Need advice on multiple things - Passing, defending and attacking

[TheeRash]

I'm using Wigan. Trying to keep Roberto playing style as that's what I prefer.

First things first.
I am playing a 5-2-1-2,as you can see below:

The players sometimes make really, really stupid passes. I can see the through ball that will send one of the strikers on goal and for some reason the player (eg: wingback), will play it backwards to one of the defenders. I'm not sure how to fix this, so any advice would be awesome.

Defending wise, I've made some progress. I switched the style to rigid attacking, and that's seemed to have helped with defending as well as the goal scoring.
My main problem with defense if the amount of crosses put into the box, it really kills me, and about 90% of the goals I concede are from a cross (Set piece or otherwise).

Now, attacking. I have been scoring quite well, but I was thinking if there was any way to improve it. Maybe just di santo a little deeper and play him as a CF to feed Kone? Any suggestions would be awesome, of course!

Any other tips to help with this formation would be welcomed.

 

[Scotty98TR]

The players sometimes make really, really stupid passes. I can see the through ball that will send one of the strikers on goal and for some reason the player (eg: wingback), will play it backwards to one of the defenders. I'm not sure how to fix this, so any advice would be awesome.

Set your defenders passing style to more direct, and in team instructions don't tell them to pass out from the back!

My main problem with defense if the amount of crosses put into the box, it really kills me, and about 90% of the goals I concede are from a cross (Set piece or otherwise).

Can you upload a screenshot of your team instructions? Do you play with a high or deep line, with what kind of pressing and marking?

Now, attacking. I have been scoring quite well, but I was thinking if there was any way to improve it. Maybe just di santo a little deeper and play him as a CF to feed Kone? Any suggestions would be awesome, of course!

Di Santo would be a good Deep-lying forward, but he is a pacy ****** so it'd be better to take advantage of that. I'd play him as an advanved forward, but let him roam from position, and set through palls to often. His dribbling is poor, so tell him to run with ball sometimes, and try train him to have the one-twos PPM!

Any other tips to help with this formation would be welcomed.

Make Mccarthy a BBM, Gomez an AP-support or AM-support and who do you normally play instead of Fyvie? You need a DLP or CM-Defend there!

 

[TheeRash]

Can you upload a screenshot of your team instructions? Do you play with a high or deep line, with what kind of pressing and marking?

Make Mccarthy a BBM, Gomez an AP-support or AM-support and who do you normally play instead of Fyvie? You need a DLP or CM-Defend there!

I usually play Watson in there. Him or David Jones. I'm looking for another midfielder tho

 

[TheeRash]

This is what I was talking about with the passing back, kone passed backwards:

I told to shoot on sight, but they now shoot from stupid ranges lol.

 

[Scotty98TR]

Oh right I thought you meant it was just your defenders that passing back all the time.

I'd slow the tempo down and make time wasting about 11/12. Kone doesn't have enough players in support to be able to pass it! Set either Kone or Di Santo as your target man with supply set as to run onto ball (Di Santo would probably be better as he is playing slightly higher up the pitch, but Kone is faster so you'll have to just decide).

Make sure the AM, the BBM and the 2 strikers aren't set to make through balls rarely, wether you have it as often or sometimes depends on position and how you want them to play. You could do with someone holding up the ball out of the strikers or AM, but none are strong enough.



What shouts do you use? Never tell them to shoot on sight lol, there are too many long-shots as it is!

 

[andymc1989]

Scott I play a very similair tactic and you seem to know what your talking about !

I have the crossing problem would you set your wing backs to Zonal or man mark ? Closing down often or stand off?

I have 4 strikers 2 regens and Carlos fierro and Stevan jovetic , i try to play deep lying and complete forward It is working at the moment but is that the best combination for jovetic and fierro?

Sorry for hogging this thread but he has answered pretty much what you need!

 

[Scotty98TR]

Scott I play a very similair tactic and you seem to know what your talking about !

I have the crossing problem would you set your wing backs to Zonal or man mark ? Closing down often or stand off?

I have 4 strikers 2 regens and Carlos fierro and Stevan jovetic , i try to play deep lying and complete forward It is working at the moment but is that the best combination for jovetic and fierro?

Sorry for hogging this thread but he has answered pretty much what you need!

haha, cheers!

I'd put them as zonal marking with tight marking, but closing down or stand off depends on the players they are marking so you'll have to set it in opposition instructions... If they are facing a player who is a good dribbler and who either has alot of speed or alot of flair, you don't want to get too close to him or he will just go past you. If it is a slower player who is good at crossing, long shots, passing, etc. then get tight because he'll struggle to get away from the defender even f he does go past him!

Fierro and Jovetic are both best as DLFs, but obviously they aren't both going to be playing like that at the same time... So yeah, a DLF an CF are probably the best options to get both to play

 

[andymc1989]

Excellent thanks for the response ill give it a shot!

