Hi all, I currently have a Villa save (you can view the thread here). I'm halfway into the season and it appears the early effectiveness of my 4-3-3 tactic has worn off and the biggest problem I have identified is going forward. Crosses can't find Benteke, Benteke can't find crosses. Idk which. We're creating decent chances, but not finishing them. Could be a technical thing, though these are the same guys who were putting in a solid number of goals earlier in the season.
This is more or less a copy-paste post from my thread since I haven't gotten any responses there.
4-3-3
So this is the standard go-to formation I employ against most sides, since everyone is better than Villa. It's almost always on counter mentality, unless I feel we're controlling the game well or it's important to push forward so we can get back in the game. For the team shape, I'm considering moving towards fluid. Not sure if that'll disrupt the defensive side of our game.
I've reverted to a conventional 4-3-3, whereas I began the season with one of the defenders in the wing back position and one of the wingers on the same side shifted into the second striker position (see thread for clearer idea). I've found that BPL teams seem to be too threatening on the attack to have a back 3 and a wing back rather than a back four. Besides, the second striker, usually Gabby, seemed ineffective against BPL teams. I do still use that when I'm against weaker opposition, especially when they're particularly weak on one flank. But it hasn't been as great as before and so I've opted for more defensive stability.
Player Roles
Guzan is a Sweeper Keeper on Defend. His kicking is decent, tons better than his throwing which is weak. His anticipation is also good, so he's a good choice to come off the line and sweep up balls, which is useful since I use the push higher up tactic.
The left and right backs are Wing Backs on Support, but against stronger opposition who threaten down the flanks I put them as Full Backs on Support or Defend. Centre backs are conventional CBs on Defend duty.
The DM, usually Sanchez, is a Defensive Mid on Defend, supporting the other mids in attack but closes down opposition in defence and helps the back four. The second midfielder, usually Romero but occasionally Delph, is a Box to Box. Romero is an all round mid and I felt it's best to capitalise on this. Plus it makes great use of his energy. Lastly we have the Advanced Playmaker in Cleverley. Against teams I expect to dominate (but usually don't somehow) he's on Attack, going forward and creating chances. Otherwise, he'll be on Support duty.
The front three comprises Benteke as an Advanced Forward. His report recommends target man but I felt he could do more. I also occasionally play him as False Nine, to limited success. The wide forwards are usually Grealish and Agbonlahor as Wingers, but with Munir in I'm hoping to use him and Grealish as Inside Forwards on Attack as has been suggested. I usually see tactics where the front three are not symmetrical, e.g. if one IF is attack the other is support, or some other role. I'm also worried that Benteke won't get as much support from IFs as wingers, but support has been poor recently anyway.
Instructions
It's a counter tactic so I use More Direct Passing. I also use Pass Into Space as I think this makes the team hit high through balls over the opposition defence. I may be wrong. In fact I think I'm wrong as I don't see much of this in matches. Could someone kindly advise?
I use Play Out Of Defence as when there's a turnover in possession I don't want my players to immediately hoof the ball up the field, because there usually isn't much support up top. Rather I want them to stay calm and string passes and move forward, before launching the attack.
When attacking, I use Hit Early Crosses and Float Crosses to take advantage of Benteke's ability in the air. I also use Run At Defence as I think my wide forwards can threaten with their pace. Grealish and Munir also have great dribbling.
I use Play Narrower and Push Higher Up to compact the field, giving the opposition less space on the ball and more chances of us winning the ball back etc. I also use Tighter Marking and Prevent GK Short Distribution. I don't set Closing down under team instructions as I only want certain players to close down (mentioned in earlier posts). I find that the back four will be dragged out of position. So I've set it under player instructions instead, for all players except the back four.
Please do offer suggestions how I can improve this tactic. I foresee myself using it a lot for the foreseeable future so it would be great to have a tactically sound tactic to use. Please do correct any misconceptions I might have on the tactics. I'd like to learn more about the tactics side of the game and how to be better at it.
EDIT: I've been trying to tweak my tactics to figure out what works and what doesn't while I keep replaying my next match, which is against Hull. Have done this for around 5 times already. I can't seem to figure out anything at all though as it almost seems scripted for my side to lose all the time, either conceding penalties, or wondershots, letting in fluke goals from scrambles in the box, injuries to Cleverley and Romero or red cards. I can't tell if the changes I am making are working or not. So I really do need help figuring this tactic out.
