Franky's HUSTLER Tactic for FM 17 - updated for patch 17.3 P130 W115 D13 L2

[Franky.]

6 hours ago, bamb00zle said:

So Franky, you asked for an update after I gave feedback.

Well, my Coventry side (Premiership) currently sit 13th (only won 2 of first 10 games) but we've recovered using your tactic but I'm still getting bad defensive issues. The tactic is fully fluid.

We have played 22 games using Hustler v3, with a couple of tweaks (hard tackling off, lower instead of very low tempo, narrow instead of very narrow, work ball into box)

We have won 8, drawn 8 and lost 6. In 22 games we've scored 41 (very good) but we've conceded almost 2 a game, also 39. We've kept a grand total of TWO clean sheets!

We have no answer at all when the CPU get in crossing positions, it's totally predictable. Especially when the CPU plays 4231, just get carved open time and again.

We get doubled up on the flanks, when they counter there is acres of space on the flank (due to us being narrow), simple cross, forward ghosts in , goal, virtually every time. That's really the only type of goal the CPU scores apart from some worldies outside the box. There is just no cover on the flanks at all.

I have two hard working B2B midfielders so they should be covering

I've tried all the fixes, WB (s), I've even changed them to FB (a) or (s) and still nothing happening. I have average defenders, work rate, marking, teamwork, tackling for the Prem so the tactic is probably getting us where we should be with the players we have, BUT we always have to outscore the opposition as every time the CPU attack, it's like a knife through butter.

I love how the tactic plays but we're too open for the counter and the flanks are a disaster. Any feedback?

Okay, here's an update from me that should be helpful. I'm in my third season in the Premier League with my Wycombe team, having finished 3rd both times previously with media predictions of 20th and 12th using the tactic usage formula in the original post. This time we have a media prediction of 7th and I opted for the plug and play option so I make absolutely no changes what so ever at any point except to set booked players to 'ease off tackles'. Also have a CM who only has 7/10 for the role but 9/10 as a BWM so I use him in that role. I rotate him with another player who is fine as a CM. Also have a central defender who prefers to play as a BPD rather than CD. Again, he's rotated with another defender who is fine as a CD...... these are the only changes I make for my players but as already mentioned, the tactic itself remains untouched for the full 90 minutes. Having played 19 games so far, we are second in the league. Have only kept 4 clean sheets in those 19 games but we continually outscore the opposition. You have to remember the tactic is all about outscoring the opposition, rather than grinding out 1-0 wins. With the formation as it is, there's very little that can be done that won't be detrimental to the attacking play. I have tested the tactic, changing the WB attack to FB support with the 'get further forward' PI removed and we conceded even more goals, even though you'd think the opposite would happen and it would make the tactic tighter at the back.... but it doesn't! At the end of the day, HUSTLER v3 is a highly offensive, fight fire with fire tactic and it means you will sometimes end up getting walloped against superior opposition but in the long run it will be successful. All you have to do is continuously upgrade your players as best as you can and make sure to get the right players for the tactic according the original post. I'm going to post a few screenshots that should reassure you that you don't need to make any tweaks to the tactic and can use it as 'plug and play' at all times.................

post a picture

Try the tactic as 'plug and play' without making any tweaks or changes during a game and keep improving your squad as best as possible. Also make sure to have a squad of around 25 outfield players, with 3 wing backs either side for rotation purposes after you qualify for European competition.

Oh and a couple of player tips. Get hold of Steven Caulker if you can. Cost only around £7m aged 27 and in his first season (our 2nd in the EPL), he had the highest average rating in the league. Also, if you can somehow get Marco Asensio, he's absolutely insane as the shadow striker.... I got him on a free  . Cesar Montes is also very good and can be bought cheaply from a Mexican club. Montes and Asensio are my only two players with a CA in the 150s.

[nikosvou84]

Hello..so far very nice tactic.What about general training and match preperation?

[Franky.]

TACTICAL UPDATE: I will be updating the tactic tomorrow with changes to reduce the amount of crosses coming in from the opposition. This will reduce the chances the opposition create from wide areas, thus increasing defensive stability. Attacking potency will remain the same.

EDIT: Cancel the above. Further testing has shown little, if any improvement in the long run so the tactic will remain untouched.

On 5/23/2017 at 00:00, nikosvou84 said:

Hello..so far very nice tactic.What about general training and match preperation?

