retired_roselernihan

So I took Southampton into the premiership, and finished a respectable 13th place in my first season in the top flight. Improved the squad over the summer with some good signings, but now my team are struggling.

10 games played, I've won 3 (all at home) drawn 1, and lost 6, putting me in the relegation zone on goal difference.

Goal difference is a problem because all the games I've lost have been by an average of 3 goals, and these have been against mediocre teams like blackburn and middlesbrough.

My defence looks especially vulnerable to fast breakaways, which is strange considering I usually play with a 'deep' defensive line. Also my defenders don't seem to have ever heard of the concept of marking, which is also strange considering they have good marking stats and are set to man mark the strikers.

Any ideas on how I can stop this? Would be extremely grateful! And how can a much improved team, playing with pretty much the same tactics, be so much worse??

retired_roselernihan

Also! My pass completion is extremely low, whether I play short or direct, it's always under 60% and quite often nearer to 50%, which obviously is not acceptable.

Any suggestions to sort this out would also be greatly appreciated!

retired_redhotxpress

never let your DCs mark individual players, only give them general man marking instructions. Turn tight marking off. Maybe use the opposition instructions to eliminate either the playmaker/crosser or the strikers, depending on their stats.