FM23 difficulty

[Johnny Ace]

I take it you're Nacional @wilfyRJM1979?

Just looking at your roles there, have the IFs and Wingbacks on Support, have the BWM in midfield on Support and have the DLP in the DM position on Defend, don't go nuts with the Team Instructions and you should do alright  You might wanna start again or get that morale up in the mean time 

[phnompenhandy]

This convo's gone quiet now, but I just want to briefly share my experience. I'e completed two saves in the full game. In the first one, I got sacked at Christmas. I dusted myself down, implemented lessons learned and went again. Second time I made it to the end of the season - got relegated and sacked again.

Now, I should have done. I put my non-league part-timers in the lowest playable league, 2 tiers above and played it right, not using any ME exploits or unrealistic means (although I can't do much about the over-egged free kicks, but it's the same for the AI sides). I think, if SI made the game "too easy", I would have done alright anyway. The sense I get is that the difficulty level is accurate enough, so long as you don't use unrealistic methods re recruitment or tactics.

[lordjanos]

Currently sitting 3rd in Conference North with Worthing. Only using scouted players for loans and free transfers. Simple 442 counter attacking tactic I rustled up. Scoring for fun with a slightly leaky defence. Mirrors my experience with Vicenza in the beta and about 10 hours into a save with Scarborough Athletic. Generally I'm erring on the side of the game being too easy at this point, though I'd have to give it full seasons to really see if that's the case.

Keep your tactics simple if you're playing LLM, be cautious with media handling and don't be afraid of aggressive team talks. Also watch a match on comprehensive. You'll see a lot more patterns as to why your team is struggling.

[el_manayer]

On 07/11/2022 at 23:20, wilfyRJM1979 said:

I hope this gets fixed i'm now on the worst run ever and i've been playing since Championship Manager 93. My strikers are good, yet the can't shoot, they tap the ball or scoop it in the air. the only players who seem to do anything are the defence, i'm sure they have gone with a structure now where you only get results by playing 5 or 3 at the back. 3 at the back with 2 wing  backs or a flat 5. I'm going to try and bring a sweeper system from the 80s into it. when will it update around midnight?

Hi, could you point me to your skin? or the name of it?

[Cobblers]

Ever so slightly harder this year compared to last, which is a good thing.

Overall, the game is more enjoyable with the additional considerations in play now - rather than pick a formation and continue to win everything.

[DP]

Has anyone holidayed for 10/15 years and seen what the points total is to win the top leagues? This is often a good indicator of how easy the game will get. 

Usually teams are winning the PL with 90+ points in the first 5 years but this tends to go down to around 80 on average. Would be nice to see a team dominating consistently and winning the PL with 95 points plus. 

[sthptngomad76]

6 hours ago, lordjanos said:

Currently sitting 3rd in Conference North with Worthing. Only using scouted players for loans and free transfers. Simple 442 counter attacking tactic I rustled up. Scoring for fun with a slightly leaky defence. Mirrors my experience with Vicenza in the beta and about 10 hours into a save with Scarborough Athletic. Generally I'm erring on the side of the game being too easy at this point, though I'd have to give it full seasons to really see if that's the case.

Keep your tactics simple if you're playing LLM, be cautious with media handling and don't be afraid of aggressive team talks. Also watch a match on comprehensive. You'll see a lot more patterns as to why your team is struggling.

To be fair- I don’t mind this. At least you’re having to work a bit for the wins rather than gegenpress click continue and win fests that it has been. Which is the way it should be in a simulation game.

It’s early days yet, but I’ve found it slightly harder too which I’m enjoying. 

[FireStar21]

I have another example in the French second division.
My club is predicted to be 4th (that's not ridiculous)
However after 22 games I am still undefeated with only 4 draws.
I also have the best attack and the best defence.
I use a 4-2-3-1 tactic with two inside wingers with the instruction "sit narrower". To clarify, I didn't download this tactic, I built it myself and I've been using it since the second game without having made any changes to the instructions.

What I mean with this example is that even with a team expected to be well placed it is not too normal to crush the league without any competition and dominate all the games without any problem. I don't know if it's a cheat tactic or the IA who does not know how to adapt

I'm sorry if there are any grammatical errors, I'm not English 

[zindrinho]

2 hours ago, FireStar21 said:

What I mean with this example is that even with a team expected to be well placed it is not too normal to crush the league without any competition and dominate all the games without any problem. I don't know if it's a cheat tactic or the IA who does not know how to adapt

This is my problem with FM as well. Its not as much fun to win when you win no matter what.

