KluivertsBoots
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I've been a Barca supporter since 96-97, and, of course, they are the main side I use in any game. I figured I would put this together for anyone interested in playing the Barcelona 4-3-3 as interpreted by Pep Guardiola. I plan to add to this thread over time and complete it with photos.
*Disclaimer- somewhat lengthy reading ahead*
"I pass and I move, I help you, I look for you, I stop, I raise my head, I look and, above all, I open up the pitch...The one who has the ball, is the master of the game...That's the school of Joan Vilà, of Albert Benaiges, of Johan Cruijff, of Pep Guardiola."
- Xavi Hernandez
True Attacking 4-3-3
The difference between Barcelona's 4-3-3 and a veiled 4-5-1 are the usually Wing Forwards (Left and Right Attacking "Midfielders"). The attacking wingers in the 4-3-3 don't function as true wingers in that they stick to the flanks primarily and bang in crosses. True 4-3-3 wing forwards cut inside and pierce the heart of the opponent's defense from the outside-in. They are creators, dribblers and goal scorers.
The Barca 4-3-3 is built on the fundamental principles of being wide in attack and compact in defense.
Innovation is about taking conventional lines of thought, flipping them and then redefining the product. That is what innovative systems like the Barca 4-3-3 are all about.
Pep Guardiola introduced an aggressive pressing element when he took over as coach, and that is the main difference between his and Rijkaard's version of the tactic. Rijkaard's teams were more cover oriented. Guardiola plays an aggressive offside trap high up the pitch. He wants his team to win the ball as high up the pitch as possible, this decreasing the distance needed to get on goal.
Passing should be mixed for the more creative players and set to shorter for those who are lower rated in passing and technique. Guardiola prefers a higher tempo and that generally clashes with possession oriented teams. Again, innovation...breaking rules. The ball is meant to do the work (unless of course Messi or Iniesta get a hold of it, then dribbling is fun
).
General Positional Analysis
Center Forward- this player can be under any forward role depending on the player abilities and desired play style of your game. Experiment with each of them and find which works best for you.
In the Barca system, he is meant to link possession with the rest of the team, often dropping to link with the midfield before springing forward and playing one-twos with the wing forwards. This helps draw out the defense. He must be strong with his back to goal and be capable of holding the ball. Holding the ball freezes the defense so the wingers and attacking mids like Andres Iniesta can become very dangerous.
Most people look at the lone striker and say "Target Man" automatically, but the player can be far more versatile. I find a player like Ibrahimovic functions best in the Deep Lying Forward role. He's not generally effective as a target man despite his size due to low positioning, team work and work rate ratings. Ibra also functions well as a Trequartista. The CF can and should be just as much of a playmaker in this system as he is a scorer. If you do set a more technically oriented player as a target man, set the team instruction for target man supply as "to feet" or "run onto ball." High off the ball rating ideal for run onto ball setting ("Moves into channels" also a good preferred move to promote as always.)
Ideally, the CF should be able to use both feet effectively and not be relegated to one only. Find which role combines best with your team, and avoid isolation. You can experiment here.
Wing Forwards (Left and Right Attack "Mids")- I put mids in quotes because their function is really all out attack. They are relied on very little for defense or crossing, two roles filled by more traditional wingers.
Look for "Gets Into Opposition Area" and/or "Cuts Inside" in Preferred Moves. Of course, you can set the cutting inside part. "Moves Into Channels" and "Likes to Round Keeper" are other good moves as is "Tries Killer Balls Often." These players are equal parts playmaker and goal scorer. Crossing is very secondary. The main crossing they will do is generally inside the area, and this generally involves lay backs and rolling the ball across the goal mouth. Be sure and set free roaming so they can't be marked out.
To the comment about innovation above, conventional logic would suggest putting a left footed player on the left side and a right footed player on the right side. Barcelona flips this. Barca puts right footed players on the left side and left footed players on the right side. This facilitates inside cuts, and also allows the player to shoot at the wide side of goal with his stronger foot. Lionel Messi is left footed, but plays on the right side. Pedro is two-footed and can play both. Henry is a right footed player playing left sided.
Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina), for example, is absolutely ideal for the left attacking forward in this system as a right footed player with highly advanced technical ability.
Some people use three strikers in their 4-3-3 alignments, but that eliminates the intended width of the system as well as the dangerous angular runs and play associated with wing forwards.
Center Midfield- This is a highly flexible area and gamers are free to experiment and craft as their own. Barcelona uses its left and right center mids as attackers, and the center/defensive mid plays behind the action with rare forays into the box.
Andres Iniesta, in the LCM position, functions as an advanced playmaker due to his advanced technique and mental acuity. He has roaming freedom. This role changes to a more box to box type orientation when Seydou Keita is playing the position. Again, the best thing you can be is versatile, so be sure and sign complimentary players who can each give you something unique. Thiago is the heir to Iniesta's position in the youth ranks.
