retired_elpata

Tweaking

This is one of the major factors in Football Manager, knowing when and what to change at the right time to turn a result around if things are going badly. Tweaking is a word thats used quite a lot around the forums, but it also causes a bit of confusion for a few people as they see people saying they make tweaks before and during a game. But what exactly do they change and how do you know?! Well its all situational and varies person to person, so all I can do is tell you and show you exactly what I change during a game. Once my game starts properly I will go into quite a bit of detail about each match I play, I will analyze the stats, players and my training and tweak accordingly. However what I can do now though is; give you an indication of the things I will be looking out for and what changes I can make.

A good scenario to start with would be; when you go behind, do you panic and drastically change things around?! Or do you stay calm and stick to your guns?! Or maybe you want to change things but leave it too late. What I would do is look at the big picture, was it a player error?! Was it a set piece?! Or maybe it was something else and it was scored against the run of play. What ever way it was, you don't want to leave it too late to make a change and on the flip side, you don't want to make knee jerk changes either.

Here are the basics I consider;

Before A Game

Tempo
Mentality
Defensive Line
Man Marking
Counter Attacking
Passing



In Game

You go a goal behind
Opposition getting too much space
A forced injury
A substitution
You see something worrying
Your style just isn't working

These are the most common things I look out for, and is one of the main factors before I tweak something. If something is working and my tactic is doing what I think is good, then I won't change anything. I don't tweak just for the sake of it, I only tweak if its needed. If I am being really dominant in a game, its very rare that I ever change anything, after all I am being dominant. So I must be doing something right?
Before you play your next fixture its quite possible to tweak a few things here and there, before you enter the game to give you what should be a slight advantage hopefully. How I determine what I tweak before a game depends on my scout report on the next opposition says. Most of it is really common knowledge and nothing no-one shouldn't be able to work out by reading what it says. Its nothing too complex or anything and in most cases, really easy to determine what needs to be done. For example my next game is against Newcastle and my scout said ' Newcastle play a defensive 442 and like a quick direct style to hit teams on the break'. Now this tells me I can play quite attacking against them, as they tend to sit deep and hit me on the counter attack. So as long as I don't over commit on the attacking front, I should have quite a few shots if I can break them down. Another thing I can do is play a short slow tempo game and try and limit the possession Newcastle have, because they play on the counter and rather direct, I should dominate possession in this game as at times they will give the ball away. So by playing short and slow I will be making them play a style which does not suit them at this time.

I will probably drop my defensive line slightly too, as i know they got fast strikers just by looking at their probable line up. So I don't want my defence to play too high or they might get caught out here, especially as my defenders lack pace. As you can see, I can change quite a few things here, it might seem a lot of messing about, but really its not. All this should take no longer than 30 seconds to change, it sounds harder than it actually is. Newcastle line up against me defensive as I am one of the better sides in the league now, but you get the drift about what I mean with scout reports hopefully? One more thing I should add, is that if my defenders have good man marking attributes then it might be worth while man marking their fast striker who is likely to cause me trouble, I find this helps keep them at bay most games.

retired_yoel

First, great with another project!

I have always speculated whether it's good to give defenders light ball control training. If I'm not wrong Ball Control do a players heading better, which is a important attribute for especailly central defenders.

retired_elpata

I used these schedules in beta and demo and they seemed okay. They might need changing as the season progresses though. But early signs are good especially if I get the right backroom staff in.

retired_elpata

It really depends on what stats you want to improve for the way you play. I just base my schedules on my style of play.

retired_kateois

i have a question related to possession:

is it possible to play an away game against a stronger team and try to gain possession by usign a playmaker? and if so - should the individual players' passing instrtucion be set to short \ mixed?

retired_elpata

Playmakers are players who dictate tempo and create nearly all your attacking opportunities. Most of your play will go through him and this can make it hard to create a possession game due to players always looking to find the playmaker. You will find the AI adapts very quickly to this and will look for cutting his supply off by marking him out of the game. As for his passing well that depends on his stats really and how good he is.

retired_slayerbing

Good start Cleon... I look forward to following this and stealing your ideas.

retired_elpata

I want to steal yours

retired_elpata

These are some of the stats I look out for, for each position;


Player Criteria for positions

Keeper

The last line of defence, if your defence gets picked apart and unlocked you needs to know this guy is capable of making a save when called upon. When I choose a keeper I always try and make sure he as handling, reflexes and agility as these are what make a good keeper and someone without one of these stats will not even get a look in by me. There are a few other stats as well but the above are like a standard base imo.