Your tactic makes sense, covers all areas of the pitch and works both defensively and offensively, that's all you need. You're gonna kick ass next season in ligue 1 as well, europa cup placement almost guaranteed.

[Mars_Blackmon]

1 hour ago, zindrinho said:

This is my problem with FM as well. Its not as much fun to win when you win no matter what.

Your tactic makes sense, covers all areas of the pitch and works both defensively and offensively, that's all you need. You're gonna kick ass next season in ligue 1 as well, europa cup placement almost guaranteed.

Agreed, the attributes need to matter more. I don't care if I create a working tactic (mind you im talking about a balanced tactic and not something that exploits) if the players can't perform the instructions or roles, then the tactic should not be as effective. Plug n Play still work, you just can't take tactics from the older games and expect success.

[zindrinho]

1 hour ago, Mars_Blackmon said:

Agreed, the attributes need to matter more. I don't care if I create a working tactic (mind you im talking about a balanced tactic and not something that exploits) if the players can't perform the instructions or roles, then the tactic should not be as effective. Plug n Play still work, you just can't take tactics from the older games and expect success.

dont even need that, just set up your most talented team, find roles that creates space and doesnt run (too much) into each other and you're indestructable. things like Roll it out short and play out of defence is just the icing on the top, clean slate tactic every year for me.

[Mars_Blackmon]

4 hours ago, zindrinho said:

dont even need that, just set up your most talented team, find roles that creates space and doesnt run (too much) into each other and you're indestructable. things like Roll it out short and play out of defence is just the icing on the top, clean slate tactic every year for me.

Things like counter attack and counter press always work as well and I think that has more to do with the lack of AI able to manage fatigue players.

[Weller1980]

Once again gegenpress is so overpowered and this makes the game too easy for me, currently any team can play gegenpress tactics from vanarama teams to prem team with no consequences. Gegenpress should only work with players with good work rate, high stamina etc. and teams who don't have the right type of players for this tactic shouldn't be successful with it. We should see more injuries etc. 

For the last 3 versions gegenpress has been overpowered, I remember watching a video where SI said plug and play gegenpress is a thing of the past but guess what that simply wasn't the case. It's still a click and continue tactic. 

This year the ai was supposed to be better defensively and make tactical tweeks in accordance to how the match plays out I don't see any evidence of that. 

I was hoping this year's version would reduce the effectiveness of gegenpress and smarter ai would combine to make the game more difficult but guess what none of this has happened again. 

@devs why is gegenpress still so overpowered after all these years and will its effectivness be better balanced in future updates for fm23. Please answer my question and help me understand. 

 

[phnompenhandy]

^ don't use it then.

[Weller1980]

57 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

^ don't use it then.

This is a poor reply. This is a football simulator and therfore I should be able to play my favourite football tactic with realistic results and consequences. 

[fc.cadoni]

Still need some tweaks for players with Stamina 6, Stamina 11, Stamina 16. Overall is not so much overpowered in FM23 like it was in FM20/21/22.

[Lesterfan_Cambiasso]

Not enjoying this version whatsoever.

Away games have become ridiculously hard, the crazy exploit tactics are still a thing, the only "new" thing is you can sit deeper and launch some long passes forwards.

Very, very disappointing. FM22 was a better game.

[Mars_Blackmon]

3 minutes ago, Lesterfan_Cambiasso said:

Not enjoying this version whatsoever.

Away games have become ridiculously hard, the crazy exploit tactics are still a thing, the only "new" thing is you can sit deeper and launch some long passes forwards.

Very, very disappointing. FM22 was a better game.

Away games seems harder because the AI actually use the mentality function this year. Plus in previous versions all they did was sit back even at home if they weren't favorites.

[Lesterfan_Cambiasso]

2 minutes ago, Mars_Blackmon said:

Away games seems harder because the AI actually use the mentality function this year. Plus in previous versions all they did was sit back even at home if they weren't favorites.

Well, whatever the reasons, lots of people are experiencing very tough runs of results away from home in a way that simply doesnt reflect real life, and the way the game represents losing these games doesnt reflect real life either in my opinion.

[zindrinho]

17 minutes ago, Lesterfan_Cambiasso said:

Well, whatever the reasons, lots of people are experiencing very tough runs of results away from home in a way that simply doesnt reflect real life, and the way the game represents losing these games doesnt reflect real life either in my opinion.

in real life, managers adapt to playing away from home. Playing away from home IS harder, its only a good thing if this is now better represented in FM.

