retired_elpata

Tackling Stats

Here are a few guidelines I follow when choosing what tackling to use dependant on which level I am playing at. Below are the manuals descriptions;

Easy: Your players will take it easy when entering a challenge. They will only commit if they believe they will come out on top.

For easy tackling anyone can do this and it is recommended that to use this if your player has very poor tackling stats. I will use the English Leagues as an example and give you a rough guideline on how I decide what to choose.

English Premier League

Any player under 13 for tackling stat should be placed on easy as this number is really poor for the quality of players you will be playing against.

The Championship

I would say any player under 11 tackling should be put on easy, I know the gap doesn’t seem that big compared to the EPL but you have to remember the quality is not as good either.

League One

Again not much of a difference but I would say 8 for a promotion chasing side and anything under for a bottom of the league side.

League Two

I would say anything under 6 and for the Conference sides the gulf is not that different.


Normal: Your players will go into the challenge if they believe they have a good chance of retrieving the ball. They wont be to hasty and will try not to be to reckless.

English Premier League

Any player with 14-20 for tackling can use normal tackling and be very effective.

The Championship

12-20 for the players in this league are able to use normal tackling, although it might be rare to find anyone with more than 15 tackling in this league.

League One

9-20 should be ok for this league

League Two

Players who have a range between 7-20 should easy cope with a normal tackling setting.


Hard: Your players will rush into any challenge no matter what. If there is only a small chance of retrieving the ball your players will take the opportunity.

English Premier League

Player in the top level should have at least 17 for tackling as well as a high decision stat.

The Championship

Players who have 15 for tackling should be able to pull this off without too many consequences.

League One

You want players in this league who have a tackling stat or around 12

League Two

Players should have at least 10 for tackling at this level.

These are just my guidelines and what I base things on, you may agree or disagree.

retired_elpata

Team Instructions

when you've got the players in the positions you want, its time to start thinking how you want them to play. You have a very wide selection of mentalities, tackling etc to choose from. Keep the ability of your team in mind before selecting anything straight away.

Mentality

Always try to balance the style of play to suit your formation. It doesn’t make sense to choose 5 defenders and only 1 striker and opt for a attacking style (unless your an advanced user).Look for a flexible formation that allows you to change things if there going wrong. That’s the main reason why 442 and 352 are popular choices.

Ultra Defensive: This is very simple. Your team will stay in their own half. They will not make any effort to go forward.

Defensive: The team will play defensively, however they will go forward if a quick attack occurs.

Normal: Your team will play rather normal. They shall defend when it’s needed and will attack at every good opportunity. Attacking: Your team will look to attack at every good opportunity. They will play a lot of football in the oppositions half.

All Out Attack: The suicidal style of play. Your team will have one thing on their mind and that’s goals. They will always look to attack and won’t bother with much defending.

Passing

you need to study your players really carefully before deciding what passing to choose. Particular the ones in midfield as hopefully these will have most of the possession your team has. In LLM you probably don’t have the players to play a short passing game as they lack technique and creativity. So if that’s the case try a director long ball type. As the players available at LLM should be widely available to pull this off.

Mixed: Players will attempt all styles of passing: short, direct or long.

Short: Your players will just pass the ball to the closest player that isn’t marked. He will just play the basics.

Direct: Your players will attempt to get the ball up field as quick as possible. They will go through the positions until it has reached the front men.

Long: Your players will always hit long balls forward. They will play the ball over the top. This works well if players have poor passing stats, the weather conditions are bad or if you are playing against tough opposition.

Tackling

most teams opt for a normal tackling style. But if you want to put the wind up the opponents choose a hard tackling game especially if the opposition are more skilled than your own. Hard tackling and closing down can always make it harder for teams even at the highest level.

But be sure to check the strictness of a referee before doing this as you don’t want to get all your players sent off now do you? Easy tackling is a good choice for friendlies or if you have the game won by now. By choosing easy tackling your player will suffer fewer injuries and less bookings.


Easy: Your players will take it easy when entering a challenge. They will only commit if they believe they will come out on top.

Normal: Your players will go into the challenge if they believe they have a good chance of retrieving the ball. They wont be to hasty and will try not to be to reckless.

Hard: Your players will rush into any challenge no matter what. If there is only a small chance of retrieving the ball your players will take the opportunity.

Closing Down

In an ideal world you would want all your players to chase the opposition all over the park. But am afraid it’s not an idea world and only a select few can keep this up for 90 minutes. By choosing close down always as soon as the opposition get the ball your player will start to close him down and hopefully forcing the opponent to make errors and win the ball in important areas of the field.

But if you choose this option you players need good work rate and stamina if not they will tire too quickly. If you choose close down own half only your player don’t need as much stamina. This means when a player crosses the halfway line with the ball your players should start to hassle him and hopefully win you the ball back so you can him them on the counter attack.