He also needs to have good jumping, positioning and strength for if the goalie is being bombarded game after game with high balls into the box. It will also help him when defending set pieces.

Vital Skills

Positioning, command of area, agility, stamina, jumping, strength, decisions and aerial ability

Other

Throwing, pace, concentration, composure, bravery and anticipation

Centre backs

There are two types of centre backs in my eyes and they are one who lumps the ball forward and is the unpretty sort of defender or there is the fancy one who likes to bring the ball out of defence and is very comfortable with the ball at his feet. It is always good to get a good mix in your team as it will offer you different options later down the line or if things are going wrong in a game.

Vital Skills

Positioning, jumping, tackling, marking, aggression, strength, bravery and heading

Other Skills

Stamina, anticipation, determination, pace and acceleration

Fullbacks

You can do a lot with fullbacks and you can actually have them very attacking if you wish, but if you do you need to remember to get someone to cover their position or you could be vulnerable to attacks down the flanks. The fullbacks can be deadly if you get a couple who are good dribblers and crosses of the ball.

Vital

Work rate, stamina, teamwork, decisions, positioning and acceleration

Other Skills

Determination, strength, crossing and dribbling

Defensive Midfielder

The defensive midfields are key players for breaking up play and beginning attacks,
Whether it is a killer ball to your strikers or a last ditch tackle. These men are the engine room of most teams when played correctly.

Attacking sides may not want to use one of these as they would have to sacrifice a player. A lot of lower league teams use anchormen to break up play of creativity and flair. These men act as the first line of defence in some cases and can make the defenders work a lot easier.

Vital Stats

Tackling, strength, aggression, marking, stamina, work rate, teamwork

Others

Pace, passing, acceleration, determination, concentration, creativity

Attacking Mids

These guys are the links between midfield and strikers and play in a very important position of the pitch. The ball is often there to be won in the last third of the pitch, so ideally you want an all round player a bit like a DMC.

Also they can be the creativity of a team pulling the strings for all the game. These are the most difficult players to find on the game as they are a rare breed.
If you find one who works well try and keep hold of him as they are quite rare.

Vital Stats

Creativity, passing, off ball, technique, finishing, work rate,

others

Stamina, teamwork, flair, long shots, pace, acceleration.

Wingers

these men provide the ammunition for your striker while hopefully chipping in with a few goals them selves. Many fans love wingers with their entertaining style of attacks.

But many clubs can’t afford these types of player, or they can’t fit them into there team. These days a winger is also expected to defend which is far from the traditional winger. So now days a midfield who can play on the wings is a good idea.

Vital Skills

Crossing, creativity, dribbling, pace, acceleration, tackling, balance, technique, passing

Others

Finishing, long shots, teamwork, work rate, off ball

Forwards

Forward score goals but in the modern game there is a lot more too it.
If you find a good creating forward who can also score he can be devastating for the opponents, a real nightmare to mark.
The real life examples over the years have been Beardsley, Bergkamp, Scholes, Lampard and even Henry.

Vital Stats

Creativity, flair, finishing, off ball, dribbling, passing, technique, pace, acceleration

others

Teamwork, flair, balance, long shots, anticipation, crossing

Strikers

The goal machines of any team. The people who can single handily change the course of an entire game. If you get a good striker make sure he’s not isolated and gets a regular supply of balls, If not your team will suffer.

Make the wingers and midfielders support him as much as they can.
Play to the striker’s strength’s. So if you use a fast striker get the ball to him as fast as possible so he can turn and run at defenders.
Defenders hate this on Football manager 2005. If it’s a target man you use make sure he holds the ball up etc.

Vital Skill

finishing, off ball, jumping, heading, anticipation

other

Pace aggression, acceleration, strength, long shots

retired_barbiej

I want to steal yours </BLOCKQUOTE>

I thought the point of the community is to share not steal