Consistancy then... ?

[t1mbers]

Just a quick question... Is the fact that you go several games maybe 3 4 5 scrapping out wins to then get absolutly pummeled by a "big" team...

One week i scrap out a 3-2 win over tottenham who draw with the likes of chelsea and then with the same line up and tactics i get pummeled 7-0 by chelsea?

Is this some sort of bug?! I was wondering as i have been doing above expectation in the league and getting some decent results alot of which have been scrappy last ditch efforts in games but it seems as though at times scorlines and performances are odd...

In an early season match against everton away i beat them 5-1 after going 1-0 down away, the next week im struggling at home against west brom? The following week i go 2-0 down by half time against Aston villa to win 6-2, it all seems very random. Then when scorlines and performances start to look normal again (even though they are ridiculously high scoring: 5-4, 3-4 etc etc) i go into a match against one of the "big" teams (arsenal, chelsea, Manu, liverpool) and get ridiculously slaughtered even though they do not perform these feats against people i have dominated against or against each other.

Anyone else experianced this?

(PS it made me angry to the point i went into the game knowing it was going to be a loss but not to the extent of 7-0...therefore i shutdown game and lost 3 previously well played wins but hey i'd rather lose them 3 and get a draw or more realistic result against chelsea than this :S)

[theincrediblehulk]

Right, firstly, I do know what you mean. Sometimes, what you said does happen but its avoidable.

What you're doing is something very wrong - playing the same tactic against every team. There's a huge difference between the "big 4" and teams like West Brom, Aston Villa etc. If you out a win or draw or even win easily against smaller teams, you cant expect the same against Chelsea/Arsenal/Man Utd/Liverpool etc. The first reason being the obvious one and that is that the "big 4" are much, much stronger than the other teams and also have a lot of world-class players who can change the game in a second.

The second reason is formation and tactics. All teams play differently and players have different instructions given to them. So you need to have your team set up to deal with different formations. This is evident if you watch football in real life as well. Take Arsenal for example. Everybody knows that they can kill you with their incisive passing and if you give them space, they're very, very hard to handle. What do teams do against them? Most of the time, you'll find the opposition packing their midfield to stifle the passing game. And it does work. Its the same on the game as well.

What you need to understand is that when you play a big club, it would differe from a smaller team in that every position occupied by the bigger team would be a huge step up in class as compared to the smaller one. And so, they will be harder to contain. You will need to adapt to them especially when you're playing them on their turf. Whenever I play as a small team, I never go into a game with a big team without 2 DM's. Then, I use a strong striker upfront and two very quick wingers who can hurt the opposition on the counter. And more often than not, it works for me.

Then, you know those media comments before the game? Just in case you thought they're useless, they can be helpful at times. But it depends on how well you know your team. What are your players like - determined or nervous? Say for example you're up against a big team and in the media you say that you dont think you can win today, some of the players might get fired up and want to prove you wrong. And these players might win you the game themselves. If you've got a nervous squad however, this might backfire. Its all trial and error. See how the team responds to your comments. You can save your game when the pre-match comment comes up and then use the different options to see what effect it has on your team.

And lastly, your teamtalks. They are very, very important. Especially the one you give at half-time because it could be difference between you winning or losing. If you managed to get a couple of your players inspired, you will make a come-back in the game for sure. Not saying you'll win it, but you'll see a better performance after half-time at the least. On the other hand though, if a player loses confidence, he'll probably make a silly mistake and you might get thumped very badly. I suggest you go to the Tactics and Training Forum and read Wolfsong's guide on team-talks. It is very useful.

What I wrote above seems a lot to read but take all of 1 or 2 minutes to implement in the game. And it makes a world of difference to your results.

[AcidBurn]

Different people have different ways of playing the game. I used the same tactic for alot of seasons with Crewe when I first got promoted I finished 8th, 13th, 7th, 4th, 2nd, 1st and 1st again winning every trophy available. I have seen alot of people saying what Hulk says about changing tactics for the big clubs but I find if you have a decent tactic you can do well against the big clubs regardless of changing. Its like real life Hull City didnt change tactics against Arsenal to go more defensive and they won at the Emirates but the same way of playing got them beat 5-0 at home to Wigan. I would agree though as in that the tactic I use does have one striker and 2 wingers, I always find a flat back 4 and a CM with a barrow will give defensive stability.

I also agree about team talks you have to make sure that you get them right as they make a big difference far too big for my liking. A trick I found was that if any attacking player, attacking being midfield or strikers is playing an 8 at half time tell them you have faith in them and they will very rarely drop down to a 7 and usually stay at 8 or go onto play a 9.

I read in the tactics forum I think it was that if you play one up front and incoming wingers against Chelsea then their CBs mark the wingers and your lone striker is free to score. There is no one way to play the game though as people use different ways to achieve success, hulk changes tactics as do alot of people but I keep everything the same.

[Jazzfusion]

Different people have different ways of playing the game. I used the same tactic for alot of seasons with Crewe when I first got promoted I finished 8th, 13th, 7th, 4th, 2nd, 1st and 1st again winning every trophy available. I have seen alot of people saying what Hulk says about changing tactics for the big clubs but I find if you have a decent tactic you can do well against the big clubs regardless of changing. Its like real life Hull City didnt change tactics against Arsenal to go more defensive and they won at the Emirates but the same way of playing got them beat 5-0 at home to Wigan. I would agree though as in that the tactic I use does have one striker and 2 wingers, I always find a flat back 4 and a CM with a barrow will give defensive stability.

I also agree about team talks you have to make sure that you get them right as they make a big difference far too big for my liking. A trick I found was that if any attacking player, attacking being midfield or strikers is playing an 8 at half time tell them you have faith in them and they will very rarely drop down to a 7 and usually stay at 8 or go onto play a 9.

I read in the tactics forum I think it was that if you play one up front and incoming wingers against Chelsea then their CBs mark the wingers and your lone striker is free to score. There is no one way to play the game though as people use different ways to achieve success, hulk changes tactics as do alot of people but I keep everything the same.

Uh whut? Were you watching with your eyes closed or something?

[AcidBurn]

Uh whut? Were you watching with your eyes closed or something?

What do you mean?

I was trying to say that Hull still played with 2 strikers and Geovanni in the hole before switching Geovanni to the wing. Playing two upfront at Arsenal is not something many teams do.

[t1mbers]

Thanks for your comments guys its very much appreciated...iv cooled down a bit now so il see how i get on when i now start up the beautiful game

I dont have depth in my squad to change a strong team around alot so il keep you all posted on how it goes (y)

[t1mbers]

Well just to fill you in i have just finished my match against Chelsea and lost 2-0 which im not too unhappy about it had a decent go it seems.I played a 3-3-1-2-1 had a few chances but just were not at all clinical due to over-defencesive stance it seems.