Rarely: Your players will be patient and wait until the opposition are in their area before closing down. Works well with a deep defensive line.

Own Half: Your players will close down any opposition player in your own half.

Often: Your players will never rest! They will always close down the opposition players and will not allow them time on the ball. Players need good fitness and stamina for this.

Offside Trap

The offside trap is a dangerous part of the game. Get this wrong and you could lose a game were you should have won. But get this right and your defence will be solid. To pull this off you’ll need defenders with great positioning and anticipation as you need them to read the game very well.

Even if your defenders are up to the job be sure to check who the attackers are your playing against and their anticipation skills. If they have high anticipation they are more than likely will beat your offside trap more often than not.

Counter Attack

a good style of play especially if you choose a defensive mentality. The two go hand in hand. Very effective if your side is blessed with pace and off ball skills. Hopefully you will be able to punish your opponents when they come too far up the pitch and you dispossess them. Lack the right players for the job and you’ll hardly move forward at all and you will be under a lot of pressure.

Set Pieces

What ever you do take about 30 minutes trying to set this up. The default ones are rubbish and don’t take advantage of anything imo. By having your set pieces up best to suit you could turn a result of a game. Instead of it being 0-0 you may get a goal from a corner or setpiece. If you set these up right you should score about 1 goal ever 3 games at least from a set piece. It doesn’t sound much but over a season it can add up. Trial and error is the only of setting this up so it benefits you.

Creative Freedom

Little: Your players will play a more defensive style of football. They will take no chances and do the more simple things.

Normal: A more normal style of play. Your players will try and create chances but will also stick to the basics.

Much: The much more attacking style of play. Your players will always strive to create chances for the team. They will try the unbelievable if they believe it will help the team.

Tempo

Slow: Your players will not rush while playing. They shall adopt a slow pace and will be patient in their build up.

Normal: Your team will play a normal paced game. They won’t exhaust them selves with fast play.

Quick: Fast, frantic and enjoyable to watch, many words to describe quick tempo. You will definitely need a team with good fitness and stamina or else they will become tired very fast.

Width

Narrow: Your players will play football in the middle of the pitch. They won’t allow your opposition space to play in the centre.

Normal: Your players will play normal. They shall play wide or narrow when appropriate.

Wide: Your players will play along the wing. They will look to get your wingers involved with play at all times. This will work well with focus passing down both flanks and also a quick tempo.


Defensive Line

Deep: Your defensive line will sit very back. They will not venture forward. Works well when against a pacy attack.

Normal: Your backline will play in the middle of their own area. They won’t push up or stay to far back.

Push Up: Your defenders will play close to the half way line. They will put pressure on the opposition’s players. This however is risky on the counter attack so fast defenders are needed.

Focus Passing

Through the Middle: Your players will focus passing and the majority of the play through the centre.

Down Both Flanks: Your players will look to get your wingers involved in the play. They will focus passing down both flanks.

Down Left Flank: Passing and general play shall be focussed on the left wing.

Down Right Flank: Passing and general play shall be focussed on the ring wing.

Mixed: Your players will try to get all involved. They will make appropriate decision where to focus passing during the game.

Marking

Zonal: Your team will mark players in certain areas. This means they are more unlikely to get caught out of position but may struggle when confronted by 2 opposition players.

Man: This is simple your players will man mark the opposition man for man.

Tight Marking: Players will keep close to the opposition players at all time. They will not allow their marked player any time on the ball and will look to take him out of the game.

retired_elpata

Passing is a very important part of football and on FM this is no different, but don't make the mistake that a lot of people do and match the players passing attribute to the passing slider. So for example if someone has 4 for passing this doesn't mean that you should give him (4) short passing on the game. You need to study your players really carefully before deciding what passing to choose. If you have a player who has 15+ for his passing attribute then he is probably good enough to play every single passing style depending at what level you are playing at.

The players passing in the midfield area is the most vital part of your formation in my eyes because you need to keep possession of the ball but also know when to release the ball to someone in a more advanced position. Time the passes right to your strikers and it could lead to a very good chance, but miss time the pass and you might give the possession of the ball away to the opposition. The passing to your strikers is important because get it wrong and you might get caught offside, but passing alone doesn't determine that it also depends on the strikers stats such as decision, anticipation and off the ball.

In Lower League Management situations you probably don’t have the players to play a very short passing game as they lack technique and creativity. So you need to find a passing style that suits the individual player. I would recommend trying to mix the passing styles up through out your team, don't have everyone set on the same settings. By doing this you give your team a variation of passing styles and make it UN predictable for the opposition to figure out what you will do with the ball.

Mixed: This means your players will attempt short passing, direct passing and long passing. This can be a good starting point when deciding what passing to have your players on. If you are unsure stick to mixed until you become more confident.

