ElJefe4

Unfortunately the MCL Mezzala experiment ultimately failed. Despite the PIs, it wasn't possible to safely defend our left hand side. I've instead changed to an asymmetrical formation: Few notes on this shape that I wanted to make. More for my own benefit than thinking anyone is following the tactical direction I'm taking Despite Diaz being nominally positioned higher than Messias, we are still able to achieve the desired 433 shape in possession with Diaz joining the midfield and Messias pushing higher. I'd previously struggled to see my left midfielder tucking inside to form a 3. He was pretty much always staying too high and wide. I've found that not having a player positioned directly inside him seems to encourage him to move infield more often. In order to really replicate a compact mid block 442, both wide midfielders have the PI to Mark Position on ML and MR respectively. I also use OIs such as never triggering a press on opposition goalkeepers and centre backs. As a result we often invite the ball into midfield or out wide. This helps us to draw opposition out slightly, giving us more space to counter into once we do win the ball back. The results so far have been positive. Room for improvement of course, I'd never profess to being the best tactician around, but I've been really pleased with our results. For the calendar year 2023 we are currently on P22, W16, D5, L1, GF 40, GA 9. 16 clean sheets in that run as well, including a 2nd leg 0-0 away at Bayern which saw us knock them out of the RO16. I may do a bit more of a detailed write up of how the tactic performs in game when I reach the end of the season, if anyone is interested.

Tried something a bit different in an effort to get the desired shape in possession, whilst still looking to defend in a 442... Average Positions: Still defending in a narrow 442. Diaz is being used as a Mezzala (Support) with the Mark Position PI on the opposition RM slot. Led to a nice counter attack goal!

What differences do you see when the central midfielders are dropped down into the DM strata? I'm quite keen to have a flat and narrow 4 across midfield. Do you still have this? Thank you for the reply. Thanks mate. It's been fine so far off the ball. Would like a bit more from the right winger in terms of moving higher up and linking up with the 'front 2'. I think that might come naturally when I get a more naturally attacking option for that position, preferably left footed. Much appreciated! I've just played Dortmund at home in the Champions League. Went with a similar set up to the above. The changes were: Balanced Mentality - purely based on strength of opposition Higher Defensive Line - reduces gap between back and front. Trying to use some of those Sacchi principles that I'm sure have influenced Ancelotti. Fairly Narrow Team Width - again to reduce horizontal gaps. This is under the 'in possession' tab but I'm hoping by having those players in narrower positions, we will more compact when we lose the ball. Average positions without the ball from the match: Not sure why the full backs seem deeper than the centre backs but on the whole it looks narrow and very compact, which I am happy about. Diaz (#7) strangely slightly wider than Saelemaekers (#11). Might be something to do with Dortmund's set up. And the average positions with the ball: Again pretty good, only a couple of things to really note: Diaz still slightly wider than I would want him. I'd prefer to see him closer to the X. Ugarte (#4) slightly ahead of Tonali (#8) is strange considering it is Ugarte who is told to Hold Position. This might be because he players behind Leao (CF - A), whilst Tonali players behind CdK (DLF - S), which gives Tonali less room to move into. Ideally that space that Ugarte has pushed up slightly into is where Diaz would be playing. He did, however, score what turned out to be the winning goal. So I'm not complaining too much.

Trying to keep it as simple as possible to begin with so kept the Team Instructions to a minimum. As far as Player Instructions go: Ugarte holds position Diaz dribbles more, cuts inside with the ball and sits narrower Leao stays wider