I also notice my players often get dispossessed too easily, like they stand still and let the opposition tackle them or just lose the ball when the opponent approaches them. Is this a fault of the ME or is it due to their technical ability (which I doubt). Any suggestions on how to correct this?
Thanks again.
This is more or less a copy-paste post from my thread since I haven't gotten any responses there.
4-3-3


So this is the standard go-to formation I employ against most sides, since everyone is better than Villa. It's almost always on counter mentality, unless I feel we're controlling the game well or it's important to push forward so we can get back in the game. For the team shape, I'm considering moving towards fluid. Not sure if that'll disrupt the defensive side of our game.
I've reverted to a conventional 4-3-3, whereas I began the season with one of the defenders in the wing back position and one of the wingers on the same side shifted into the second striker position (see thread for clearer idea). I've found that BPL teams seem to be too threatening on the attack to have a back 3 and a wing back rather than a back four. Besides, the second striker, usually Gabby, seemed ineffective against BPL teams. I do still use that when I'm against weaker opposition, especially when they're particularly weak on one flank. But it hasn't been as great as before and so I've opted for more defensive stability.
Player Roles
Guzan is a Sweeper Keeper on Defend. His kicking is decent, tons better than his throwing which is weak. His anticipation is also good, so he's a good choice to come off the line and sweep up balls, which is useful since I use the push higher up tactic.
The left and right backs are Wing Backs on Support, but against stronger opposition who threaten down the flanks I put them as Full Backs on Support or Defend. Centre backs are conventional CBs on Defend duty.
The DM, usually Sanchez, is a Defensive Mid on Defend, supporting the other mids in attack but closes down opposition in defence and helps the back four. The second midfielder, usually Romero but occasionally Delph, is a Box to Box. Romero is an all round mid and I felt it's best to capitalise on this. Plus it makes great use of his energy. Lastly we have the Advanced Playmaker in Cleverley. Against teams I expect to dominate (but usually don't somehow) he's on Attack, going forward and creating chances. Otherwise, he'll be on Support duty.
The front three comprises Benteke as an Advanced Forward. His report recommends target man but I felt he could do more. I also occasionally play him as False Nine, to limited success. The wide forwards are usually Grealish and Agbonlahor as Wingers, but with Munir in I'm hoping to use him and Grealish as Inside Forwards on Attack as has been suggested. I usually see tactics where the front three are not symmetrical, e.g. if one IF is attack the other is support, or some other role. I'm also worried that Benteke won't get as much support from IFs as wingers, but support has been poor recently anyway.
Instructions
It's a counter tactic so I use More Direct Passing. I also use Pass Into Space as I think this makes the team hit high through balls over the opposition defence. I may be wrong. In fact I think I'm wrong as I don't see much of this in matches. Could someone kindly advise?
I use Play Out Of Defence as when there's a turnover in possession I don't want my players to immediately hoof the ball up the field, because there usually isn't much support up top. Rather I want them to stay calm and string passes and move forward, before launching the attack.
When attacking, I use Hit Early Crosses and Float Crosses to take advantage of Benteke's ability in the air. I also use Run At Defence as I think my wide forwards can threaten with their pace. Grealish and Munir also have great dribbling.
I use Play Narrower and Push Higher Up to compact the field, giving the opposition less space on the ball and more chances of us winning the ball back etc. I also use Tighter Marking and Prevent GK Short Distribution. I don't set Closing down under team instructions as I only want certain players to close down (mentioned in earlier posts). I find that the back four will be dragged out of position. So I've set it under player instructions instead, for all players except the back four.
Please do offer suggestions how I can improve this tactic. I foresee myself using it a lot for the foreseeable future so it would be great to have a tactically sound tactic to use. Please do correct any misconceptions I might have on the tactics. I'd like to learn more about the tactics side of the game and how to be better at it.
EDIT: I've been trying to tweak my tactics to figure out what works and what doesn't while I keep replaying my next match, which is against Hull. Have done this for around 5 times already. I can't seem to figure out anything at all though as it almost seems scripted for my side to lose all the time, either conceding penalties, or wondershots, letting in fluke goals from scrambles in the box, injuries to Cleverley and Romero or red cards. I can't tell if the changes I am making are working or not. So I really do need help figuring this tactic out.
I also notice my players often get dispossessed too easily, like they stand still and let the opposition tackle them or just lose the ball when the opponent approaches them. Is this a fault of the ME or is it due to their technical ability (which I doubt). Any suggestions on how to correct this?
Thanks again.
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