Handling a quick, direct team while using a High Block?

[Luizinho]

Hi All,

I'm currently using a 4-3-3 high block system in my Barcelona save. I've pretty successful so far and now into my 5th season.

When I say high block, I mean:

- Higher Defensive Line

- Much higher line of engagement

 

One of main issues has been dealing with teams who play with a quick forward line and look to get the ball in behind with regularity. Now while I appreciate this part of the risk you have when pushing up and trying squeeze the opposition, however I've been trying to work out the best way to nullify this threat as best as possible. A good example would be my recent Champion league exit against Man Utd. They have Sancho, Rashford, Greenwood and now Mbappe as their forwards, with the latter scoring the crucial goal to knock me out.

The only things I've considered is selecting my fastest defenders for these games, however they're not really a match against these types of players.

Another is to maybe tight mark and press their deep distributors, but this isn't always applicable/doable/obvious.

So, has anyone got any good tweaks/strategies they employ in these situations?

[Fmhnunter]

Maybe if your defenders are capable enough, you can employ the offside trap or maybe lower your dl 

[Guest]

I always play the highest lines in my tactics and consitently have the best defensive numbers. The things I have always looked primarily for in my defenders  are high numbers in Anticipation, Concentration and  Positioning. After that I want them to be somewhat pacey(12 or above) and then I worry about the usual defenders attributes. If youre trapping then you obviously want them to be pretty decent in teamwork so they all move up in unison.

The biggest issues with high lines that I find are when the ball is turned over as we are attacking and how I can stop that. My fullbacks are pushing up to support the attack and  their pacey striker is mpving in to the space the FB has vacated and then somewhere in our attacking transition we have lost the ball and they have hit us on the counter. Eliminating those turnovers tend to be the key to eliminating those direct counter attacks. So say for instance I see it's the same midfielder or forward whose turning the ball over at crucial moments I will look to why that's happening. Maybe he's poor at dribling and he keeps doing it, maybe his decision making is terrible maybe he doesn't have enough support options or maybe he keeps trying long range passes and missing them which leaves us suddenly  in a prearious position.

If I have the right defenders then im more worried about what the rest of the team is doing to stop leaving my defenders exposed.

 

[fwanti]

Em 22/07/2022 em 19:26, Crazy_Ivan disse:

I always play the highest lines in my tactics and consitently have the best defensive numbers. The things I have always looked primarily for in my defenders  are high numbers in Anticipation, Concentration and  Positioning. After that I want them to be somewhat pacey(12 or above) and then I worry about the usual defenders attributes. If youre trapping then you obviously want them to be pretty decent in teamwork so they all move up in unison.

The biggest issues with high lines that I find are when the ball is turned over as we are attacking and how I can stop that. My fullbacks are pushing up to support the attack and  their pacey striker is mpving in to the space the FB has vacated and then somewhere in our attacking transition we have lost the ball and they have hit us on the counter. Eliminating those turnovers tend to be the key to eliminating those direct counter attacks. So say for instance I see it's the same midfielder or forward whose turning the ball over at crucial moments I will look to why that's happening. Maybe he's poor at dribling and he keeps doing it, maybe his decision making is terrible maybe he doesn't have enough support options or maybe he keeps trying long range passes and missing them which leaves us suddenly  in a prearious position.

If I have the right defenders then im more worried about what the rest of the team is doing to stop leaving my defenders exposed.

 

Do you play the highest lines with any team ? Like, if you play Real Madrid, it's more obvious to play higher lines, buy if you're playing a mid table or weaker team, would you still use it?

 

And how do you use press? I'm finding really hard to find the correct pressing intensity for my team.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, fwanti said:

Do you play the highest lines with any team ? Like, if you play Real Madrid, it's more obvious to play higher lines, buy if you're playing a mid table or weaker team, would you still use it?

 

And how do you use press? I'm finding really hard to find the correct pressing intensity for my team.

I don't change my tactical approach for any opposition, rather I react  and make subtle changes to what I am seeing during games, which defensively might involve using an opposition instruction, dropping the line one notch or changing the defensive width but this isn't something I do every game at all. Most of the time I'm more worried about breaking an opposition team down rather than what happens at the back.

With regards to pressing, nearly every tactic I use will use the highest trigger press options. Again when it comes to pressing forwards and midfielders I am wanting a specific set of attributes which obviously involve work-rate but also involve high agression which compliments the high work rate in terms of pressing and closing down the opposition ball carrier.

For my forwards things like finishing are not high on my list of priorities indeed in my current save (Nice in Ligue1) my strikers finishing ability is 12 and my right winger is a 10 and my three forwards are where my goals come from.

I'll frequently convert a central midfielder in to a striker because they often come with the right blend of attributes and good engines to maintain a high pressing game from the front and my tactics always involves a more creative/holdup striker.

As for the other parts of pressing, Rashidis posts here and his YouTube channel discussing pressing and funneling play are brilliant in terms of how your team can press if you're struggling with that.

I tend to eschew a lot of the common attribute choices and stats in favour  of using attributes that suit what I'm trying to achieve so mental attributes are very high on my list. I'd say the mental attributes row is the 1st one I look at when looking at a player.

Now that I have switched to a skin with no attributes and have become stats focused there still are ways for me to find the players I want despite the fact I have obviously have a fog of war enabled.

Sorry for the rambling reply. 

 

Edited July 27, 2022 by Crazy_Ivan

[Rashidi]

You are Barcelona, I would expect your side to be able to take on sides like Manchester United

 

Your tactic could need small tactics, like keeping the ball for extended periods of time. Perhaps look at using IWBs to give 5 channel attacks and that extra man in midfield during build up plays.

The other thing that you could is OI their key player during matches, but I still think that you can beat all kinds of sides with 433DM, you can do a slight adjustment to your block and drop the LOE by one notch. Its hard to give more advice without seeing your tactic