:  how much of this is due to the training schedule not catering to my desired goals versus how much impact do the individual coaches have on the results?  I'm in the Championship right now so I don't have access to the best technical and mental coaches but it is fairly easy to get good fitness coaches.  Due to this, all of my squads have 4-4.5* fitness coaching which may overshadow the abilities of my technical and mental coaches.  

So as a percentage of training benefit, how much influence does the coaching have compared to the actual training sessions?  Do the coaching staff account for 25% of the benefit or is it much smaller?

Edited August 16, 2020 by rsihn

[kennypavey]

Is there a guide on how all the tactical instructions effect play somewhere? Like with "look for overlap" that reduces winger mentality and passing tempo, while raising the wing backs mentality?

Same with player roles, what hardcover backend behaviour is tied to each role? Can I for example create a BWM by taking a CM (s) and adding the exact same instructions? I know that playmaker roles have an underlying ball magnet instruction back end, but is it compiled for other roles?

[Gee_Simpson]

19 minutes ago, kennypavey said:

that reduces winger mentality and passing tempo

It doesn't reduce passing tempo.

[HUNT3R]

7 hours ago, kennypavey said:

Is there a guide on how all the tactical instructions effect play somewhere? Like with "look for overlap" that reduces winger mentality and passing tempo, while raising the wing backs mentality?

It's old (FM15 IIRC), but Lines and Diamonds is a good guide for this. Check the pinned threads for it.

7 hours ago, kennypavey said:

Can I for example create a BWM by taking a CM (s) and adding the exact same instructions? 

You can't do this. That's why there are different roles.  The BWM's pressing intensity will be higher than almost all the other roles. It should be the most of the midfield roles, certainly. The different roles may not have special hardcoded behaviour, but like this example, it's not possible to create a BWM's behaviour exactly if you're starting with another role. 

Playmakers receive the ball more and tend to drift toward the ball, target men will be used as such in crossing situations or when a player runs out of options, the carrilero drifts wide out of possession, the mezzala drifts wide in possession and the halfback drops between centrebacks in possession. Those are the 'special' under the hood characteristics (I think I covered all the roles) which is under the hood.

But have a look through that guide. It could be useful, even if it's a little dated.

[fivetwelvepony]

On 13/08/2020 at 16:03, Seb Wassell said:

Obviously it's very important to stress the all else being equal bit here, which they never are, but yes, number of items trained (not just attributes) is inversely proportional to the amount of attention each item receives. Worth noting that not all items (or attributes) will be equal though, so even by itself it is not a linear scale. Whether an attribute increases or not also has a number of other factors feeding into it.

In what way does this matter for training a youth for a particular role? For instance, training an 18yo as a B2B midfielder hits many attributes. Will this slow development? 

Edited August 18, 2020 by fivetwelvepony

[Seb Wassell]

23 minutes ago, fivetwelvepony said:

In what way does this matter for training a youth for a particular role? For instance, training an 18yo as a B2B midfielder hits many attributes. Will this slow development? 

Attributes are development. So again, all else being equal, it's not going to mean he develops more or less quickly, just change in what way he develops.

[fivetwelvepony]

I am trying to understand how the different striker roles behave.  If you have possession in the final third, say on the wing or in the center of midfield, and the defense is already well positioned sitting deep, how will the movement of an AF and a poacher differ? Will the CM look to play the ball to the AF as part of a passing sequence, but not the poacher? Will the AF look to receive the ball in a spot where they can then connect? Or are the both pretty much just trying to find a pocket of space to score? (holding player traits constant of course)

Followup question, would this help me select a striker role against a team that likes to sit deep and counter?

[Rashidi]

@fivetwelvepony Good way to tell is by looking at the PIs of both roles. Essentially the AF is one of the most aggressive strikers with an eye for goal, will frequently stand on the shoulder of the last man and try to break the offside trap. Given the chance he may also make a straight beeline for goal. Its important to bear in mind one thing, individual attributes and traits can also influence his behaviour. The poacher is a simply role that looks to stay in and around the box to get on the end of finishes. He usually isnt very far from the action however this can also be impacted by any traits or specific player instructions that the player is given.  A poacher is less aggressive than an AF and to some extent does a better job at linking up with other players.  If i wanted to use a striker against a team that is sitting back, i'd probably be more inclined to use one that offers a bit more creative freedom like the Complete Forward. Since he roams and requires more attributes to pull off, its a harder position to fill up. A PF is sometimes a good option too. 

Sides that sit back tend to like keeping the ball and moving it about, having a striker who likes to harass defences is a good option as well.

[Bunkerossian]

What is the minimum attribute value of Work Rate, Aggression and Stamina for attacking MF-s and forwards which would be suitable for a front press? Serie A or La Liga environment.

Edited August 21, 2020 by Bunkerossian

[Experienced Defender]

13 minutes ago, Bunkerossian said:

What is the minimum attribute value of Work Rate, Aggression and Stamina for attacking MF-s and forwards which would be suitable for a front press? Serie A or La Liga environment.

I personally would look for:

- work rate 13+

- aggression - 11+

- stamina - 15+

Btw, determination can also play an important part here.