Short: Your players will just pass the ball to the closest player that isn’t marked. He will just play the basics. But if he is on (1)-(3) short passing this will mean he plays a more one touch football game. This style is only advisable for very good players who are comfortable with passing and moving.

Direct: Your players will attempt to get the ball up field as quick as possible. They will go through the positions until it has reached the front men. But don’t get this mistaken for long passing even though they sound same they are different.

Long: Your players will always hit long balls forward. They will play the ball over the top. This works well if players have poor passing stats, the weather conditions are bad or if you are playing against tough opposition. The downfall of playing like this is you could give a lot of possession away needlessly.

To be able to play any sort of passing game it also relies on other factors too not only the passing attribute. Decisions are important for knowing exactly who to choose to pass to as well as choosing when. Anticipation is another attribute that is quite important as if your player is passing to a player who is currently running he needs to anticipate where he is exactly running too. There are a few more factors too but they will get covered in a different article. It all comes down to combinations of attributes rather than just one overall attribute.

retired_mintyfresh353

This is a very good thread Cleon! :thup:

retired_elpata

Match Preparations

Pick the player you want to play is the easy part? You just pick the best 11 players with the best all round stats don’t you? Wrong.

Stats are important yeah am not denying that but there are a number of factors to take into consideration also. If player has a low morale then you may think twice before playing him, because he may under perform. As were a player with superb morale may play above expectations.

Match fitness is also vital, a player with less that 85% is a big risk; try to avoid playing players less than 95% although that’s just my preference. The player should be rested if he’s below 85%.

Make sure the players you have on the bench cover all the position not just 5 strikers. You need to have a bit of flair to add to the game if things are going wrong etc. Also a versatile defender who can play across the back line is always a good bet.

Pick the right players for the right match. If it’s an important game check that the player is good when under intense pressure. Plus if you have a player you’ve signed from a club and you happen to play that team it’s always good to have them on the field or the bench. They seem to give a better performance maybe there trying to show they were wrong to let him go.

Keep an eye out for player who may get suspended in the game you’re playing.
It’s no good playing your best player in say a game you ought to win. He may get booked and if you have a very important game next he could miss that one. So be sure to plan ahead if possible.

There are 3 types of views on tactics imo. There’s the one were people think players are more important than a tactic. Then there’s the view that it’s actually the tactic that makes up for rubbish players etc. Then there’s the 3rd view which imo is correct, any good manager will try and mix both the above up. He will get players in to play in certain areas. Any player can play a position the thing you need to do is tweak it so you get the best out of the certain players when you play a certain formation.

You need to find a tactic that suite your players and the way you want to play.
It may take a month or so to get into the stride of things .So the formation you play should represent how you want the lads to play whether it be all out attack and don’t care if you concede 3 because you’ll score 4.Or do you want to score 1 then shut up shop etc.

It’s entirely up to you have a good hard think about how you going to play. If you don’t have many skill full plays you may want to pack the midfield this sometimes makes up for the lack of skill as your players will make it hard to keep the ball

retired_elpata

Thank you.

I know some of the things in here you may have read elsewhere already. But seeing as I'm trying to be as detailed as I can in 1 single thread to give you an insight into how I play, I still think its a good idea to post it here again too. As it will make more sense when reading it then.

We've touched upon a lot already and a lot of things I cannot add to or go into detail about as I am waiting for the game. However is there any particular points that I have already covered that may not be clear or you need them expanding on? Or maybe theres something you think I have missed.

retired_mintyfresh353

Yeah I recognized some things from another thread or so. But the posts are very clear and makes me think more about my tactics. In FM 08 I will be working on my tactics much more then before.

Keep up the good work.

retired_kateois

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. </BLOCKQUOTE>

so how could i possibly play possession football on away match \ playing against a stronger opposition ? i dont think its going to be wise adapting my team playing both possession at home and counter-attack high tempo football on away.
any solution?

about the passing, lets say a player is a very good passer of the ball - how would you instruct him to pass the ball? ( defender, midfielder and forward - each and his case )

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. </BLOCKQUOTE>

so how could i possibly play possession football on away match \ playing against a stronger opposition ? i dont think its going to be wise adapting my team playing both possession at home and counter-attack high tempo football on away.
any solution?

about the passing, lets say a player is a very good passer of the ball - how would you instruct him to pass the ball? ( defender, midfielder and forward - each and his case ) </BLOCKQUOTE>

It's hard to sya as I know nothing about your tactic and instructions you are using. You'd be better off creating a seperate thread for your questions and be as detailed as possible with the instrructions and settings you currently use. That way someone can offer better advice as they have a better understand of how you set up

retired_kateois

already done that, ill be glad if you and rest of the people roaming around this thread take a look:
http://community.sigames.com/eve/for...7/m/5212059843