5-2-2-1 / 3-4-3 Counter Attacking + Defensively Solid + Eye Pleasing Football

[bababooey]

** Just a quick note here. I'd like to thank Cleon for his writing which heavily inspired this post**

 

The Shape

5-2-2-1 / 3-4-3 is such a fantastic shape that I've never embraced, until now.

** If you'd like, you could also drop the two CM's into defensive midfield, and create the "Bielsa at Leeds shape" that we used to see in FM. That, in my opinion, is a little bit too defensive in nature, so I find the 2 CM's to give a lot more balance.

Strengths

• Defensive solidity / 3 at the back easily becomes 5 at the back
• 3 players up top in proximity to combine with each other
• Key areas of the pitch are well covered (space in front of other team's back line + bank of 4 in midfield + 3 defenders at the back)
• "Box of 4" naturally occurs in midfield, behind the striker
• Easily can morph into other shapes
• Can be used in various styles

Weaknesses

• The flanks have 1 player per side, so they could get overloaded
• Gap between the midfield and back 3
• Possession losses in central midfield could lead to quick counter-attacks against
• Quick attacks might break down / not be properly supported with fewer players positioned high

 

 

 

Defending Phase

Key Points

• Shape *tends to* defend in a 5-4-1 with the AMCLR's dropping back if the initial pressing fails / opposition moves past the halfway line (depending on how high you press, etc)
• In this example, the DC is sitting a little deeper because in my system he has a cover duty, but of course you could use a standard defend duty, and have all 3 of them defend in line.
• CM's occupy the middle, but it's very important that they aren't drawn too far away from their position, or else the back 3 will get exposed
• In order to help provide a bit more "oomph" you can use a stopper duty in your back 3, which you'll see further down in this post
• This shape can be really effective in a low block, but also in a medium block! (and honestly a high block too, but I'm not using a high block)
• Typically, the striker stays ahead of the ball, and everyone else sits behind it, so he's always available for an outlet pass
• What I love about this shape is how much it resembles a block. You can imagine now, this "block" moving either up or down depending on the situation. We want to ensure this block moves together as a unit to limit space that the opposition has to play in.

 

 

 

Attacking Phase

Key Points

• Not too different from the initial shape you see, until the wingbacks get really far forward (if they do)
• Resembles more of a 3-4-3 in this phase, which is great for spacing and creating chances
• Good coverage against counters with the 3 at the back, but that depends on where the ball is lost... if it's lost higher up, that's fine. If it's lost closer to the halfway line, this is very bad.
• Easily able to recycle possession if play breaks down, especially with 2 good holding midfielders in the CM position
• Trident of AMCLR + STC provides a problem for defenses (especially those without DM's) because these 3 can create passing moves with ease, and also make runs in behind that are unpredictable
• Width from the wingbacks allows for a release valve of sorts. Play getting too hot in the middle? Send the ball out wide, and reposition for another attack
• If a wingback gets to the byline, lots of options for a "cut back" pass, OR if they stay deep, a chance to cross across the face of goal towards the back post to a willing runner.

 

 

 

 

 

In Match Examples

Here you can see what the build up phase looks like, with my team being in white w/ black shorts.

• I've highlighted the names of each player just in case it's hard to see here.
• Lots of passing options at the back, particularly for progressing the ball out wide.
• Unsurprisingly, our CB's tend to complete a lot of progressive passes due to the nature of this shape and how it functions.
• The two CM's are involved in build up, but they're actually not the most important part. They're usually going to be covered, as they are in this example by 2 of Werder Bremen's forwards.
• But with the numbers we have, it's quite unusual to be in a situation where every option is well covered. And remember, the defenders can always turn around and pass backwards to the keeper.
• There's also the chance of playing a long ball over the top into the path of one of our forwards.

 

 

 

Here's a goal scoring example. Also please keep in mind we are playing at home against a weaker team, who are trying to be defensively solid rather than press aggressively.

