4-4-2PassNMoveGG(v.1)
Firstly, thanks for taking the time to check this tactic out and I hope it works as well for you as it has for me. -Secondly if you can find ways of improving this I am open to any constructive criticism.
Basic Formation & Instructions
Touchline Shouts
Opposition Instructions
None apart from what my assistant says at the start of the match. However, if it is noticeable that someone is having a good game I'll make sure they are closed down often, shown on to weak foot and receive hard tackles to unnerve them.
Match Results, League Table & Fixtures
The Tactic
Obviously you can see above that the tactic is a completely flat 4-4-2. The reason being that in recent times at the "big" clubs the original 4-42 is becoming more and more obsolete thanks to the continental approach which is beginning to work wonders with the 4-3-3, and 4-2-3-1 working wonders. (e.g Barcelona, Chelsea, City etc.)
Also, with a 4-4-2 you nearly always have the numerical advantage in midfield and defence when you don't have the ball (as long as everyone is in position), and when attacking in the correct manner you can have as many as eight players in advanced positions.
The idea of this tactic is to get the ball forward, but with nobody assigned the role of running with the ball. It's all about getting the ball to each others feet, and then moving into a better position when you have passed it to a teammate providing them with a forward passing option, and to work the ball into the box for a scoring opportunity as I'm not a fan of the long shots.
Defensively everything is zonal marking unless it's a set piece. Again this is so the team defend as a unit and no one is taken out of position, and even the strikers are closing down often as this sometimes forces the opposition defenders to mess up a pass and could lead to an easy game. Our defensive line is also pushed up high forcing the opposition into their own half and having to make killer balls to open us up, or resort to long shots.
The Players
Obviously the better their vision and passing attributes, it would make sense that this tactic would work better. But that has not always been the case for me as the simple short passing game isn't that hard if players are in position to receive the pass. So for this reason I instantly get every midfielder and striker to learn how to "move into channels regularly" and "play one-two passes" to help us dictate the tempo of our game.
The goalkeeper is self explanitory, the better he is at shot stopping and reflex saves the better. With this tactic, expect more long shots against them than close range thanks to a well disciplined defence, and distibution-wise the keeper should always throw it out to a defender quickly.
The centre backs are your rocks, they need to stay professional and not go chasing the strikers if they stray somewhere else on the pitch. We all know the good attributes for a defender so I don't feel I need to go into that.
The full backs have a slightly different role to usual. When they have the ball passed to them they are instructed to "hold up ball", as this allows the midfield ahead of them to move into space before they pass the ball which to an extent avoids any quick and ill-thought passes going straight to the opposition.
The wingers aren't your typical take on the opponent players. I want them to be involved in the passing and build up play. They pass the ball to the centre midfielders usually then make their darting runs away from their marker and try to get the ball back from the teammate.
The left centre midfielder is the more defensive of the pair, but still makes as many passes as his counterpart. A ball winning midfieder usually fits the role quite well as he can make the necesarry tackles and interceptions to break up any threatening attacks before they can happen.
The right centre midfielder is the more expressive midfielder usually trying to cut open the defence and more often than not getting forward and scoring the odd goal too. Obviously their passing needs to be higher than any other in the team along with vision and creativity.
Note: The roles such as "bwm" or "dlp" are not mandatory, I change them depending on the player I have in the position, their instructions that I have set to not change though.
The strikers are your main goalscorers obviously! The better their composure and finishing, needless to say the better. They should get plenty of opportunities to show their talents off thanks to the hard work of their team.
Note: Again the roles can be changed depending on the player in the position. e.g. Last season I was playing half of last season with two poachers thanks to injuries, but it still worked.
Special Notes
I know at the minute this tactic tends to concede around one a match so any help on the defence would be gratefully accepted, but it still tends to score more than it concedes.
This tactic took time for my players to get use to, so allow five to ten matches before you see them begin to play well.
Don't expect instant results from it as I don't think there is such a tactic in the world that could do that.
If it doesn't work for you then fair enough, and give me some constructive criticism. Not just a "this is rubbish" comment.
Let me know how you get on. I'd love to know how you get on with a weak side too.