[Mars_Blackmon]

23 minutes ago, Lesterfan_Cambiasso said:

Well, whatever the reasons, lots of people are experiencing very tough runs of results away from home in a way that simply doesnt reflect real life, and the way the game represents losing these games doesnt reflect real life either in my opinion.

Is that because people aren't changing the way they play away vs at home? if the AI can't win against the AI on the road then yes I would agree its a problem.

Moral plays a factor as well, home team players are more confident with their fans behind them.

Edited November 13, 2022 by Mars_Blackmon

[Lesterfan_Cambiasso]

2 minutes ago, zindrinho said:

in real life, managers adapt to playing away from home. Playing away from home IS harder, its only a good thing if this is now better represented in FM.

Its not harder in the way it is in football manager.

You can routinely blast everyone away at home, with players who can make decisions, who dont run through treacle, and can finish properly.

All of this completely goes out of the window playing away from home.

Of course its harder playing away from home, but MOST away games dont see managers make fundamental shifts in approach during the game.

We arent going to agree, so we might as well leave it there.

[Mars_Blackmon]

Just now, Lesterfan_Cambiasso said:

Its not harder in the way it is in football manager.

You can routinely blast everyone away at home, with players who can make decisions, who dont run through treacle, and can finish properly.

All of this completely goes out of the window playing away from home.

Of course its harder playing away from home, but MOST away games dont see managers make fundamental shifts in approach during the game.

We arent going to agree, so we might as well leave it there.

They play a lower risk style of football. You can do this in the game without fundamental changing the way your team normally plays.

 

[sthptngomad76]

I'm going to go against what I've stated previously- for some reason it feels a touch harder now, which I am enjoying. I am finding gegenpress isn't quite always the answer, and there is a definite need for away game strategies. Long may it last.

[aqon4321]

Got to be the worst match engine for a long time, it's not that the game is to hard it's just totally unrealistic. I've been playing since championship manager 92-93, so i think i've picked up 1 or 2 things along the way lol.

So i've been playing as man city and the fluctuations in performances are ridiculous. When you watch the games the amount of miss controls and losing possession from over powered pressing teams is ridiculous. Considering the technical ability of the man city side, you can expect a couple of defeats on the bounce, but to lose 7 games all of a sudden

when your playing well is not enjoyable. Every team disposses you with ease, it's like im playing with a national league 2 side.

I'm putting this down for a while now until it is sorted because it is not fun. I like a challenge but nah not me this version. FM22 was so much better. It was so much easier to read the game if you had a dodgy spell, but this version haven't got a clue what to do next.

Not a rant just really dissapointed.

Edited November 13, 2022 by aqon4321

[fuchan3]

Long time lurker - first time poster.

I have to agree with most of you hear, FM23 is still way too easy. In fact it seems even easier than FM22. I used the same Gegenpress 4-2-3-1 tactic as from FM21!!, just plug & play, no changes at all and I win every match 3-0, 4-0. I am playing 1860 Munich in 3rd division Germany and their squad really shouldn't be that dominant. Is the only solution really to not use Gegenpress to make the game a bit more challenging?

[phnompenhandy]

38 minutes ago, fuchan3 said:

Long time lurker - first time poster.

I have to agree with most of you hear, FM23 is still way too easy. In fact it seems even easier than FM22. I used the same Gegenpress 4-2-3-1 tactic as from FM21!!, just plug & play, no changes at all and I win every match 3-0, 4-0. I am playing 1860 Munich in 3rd division Germany and their squad really shouldn't be that dominant. Is the only solution really to not use Gegenpress to make the game a bit more challenging?

Yes. To expand on my earlier terse response, why use ME exploits and then complain the game is too easy? It's not hard to avoid unrealistic tactics. If you enjoy the game on realistic/hard mode,

there are tons of options. Just look at this for proper hardcore:

NEW FM23 LET'S PLAY SERIES | The Dobfather | #1 | FOOTBALL MANAGER 2023 |

 

[el_manayer]

I find that, this year, there is a good equilibrium between being a bit harder than previous years but not too hard that I would be bored of just losing. I think that if the game would become more realistic (and thus, harder) it would need some kind of difficulty option because for a lot of players that, like me, are more casual, it would simply be too much.