• Red lines are passes, green arrows are runs
• We create a nice passing triangle with the WBL + CM + DCL
• This allows us to keep hold of possession and think about our next move
• The AMCL drops a bit deeper to support play, AND the striker follows him
• We've now isolated the opponent's midfielder who has to decide who to mark + press
• Our CM (dominguez) dribbles a bit towards the halfway line and releases a pass to the striker dropping into space
• As this happens, our AMCR (Lindstrom) drives forward into space between the defenders, and he's easily found by our striker with a lovely through ball
• A goal is scored, and we didn't need to camp in the opponent's half to make it happen. It really was created by the passing in deep areas which opened up space

 

 

 

 

Here's an attacking phase where our use of a wide center back on support creates problems for the opposition

• One of the best parts of a 3 at the back system is the ability to use wide center backs. They're so dynamic, and provide you with all sorts of options
• In this move, you see the wide center back has moved into midfield, but please also note the blue lines, which show the links we have between teammates
• Notice how we have 4 different links / combinations of players across the pitch. This is hard to defend against because we have so many options.
• Our shape is sort of like a 2-3-3-2 / 2-3-4-1 (but this is not that important) in this movement
• By having a wide center back move into midfield, it forces the other team to close him down (or try to shut down his passing options) which means we will have someone else in a good position to receive the ball somewhere else.
• If we were to lose possession in this move, it wouldn't be the end of the world because of the 2 center backs in the middle, AND the double pivot in the middle.
• If we were to move the ball back into the middle and lose possession there, then it would be dangerous, but you know, that's how it goes sometimes

 

 

Here's a defensive phase, and please keep in mind we defend in a mid block with a higher d-line, and "trigger press more often" and prevent short GK dist.

• Lots going on here but notice the red boxes? I've added those to show you how we've locked up 4 players from the opposition in the middle of the pitch. In this case, it's two strikers + two CM's.
• Currently on the ball in this picture is Gross, who is the DM in their side. We can easily put pressure on him, but still retain a strong defensive shape
• Ideally, Oliver would join in the press here instead of hanging out wide but you know, that's football
• Because the opponent is not using any of their back 3 in a progressive manner, it makes it easy for us to contain their build up play. Their CB's simply don't get involved in any significant way.
• I added black lines here to show the spacing of our players, and how we're holding a relatively high line. Also, note how close the CM's are to the back 3. They're positioned like DM's even though the formation starts with CM's, which is *exactly* what we want.
• This is part of the reason why I love a good mid block. It's so easy to be defensively solid like this, and we still provide pressure on the opponent so they don't have a ton more of the ball than we do.
• Look at all the space the opponent leaves around their DM, and in front of their back 3. Perfect to exploit on the counter.

 

 

 

 

Analysis / Maps

So here you can see a variety of things. Our shape with the ball, without the ball, and our passing combinations map.

Notice on the passing map, we really dont do a lot of passing through the middle. That is intentional, because it's quite risky to pass there and honestly, it doesn't need to happen.

We benefit greatly from combinations out wide, and if these break down, then we are probably in trouble. So this goes back to understanding the strengths and weaknesses of your shape.

What It Looks Like On The Tactics Screen

The basic idea of this tactic is to create problems for opponents who press aggressively. Because pressing hard is super common now, this will really separate the pretenders from the contenders. If your team presses effectively against this tactic, you're probably quite good!

Balanced mentality because, quite honestly, I don't like messing with this very much. Sometimes I'll lower it in match if we're taking too much risk.

In possession, we pass into space (remember the image above of all that space around the opponent's DM? That's the space we want to pass into. And we do. We also play out of defense, and this serves to help us keep possession and also draw the opponent on to us a bit. I also just like it. Finally, there is "work ball into box" because I hate long shots, and this also encourages us to be patient when building an attack, which is super important for when we are NOT involved in a counter attack

In transition, we distribute to the back 3 (our GK is poor at distribution) quickly, and counter. No need for "counter press" here, again it's vital that our CM's dont get yanked around too much. If we were a top side, then I would use it. But we're not, so we dont.