Hi guys, After watching a few YouTube videos of some of the devastating counter attack goals scored by the likes of Ronaldo, Benzema and Bale, I've been trying to figure out the best way to recreate something that resembles the sort of 442/433 hybrid that Carlo Ancelotti used at Real Madrid in the mid 2010s. I've been looking at a few sources of info on these tactics, for example: https://defendingwiththeball.wordpress.com/2014/04/30/carlo-ancelotti-shows-flexibility-again-with-442-shape/ Basic idea: Regroup and defend in a fairly narrow, compact, mid block 442. When in possession, create a sort of asymmetrical 433. Left midfielder moves infield, almost like a third central midfielder. Creates space for overlapping left back and striker that drifts into left channel. Right midfielder pushes up to form a front 3 (433 in possession). My current problem though is that my midfield is too wide. As you can see from the above, the back 4 is quite narrow. The midfield 4, however, is very wide. I've circled my right and left midfielders and marked where I'd like them to be. The below picture (from the article linked above) shows the positions that I need them to be in. Does anyone know how to achieve this? Once I have my defensive structure in place I will move on to the attacking shape. Any help would be appreciated.

When using swap positions for 2 strikers, do they assume the role/duty of the player they're swapping with? For example, I've just started a save as Milan, I've got a front 2 of Leao on the left as an Advanced Forward and Charles de Ketelaere as a Deep Lying Forward on Support. If I tell them to swap positions, does Leao play as a DLF when they swap? Or does he still play as an Advanced Forward but just do it from the right hand side?

Nope. Just decided to wander off for some reason.

That's really interesting, thanks for sharing! My midfield 3 is currently set up a DM (S), CM (S) and AP (A). TIs are play out of defence, shorter passing and work ball into box. Positive team mentality and the normal width (off the top of my head I believe it says fairly wide). Not sure why I'm getting a completely different outcome to what I'm looking for but at least now I know it can be achieved.

I definitely agree that there's a lack of play in the middle of the pitch. This is shown by the above pass map, this is only from one half of football in which we completed 388 passes, yet look at the lack of interaction between de Jong (#21) and Pedri (#8). When I click on the combinations drop down which (assuming that it is accurate) shows the amount of passes between 2 players, de Jong and Pedri aren't even listed on there. So is the game telling me that in a possession heavy system (57% possession away from home), that my 2 central midfield players didn't pass to each other once? Really? If you look at de Jong's pass map... Most of those passes seem to be going either inside and backwards, probably to Busquets or a centre back, or out to a full back or winger. There's very few that go inside and square or forward.

Definitely need to up the defensive line and pressing instructions. Be prepared to be frustrated anyway though, I'm messing around with a Barcelona save and trying to press high in a 433. Sometimes players, despite TIs and being instructed to mark individual players/positions, decide to wander off into the middle of nowhere and give the opposition an easy route out. Look at Raphina here, any chance of being remotely in your position so the left back hasn't got 40 yards of space!?

I also went more symmetrical for the second half of the season after a mid season slump. Getting back to basics really paid off. 7 of the 13 goals we conceded in the 18 games above actually came after the 80th minute, which makes me think we're not used to the added intensity and maybe I need to have a less intense version of the tactic to slow the game down and see it out. Despite going with the above as a 'back to basics' kind of thing, moving away from the 1970 Brazil side, Having an Advanced Playmaker on Support in the AML position with a 'Sit Narrower' player instruction is actually the closest I've got to replicating the positioning I wanted out of whoever was replicating the Rivelino role. It often looks like a quasi-433 with Mario sitting closer to my central midfielders and Neres pushing up in that Jairzinho role closer to the front 2. As a left footer he naturally comes inside and gets plenty of scoring opportunities moving into the space vacated by Ramos. The configuration of the full backs and strike partnership is a bit different but suits my team much more. This system is playing some lovely football.