I play the Touch version of the game so the assistant manager takes care of all that 

[davey22]

10 hours ago, Franky. said:

TACTICAL UPDATE: I will be updating the tactic tomorrow with changes to reduce the amount of crosses coming in from the opposition. This will reduce the chances the opposition create from wide areas (which is the main downside of v3), thus increasing defensive stability. Attacking potency will remain the same.

I play the Touch version of the game so the assistant manager takes care of all that 

HI FRANKY

i have carried on using this tactic with forest and have won the premiership in my second season by one point  . now on my third season and  with this tactic and my team is on fire at this moment scoring on average of 4 goals a match .

the only changes i make are  when a play gets booked i remove hard tackling from the players instructions but not put them on ease off tackles and i never use short passes always use mix

once again a great tactic

[Franky.]

I've made a small but significant change to the long shot filters for the front three to further reduce wasted long shots. Filter for all other players has been reduced from 'less than 13' to 'less than 12' in the premier League/top division. The following has been added to the original post..........

NOTE: The three attackers (CF, DLF and SS) will regularly receive the ball in advanced positions with no passing option ahead of them and due to the team's attacking mentality, they will instinctively want to shoot on sight so for them, the long shot rule must be stricter by 10% or 2/20. Their long shot filters are (i.e. train them to 'refrain from taking long shots' if their long shot ability is less than) ...... PL - less than 14, CH - less than 14, L1 - less than 13, L2 and below - less than 12. 

19 hours ago, davey22 said:

HI FRANKY

i have carried on using this tactic with forest and have won the premiership in my second season by one point  . now on my third season and  with this tactic and my team is on fire at this moment scoring on average of 4 goals a match .

the only changes i make are  when a play gets booked i remove hard tackling from the players instructions but not put them on ease off tackles and i never use short passes always use mix

once again a great tactic

Thanks for that, very helpful. I will test out removing hard tackling from booked players rather than setting them to 'ease off tackles' and update the tactic instructions. A question...... have you found they then avoid a second yellow? 

[davey22]

9 hours ago, Franky. said:

I've made a small but significant change to the long shot filters for the front three to further reduce wasted long shots. Filter for all other players has been reduced from 'less than 13' to 'less than 12' in the premier League/top division. The following has been added to the original post..........

NOTE: The three attackers (CF, DLF and SS) will regularly receive the ball in advanced positions with no passing option ahead of them and due to the team's attacking mentality, they will instinctively want to shoot on sight so for them, the long shot rule must be stricter by 10% or 2/20. Their long shot filters are (i.e. train them to 'refrain from taking long shots' if their long shot ability is less than) ...... PL - less than 14, CH - less than 14, L1 - less than 13, L2 and below - less than 12. 

Thanks for that, very helpful. I will test out removing hard tackling from booked players rather than setting them to 'ease off tackles' and update the tactic instructions. A question...... have you found they then avoid a second yellow? 

yes i have had no sending off , just beat psg 4 -1 away in the champions league semi final first leg after beating arsenal 11-5 in the quater finals 

[shuttleworthit]

I'm starting a new game on FM Touch, can I still benefit from using this tactic, even without the additional training/player development tweaks etc in the full game?

[Gran2]

Ok so an update: first full season using the tactic (2nd in the PL since being promoted) with Norwich we finished 5th. We went on a run of 6 games without scoring and didn't win in 10 around February which was very confusing but never mind. This season we won the title by two points (we lost on the final day but so did Man United, so we hung on!). We lost the FA Cup final to United though. And they knocked us out of the Europa League in the semi finals... But overall this tactic has been amazing. It takes time, especially with a smaller team/budget, to get the squad to make it work but when you do it is worth it. Asensio is fantastic as a SS/AM, scored 25 and got 18 assists in the league alone.

Playing with a BWM but otherwise as is. I tend to be quite conservative and will shut down with a narrow 1 or 2 goal lead when we don't look like scoring and the opposition keep pouring forward. I usually shove on an extra centre back for either the SS or DLF and switch to contain. I don't think I've ever conceded when doing this and we have actually still scored a fair few late goals. But this only helps if you are already leading.

[Franky.]

On 5/27/2017 at 13:46, shuttleworthit said:

I'm starting a new game on FM Touch, can I still benefit from using this tactic, even without the additional training/player development tweaks etc in the full game?

If you mean the PC version then you need to implement the training/player development but if you mean the mobile version then I have no idea unfortunately.