Out of possession is where the sausage gets made for us. The point is to create a solid block that remains compact and moves together AS A UNIT. This is why we've gone for "drop off more" + "higher def line" + "mid block". The team shifts back and forth together as one unit. If we "stepped up more" we would likely not see this behavior. Although, step up more can be effective, particularly for teams not using a DM.  But I dont see the need for it here.

We also prevent short GK distribution because I think it's important for us to make life hard for the opposition wherever possible. We're not playing in a low block, and so far this hasn't caused any real disruptions to our shape

The roles are so simple. We create multiple "lines" of defense that must be broken for a successful attack against us. First, the BDP-St works to stop play early. Then, the CD-Co can sweep up if things break down. And of course, the last line is the goalie.

The WCB is on support, and in the event that we're desperate to score, I might change him to attack. He acts like a normal center back in the defensive phase. Which is nice.

The rest of the team is pretty simple, too.  The wingbacks are on support because I do not need them to get forward all the time. They'll still get forward on support, but not as often. The two central midfielders are required to stay where they are or else things can fall apart. Sometimes I'll change the CM-S to DLP-S, because of the "hold position" instruction and because I just like it.

The two attacking midfielders are on support because, again, I don't need them to make too many forward runs. Remember the whole point of the system is to be patient and strike at the right moment, not to strike at ALL moments. This helps us build up play, and as I stated above, it creates a nightmare for defenders.

The striker is basically the focal point in attack, and it's crucial to have someone who can get behind defenses, and calmly finishes his chances. You don't need a huge target forward guy. One thing that could also work, is if you used a striker who drops deep like a F9 or DLF-S and turned the AM-S into something like SS-A or AM-A.  But I like the way my approach works.

 

That's all, folks!

 

Edited March 15, 2023 by bababooey
Formatting

[Cloud9]

Great formation, would recommend to anyone playing the game. 

Took my newly promoted Skybet Championship side to a Carabillo Cup final and a top 10 finish in the prem the following year. Really strong defensively and a flexible formation, particularly as an underdog. 

Edited March 13, 2023 by Cloud9

[bababooey]

11 minutes ago, Cloud9 said:

Great formation, would recommend to anyone playing the game. 

Took my newly promoted Skybet Championship side to a Carabillo Cup final and a top 10 finish in the prem the following year. Really strong defensively and a flexible formation, particularly as an underdog. 

Yep! It's brilliant for players who are weary about defense, or if they have a team with a weak midfield that would struggle to control games on their own.

[TheMartello]

Did you use any player instructions?

 

Any results you could share as well?

Edited March 13, 2023 by TheMartello

[krript]

Can you share the tactic file?

Edited March 13, 2023 by krript

[Cloud9]

14 minutes ago, TheMartello said:

Did you use any player instructions?

 

Any results you could share as well?

In mine I had the BPD dribble more, and the advanced playmaker roam. I also tinkered w/passing instructions so my less talented players played it shorter.

I played a two footed AP next to an extremely aggro SS and a tall/quick PF(a) w a dlp/bwm behind in the DM Strada so he had the free role to create. If you can it's a nice touch, but situational. 

Edited March 13, 2023 by Cloud9

[bababooey]

6 hours ago, TheMartello said:

Did you use any player instructions?

 

Any results you could share as well?

No player instructions at the moment.

 

As for results? First season with Frankfurt and we're solidly in 3rd place with about 12 games left to go.

Knocked out of the UCL by Barcelona, knocked out of the German cup by Bayern. 

The team was projected to finish around 6th or 7th so, if we finish 3rd I'll be very pleased.

[Cleon]

The exact same roles (apart from the striker) and examples as I posted here in this thread;

Almost the exact same wording in a lot of places too. Bit weird 

Edited March 14, 2023 by Cleon

[bababooey]

10 hours ago, Cleon said:

The exact same roles (apart from the striker) and examples as I posted here in this thread;

Almost the exact same wording in a lot of places too. Bit weird 

I continue to read both you and Rashidi all the time to keep my tactical mind sharp.