[Ricobran]

I’m finding it quite easy considering I’m still unsure what I’m doing.  So far, playing as Spurs, winning against Palace, Newcastle, West Ham and Brighton. A draw with Man Utd and a narrow lose to Chelsea away. The game against Brighton was ridiculous, we were putting through balls time after time, scoring 4 goals in 9 minutes in the first half. One annoying thing is defenders moving away/back from long balls. 

[zindrinho]

2 hours ago, phnompenhandy said:

Yes. To expand on my earlier terse response, why use ME exploits and then complain the game is too easy? It's not hard to avoid unrealistic tactics.

Gegenpressing if you're down a goal with 15mins left isn't really unrealistic. The truly unrealistic thing would be to NOT push your team higher up when chasing a goal at the end of a game.

You cant ask people to sit back and just lose the game because pressing higher up the pitch would end in a win every time and that would be exploiting.

[phnompenhandy]

2 minutes ago, zindrinho said:

Gegenpressing if you're down a goal with 15mins left isn't really unrealistic. The truly unrealistic thing would be to NOT push your team higher up when chasing a goal at the end of a game.

You cant ask people to sit back and just lose the game because pressing higher up the pitch would end in a win every time and that would be exploiting.

Of course, but far too many people set up Gegenpressing for 90 minutes for a whole season - with a bunch of part-timers or lower league players.

[zindrinho]

1 minute ago, phnompenhandy said:

Of course, but far too many people set up Gegenpressing for 90 minutes for a whole season - with a bunch of part-timers or lower league players.

I bet most people do a Barca-Pep tiki taka gegenpress with Work ball into box TI which means you only press for a short time before winning the ball, but then keeping possession rather than a heavy-metal attack, lose the ball, start pressing all over.

This way you dont really press 90mins in a game, you press for a bit, then rest with the ball. SI needs to just keep adjusting and get it right rather than us avoid pressing high because we get bored when we turn every match to a win (in those few matches we dont just win from the get-go.)

[phnompenhandy]

In previous versions you had to go with a positive/attacking mentality and attacking tactic to succeed. Going defensive either by default or to close off a match didn't work well. This seems to be fixed in FM23 - you can do well with any mentality and a great range of tactics. However, what I'm finding is it takes time and skill to find the right system for your players. I never look at plug-n-play downloaded tactics but my hunch is they wouldn't work so well in this version. But if you want a challenge, you really should go with a low-level club that has no money and stick to realistic tactics.

[zindrinho]

3 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

 But if you want a challenge, you really should go with a low-level club that has no money and stick to realistic tactics.

Been there, done that, still not challenging at all. Again, realistic tactics, it IS realistic to press high when you're behind. You cant just call that exploitive and ask people not to do it. Its  simply unrealistic to sit back and take a loss without even trying, who do you think I am, every AI manager in the game?  

[Dagenham_Dave]

I'm managing in the 4th tier in Sweden. I would love it to be easy. But it's not. Having much more bother this year than last year, which is a good thing, albeit incredibly frustrating at times. 

[CARRERA]

I think there simply is a very wide range of people who have their own view on FM‘s difficulty. And everyone is right, since it’s very individual.

So my question would be how SI could make the game more challenging for some while keeping it playable for everyone with joy. And I don’t think difficulty sliders would do the job. I don’t wanna play in a world where AI Clubs just get bonuses on finances, attributes or whatever, like it’s in every other game. 

[T-IceMan]

2 hours ago, Dagenham_Dave said:

I'm managing in the 4th tier in Sweden. I would love it to be easy. But it's not. Having much more bother this year than last year, which is a good thing, albeit incredibly frustrating at times. 

Tbh 4th tier in Sweden is pain in general haha.

[SergeiG]

6 hours ago, phnompenhandy said:

Yes. To expand on my earlier terse response, why use ME exploits and then complain the game is too easy? It's not hard to avoid unrealistic tactics. If you enjoy the game on realistic/hard mode,

there are tons of options. Just look at this for proper hardcore:

NEW FM23 LET'S PLAY SERIES | The Dobfather | #1 | FOOTBALL MANAGER 2023 |

 

I don't understand your point,

If gegnpress is broken(and it probably is) it's SIs job to address it, Gegnpress is a common tactic today and claiming its exploitative is BS.

[Mars_Blackmon]

4 hours ago, CARRERA said:

I think there simply is a very wide range of people who have their own view on FM‘s difficulty. And everyone is right, since it’s very individual.

