They just have too many darn shots

[peteroleum]

I am currently managing Wrexham in the Conference, and I am now suffering the same problem that I did when managing Norwich City in League 1, namely that the opposition seems to get too many shots against me (with probably about 40% on target). I win mos of my games, but my shots on target ratio is also really poor (probably less than 30%). Any help on this would be appreciated.

My formation:
- I play 442
- I play a midfield with one central midfielder and one ball winning midfielder.
- At home I play my LM and RM as wingers, away I play them as wide midfielders and play a narrower formation.
- At home I press and go to to default on tackling strength. Away I stand off and tackle aggressively.
- I play more direct and with a high tempo away from home.
- Because my CB's are quite slow I play slightly deeper than halfway (I think 8/20 on that bar).

What am I doing wrong? Although I should mention that my team is pretty high up in the league - Gareth Taylor is a beast!

 

[bgsam1990]

Probably, individual closing down instructions will help instead of a team instruction. Hard tackling on physically weaker players good at long shots might help (I use this strategy)...
Poor shots on target ratio indicates your forward is lacking composure, is low on morale. Try to 'work the ball into the box'..It usually helps

 

[Jake]

try my smash and grab tactic , click the link in my sig

 

[Dobcheev]

Issue the ' work ball into the box ' touchline shout & make sure all your players have ' long shots ' minimized in your individual player instructions - this also improves your possession ratio as the A.I. is prone to take a lot of wasteful shots if you don't do something about it.

In the opposition instructions I close down all their midfield players ( including wingers ) & also show them onto their weaker foot as a matter of course now - I've noticed the opposition scoring the occasional screamer even from a player with a lousy long-shot stat - my motto is: Don't trust any of the buggers !

Also check the opposition stats at half time and see who's getting strikes on your goal - then give them the hard tackle treatment as well - if it's a striker / AMC / winger, you might consider tight marking too.

You could use a high defensive line to keep the enemy further up field out of effective shooting distance, but watch out - you need pacey defenders with a good positional stat to cover quick opposition players trying to break through your back line.

All this should cut down on opposition long shots