OConnellFC

After 12 in-game years, I landed at Atletico Madrid around years 8-9 and managed to finally win the Champions League today using the 442 Simeone style tactic. We beat Man City 1-0 in classic Simeone fashion and managed an Invincibles season in La Liga - truly a perfect defensive masterclass. The tactic has been tweaked since my last post, so I have attached the latest tactic files. As I developed a really good squad of newgens, I adapted the tactic to suit a better team. We used a style very similar to Fluid Counter Attack and relied on set pieces. We had great free kick takers and tall center backs for corners. Few comments - The tactic itself mirrored the actual in-game shape in the slide attached. - Forwards - I aimed to sign physical strikers with good jumping reach, strength, and acceleration. I had a homegrown wonderkid who was smaller, but he was super technical (like a Joao Felix - he was even Portuguese), so I used him as a False 9 so he would drift away from defenders. Otherwise, I was using PF Su, CF Su with Move into Channels. The poacher had to be physical because he was mainly in the box. I found smaller poachers I could get by with beat offside trap, but crosses to them were pointless. I had some really good forwards, but they were too small, and I opted to sign 3-star, more physical strikers that ultimately got me across the finish line. This tactic will naturally cross a lot, so you need physicality. - Midfielders - acquired a combination of playmakers and BBM/BWM type players. Depending on the opposition, I would use more defensive-minded central midfielders if we needed to defend more. All of them could play across the midfield 4. In some cases, I had players that were too restricted playing as a WM, so I made them IWs to let them loose and be more creative/attacking. But when looking to make signings, look to have at least three of your four midfielders have attributes of a central midfielder. - Defenders - Strength, Jumping Reach, Positioning. I acquired some world class defenders, so in some cases, I would use BPD versus a traditional CD. The tactic without custom roles uses BPDs as we are playing out the back, but you can see my starting left defender was just Central Defender because he lacked composure. - WBs - tried to find the best complete wing backs I could to provide the width. Tactical note: If I played versus opposition with 2 strikers, I would change one of the WBs to a FB Su. I had defenders that could play CD and FB, so the FB would be someone that had BPD like attributes, but was also very physical. I updated the OIs to use tighter marking. Once the opposition midfielders crossed the line of engagement, our midfielders would mark tight and disrupt the opposition midfield flow. We still aimed to push players out wide as we had the aerial battle won with our physical defenders. Training heavily focused on defending, pressing, and set pieces. Every week, I was training Transition Restrict, Transition Press, Defending Wide, Attacking Direct/Patient, and Set Piece Delivery. You need to set your set piece takers and make sure they are training Free Kick Delivery/Corners as set pieces are vital with this tactic. Preseason was brutal on the players - often using double Endurance sessions. I always had at least one Physical session during the weeks. The aim was to have high work rate, stamina, and natural fitness throughout the squad. Finally, I always trained Teamwork before matches as we play disciplined. This has been a really challenging and rewarding save. Highly recommend trying it. 442 High '34.fmf 442 Mid '34.fmf 442 Low '34.fmf