[GianniM]

When picking your captain, would you rather pick a teamleader with average Leadership, or a player that's less influential but has a higher rating in Leadership? (all other factors equal - I understand there's character and determination etc as well)

[lfc7]

I have signed a player who I plan to use as a BWM S in CM but he has the trait gets forward whenever possible (presumably from the fact he can play B2B) I am just wondering with him already pressing high up the pitch is best to get the trait untrained? My coach thinks it’s a bad idea. I have a Mez S and a DLP/HB (DM depending on opp) as the other roles in the midfield 3 (4-3-3)

[Experienced Defender]

10 hours ago, lfc7 said:

I have signed a player who I plan to use as a BWM S in CM but he has the trait gets forward whenever possible (presumably from the fact he can play B2B) I am just wondering with him already pressing high up the pitch is best to get the trait untrained? My coach thinks it’s a bad idea. I have a Mez S and a DLP/HB (DM depending on opp) as the other roles in the midfield 3 (4-3-3)

Given that you play in a 4123 wide system, the trait itself should not be too much of a problem. Unlike in a 4231, which is top-heavy and lacks added protection in the form of a DM. 

For more detailed advice or further discussion, you'll have to start a separate thread.

[alfrompacsun]

FM17 - I have a 18 year striker who has the PPM 'Avoids using weaker foot'. If I have him learn 'attempts to develop weaker foot', will this allow for the ''avoids using weaker foot' ppm to be unlearned? Would the 'avoids using weaker foot' disappear on it's own?

[Sharkn20]

6 minutes ago, alfrompacsun said:

FM17 - I have a 18 year striker who has the PPM 'Avoids using weaker foot'. If I have him learn 'attempts to develop weaker foot', will this allow for the ''avoids using weaker foot' ppm to be unlearned? Would the 'avoids using weaker foot' disappear on it's own?

It won't, you will have to ask him to use the weaker foot again once he develops his weaker foot.

[Fieldsy]

Can shorter passing + pass into space work? If so what type of play could I expect? Would like to see good short passing but with some through balls when able in the last third

[Experienced Defender]

57 minutes ago, Fieldsy said:

Can shorter passing + pass into space work?

Yes it can. 

 

58 minutes ago, Fieldsy said:

If so what type of play could I expect? Would like to see good short passing but with some through balls when able in the last third

You don't need to use pass into space team instruction in order to get through balls in the final third (or any through balls, for that matter). The instruction is not about through balls specifically.

Anyway, for any further discussion on your tactic (actual or potential), you'll need to start a separate thread. 

[Cal585]

How important is Anticipation for defenders? I've always thought it fairly important for reading the game but it can only be focus trained through 'Off the Ball' which indicates it might be more important for attackers. The online manual says:

Anticipation
How well a player can predict and react to an event. If a player has a high attribute here he can read the game well and react to situations quicker than others. It also has a significant effect on a player’s awareness and whether they identify space for themselves to play in as well as reacting to signs of danger created by the opponent.

Marking
How well players, mainly defensive types, defend an opponent. Marking alone will see them do a good job of identifying, tracking, reacting to and denying opponents if the attribute is high, but remember that other attributes – Strength, Positioning, Anticipation – will play a part in the effectiveness of the marking, as well as the comparable physical statures of the two players.

Positioning
This attribute reflects the ability of a player to read a situation and manoeuvre themselves into the best possible location to deal with the unfolding events in defensive situations. It is not used in attacking situations; rather, it is used to determine how well a player identifies who to mark, when and how and where to mark them, and whether or not they’re in the best position within their current tactical setup.

 

Reading them all together sounds like good Marking and Positioning should make up for poor/average Anticipation, as Positioning already does most of what I assumed for marking/intercepts. Am I reading that right, or should I be training my Central Defenders in Off the Ball?

Edited August 24, 2020 by Cal585

[Experienced Defender]

8 hours ago, Cal585 said:

How important is Anticipation for defenders? I've always thought it fairly important for reading the game but it can only be focus trained through 'Off the Ball' which indicates it might be more important for attackers. The online manual says:

Anticipation
How well a player can predict and react to an event. If a player has a high attribute here he can read the game well and react to situations quicker than others. It also has a significant effect on a player’s awareness and whether they identify space for themselves to play in as well as reacting to signs of danger created by the opponent.

Marking
How well players, mainly defensive types, defend an opponent. Marking alone will see them do a good job of identifying, tracking, reacting to and denying opponents if the attribute is high, but remember that other attributes – Strength, Positioning, Anticipation – will play a part in the effectiveness of the marking, as well as the comparable physical statures of the two players.

Positioning
This attribute reflects the ability of a player to read a situation and manoeuvre themselves into the best possible location to deal with the unfolding events in defensive situations. It is not used in attacking situations; rather, it is used to determine how well a player identifies who to mark, when and how and where to mark them, and whether or not they’re in the best position within their current tactical setup.

 

Reading them all together sounds like good Marking and Positioning should make up for poor/average Anticipation, as Positioning already does most of what I assumed for marking/intercepts. Am I reading that right, or should I be training my Central Defenders in Off the Ball?

As far as I remember, anticipation is trained within any CB role (BPD, CD, NCB and libero), so you don't need to put additional focus on off the ball. 

In terms of its importance for defenders, anticipation does matter to a significant degree, especially if you play on a higher D-line. 

However, anticipation and other mental attributes tend to develop pretty slowly, so if you have a player with poor anticipation, you can hardly expect any notable improvement (unless he is young enough to learn through both training and experience).