Firstly, thanks for taking the time to check this tactic out and I hope it works as well for you as it has for me. -Secondly if you can find ways of improving this I am open to any constructive criticism.
Basic Formation & Instructions
Touchline Shouts
Opposition Instructions
None apart from what my assistant says at the start of the match. However, if it is noticeable that someone is having a good game I'll make sure they are closed down often, shown on to weak foot and receive hard tackles to unnerve them.
Match Results, League Table & Fixtures
The Tactic
Obviously you can see above that the tactic is a completely flat 4-4-2. The reason being that in recent times at the "big" clubs the original 4-42 is becoming more and more obsolete thanks to the continental approach which is beginning to work wonders with the 4-3-3, and 4-2-3-1 working wonders. (e.g Barcelona, Chelsea, City etc.)
Also, with a 4-4-2 you nearly always have the numerical advantage in midfield and defence when you don't have the ball (as long as everyone is in position), and when attacking in the correct manner you can have as many as eight players in advanced positions.
The idea of this tactic is to get the ball forward, but with nobody assigned the role of running with the ball. It's all about getting the ball to each others feet, and then moving into a better position when you have passed it to a teammate providing them with a forward passing option, and to work the ball into the box for a scoring opportunity as I'm not a fan of the long shots.
Defensively everything is zonal marking unless it's a set piece. Again this is so the team defend as a unit and no one is taken out of position, and even the strikers are closing down often as this sometimes forces the opposition defenders to mess up a pass and could lead to an easy game. Our defensive line is also pushed up high forcing the opposition into their own half and having to make killer balls to open us up, or resort to long shots.
The Players
Obviously the better their vision and passing attributes, it would make sense that this tactic would work better. But that has not always been the case for me as the simple short passing game isn't that hard if players are in position to receive the pass. So for this reason I instantly get every midfielder and striker to learn how to "move into channels regularly" and "play one-two passes" to help us dictate the tempo of our game.
The goalkeeper is self explanitory, the better he is at shot stopping and reflex saves the better. With this tactic, expect more long shots against them than close range thanks to a well disciplined defence, and distibution-wise the keeper should always throw it out to a defender quickly.
The centre backs are your rocks, they need to stay professional and not go chasing the strikers if they stray somewhere else on the pitch. We all know the good attributes for a defender so I don't feel I need to go into that.
The full backs have a slightly different role to usual. When they have the ball passed to them they are instructed to "hold up ball", as this allows the midfield ahead of them to move into space before they pass the ball which to an extent avoids any quick and ill-thought passes going straight to the opposition.
The wingers aren't your typical take on the opponent players. I want them to be involved in the passing and build up play. They pass the ball to the centre midfielders usually then make their darting runs away from their marker and try to get the ball back from the teammate.
The left centre midfielder is the more defensive of the pair, but still makes as many passes as his counterpart. A ball winning midfieder usually fits the role quite well as he can make the necesarry tackles and interceptions to break up any threatening attacks before they can happen.
The right centre midfielder is the more expressive midfielder usually trying to cut open the defence and more often than not getting forward and scoring the odd goal too. Obviously their passing needs to be higher than any other in the team along with vision and creativity.
Note: The roles such as "bwm" or "dlp" are not mandatory, I change them depending on the player I have in the position, their instructions that I have set to not change though.
The strikers are your main goalscorers obviously! The better their composure and finishing, needless to say the better. They should get plenty of opportunities to show their talents off thanks to the hard work of their team.
Note: Again the roles can be changed depending on the player in the position. e.g. Last season I was playing half of last season with two poachers thanks to injuries, but it still worked.
Special Notes
I know at the minute this tactic tends to concede around one a match so any help on the defence would be gratefully accepted, but it still tends to score more than it concedes.
This tactic took time for my players to get use to, so allow five to ten matches before you see them begin to play well.
Don't expect instant results from it as I don't think there is such a tactic in the world that could do that.
If it doesn't work for you then fair enough, and give me some constructive criticism. Not just a "this is rubbish" comment.
Let me know how you get on. I'd love to know how you get on with a weak side too.
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NOTE: Please don't re-distribute without my prior consent.
