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What is counter attacking football?[
A counterattacking is a footballing tactic used by a defensive team when under attack by an aggressive opponent. Whilst trying to breach a team’s defense the attacking team may become vulnerable by placing themselves in unfavorable conditions by such as playing a higher defensive line and being spread wider across the pitch. At the right moment the defending team will quickly move the ball forward and attempt to break through the center to gain the initiative. However if the wrong moment is chosen or the counter attack is poorly timed the results could be disastrous for the defending side who are no longer protected by their defensive posture.
When should I use counter attacking football?
You should use counterattacking football when facing a much better opponent or against an aggressive opponent, usually when you have taken the lead and there is a significant amount of time left on the clock.
When should I avoid counterattacking football?
Avoid counterattacking football against defensive opposition or when chasing the game. Don’t use it against an evenly match opponent unless they are pushing forward.
How do I prevent my team being caught on the break?
Better teams can avoid being caught on the break by not playing too wide or aggressively. If you consider yourself the better team you have a whole 90 mins to let this tell. Trying to overload a defensive team to early on may result in you either being hit on the break or tiring your players quicker making them less effective late on. Weaker teams should not be playing aggressively against a stronger opponent until the latter stages of the game when they need to get a goal.
What players do I need to be effective at counter-attacking football?
You will need defensively sound players with good Positioning, Marking, Concentration and Teamwork being what I consider the most important. You will also need at least one fast striker with high ratings in Dribbling, Finishing, Anticipation and Composure. An ideal PPM for this player would be Tries to Beat the Offside Trap.
How do I implement this in FM2007?
This is the basic tactical setup for counter attacking. It may need to be tweaked to suit personal preferences, playing styles and players. However this is the core of a sound counter attacking tactic using a 4-4-2 formation.
Team Settings
Mentality = 4 (Defensive)
Freedom = 4 (Little)
Passing = 12 (Direct)
Tempo = 16 (Quick)
Width = 4 (Narrow)
Tackling = Normal
Line = 4 (Deep)
Pressing = 10 (Normal)
Time wasting 12 (Normal)
Focus = Through Middle
Supply = Run Onto Ball
Marking = Man
Trap = No
Target Man = Yes
Playmaker = No
Counter Attacking = Yes
Individual Settings
Pos Men Press Free RwB TTB FwR LS CBall CFrom CAim Mark
GK T T T M M M M M Mix Mix M
DR T 6 T O O R M O Deep Man M
DL T 6 T O O R M O Deep Man M
DC T 4 T M O M M M Mix Mix M
DC T 4 T M O M M M Mix Mix M
MR T T T O O M M O Mix Mix M
ML T T T O O M M O Mix Mix M
MC T T T O O R M M Mix Mix M
MC T T T O O M M M Mix Mix M
FC T T T O O M M M Mix Mix M
FC 18 6 10 O M M M M Mix Mix Z
Tactical Notes
I want the team to keep it tight and deep, the opponent will only have one option and that is to go wider and try to overload the defence.
One of my FC’s is the target man, he will use his acceleration to beat the offside trap and use the space available through the middle to go one on one with the opposing keeper hopefully scoring.
Notice everyone is set to run with the ball often except the DC’s and GK. This is because the opposition will be trying to close you down, you will draw a lot of fouls this way. Also your player will be able to maneuver into a position to try the through ball and creating more space as the opposing midfield rush toward them.
This example is using a 4-4-2 to demonstarte counter attacking, although you may find that a 4-5-1 or 4-1-4-1 formation more suitable if you are out classed as this reduces the space through the middle even more.
Conclusions
Counter attacking football can be a huge leveler when employed at the right times. Using it in the right situation could bag you an unlikely victory against fancied opposition. Get it wrong however and you could pay dearly.
This is classic counter attacking, however it is possiblee to build more general tactics that involve counter attacking. But that is your decision, you are the manager after all.
I hope you have found this guide on counter-attacking useful, either to implement your own counter attacking tactic or to understand why you are being punished on the break.
Good Luck
Leroy
06-19-2007, 07:04 PM
Leroy's Tactical Ambush - Counter Attacking Guide Post #2
<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Pos Men Press Free RwB TTB FwR LS CBall CFrom CAim MarkGK T T T M M M M M Mix Mix MDR T 6 T O O R M O Deep Man MDL T 6 T O O R M O Deep Man MDC T 4 T M O M M M Mix Mix MDC T 4 T M O M M M Mix Mix MMR T T T O O M M O Mix Mix MML T T T O O M M O Mix Mix MMC T T T O O R M M Mix Mix MMC T T T O O M M M Mix Mix MFC T T T O O M M M Mix Mix MFC 18 6 10 O M M M M Mix Mix Z</pre>
06-20-2007, 09:46 AM
Leroy's Tactical Ambush - Counter Attacking Guide Post #3
i'd also recommend the striker have good off-the-ball too. (hell i'd recommend ANY striker be good off the ball).
in my experience if you have a vastly superior team sometimes it's worth risking (and often, conceding) the odd early goal on a counter if you're confident you'll overwhelm them.
06-20-2007, 10:57 AM
Leroy's Tactical Ambush - Counter Attacking Guide Post #4
Good work, thanks for taking the time to do this sort of thing. I have a minor question: when you give the slider settings (above) are you taking the starting point (on the extreme left) az zero or as one? The only reason I ask is that on your 'counter-attacking' formation above you suggest passing style of 12. If you take the extreme left hand position as being 1, this would then only put the passing style at the very top of mixed, when I assume you meant this to mean the very bottom of 'direct' passing. In that case, do you take the extreme left position as being zero?
I know it's only a minor point, and don't mean it at all to come across as knit-picking. The only reason I ask is that I want to give your tactical suggestions are real good go and so wanted to do it exactly as you suggest.
Cheers.
07-22-2007, 05:05 PM
Leroy's Tactical Ambush - Counter Attacking Guide Post #10
Further apologies for the double post. I've just re-counted and even if you took the extreme left position to be zero, 12 clicks put's the slider on the first notch of direct anyway, so I must have just not clicked properly...either that or I'm losing the plot! lol.
But the point about getting it exactly as you suggest still stands, so if for some reason you don't count the extreme left position as being one, then could you just clear this up? Cheers.
Leroy's Tactical Ambush - Counter Attacking Guide 
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