So my question would be how SI could make the game more challenging for some while keeping it playable for everyone with joy. And I don’t think difficulty sliders would do the job. I don’t wanna play in a world where AI Clubs just get bonuses on finances, attributes or whatever, like it’s in every other game. 

This gets brought up a lot but attributes bonus to the AI isn’t needed at all or any of that other stuff.

Difficulty levels should be modified by the attributes your coach has. Still, the game is outdated as it doesn’t build on top of existing features. Instead, it continues to add fluff that an average player can completely ignore while able to have success. Currently, correct me if I am wrong. Rep only controls how the team respects you meaning players are more fickle to your talks. However, if you pick the correct answer all the time and continue to win games, then this has minimal effect on the game. Coach badges give you attribute points. Most attributes only matter for training, while others help with talks.

It doesn’t seem like our tactical attribute affects tactical familiarity or that the mental attribute affects team cohesion. Both of these things in the game can be gained relatively fast and impact a team’s success. So to make the game harder, if your manager has a low attribute in those categories, it should be hard to gain cohesion and familiarity. 

Outside of our manager’s attributes, familiarity and cohesion itself should be more affected by changes. Constantly changing your roster or tactics should stunt the growth of team cohesion and familiarity. This would also encourage the player to use all 3 tactical slots for having a variation of your main tactic or even other formations. 

And, of course, you have adaptability and determination, which affects specific areas of the game.

 

 

Edited November 15, 2022 by Mars_Blackmon

[sdx15]

8 hours ago, phnompenhandy said:

Of course, but far too many people set up Gegenpressing for 90 minutes for a whole season - with a bunch of part-timers or lower league players.

And they should be punished for that rather than rewarded. Gegenpress in itself isn't an unrealistic tactic one can classify as an exploit as it's probably the most known tactic currently in football. The problem is that it's giving unrealistic results with players who shouldn't be capable of pulling the tactic off and that's something SI should address.

 

When it comes to the game being too easy/hard, I think of the major problems is actually morale managment. Morale has such a big influence on your team that, if you know all the tips and tricks, you'll basically never suffer because the game provides you with enough morale boosters to recover from bad results. On the other hand, if you don't bother with tiresome and unrealistic praising training/conduct, with carefully avoiding conflict with random players over random BS and with summoning a team meeting when your team's on a positive run, you'll suffer greatly no matter how good your team or tactics are. This can be realistic at times, but I believe it's exaggerated in FM. This is still a game and micro-managing under the threat that everything will turn against you isn't all that fun.

[Gee_Simpson]

2 hours ago, sdx15 said:

And they should be punished for that rather than rewarded. Gegenpress in itself isn't an unrealistic tactic one can classify as an exploit as it's probably the most known tactic currently in football. The problem is that it's giving unrealistic results with players who shouldn't be capable of pulling the tactic off and that's something SI should address.

 

When it comes to the game being too easy/hard, I think of the major problems is actually morale managment. Morale has such a big influence on your team that, if you know all the tips and tricks, you'll basically never suffer because the game provides you with enough morale boosters to recover from bad results. On the other hand, if you don't bother with tiresome and unrealistic praising training/conduct, with carefully avoiding conflict with random players over random BS and with summoning a team meeting when your team's on a positive run, you'll suffer greatly no matter how good your team or tactics are. This can be realistic at times, but I believe it's exaggerated in FM. This is still a game and micro-managing under the threat that everything will turn against you isn't all that fun.

Are you saying that morale management has a bigger impact on results than tactics themselves?

[Dutchy1983]

Match engine looks very inconsistent so far after 14 games played in the championship. Defensive lines in mine are all over the shop. Long balls over the top and my CBs have no idea, run underneath or stop. FBs are always the deepest defender for some reason. But even with that crap the game is still too easy. I'm Birmingham, only signed a 35 yo RW , retraining as a shadow striker and false 9, plus Ashby on loan from west ham. I'm 2nd, tinkering with tactic every game trying to get a 1 CB and two FB line up to work, but varying to 3CBs as well due to the horrid defending. Conceded 23 but scored 37 in 14 games. 
Not much seems to have changed in game. Fair let down

[DP]

14 hours ago, phnompenhandy said:

In previous versions you had to go with a positive/attacking mentality and attacking tactic to succeed. Going defensive either by default or to close off a match didn't work well. This seems to be fixed in FM23 - you can do well with any mentality and a great range of tactics. However, what I'm finding is it takes time and skill to find the right system for your players. I never look at plug-n-play downloaded tactics but my hunch is they wouldn't work so well in this version. But if you want a challenge, you really should go with a low-level club that has no money and stick to realistic tactics.