[Franky.]

I've edited the original post's TACTIC USAGE section with the following information...............
 

IMPORTANT: When you are ahead, there are a few teams that will stick three strikers up front in the STC, STCL and STCR positions. You'll be extremely vulnerable from attacking throw-ins when this happens as you'll be outnumbered on the counter. To safeguard against this, you need to change your set piece instructions by setting BOTH wing backs to stay back at throw-ins.

RECAP: The tactic usage formula is extremely simple and there's only three things you ever need to do, depending on match situation and your objective....... set passing to shorter, wing backs to support duty and on the odd occasion your opponent plays with three strikers, both wing backs to stay back for throw-ins. Just make sure to use it according to the above advice and ONLY in the situations mentioned. This means you'll need to change these settings when required, then change back when not required during a game...... basically, switching on the fly as the game situations changes.

[jdmo99]

how do i 'plug and play' ? clicked the link and it doesn't let me open anything (using Laptop FULL VERSION OF FM 17) 

Thanks!

[Carninho]

17 hours ago, jdmo99 said:

how do i 'plug and play' ? clicked the link and it doesn't let me open anything (using Laptop FULL VERSION OF FM 17) 

Thanks!

He just means that it works straight away on the Touch version and the players dont need time to adjust like on the full edition of the game where it can take months for them to be comfortable/knowledgeable.

you need to save the download into your tactics folder yourself, then within the game load it up.

[Franky.]

Massive change to the tactic. The main tactic remains the same but we now have a two set tactic (the new addition is available to download from the original post). I've added the following info to the original post and it's working a treat for me in my Wycombe save game...............

TACTIC USAGE

To get the best out of the HUSTLER tactic, you need to use the 2-set tactic according to the match situation and your objectives. There will be 5 scenarios you will face so I advise the following............

Scenario 1. Pre match favourite at home/neutral venue or odds on favourite away - start with the default tactic.

2. All other matches - HUSTLER v3 STANDARD.

3. Need to score - default tactic.

4. Don't need to score and just want to see out the game - HUSTLER v3 STANDARD.

5. Pre match favourites at home, are leading and certain the opposition are unlikely to get back into the game and want to score more goals to boost your goal difference - default tactic.

TIP: Against tough opposition, as soon as you take the lead, if you are using the default tactic, switch to HUSTLER v3 STANDARD to strangle the game.

Apart from the above mentioned tip, use your managerial judgement to switch between the two tactics, depending on match situation and your objectives.

When switching between tactics, make sure booked players always have the 'tackle harder' player instruction removed, otherwise those players will run a high risk of getting a second yellow.

IMPORTANT: When you are ahead, there are a few teams that will stick three strikers up front in the STC, STCL and STCR positions. You'll be extremely vulnerable from attacking throw-ins when this happens as you'll be outnumbered on the counter. To safeguard against this, you need to change your set piece instructions by setting BOTH wing backs to stay back at throw-ins.

Please leave feedback, thanks.

 

[mm007]

Nice! Thank you - kinda difficult this year the game with 4 defender tactics ... 

[keadude]

Well Franky, can I just say thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

You've brought the fun back to Football Manager after years and years of frustration. Finally I feel I have control over my team and what to do in games when my opposition is doing stuff. Great stuff. This tactic is simply put, phenomenal.

First season with it I took my beloved Wednesday to the Championship title, scoring over 100 goals and amassing over 100 points. Amazing scenes.

Promotion celebrations were quickly cut short when my board gave me a transfer budget of 9 million pounds, that's NINE MILLION POUNDS, for the season. Fearing the worst though my woefully sub-par group of players began the season with a 5-1 win over Newcastle and we're now sitting third with the season nearing an end. Big results include a 2-0 over Man City at the Etihad and a 4-1 win over champions Manchester United the following match. I've also just defeated Tottenham 3-2 at Wembley to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

Oh and Jordan Rhodes is the runaway top scorer in the league with 21 goals so far.

This tactic is crazy good. I can't wait to see how it goes with some good players. Now just to convince the board to actually give me some money!

[Franky.]

You're welcome and that's pretty good going. This means I WILL need to ask you some questions though  Just yesterday I added a second underdog tactic to complement the main attacking one. Are you using both or just the main one?...... and how exactly are you using it/them?.... by that I mean are you making any changes yourself that you find beneficial?...... anything else you are doing that's working well for you? 
 

