ultrAslan

As @crusadertsar mentioned, increasing mentality raises the risk level for the entire team. For instance, my wing-back might surge forward too quickly after regaining possession. Taking on more risk can leave my team exposed, especially against superior teams, creating unwanted gaps. It really boils down to trial and error. There's no one-size-fits-all strategy for perfecting the counter.Feel free to experiment. If your squad has the ability to handle more risk and can play on it, then adjust the mentality. The cautious approach has served my team well in my save, and I've shared my strategy in the hopes that it might provide a solid starting point for you to adapt and fine-tune to fit your own team's needs.

In my own league, I play differently because there isn't a real challenge for me. I manage the top club in Turkey and we have the best team. The AI managers in Turkey don't seem to strengthen their squads effectively, so it's relatively easy to dominate the league every year. The real competition comes from the Champions League. After winning the Champions League two or three times, there's not much of a challenge left, as that was the only trophy missing in Turkey. The tactic I use in Turkey is fundamentally similar to my counter-attacking strategy, but it's more focused on possession-based play and pressing the opponent in their half. You might have noticed that I use the same roles from my counter-attacking tactic to hold the tactical familiarity. If I were to change roles and duties for my counter-attacking tactic, I wouldn’t be able to play the tactic's full potential. I prefer my players to consistently play in the same roles across different tactical systems to ensure they are comfortable and familiar with their responsibilities. This is what I mean by no challenge left in my country: Thank you for the kind words! Learned a lot from your topic on these types of systems. It opened up a new enjoyment in FM for me, moving away from the high-press meta in previous years.

Coming back with an update on my quest to master soaking up pressure and hitting teams on the counter in Football Manager! After posting my original question during my FM 23 days, I've since moved on to experimenting with counter-attacking tactics in FM 24. I'm excited to share the tactic that I've fine-tuned, which has served me incredibly well against top-tier teams in the Champions League, helping me secure back-to-back Champions League trophies. The screenshot attached shows the setup that has brought my team great success. By setting up with a cautious mentality and focusing on a quick transition play, my team has been able to capitalize on the counter-attacks effectively. Here's the screenshot of the tactic that made it all possible: In depth about the player roles and duties: Advanced Forward (AF): This player is the tip of our spear, constantly probing the defensive line and ready to exploit any space behind the opposition's backline. PI: Close Down More Winger (W - Attack) and Inverted Winger (IW - Support): Flank players with contrasting roles; the Winger provides width and direct runs, aiming to stretch the play and deliver crosses, while the Inverted Winger cuts inside to overload central areas and link-up play. The player I use as a Winger is right-footed, effectively a hidden inside forward, combining flank runs with cutting inside. For the Inverted Winger, it's crucial to have a left-footed player with a playmaker style, capable of spraying passes to the advanced forward, mezzala or the winger in space. He is the hidden playmaker in your team as the DM is marked by the opponent. I had the privilege of playing Arda Guler in this role. PI: Close Down More for both flanks Mezzala (MEZ - Attack): Operating in half-spaces, the Mezzala offers forward thrust from midfield, combining with wide players and the striker, making late runs into the box and supporting the attack dynamically. PI: Close Down More, Shoot More Often, Dribble More, Tackle Harder (the last three PIs were extra, tailored to my player's capabilities) Central Midfielder (CM - Support): The engine of the midfield, balancing defensive solidity with support in attack. This role circulates possession and offers a passing outlet, ensuring smooth transitions and also an extra late attacking threat when you counter. PI: Close Down More, Get Further Forward, Dribble More, Shoot Less Often(Dribble More & Shoot Less Often was based on the attributes of my player) Deep-Lying Playmaker (DLP - Support): Positioned deeper in the midfield, the DLP dictates the tempo from a withdrawn position, providing defensive cover as well as initiating attacks with their range of passing. PI: More Direct Passes, Close Down More, Tackle Harder Wing-Back (WB - Support): The attacking threat on the right side as he runs behind the Inverted Winger. He is the lungs of my wings with a pace of 17. With the TI: overlap right, his individual mentality becomes balanced, taking more risks than usual. PIs: Pass It Shorter, Take Fewer Risks, Cross More Often, Stay Wider, Close Down More, Tackle Harder Inverted Full Back (IFB - Defensive): A new role in FM24, the Inverted Full Back provides excellent cover. When the team counters and the Wing-Back moves forward, the IFB tucks into the middle to provide defensive coverage alongside the central defenders, ensuring solidity if the ball is lost during a counter. PIs: None Centre Backs (CD - Defensive) and Ball-Playing Defender (BPD - Defensive): The traditional Centre Backs focus on defensive duties, while the BPD is given more freedom to step out with the ball and play adventurous passes to start counter-attacks. PI for BPD: Dribble More, Close Down Less (Dribble more, because his dribbling was 13 and this is a very underrated PI. I saw some goals or assist from this role when the player was literally taking the ball and dribbles his way to the final third and bangs for a goal or passes the ball for an assist. Thanks for the tip @Cloud9). PI for CD: Pass It Shorter, Take Fewer Risks, Close Down Less Sweeper Keeper (SK - Support): An active participant in the team's counter attacking play, with his vision he can start a counter from his hands. PI: None ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In-Game tweaks against higher reputation clubs with superior players: For away games, I set the mentality to Cautious. For home games, I opt for a Balanced mentality. What did you do when you were 1-0 behind? Even if we fall behind 1-0 or 2-0, I switch the mentality to Balanced so that the team is pushing the opposition back and take more risk then the cautious mentality. Did you use Opposition Instructions? I chose not to use Opposition Instructions in any of my matches. In FM24, opponents frequently alter their tactics, roles, and player positions, which can make micromanagement exhaustive and overwhelming. While Opposition Instructions can be beneficial, I didn't utilize them in my save game while I was refining this counter-attacking approach. I got this tip from @crusadertsar Optional: You can change the duty of a Mezzala from attack to support and the Wing Back on the right on Attack. Remove the overlap from the right TI as this do not change the mentality of the Wing Back. And you will also have an agressive Inverted Winger. So your wings wil be the major threat when you counter. Key Attributes In addition to my tactical setup, I want to highlight the key attributes that I prioritize when scouting and selecting players for my team. This strategy is crucial for ensuring each role is filled by the best-suited player, allowing the tactic to function on its best. Underrated PI: Dribble more on a Ball Playing Defender can save your day: Some example videos of where we win the ball from the opponent and counter them: How to win a game with lesser possession then the opponent(A picture tells more than a thousand words): After many years of playing Football Manager, I gathered a wealth of knowledge and experience. Winning against the top teams was always my biggest struggle, and I've learned that such achievements don't happen overnight. Patience and trust in the process are essential. I set a 10-year goal for my Galatasaray save to win the Champions League, and after 5 years, my squad was perfectly assembled with the right kind of players. The provided screenshots and example videos showcase the fruits of many years of dedicated team building – it really does pay off. I would like to extend my special thanks to @Cloud9 and @crusadertsar for their knowledge on the counter attacking systems that enable smaller teams to take on the elite. Also, a heartfelt thanks to @Cleon and @Rashidi for their in-depth content, which has greatly enhanced my understanding of game mechanics.