A shame because I’d actually like the challenge Pep and Klopp have in real life which FM has a tough job of replicating. 

[phnompenhandy]

4 minutes ago, DP said:

A shame because I’d actually like the challenge Pep and Klopp have in real life which FM has a tough job of replicating. 

I'm seeing YouTubes where people recreate Pep and Jurgen's tactics - you can if you have the right players. I don't watch them myself because they're in a different universe to my level.

[sdx15]

4 hours ago, Gee_Simpson said:

Are you saying that morale management has a bigger impact on results than tactics themselves?

Yes, sometimes it does feel like it has a bigger impact. Especially if you're destroying your league and play continental competitions against stronger oppodition.

[DP]

25 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

I'm seeing YouTubes where people recreate Pep and Jurgen's tactics - you can if you have the right players. I don't watch them myself because they're in a different universe to my level.

But after time it ceases to be a challenge. It’s the same in your universe too. 

If you ever got to the top, you’d stay there. 

[phnompenhandy]

Just now, DP said:

But after time it ceases to be a challenge. It’s the same in your universe too. 

If you ever got to the top, you’d stay there. 

Not in my universe, no. I'm doing an Academy Challenge, where you can only replace your squad with kids from your academy intake. Given my starting squad's average age is 30 and half of them are crashing in physical attributes early in the first season, next season will be a major rebuild with 15-year-old kids with PAs in single digits. You can make this game very challenging with a little imagination and application.

[DP]

14 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

Not in my universe, no. I'm doing an Academy Challenge, where you can only replace your squad with kids from your academy intake. Given my starting squad's average age is 30 and half of them are crashing in physical attributes early in the first season, next season will be a major rebuild with 15-year-old kids with PAs in single digits. You can make this game very challenging with a little imagination and application.

You’re making it more difficult for yourself, which is fine. But the challenge will be less as the top teams end up winning the league on 70 and 80+ points regularly. Compared to the start of the game and real life. 

[RandomGuy.]

On 13/11/2022 at 14:59, aqon4321 said:

Got to be the worst match engine for a long time, it's not that the game is to hard it's just totally unrealistic. I've been playing since championship manager 92-93, so i think i've picked up 1 or 2 things along the way lol.

So i've been playing as man city and the fluctuations in performances are ridiculous. When you watch the games the amount of miss controls and losing possession from over powered pressing teams is ridiculous. Considering the technical ability of the man city side, you can expect a couple of defeats on the bounce, but to lose 7 games all of a sudden

when your playing well is not enjoyable. Every team disposses you with ease, it's like im playing with a national league 2 side.

I'm putting this down for a while now until it is sorted because it is not fun. I like a challenge but nah not me this version. FM22 was so much better. It was so much easier to read the game if you had a dodgy spell, but this version haven't got a clue what to do next.

Not a rant just really dissapointed.

I dont think blaming the ME is the right approach if you're losing 7 games in a row with Man City...

[thehig2]

On 12/11/2022 at 20:06, Weller1980 said:

Once again gegenpress is so overpowered and this makes the game too easy for me, currently any team can play gegenpress tactics from vanarama teams to prem team with no consequences. Gegenpress should only work with players with good work rate, high stamina etc. and teams who don't have the right type of players for this tactic shouldn't be successful with it. We should see more injuries etc. 

For the last 3 versions gegenpress has been overpowered, I remember watching a video where SI said plug and play gegenpress is a thing of the past but guess what that simply wasn't the case. It's still a click and continue tactic. 

This year the ai was supposed to be better defensively and make tactical tweeks in accordance to how the match plays out I don't see any evidence of that. 

I was hoping this year's version would reduce the effectiveness of gegenpress and smarter ai would combine to make the game more difficult but guess what none of this has happened again. 

@devs why is gegenpress still so overpowered after all these years and will its effectivness be better balanced in future updates for fm23. Please answer my question and help me understand. 

 

At first I didn't believe this, been trying low block with ok results but I believed SI in thinking gegenpress wasn't so overpowered now. 

Decided to change my tactic to push up further, close down more, step up, counter press etc. 

As Everton went on a run of 5 wins in 6 beating Liverpool, Arsenal & City along the way lol.

 

Seems to be less thought needed into the tactic if you go gegenpress as it works too well.