[davela93]

On 2017-6-4 at 14:48, Franky. said:

Massive change to the tactic. The main tactic remains the same but we now have a two set tactic (the new addition is available to download from the original post). I've added the following info to the original post and it's working a treat for me in my Wycombe save game...............

TACTIC USAGE

To get the best out of the HUSTLER tactic, you need to use the 2-set tactic according to the match situation and your objectives. There will be 5 scenarios you will face so I advise the following............

Scenario 1. Pre match favourite at home/neutral venue or odds on favourite away - start with the default tactic.

2. All other matches - HUSTLER v3 STANDARD.

3. Need to score - default tactic.

4. Don't need to score and just want to see out the game - HUSTLER v3 STANDARD.

5. Pre match favourites at home, are leading and certain the opposition are unlikely to get back into the game and want to score more goals to boost your goal difference - default tactic.

TIP: Against tough opposition, as soon as you take the lead, if you are using the default tactic, switch to HUSTLER v3 STANDARD to strangle the game.

Apart from the above mentioned tip, use your managerial judgement to switch between the two tactics, depending on match situation and your objectives.

When switching between tactics, make sure booked players always have the 'tackle harder' player instruction removed, otherwise those players will run a high risk of getting a second yellow.

IMPORTANT: When you are ahead, there are a few teams that will stick three strikers up front in the STC, STCL and STCR positions. You'll be extremely vulnerable from attacking throw-ins when this happens as you'll be outnumbered on the counter. To safeguard against this, you need to change your set piece instructions by setting BOTH wing backs to stay back at throw-ins.

Please leave feedback, thanks.

 

Hi Franky, what is the difference between this new Standard tactic and the default tactic? As until now I have been using the default tactic and then in certain circumstances changing the passing to Shorter and the wing backs to Support duty, as previously recommended. I have had pretty good results so wondering what changes have been made? Thanks!

[keadude]

9 hours ago, Franky. said:

You're welcome and that's pretty good going. This means I WILL need to ask you some questions though  Just yesterday I added a second underdog tactic to complement the main attacking one. Are you using both or just the main one?...... and how exactly are you using it/them?.... by that I mean are you making any changes yourself that you find beneficial?...... anything else you are doing that's working well for you? 
 

Hey Franky,

Yeah I saw the underdog tactic and have started using it as directed. Seems to go okay. It's hard for me to really tell how effective tactic is generally as my players are so far below the level of an elite premier league club. Certainly haven't noticed a huge drop off in performance or anything like that. I basically use it like you direct based on odds or match situation. Obviously I'm jumping into the underdog tactic too whenever a team decides to go for an "attacking" formation. Seems to hold them off.

Not really changing anything, only when I have to swap a role as you suggest in the opening post because a player can't handle the default role. For example I play Forestieri as a False Nine not a deep-lying forward coz he's a 10 as a F9 and a 7 as a DLF. Hopefully if I get an actual transfer budget next season I can get some quality players in and we'll really see the tactic at its best.

Cheers again!

[Franky.]

Thanks for that info Keadude, it's really helpful. The underdog tactic (STANDARD) is still in testing phase and I will most likely update it further once I've had time to test it properly.

5 hours ago, davela93 said:

Hi Franky, what is the difference between this new Standard tactic and the default tactic? As until now I have been using the default tactic and then in certain circumstances changing the passing to Shorter and the wing backs to Support duty, as previously recommended. I have had pretty good results so wondering what changes have been made? Thanks!

Changes are it's far more possession based and is designed to frustrate the opposition. Obviously this means it's not going to have the same attacking potency. If you try it, can you let me know if results improve or if the original tactic useage formula worked better.... thanks 

[nine33]

On 2/17/2017 at 20:39, Franky. said:

 

Leave team training to the assistant manager but do all individual training yourself so that's training focus and PPMs for each player. PPM is player preferred move. The term has been changed to 'trait' for FM 17 but I'm old skool (6 months old lol). You access it by clicking on the player's training and selecting 'new player trait'.

 

 

Can you tell me how to make PPM, this trait, i can't find it ?

[Franky.]

I've updated the STANDARD version of HUSTLER to version c. Slightly less possession based and more aggressive than version b, which was all about ball retention. Version c has more goals in it and perhaps defensively better as well. Overall the balance between attacking and defending is better. You start with it in all games except when you are pre match favourite at home, in which case you start with the main tactic. You then switch between both tactics as the game develops and your objectives change. You can download it from the original post or this one.