Seemed to be forcing a lot of killer balls from deep/middle third areas to forward players who were neither dropping off to receive the ball into feet, nor running in behind. I got sucked into my bad habit of chopping and changing too many roles and instructions, to the extent that I can't tell what change is benefitting or harming us. Couldn't see the wood from the trees. Decided a complete reset was needed. Gone away from the 1970 Brazil model towards more of a 4-2-4, although with some similarities. Double pivot midfield. AML who tucks inside allowing space for an overlapping left back. More conservative full back on the right with a wider, more direct winger ahead of him. Completely stripped back the Team Instructions to no more than a few and will only add them as necessary from now on. One of our first games, ourselves and Arsenal had an identical xG of 1.72. Somehow ended up in a 5-1 defeat. Just some to be in one of those ruts! On a side note, when using 2 striker formations does anyone else find that they seem to struggle to link up with each other? This is my set up by the way. Mario told to sit narrower. Neres told to stay wider, although I may just change him to a winger as he'll probably cut inside onto his left anyway given that its his dominant foot and he has the trait to do so.

Frustrated to say that my above tactic has gone from scoring 65 goals in 21 league games to looking completely toothless in open play! Thought I was getting pretty close to an accurate representation of 1970 Brazil, but we now we can't create a chance to save our lives.

As would I, but as I mentioned my squad is slightly better suited to how I've got it set up. I've only recently signed Andre, so up until then my full backs were Grimaldo (left back) and Gilberto (right back). Grimaldo is a much more complete player so it made more sense to have him replicate the Carlos Alberto role and let Gilberto play the more simple role on the opposite side.

Joao Mario has been great for me as a wide playmaker on support. The 12 penalties inflate his numbers massively but still been really good regardless. This is the tactic for anyone who is interested. Interesting that myself and @crusadertsar, without planning to, have looked to implement a very similar style and both used Lisbon clubs. A couple of things to note: - Would usually be Goncalo Ramos or Henrique Araujo up front, but both are currently injured. - Right back has been on Full Back (Support) until the last few games, in order to reflect Brazil's 1970 team in which the left back was more conservative. I've obviously had to flip it over because of the players at my disposal. I've brought in Andre, a natural central midfielder, and I'm looking to retrain him to play right back. Gave him a more adventurous role, haven't decided if I'll keep it yet. - I've also recently moved my striker into the very central role. I found that, when he was offset to the left, he would often occupy the exact same space as Rafa (AML, Inside Forward). - After looking at the graphic that @Flußkrebs posted, I should probably have my deepest central midfielder on the same side as my more attacking full back (Grimaldo). This would mean swapping Florentino Luis and Enzo Fernandez over. Current league record (season 2) in case anyone is interested:

This is a bit of a 'gamey' question this, apologies, but I was wondering if, when you have promised to play a player in their preferred position/role, if you were to start a player in that position/role and then change it once the match kicks off to something that actually suits your tactic - would the player be aware of this or would the fact that he's started the match in his favoured position/role go towards you fulfilling your promise to him? Cheers. Also if there is a thread for general in game questions such as this, any mods please feel free to move this post there. I couldn't find one.

https://www.screentogif.com/ Really useful tool.

A goal even the best Brazil sides would be proud of

Conventional wisdom is that the tactical shape you see in the tactics creator is your defensive shape. So if you wanted to defend in a 442 you would have to set that up as something resembling your off the ball shape. You'd then have to use different player roles, duties and player instructions to create movements on the ball that replicated the 433. I would assume that you would want the '2' in the 442 to be your striker and one of your central midfield players? I.e. Haaland and KdB? In that case you could try pushing KdB up into the AMCR slot possibly, and/or experiment with instructions such as triggering a press on the DCL, or having de Bruyne man mark the opposition DCL.

That's this evenings reading sorted! I've been a high press 433 disciple over the past few years but looking forward to moving towards a different style of play. Less emphasis on pressing, combination of physicality and technical ability in the back 4 and double pivot and free up an attacking quartet to wreak havoc. What better side to use as inspiration than the mighty Brazil.

