What does play through the middle do and when should I use it

[radgrandma]

So I have very strong mids but don’t know if I should play through the middle. What type of tactic is this suited for. Also same thing for playing through the flanks

[HUNT3R]

This is more something for the tactics forum. Since it's been more of a focus this year and he has been vocal about it, perhaps @Rashidi has something to share. I will move it to the correct area, by the way.  

[Rashidi]

There is a link at the top that describes what it does, with respect to the engine. I will also be releasing a video showing how it works and what it means for overloads. The video comes out today, and if you have further questions or want to see how this can be used as a tool you can pop in on my stream and I will show it to you. The links to my channel can be found in my forum id or you can go check the community links.

Basically

Focus play as an instruction tells your team to direct more of their passes in a specific area, while telling your players to support more of the play there. If you were to focus play down the flank, players would shift to the area slightly to support play by as more passes are played in that area. The same holds true for focus play activity through the middle.

Focus play now allows you to create effective overloads. This means that as more passes are focused in that area and players arrive to support it, you create numbers. These numbers allow you to overload the area, drawing more opposition players there. Naturally the presence of any playmakers of support duties make this a very interesting proposition. As these players start controlling and drawing players there, they free up space in other areas of the pitch, allowing you to take advantage of them.

Width too compounds this effect. Narrow width tells your team to come closer together and use central areas of the pitch. Naturally wider would mean the opposite. With focus play instructions you can get some nifty attacking patterns.

Focus play can be applied to nearly every system, and this doesn't have to be a rule specific to any formation. You can use this as a way to direct your attacks away from crowded places too. Imagine you have a tactical setup, you meet a team with 2 defensive midfielders, you could tell your team to focus play down the flanks, where their DMs won't operate. This allows you to change the focus of your attacks. Sometimes you could take advantage of an injury or poor performance by a player and decide to focus play down a specific area to take advantage of it. 

The combination of the right roles and duties, team instructions like width and focus play allows you have more control now than in FM20.

[Rashidi]

Oh and no one says you can't go narrow vs a defensive midfield formation and focus play through the middle. It will be harder, you just need players who can pull one intricate passing in tight confined areas.

[Rashidi]

 

[radgrandma]

Thank u guys so much. 
u guys are awesome