5 hours ago, nine33 said:

Can you tell me how to make PPM, this trait, i can't find it ?

Navigate to training/individual/new player trait.

...HUSTLER v3 STANDARD (c)_5CD7B6E1-88DD-44C5-A179-FEC7929A8BDF.fmf

[vara]

some phenomenal work here Franky. It's an extremely satisfying tactic to use and watch. Just finished first season with Hodd in Norwegian div2. As you can imagine, a lot of the players leave plenty to the imagination, however the tactic still worked very well and as you have pointed out, 'score more than your opponent' rang true. As you can see, did it comfortable in the league and scored on avg 2 a game, we also scored in every league fixture. Conceding an obvious weak point but this was known before i started.

A stage in the season did come along where i wondered how i could tighten up defensively, after feeling frustrated by conceding 4 at Bryne (see below). I made a few of adjustments, considering the quality of my players and also their lack of necessary pace. under the red line is the remaining games with the changes. 10 games, with 9 conceded. the scoring didnt dry up and we still make a bundle of chances, whether they go in or not is another story. Now i don't know how this would have gone had i made no changes, but i feel more confident in the limited abilities of my defence which is nice. 

The changes made:

Team Instructions: Defensive Line Slighty Deeper, Stay on feet

Wing Backs: Support

Centre Backs: Mark Tighter

 

Im now in Div1 and will continue with it how it is, as 10 games isnt a thorough test for me. This is more to give ideas to anyone who isnt happy with the amount of conceded.

but overall i'm delighted with what you've put together, mate

 

[Franky.]

Vara, that's brilliant. I'm gonna try out your suggestions and will credit you if I apply them to a further revised STANDARD tactic...... assuming that it improves on the current one..... Thanks 

[vara]

well, here is the first 10 games of div1 season, inc cups.

it's perhaps still a little inconclusive if my instruction changes are helping. i'm in a stronger division, with minimal personnel improvements. i'm satisfied with conceding 9 from 8 league games considering squad strength.

When i come up against Valarenga and Asane shortly, i expect to be put under a fair bit of pressure. However, like the Start result, it could have gone differently on another day. My left back got slaughtered by a pacey winger and finished with a forgettable 4.5 rating.

The only thing i can definitely recommend is dropping your defensive live if your defenders pace is below 12, especially for the full backs.

Not sure i can better my defensive capabilities through instructions alone, its quality of player it will come down to.

 

EDIT: 3 straight clean sheets since posting, typical. 

[vara]

just score more than the opponent.. simples

[Carninho]

Wanted to share my biggest ever FM win with you. It was using Hustler obvs on. Checkout the goal times, it started off like a basketball game!

Also I started a new save using Hustler too.

First season in the championship I used a straight attacking Hustler to win promotion and the League Cup. Second season has just started and I've switched to the Standard Hustler. Results are very mixed now but the main striker (Assombalonga) is scoring a goal a game, just that the opposition players are doing the same in return too . I'll be posting a season 2 update later today.

[Franky.]

On 6/8/2017 at 08:09, Carninho said:

Wanted to share my biggest ever FM win with you. It was using Hustler obvs on. Checkout the goal times, it started off like a basketball game!

Also I started a new save using Hustler too.

First season in the championship I used a straight attacking Hustler to win promotion and the League Cup. Second season has just started and I've switched to the Standard Hustler. Results are very mixed now but the main striker (Assombalonga) is scoring a goal a game, just that the opposition players are doing the same in return too . I'll be posting a season 2 update later today.

I've updated the standard version with a minor tweak to make it a little better at breaking down the opposition without sacrificing anything defensively. Keep us updated on how it works out..... same to Vara.

Oh and amazing win. I've yet to manage double figures, ever, even with United so to do it with Forest is quite something and that too against another Premier League team.

 

[Carninho]

[davela93]

Okay Franky, I've used every version of your Hustler tactic as and when you've tweaked it and as far as I'm concerned, you don't need to make any further changes! I've mostly used the default version home & away and then changed to the Standard version as and when I felt the need. 

Great job! Hopefully these results continue!

[Franky.]

The STANDARD version has been updated to version e. Defensive line has been dropped a notch, which cuts down on balls played over the top of your defence for a fast striker to run onto and also encourages the opposition to push forward, thus allowing your team more opportunities to hit them on the counter.