The RCM is the signature position in the Barcelona system, currently occupied by pass master Xavi. He will function primarily as a deep lying playmaker and facilitate the defense-to-attack link before venturing forward to join in the final third. He can make the incisive pass which cuts a defense in one stroke of the foot. I set Xavi as the playmaker. The Barca offense begins with a stroke of his foot. Jonathan Dos Santos is Xavi's youth understudy. Cesc Fabregas and Andrea Pirlo are other such playmakers. Marek Hamsik (Napoli) is one of the most talented younger players for this role.
The defensive mid position is pretty self-explanatory. Yaya Toure operates in this role quite well with Sergi Busquets or Keita as his back up. This player is a ball winning man-marker who generally only ventures forward to unleash long shots. Again, ball winning is a huge emphasis in the Guardiola scheme. Rijkaard was known for playing three creative center mids (Xavi, Iniesta, Deco) at once because ball winning/pressing were not as strongly emphasized.
Fulbacks- This is another area where Barcelona's toyed with conventional logic. Normally, both fullbacks will operate in very similar roles. They'll support defense and attack, make the occasional jaunt forward... At Barcelona, this is not always the case. Eric Abidal plays as a very defensive minded left back who rarely ever ventures forward to join in attack. He plays basically as a third center back (or is that second? I'll elaborate in the center backs section).
Dani Alves is obviously the complete opposite at right back. Alves is meant to fly up the right flank as an attacking wing back. Alves is the cross machine of the Barcelona 4-3-3. Two attacking fullbacks can be played if desired when Maxwell subs in for Abidal.
Center Backs- Barcelona plays a very aggressive offside trap so it is very important to have center backs with advanced mental and physical abilities. Pace is important since there is usually a good bit of real estate behind them. Workate, teamwork and aggression are also important.
Also, because they play high up the pitch, at least one of the center backs should be a ball playing defender. Gerard Pique currently occupies this role for Barcelona while captain Puyol maintains a defensive mindset throughout. Also, both center backs can be defensive minded or both can be ball players. Versatility. If you are fortunate enough to have a technically gifted defender such as Pique (Genoa youngster Domenico Criscito is a good one) and you are feeling adventurous, set him to forward run often and left him join the attacking fun. Barcelona does this at certain moments with Pique. It is a bit tricky to manage in FM unless you play on a slower game setting.
Keeper- standard role. I set defender collect or quick throw for distribution as this helps possession retaining. If I switch to longer passing, I will set Ibrahimovic as the distribute to due to his height and let him knock it on for the wing forwards.
Anyway, hopefully this is useful for some of you who might be interested in understanding the Barca system to either play with Barca or introduce the style at another club. I plan to add more.
*Disclaimer- somewhat lengthy reading ahead*
"I pass and I move, I help you, I look for you, I stop, I raise my head, I look and, above all, I open up the pitch...The one who has the ball, is the master of the game...That's the school of Joan Vilà, of Albert Benaiges, of Johan Cruijff, of Pep Guardiola."
- Xavi Hernandez
True Attacking 4-3-3
The difference between Barcelona's 4-3-3 and a veiled 4-5-1 are the usually Wing Forwards (Left and Right Attacking "Midfielders"). The attacking wingers in the 4-3-3 don't function as true wingers in that they stick to the flanks primarily and bang in crosses. True 4-3-3 wing forwards cut inside and pierce the heart of the opponent's defense from the outside-in. They are creators, dribblers and goal scorers.
The Barca 4-3-3 is built on the fundamental principles of being wide in attack and compact in defense.
Innovation is about taking conventional lines of thought, flipping them and then redefining the product. That is what innovative systems like the Barca 4-3-3 are all about.
Pep Guardiola introduced an aggressive pressing element when he took over as coach, and that is the main difference between his and Rijkaard's version of the tactic. Rijkaard's teams were more cover oriented. Guardiola plays an aggressive offside trap high up the pitch. He wants his team to win the ball as high up the pitch as possible, this decreasing the distance needed to get on goal.
Passing should be mixed for the more creative players and set to shorter for those who are lower rated in passing and technique. Guardiola prefers a higher tempo and that generally clashes with possession oriented teams. Again, innovation...breaking rules. The ball is meant to do the work (unless of course Messi or Iniesta get a hold of it, then dribbling is fun
). General Positional Analysis
Center Forward- this player can be under any forward role depending on the player abilities and desired play style of your game. Experiment with each of them and find which works best for you.
In the Barca system, he is meant to link possession with the rest of the team, often dropping to link with the midfield before springing forward and playing one-twos with the wing forwards. This helps draw out the defense. He must be strong with his back to goal and be capable of holding the ball. Holding the ball freezes the defense so the wingers and attacking mids like Andres Iniesta can become very dangerous.