[Cloud9]

9 hours ago, bababooey said:

I continue to read both you and Rashidi all the time to keep my tactical mind sharp.

Did you experiment with using other roles on the wingbacks when you're chasing a goal?

I was surprised by how well the WB(s) worked but I was tinkering with a roaming wb on a side anyways. 

[bababooey]

2 hours ago, Cloud9 said:

Did you experiment with using other roles on the wingbacks when you're chasing a goal?

I was surprised by how well the WB(s) worked but I was tinkering with a roaming wb on a side anyways. 

Not other roles, just changing duty from support to attack, but this didn't really make much difference on its own.

[crusadertsar]

On 14/03/2023 at 02:48, Cleon said:

The exact same roles (apart from the striker) and examples as I posted here in this thread;

Almost the exact same wording in a lot of places too. Bit weird 

It's a conundrum really! But I guess great formations inspire emulation 

[bababooey]

UPDATE - END OF SEASON RESULTS

Frankfurt managed to finish 4th using this system in nearly all matches, save for a few where I experimented with something else (it didn't impact the results much at all).

Media prediction was 5th, so we overachieved slightly. The problem here is obvious, though, which is that we don't score many goals + create enough chances. But defensively, we are ROCK solid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some things that were disappointing

- we didn't cross the ball as much as we could have

- Nowhere near enough dribbles

- our tackling was pretty average coming in around 75%

- our passing completion percentage was quite average, nothing to write home about!

- our heading (defensively) was great, but I wish we could have done more with that on set pieces. It feels like scoring from corners and free kicks is SO much harder this year but maybe it's just me

Some seriously positive things

- Our interceptions were BRILLIANT. Nearly 27 per match!

- We did a good job of not losing possession too often

- Only 3 other clubs allowed FEWER passes against in their final third than us. That's fantastic, especially when you consider that 2 of them are Bayern and RB Leipzig

- We sold our first choice goalkeeper in January (we needed the money) and it didn't impact our defensive acumen one bit!

- Our conversion rate was quite good. When faced with chances, we usually converted them, which is always nice.

 

 

 

[HanziZoloman]

SGE is not what I call an underdog. 

[hotredabyss]

Great read, gave me a direction on my Almeria save where even tho we're overachiving, we have problems playing against the other 6 teams in top 7

 

If u had to make some tweaks to be more "aggressive" or scoring more in matches we're the better side, or home games, what could be done? Maybe a SS instead of the AM(S), and a WB(A) in the opposite side? A bigger problem i was having was being more dominant against weaker, defensive teams who constantly score on us in counter attacks, we dropped many points bc of this. Anyway again, great article

[Cleon]

6 hours ago, hotredabyss said:

Great read, gave me a direction on my Almeria save where even tho we're overachiving, we have problems playing against the other 6 teams in top 7

 

If u had to make some tweaks to be more "aggressive" or scoring more in matches we're the better side, or home games, what could be done? Maybe a SS instead of the AM(S), and a WB(A) in the opposite side? A bigger problem i was having was being more dominant against weaker, defensive teams who constantly score on us in counter attacks, we dropped many points bc of this. Anyway again, great article

If you read the article of mine linked in the thread, I cover all of this in that, especially on how to be more aggressive

[Poison]

Thanks for this, I'm using the following, it looks similar however I have much more conservative roles in defense, we also sit deep, and the players who try to make efforts are the two amcs. Pressing forward on defend is fantastic, it is very important that he does NOT take any efforts in this formation imho, just simple drop deep, give the ball, go back in the line. Amcr and ss have "stay wider" checked so they are playing as half-wingers too and wing-backs are encouraged to cross. I distribute from the keeper to ss, it works rather well.

 

Edited April 4, 2023 by Poison