On 6/9/2017 at 17:27, davela93 said:

Okay Franky, I've used every version of your Hustler tactic as and when you've tweaked it and as far as I'm concerned, you don't need to make any further changes! I've mostly used the default version home & away and then changed to the Standard version as and when I felt the need. 

Great job! Hopefully these results continue!

Okay well I've had to make one more change but it's just a minor one to the STANDARD version. I will stick to your advice of not making any more changes..... or at least I'll try to..... it's not easy 

...HUSTLER v3 STANDARD (e)_44DC009F-6BE8-48F5-9E94-76165E8F3ECE.fmf

[davela93]

Haha no probs, I'll apply your change, I trust you! 

[vara]

thought an update was due. just finished second season, in First Div and have earned back to back promotion. unfortunately couldnt overhaul Valerenga, but still delighted to be up again. My points total would have been enough to win the div 1 title last season.

i used the same setup that i finished div2 with for 21 league games. Still performed perfectly well even with my squad which was weaker in areas than most in the league.

After the mid-season break(below) we went on a frustrating little run of games and after throwing away a 2 goal lead, having to fight to a 4-4 draw, i made some tactical changes. Although it has altered the shape and a few instructions, it is still largely the base of Hustler. Used for the final 9 games where we conceded just 3 goals.

i'll upload my hustler changes at Franky's request, it is his thread after all.

[Franky.]

44 minutes ago, vara said:

thought an update was due. just finished second season, in First Div and have earned back to back promotion. unfortunately couldnt overhaul Valerenga, but still delighted to be up again. My points total would have been enough to win the div 1 title last season.

i used the same setup that i finished div2 with for 21 league games. Still performed perfectly well even with my squad which was weaker in areas than most in the league.

After the mid-season break(below) we went on a frustrating little run of games and after throwing away a 2 goal lead, having to fight to a 4-4 draw, i made some tactical changes. Although it has altered the shape and a few instructions, it is still largely the base of Hustler. Used for the final 9 games where we conceded just 3 goals.

i'll upload my hustler changes at Franky's request, it is his thread after all.

Yes, please do. I'll test them myself and if they work well, I'll happily make some changes to the STANDARD version, as I'm having consistency issues with that. I don't want to change the main tactic as that is tried and tested long term but getting the STANDARD version right is a pain so am open to suggestions for that.

[Franky.]

1 hour ago, davela93 said:

Haha no probs, I'll apply your change, I trust you! 

To be honest, I'm having some consistency issues with the STANDARD version so am not entirely confident about it. The main tactic has been tried and tested long term but as already mentioned in my post above, STANDARD is a headache to get right and I am open to suggestions for that. I might just go back to the original tactic usage formula of just using the main tactic and when I want my team to be more cautious, set passing to shorter and when the opposition play an attacking style, set wing backs to support duty as that worked brilliantly for me with weak teams first two seasons in the Premier League, finishing 3rd both times.

[vara]

Vara's HUSTLER 4-1-2-3_AE4C2FD4-6988-4C82-968C-4DC7164E854D.fmf

[Franky.]

2 minutes ago, vara said:

Vara's HUSTLER 4-1-2-3_AE4C2FD4-6988-4C82-968C-4DC7164E854D.fmf

Can you list the changes?..... thanks.

[vara]

yeh, i'll work on that for you when i get time. quite a few

[Franky.]

I've actually had enough of pissing about with the STANDARD version and have reverted back to the original tactic usage formula that served me so well in my first two seasons in the Premier League with Wycombe. With a media prediction of 20th and 14th, managed to finish 3rd both times. Then the third season I started using the frustrating STANDARD version and with a media prediction of 10th, finished 3rd again but with less points than in season 2. For this reason, I've removed the STANDARD version and edited the tactic usage section with what was there originally..............

TACTIC USAGE

To get the best out of the HUSTLER tactic, use the formula detailed below according to the match situation and your objectives. There will be 6 scenarios you will face so I advise the following............

Scenario 1. Pre match favourite (home) - start with the tactic as is (default).

2. All other matches - set passing to shorter.

3. Need to score - default.

4. Don't need to score and just want to see out the game - set passing to shorter.

5. Pre match favourites, are leading and certain the opposition are unlikely to get back into the game and want to score more goals to boost your goal difference - default.