Yes I agree with @Cloud9 , for a lone striker role I would advice an all-in one package (FAST/STRONG/HEIGHT) like these kind of players(see below) look also at their playing traits, because sometimes you have strikers you want them to play as an AF, but they have the play with his back to the goal trait. Find the cheap Haaland like players.

Sounds like me when I was playing against the big boys! Try to soak up the pressure and hit them on the counter! Let the opponent come to you and let them tire out so you can bang them in the latter stages of the game. For more info read this thread, really helped the way I was playing against some formations and teams:

What kind of opposition instructions are you using against the big fellas when you are the underdog?

Turkish League is easy with a top tier club. Any system or shape works and after a couple of years there is no real opponent and gets boring. The AI is very bad at making transfers and the clubs are very easy to beat. Most challenging part of the Turkish Clubs is to win a cup outside the borders. Thats the reason why I am following this thread to beat the giants in Europe and bring the cup with the long ears at home.

When I ask my assistant for choosing the opposition instruction, he always picks 9 out of 10 times not to press a opponents wing backs. The reason why I ask my assistant in the first place is to give me an idea on where I should tweak. It is a starting spot for me, but every time I press on it , it chooses not to press the opponents wing back and I am thinking why should you not press an opponents wing back?

@crusadertsar What kind of changes do you do when the AI just getting tired in the 70th minute? What kind of team instructions or player role and duty changes do you do to give them a payback? When you play against a better opponent, do you change something when you are getting a lot of pressure from the opponent like changing the defensive line or line of engagement? Or when you spot from the beginning that they have fast players or a fast striker/tall strong forward player?

I was thinking the same until I was playing an inside forward with a mezalla that were attacking the same space. One of my players gave a pass in to space where the mezalla and inside forward was running and the inside forward smashed the mezalla.

Hi All, I've been thinking about player roles that are moving to the same channel or space during a game, like a Mezzala and an Inside Forward or a Winger and a Wing Back etc. etc. And Im reading some many different opinions about how to use them or avoid it when creating a tactic. What are your thoughts or experiences with this? Specifically: How do you make these roles work effectively or do you recommend not to use it? How do these roles affect your team's overall play style? Do they offer more flexibility or create confusion? I want to know how you manage this in your tactics. Thanks!

Thank you for your contribution again on this topic @Cloud9. Great to see that you picked up the counter philosophy on FM24. Im also applying these points against any opponent when I analyze them. Especially when they have slow frontplayers. I move up the D-line. just wondering why you step up from the defensive mentality. How do you like the idea of pass into space with a high d-line? And you are not covering the center or is the DM-s role enough to cover because that he is not roaming so much? Nice trick you did with the wingers with the wrong foot so they play as an winger and inside forwardish role. will try your setup or a mix of that on my save, because the 4-3-3 is my favourite formation.

Yes, but it doesn't give me the same effect as the AF role. I think the AF role in FM is overpowered! Only role that I can trust all the time haha. I tried a DLF on Support and Attack, but got the feeling I was lacking some attacking threat on the opponent. Didn't tried it on a CF role, but can be worth testing. What can I expect when I play him as an CF? He is more involved in everything?

Hi everyone, I’m exploring ways to best utilize Mauro Icardi in my tactic. Icardi, being my favorite player, is someone I definitely want to include in my starting XI. Usually, I prefer the Advanced Forward (AF) role due to its aggressive positioning and attacking nature. However, Icardi’s speed isn't ideal for the AF role. Here’s the challenge: I believe that transforming him into a DLF could benefit the team more, allowing him to link up play and bring others into the game, capitalizing on his intelligence rather than pace. How can I fit a DLF role in this setup or should I need to change some roles and duties? How is my 4-3-3 in general? Any tips?