Most people look at the lone striker and say "Target Man" automatically, but the player can be far more versatile. I find a player like Ibrahimovic functions best in the Deep Lying Forward role. He's not generally effective as a target man despite his size due to low positioning, team work and work rate ratings. Ibra also functions well as a Trequartista. The CF can and should be just as much of a playmaker in this system as he is a scorer. If you do set a more technically oriented player as a target man, set the team instruction for target man supply as "to feet" or "run onto ball." High off the ball rating ideal for run onto ball setting ("Moves into channels" also a good preferred move to promote as always.)
Ideally, the CF should be able to use both feet effectively and not be relegated to one only. Find which role combines best with your team, and avoid isolation. You can experiment here.
Wing Forwards (Left and Right Attack "Mids")- I put mids in quotes because their function is really all out attack. They are relied on very little for defense or crossing, two roles filled by more traditional wingers.
Look for "Gets Into Opposition Area" and/or "Cuts Inside" in Preferred Moves. Of course, you can set the cutting inside part. "Moves Into Channels" and "Likes to Round Keeper" are other good moves as is "Tries Killer Balls Often." These players are equal parts playmaker and goal scorer. Crossing is very secondary. The main crossing they will do is generally inside the area, and this generally involves lay backs and rolling the ball across the goal mouth. Be sure and set free roaming so they can't be marked out.
To the comment about innovation above, conventional logic would suggest putting a left footed player on the left side and a right footed player on the right side. Barcelona flips this. Barca puts right footed players on the left side and left footed players on the right side. This facilitates inside cuts, and also allows the player to shoot at the wide side of goal with his stronger foot. Lionel Messi is left footed, but plays on the right side. Pedro is two-footed and can play both. Henry is a right footed player playing left sided.
Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina), for example, is absolutely ideal for the left attacking forward in this system as a right footed player with highly advanced technical ability.
Some people use three strikers in their 4-3-3 alignments, but that eliminates the intended width of the system as well as the dangerous angular runs and play associated with wing forwards.
Center Midfield- This is a highly flexible area and gamers are free to experiment and craft as their own. Barcelona uses its left and right center mids as attackers, and the center/defensive mid plays behind the action with rare forays into the box.
Andres Iniesta, in the LCM position, functions as an advanced playmaker due to his advanced technique and mental acuity. He has roaming freedom. This role changes to a more box to box type orientation when Seydou Keita is playing the position. Again, the best thing you can be is versatile, so be sure and sign complimentary players who can each give you something unique. Thiago is the heir to Iniesta's position in the youth ranks.
The RCM is the signature position in the Barcelona system, currently occupied by pass master Xavi. He will function primarily as a deep lying playmaker and facilitate the defense-to-attack link before venturing forward to join in the final third. He can make the incisive pass which cuts a defense in one stroke of the foot. I set Xavi as the playmaker. The Barca offense begins with a stroke of his foot. Jonathan Dos Santos is Xavi's youth understudy. Cesc Fabregas and Andrea Pirlo are other such playmakers. Marek Hamsik (Napoli) is one of the most talented younger players for this role.
The defensive mid position is pretty self-explanatory. Yaya Toure operates in this role quite well with Sergi Busquets or Keita as his back up. This player is a ball winning man-marker who generally only ventures forward to unleash long shots. Again, ball winning is a huge emphasis in the Guardiola scheme. Rijkaard was known for playing three creative center mids (Xavi, Iniesta, Deco) at once because ball winning/pressing were not as strongly emphasized.
Fulbacks- This is another area where Barcelona's toyed with conventional logic. Normally, both fullbacks will operate in very similar roles. They'll support defense and attack, make the occasional jaunt forward... At Barcelona, this is not always the case. Eric Abidal plays as a very defensive minded left back who rarely ever ventures forward to join in attack. He plays basically as a third center back (or is that second? I'll elaborate in the center backs section).
Dani Alves is obviously the complete opposite at right back. Alves is meant to fly up the right flank as an attacking wing back. Alves is the cross machine of the Barcelona 4-3-3. Two attacking fullbacks can be played if desired when Maxwell subs in for Abidal.
Center Backs- Barcelona plays a very aggressive offside trap so it is very important to have center backs with advanced mental and physical abilities. Pace is important since there is usually a good bit of real estate behind them. Workate, teamwork and aggression are also important.
Also, because they play high up the pitch, at least one of the center backs should be a ball playing defender. Gerard Pique currently occupies this role for Barcelona while captain Puyol maintains a defensive mindset throughout. Also, both center backs can be defensive minded or both can be ball players. Versatility. If you are fortunate enough to have a technically gifted defender such as Pique (Genoa youngster Domenico Criscito is a good one) and you are feeling adventurous, set him to forward run often and left him join the attacking fun. Barcelona does this at certain moments with Pique. It is a bit tricky to manage in FM unless you play on a slower game setting.
Keeper- standard role. I set defender collect or quick throw for distribution as this helps possession retaining. If I switch to longer passing, I will set Ibrahimovic as the distribute to due to his height and let him knock it on for the wing forwards.
Anyway, hopefully this is useful for some of you who might be interested in understanding the Barca system to either play with Barca or introduce the style at another club. I plan to add more.
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