6. Keep the opponent's formation box open in the corner of the screen and whenever they go to an attacking style, set both wing backs to support duty. This can actually help you score more goals as the play will be more concentrated through the middle and because the opponents are playing an attacking style, there should be plenty of space to exploit. Whenever they revert back to a non attacking style of play, make sure to switch your wing backs to attack duty again.

I advise not to make any changes until half-time as knee jerk reactions can often prove counter productive. If you have passing set to shorter and go behind, stick it out til half-time and then use the default settings. However, if you go 2 goals down then make the change immediately as no point waiting any longer.

IMPORTANT: When you are ahead, there are a few teams that will stick three strikers up front in the STC, STCL and STCR positions. You'll be extremely vulnerable from attacking throw-ins when this happens as you'll be outnumbered on the counter. To safeguard against this, you need to change your set piece instructions by setting BOTH wing backs to stay back at throw-ins.

NOTE: You'll get the odd game away from home where you get taken apart by superior opposition but don't let that put you off as the 'fight fire with fire' approach will win you more points over the course of a season than a more cautious, safety first approach.

[JJSaxton]

I've used this formation for 3 seasons now on my Leeds save and having great success. Just having trouble with the big teams in the Premiership this year after finishing 8th last season.

Do you have a link to the 2 most up to date tactics you are using?

*Apologies just read the first and last post I will download the link from the first post and make sure that I have everything set to as explained above.

[Praha06]

Ive got 2 different versions of this tactic somehow on my save and im need clarification as to which one it is i should be using. is the keeper meant to be Sweeper Support?

[keadude]

That feeling when you're losing 2-0 at halftime with your opponent not actually having a single shot on target... gotta love this game.

[marcMCFC1986]

Great Tactic - won the Spanish Premier Division twice in a row with Atletico Madrid, and looking like doing it again this season.

My squad is good, but not a patch on Real Madrid/Barcelona's on paper - but using this tactic it gets the best out of the right players...

[bell]

Started using this with Leeds but getting a lot of red cards and yellows (keep getting fined :D). Any tweaks to reduce this without affecting the tactic too much. The tactic is promising, but im not getting the results as I've had 3 reds in 7 games. Do i need to weak every player back from from the agressive defensive stuff when they are booked (rather than just your midfielders)?

[davela93]

I'm also Leeds and had the same problem! So I took off the Tackle Harder player instruction for all the players and it's worked much better. Apart from that I haven't changed anything from the original tactic and it's going pretty well. 

[bell]

Hold that thought. Just had a 5-1 away win and only a single yellow. I'll put it down to the tactic bedding in for now

[bell]

29 minutes ago, davela93 said:

I'm also Leeds and had the same problem! So I took off the Tackle Harder player instruction for all the players and it's worked much better. Apart from that I haven't changed anything from the original tactic and it's going pretty well. 

 

Must just be a dirty Leeds thing. ha

[davela93]

Get rid of Bellusci for a start! I've won the Prem and Champions league with Leeds with this tactic so keep the faith! 

[dilmata]

Hello Frank,

This tactic looks promises, deffinately i'll try it asap. I've wrotte a lot, but i don't see what i'm looking for. 

So, first of all i'll try it on my save with Arsenal for the second season. My squad is something like that (i'm away from my CPU): Kiliyan Mbappe, Sanchez, Ozil, delle Alli, Ramsey, Wilsher, Bellerin, Zeca, Xhakka, Tah, Mustafi, Koscielny. So, how important is finishing on DPF, i'm having intention to fit Ozil in this role. His vision, passing are awesome, but not scoring skills. Otherwise, Sanchez is more rounded. What attributes are important for shadow striker? Sanchez could play in all positions, but not the others. Somewere in the previous pages you said Delle alli has beast as SS. So, if i change his role to SS, what kind of players have to looking for in the middle? Defenders are rock anyway

Greetings: )

Ps. I've start last night with this tactic. 

1st game against Southhampton 1:0 (Mbappe) and very strong defend

2nd game against Sevilla 7:0 (Mbappe x3, Ozil x2, Sanchez, Adelaide) astonishing attack, good football and stable midle all the time. 

3rd game against Hull City 2:0 (Mbappe, Walcott) quite game, i've replace Kiliyan with Walcott at '60 and even he score. Thats it for now, i'm happy with. Ozil's (dpf) performing is inconstant and no risky passes, most of the assist are from Alexis(ss). As addition i lose very much from Sanchez goal scoring skills. But i'm sure with this tactic Mbappe will finish as goalscorer of EPL.