 

[Raikan007]

Initial problems:

1) Wigan CANNOT play shorter more expressive football, that is your first problem

2) do not push so far up, you will be leaving way too much space in behind, especially against teams with good wingers as your WB's are Attacking!

3) You cannot have BPD's mate, your players are nowhere near having the correct stats for it

4) Playing rigid attacking is like playing slow tempo countering! not the correct settings

5) You are playing quite a wide game and the only width you have are you wingbacks! they will be so busy trying to get forward that you will be exposed badly!

Corrections/suggestions to problems:

1) Play direct passing and disciplined freedom (especially if playing rigid or balanced)

2) drop the defensive line to normal, pretty much exactly halfway

3) play central CB as a CB - stopper to push forward and cancel out attacks, and play the other two defenders as CB - cover or Limited - cover to provide cover if and when attackers get passed the stopper

4) play a balanced countering approach! this will ensure that players will enter other area's of the field when the time is right and will keep their shape when out of possession!

5) play narrow and set passing through the middle of the field, this restricts opponents and will also help to constrict the game! you have decent mids and will overrun most oppositions especially teams playing 442, take advantage of that.. just because you are playing narrow and through the middle does not mean your WB's will not get involved, this will hopefully allow them more space as the opposition will come in to deal with numbers in the centre of the park and leave spaces open out wide

set the WB's to cross to FAR POST and from deep! this will prevent them pushing TOO far forward which can result in you being hit on the counter and your CB's having to leave their positions to defend out wide leaving acres of space in the centre for oncoming opposition strikers

I assume you concede most of your goals from crosses and being hit on the counter?

try these suggestions, they might not all be correct, but think about a few of the points I have made, see how that goes then we can delve deeper into player instructions and other things :0

hope that helps, cheers, Neil

​

 

[Scotty98TR]

Initial problems:

1) Wigan CANNOT play shorter more expressive football, that is your first problem

2) do not push so far up, you will be leaving way too much space in behind, especially against teams with good wingers as your WB's are Attacking!

3) You cannot have BPD's mate, your players are nowhere near having the correct stats for it

4) Playing rigid attacking is like playing slow tempo countering! not the correct settings

5) You are playing quite a wide game and the only width you have are you wingbacks! they will be so busy trying to get forward that you will be exposed badly!

Corrections/suggestions to problems:

1) Play direct passing and disciplined freedom (especially if playing rigid or balanced)

2) drop the defensive line to normal, pretty much exactly halfway

3) play central CB as a CB - stopper to push forward and cancel out attacks, and play the other two defenders as CB - cover or Limited - cover to provide cover if and when attackers get passed the stopper

4) play a balanced countering approach! this will ensure that players will enter other area's of the field when the time is right and will keep their shape when out of possession!

5) play narrow and set passing through the middle of the field, this restricts opponents and will also help to constrict the game! you have decent mids and will overrun most oppositions especially teams playing 442, take advantage of that.. just because you are playing narrow and through the middle does not mean your WB's will not get involved, this will hopefully allow them more space as the opposition will come in to deal with numbers in the centre of the park and leave spaces open out wide

set the WB's to cross to FAR POST and from deep! this will prevent them pushing TOO far forward which can result in you being hit on the counter and your CB's having to leave their positions to defend out wide leaving acres of space in the centre for oncoming opposition strikers

I assume you concede most of your goals from crosses and being hit on the counter?

try these suggestions, they might not all be correct, but think about a few of the points I have made, see how that goes then we can delve deeper into player instructions and other things :0

hope that helps, cheers, Neil

​

1) They have some good passers of the ball, I did a Wigan save and won the Prem in 2 and a half seasons using short, creative football (I started in January 2013)...

2)Playing deeper will invite more pressure from crosses, and apart from Caldwell Wigan's CB are not the best in the air. Apart from Caldwell the CBs are also very fast, so using a higher line would play to their strengths. That's why he needs a more defensive player in front of him to effectively make it a back 4 even when the 2 WBs are attacking!

3) Agree with that, I didn't notice he had them as BPDs.

4) Again I didn't notice he had it set as rigid, although slow tempo counter-attacking does work... (It just doesn't seem like counter-attacking, but it provides more defensive stability and creates more movement which aids trying to keep possession.

5) Kone and Di Santo should roam to help provide width, as will the BBM.

Just my opinions

 

[Raikan007]

1) its my preference to play direct passing, I feel it works better on this version of FM
2) yeah much deeper, not normal
4) it may work but its not the correct settings
5) Di Santo - TM - moves into channels and roams for both yes

 

[TheeRash]

Thanks, Raikin and Scotty. For some reason my team is finding it really difficult to score now.

 

[Raikan007]

Thanks, Raikin and Scotty. For some reason my team is finding it really difficult to score now.

hey bud, as I said, you told me you were leaking goals so we needed to address that first, and as you told me on Steam it has worked

so now we move onto the attacking part of the tactic