Help Creating a Tactic

[dioji]

So I've played just under 800 hours of FM15, my first FM game I'd ever played, and I had been dominating with a possession based, attacking 4-2-3-1 Wide Asymmetric (LDM and RCM). It was effectively a 4-1-1-3-1 with the holding midfield left and right of the middle. Turns out, I cannot for the life of me replicate it in FM16 with the same Chelsea team that I led to so many trophies in FM15 (haha yes FM is so realistic). I was looking for some help in creating what could be a very effective tactic, but I seem to be overwhelmed by the options in FM16. I know exactly how I want the ball to move around and a general defensive idea. If anybody would like to give me a hand it would be much appreciated.

EDIT: So just got done reading the stickied post about how I can make my situation clearer, so here goes. So far I've been tinkering with variations of a 4-1-2-3 and the 4-2-3-1 mentioned above. I typically like to play on the attack or control the game depending on the scenario. I play slightly more narrow than the wide should be played, with both attacking wingers set to be Inside Forwards, typically attacking, but I also have my two wing backs overlapping very often. The strikers is typically a Complete Forward in support or a a Target Man in support. Usually the central attacking midfielder is just an Advanced Playmaker in support, and the two midfielders are a Deep-Lying Playmaker or Box-to-Box Midfielder in support and either a Ball-Winning Midfielder set to defend or an Anchorman if I have a slim lead. The central defenders I like to play as a stopper-sweeper pairing, with one being a Ball-Playing Defender set to stopper and the other a Limited Defender set to cover. The keeper is a keeper.

I like to have the team instructions set to retain possession, defense up a little higher, high pressure, stay on feet, and be expressive. I'm predicted to finish in 1st place (again, yes, haha, so real) but my team cannot score. In the first 6 games we've scored 4 goals and let in 7. Defensively it's pretty good, but scoring used to never be a problem.

Right before FM16 came out, my strikers were scoring a majority of the goals as either an Advanced Forward or Target Man. Honestly, I don't care where the goals come from. Earlier in the same save I had all three of my strikers injured so I played a few games without anyone up top and still scored two goals per game. If this team is scoring, we're winning. Possession has been pretty high, as expected, around 55-60% per game, but that means nothing without goals. I've also been noticing that the passing has been all over the place, guys pinging the ball from side to side when I would really like them to be playing 1-2's all the way up the field into the box.

So, I'm around if anybody has any questions, but I really do need some help. Thanks in advance!

 

[WJ]

So if I understand your setup, it looks like this:

Control or Attacking

----------- CF/S -----------
- IF/A ----- AP/S ----- IF/A -
-----------------------------
------- DLP/S --- BWM/D ----
WB/A -- BPD/X -- LD/C -- WB/A

Even if the wingbacks are on Support duty (and it's not clear which they are), this is a very attacking setup.


Why do you have Retain Possession instructed? Do you know what it does?

 

[dioji]

Couple things, the DLP (S) is playing central mid, I made the mistake of saying he was a holding mid, but other than that, yeah that's what I was running in FM15.

------------ CF/S -------------
- IF/A ----- AP/S ------ IF/A -
---------DLP/S----------------
-WB/S------ BWM/D -- WB/S-
------ BPD/X --- LD/C--------

I want to play basically from the goalkeeper through each tier of the team, defense, midfield, then attackers, and, unless it was all just coincidence, I found that Retain Possession helped with that. I watched a few full length games, changing only Retain Possession, and the team played slowly from the back through each level of the team.

Besides that, I still don't understand why exactly I can't score goals anymore. The ball moves through the midfield about the same, but the delivery to the strikers and attacking wingers is poor, and unlike the passing up until the final delivery, the ball travels through the air. Now, if my players weren't on average about 5'9", that might work, but that's not the case.

 

[WJ]

Retain possession shortens passing range, lowers tempo and reduces through balls/risky passes.

The key to your setup working is the CF/S dropping deep enough to create the space for the double IF/As to burst into. Is that happening?

Something to maybe watch and partly the reason I asked about Retain Possession - Your IF/As on Attack duty and attacking mentalities (Control and Attacking) will burst forward early and often. If you slow play down a lot, it means they go and sit on top of the fullbacks. Given that you are reducing through balls, it'll be hard to pick them out.

You basically have 3 options then.

1 - Speed up play by increasing tempo or passing directness.

2 - Rein in one IF at least by giving him a Support duty so that he makes fewer runs forward and possibly times them better. You still have the threat of the other IF/A though.

3 - Take off Retain Possession to allow through balls to your attacking threats, the IFs. You can still add Lower Tempo and/or Shorter Passing to give you the same effect as Retain Possession.

 

[dioji]

Alright, I'll give those a shot and return with what the results are. Thanks a lot, really.