I'm not 100% sure that it is quite the golden generation that dominated Europe on FM18 but there's still plenty of promising young players to build around. Defence: Antonio Silva will undoubtedly develop into a top class ball playing centre back. Already very impressive technical ability coupled with excellent reading of the game and composure. A bit of work needed on the physical side (strength, heading), but at 19 that will come. Morato's physicality and aggression compliments him perfectly. At just 19 and 21, these two will be a formidable partnership for the next decade. Midfield: A survivor from the golden generation, Florentino Luis' incredible tackling, anticipation and positioning make him a perfect foil for the more creative forward players. Alongside him is Enzo Fernandez. One of the hottest properties in European football right now and I'm hoping he can fulfil that potential as the heartbeat of this Benfica side. Attack: Goncalo Ramos has started like a house on fire with 18 goals in 18 games. At the time of writing I see these 5 as nailed on starters for a number of years, these 5 form the spine of the team that we build around. Supported by more experienced members of the squad such as Grimaldo and Gilberto at full back and Joao Mario and Rafa on the wings. You know it makes sense @Ö-zil to the Arsenal! !!

Good news guys... I've started with Benfica myself on the beta so would love to see how @Ö-zil to the Arsenal! gets on with them. Trying to replicate something resembling Brazil's great 1970 side at the moment, which I believe O-Zil also used as inspiration in both iterations on his FM18 save. Firstly with Joao Felix as the Ponta de Lanca and later with Leao in that role? Currently going with this, due to the strengths and weaknesses of certain players I've flipped it so Rafa = Jairzinho, I'm sure you guys can work the rest out: Initial results are positive and I've much preferred the fluidity of the play compared to the variations of 424 and 4231 set ups I'd used earlier in the season:

To those asking, I've literally only played a couple of games in this save so the tactic isn't anywhere near ready yet. I hope to get a bit more time to test it out soon, once I do I'll happily share whatever I settle on.

Controlling the ball vs Controlling the space: City completed over 200 more passes than us over the 90 mins, but as you can see below, we prevented them from progressing up the pitch very effectively. As a result, City were forced long far more than you would normally see, allowing us to recover possession in the middle/defensive third with relative ease. Unfortunately the aforementioned injuries meant that I didn't get to see as much from our forwards as I would have liked, but we racked up a decent 18 shots, 9 on target, 1 CCC, 5 half chances, an xG of 1.83 all while limiting City to 5 shots and just to 2 on target. I'll look into patterns of play more in future and if there's any interest would be more than happy to share more videos/pictures of what we produce.

The 325 Build Up: - Virgil, Matip and Trent; Form a back 3 with Matip slightly deeper. - Fabinho and Thiago; Double pivot provides passing options in the lanes between City's front 3 should they choose to engage our back 3. - Robertson; As soon as possession is secured he takes off down the left to form a line of 5 in attack. - Overload left; Not necessarily by design but a perk of the fluidity of the system. We move the ball right to Trent but a combination of Robertson's run, the positioning of Diaz and Nunez moving into channels give us an overload on the far side. - Trent's passing range; trademark cross field pass from a deeper position by Trent turns City's defence and puts us properly on the offensive. - Jota and Nunez; After Thiago backs up the play I love how Jota and Nunez get close together in and around the box and link up nicely. - The finish; Speaks for itself! Beating City's High Press: Having 4 attacking players give us a lot of options. If teams choose to sit off, we can form the 325 and let Thiago and Fabinho control the midfield. If teams choose to press high, having 4 genuine attackers on the pitch means they're taking a huge risk. Here, we bypass City's press with incredible ease. Yes, that is Konate and RB and Henderson and Milner on the wings, we picked up a few knocks and didn't have many options from the bench! City seem to have set up fairly well here in terms of stopping us from building up through our preferred method (Thiago and Fabinho). However, in order to do that they've had to go 4 vs 4 at the back. As a result, Matip is able to find Henderson with a direct pass. The skipper is able to get on the half turn and now we take advantage of City going man for man at the back. There's acres of space for Henderson to knock a pass into and a more than willing runner in Darwin. He gets clean through and buries his chance. Unfortunately, he was a fraction offside and the goal is ruled out.