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From the screenshot, you can see that the tactic is an Attacking 4-4-2, employing 3 banks of players: a bank of 4 defenders, a bank of 4 midfielders and a bank of 2 strikers.
Style of Play
The tactic itself is a patient, attractive attacking style. Accompanying this style are deep attacking runs from wingers, a holding midfielder (right central midfielder), an attacking midfielder to link up with and support the strikers (left central midfielder), and also a striker with superior aerial ability (left striker), which would ideally be a target man if you choose to employ one.
With the right players in your squad, you should expect to play a possession game that will patiently build-up attacking moves through all avenues, be it through the centre, down the flanks, or disecting crossfield balls. Another feature is that both strikers are encouraged to cross the ball should they receive possession out wide.
Due to differing mentalities in midfield, you should expect your attacking midfielder (left of the two central ones) to move forward into attacking positions more frequently, whereas your defensive, holding midfielder (right of the two central ones) will hang back in midfield more frequently; these examples should be reflected by the 2D match engine. This is advantageous to the passing style and tempo because the holding player can link up the defense and midfield, and likewise the attacking midfielder can link up the midfield and the strikers.
The tactic is one which focuses on closing opponents down when not in possession of the ball. Most players are encouraged to close opponents down; the exceptions to the team mentality for closing down are the goalkeeper, both wingers and both strikers.
Although by default a target man and a playmaker are not assigned to this tactic, you can easily take advantage of either one or both of these features due to the nature of the attacking style that is employed.
For reference purposes, this tactic has seen me take Blyth Spartans from the English Conference North upto the English Premiership over the seasons. The tactic has been tweaked repeatedly as I've progressed through the game, and it currently reflects the team's Premiership status.
Team Instructions
As already highlighted, this is an attacking tactic, so some bias has been given to attacking play. However, exceptions have been made by playing position, this is illudtrated in greater depth below.
The tempo is slow in order to compliment the short passing game. As a result, you should expect the number of attempted passes and also pass completion to be fairly high.
Width is also encouraged with this tactic, due to the nature of the attacking runs made by the wingers. The extra space created should result in competent wingers running with the ball, getting into space, before attempting crosses from the byline, if not deeper if they see an opportunity or are forced to cross early. Fulbacks are also encouraged to cross from the byline, and both types are encouraged (by default) to cross the ball into the centre of the box.
The defensive line has been made slightly deeper than standard to accomodate for potential counter-attacks. Be wary when playing against counter-attacking sides that will look to hit you on the break at any given opportunity. Pacy centre halves may work in your favour in this situation.
Marking is set to man marking by default, but as with other elements of the tactic, this does not to apply to every playing position. Zonal marking is encouraged in positions where man marking is unsuitable; refer to the individual instructions below for more details.
Individual Instructions
Pictures tell a thousand words, so here's an illustration for each playing position:-
Goalkeeper
Right Full Back
Left Full Back
Right Centre Half
Left Centre Half
Right Winger
Left Winger
Right Defensive Midfielder
Left Attacking Midfielder
Right Striker
Left Striker
Home / Away Utilisation
This tactic is definitely recommended for home fixtures. It can also be employed away from home with equal efficiency, but it boils down to the strength of the opposition and the style of their football.
Tweaks
Tweaks can be made to the existing tactical setup if you require, here are a few examples:-
<UL TYPE=SQUARE><LI>Consider switching to a normal or even defensive style if playing away from home against stronger opposition.
<LI>Through my own experience, the tactic itself tends to play a natural counter-attacking game, IE your team may counter-attack your opponents even though you don't have the option selected in team instructions.
<LI>If you're holding onto a slight lead late on in a match, make sure you employ time-wasting tactics. You will frequently see your wingers running to the corner flag to run the clock down.
<LI>Increase creative freedom only if you are in complete control of the game or are playing against significantly weaker opposition, and let the showboaters do their stuff.
<LI>Increase formation width when your opponents lose a player to a red card or injury (without any remaining subs). This will allow you to pick holes more frequently as they play will be stretched. Likewise, decrease width back to at least normal if you lose a player. You can also slightly increase creative freedom if you have superior numbers on the field.
<LI>Tweak the cross aim to man if your wingers, fullbacks and possbily strikers attributes are good enough.
<LI>Modify the default set piece instructions dependent upon on your team's capabilities from set pieces, but the defaults are effective.</UL>
Player Attributes
For the tactic to work correctly, you will require the right type of players in your team. Here are examples:-
<UL TYPE=SQUARE><LI>Significant mental attributes. The tactic requires players which can read the game well and can create opportunities for teammates, so the more creative and technical the better. The team's level of understanding is also important here.
<LI>A holding defensive midfielder. A tenacious midfielder instantly comes to mind for this position as they will need to protect the back four, but also be on hand to receive passes from across the pitch and link up the play accordingly.
<LI>A creative attacking midfielder. An intelligent, technical player that can create opportunities for those both in front of him and also out on the wings. Playing through balls to perfection to strikers, reaching your target man either on the deck or in the air (to encourage flick-ons), or picking out a wingers run are all examples of what is involved.
<LI>A striker with significant aerial ability. This striker (left of the two) should be able to bring others into play with flick-on headers, knockdowns, or alternatively create opportunities for himself. This player would be your targetman if you employ one, but note that if you choose a target man and do not select the use target man option, the tactic should look to use the selected player as a targetman whenever possible.
<LI>Regarding physical abilities, your wingers should ideally be fast and skilful enough to cause opposition fullbacks trouble, but the more the capable they are of delivering a killer ball the better. Stamina is also key for multiple playing positions, as well as the overall intensity of the tactic's closing down and marking requirements.</UL>
Track Record
This tactic has been used almost exclusively with Blyth Spartans for 14 complete seasons. The team start in the English Conference North in season 2006/2007 and I've recently won promotion to the Premiership at the end of season 2019/2020. Note that I'm currently using version 7.0.1 of the FM build.
The tactic has been tweaked extensively as the team has progressed up the leagues due to the increase in quality of each respective league. For example, the tactic started off as an exclusive direct style due to lower league football factors.
07-30-2007, 11:29 PM
Seasoned Alcoholic's Attacking 4-4-2 Tactic Post #2
I haven't tried that tbh. Have always used hold up the ball with strikers so that they can bring their strike partners into play, but I s'pose its best suited to the target man rather than both strikers.
Seasoned Alcoholic's Attacking 4-4-2 Tactic 
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