retired_elpata

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_josephine

Being a noob I'm guilty of not paying close enough attention to moral when selecting my 11 or planning ahead with a player at the Yellow limit. Other than that I try to follow these guidelines before my matches.

Now I'll add a moral check for sure to my pre-match checklist.

retired_pamela11

I on some occasion even have been guilty of playing players with low moral. Cos lets face it I have played session where I've been getting hammered like 3/4 games in a row and all the teams moral is down. In a situation like that its just a case of hope for the best & try hard to make sure you give the right team talks or pre-match banter.

retired_nsample

Some players whose morale is poor will react positively to a pre-match message of " I have faith in your ability " or "you can make the difference today", particularly the younger ones

I agree that players with constantly poor morale are best left out- perhaps the wildly swinging morale issue will be tweaked in the patch.

All other points are good and worth making.

retired_kellyk

One other thing you may want to consider is the color of the arrows. Sometimes a player has tonnes of red arrows, i tend to leave them off the starting lineup....there could be various reasons:

Not training well
Just came back from injury
Poor morale....

They are all usually bad reasons to play the chap, I rather have someone else, if I have a choice that is.

Another thing I do as part of match prep.. and Cleon probably knows more about me than most others, is that I tend to study the opposition a lot...I may change my targetman if I am playing one to the left or right if I find that the DC is very good.

Furthermore, if a fullback has low off the ball, then I will stick a winger there who has great off the ball and pace..this will almost guarantee me 1 or 2 things...I get crosses or freekicks or better still I get the AI player sent off, chances are he will bring my player down...i know its dirty but heck it happens irl.

Tactical substitutions...I believe players are more important than tactics..why? I can vary my tactic without having to make tweaks..for example if I have a 433...and my ML and MR and more winger by orientation...and more attacking, then if I am playing a match against a weak oppostion, I may field them, but if I need to shut the door, I will have a D/WB or a DMC on standby to substitute them.

My subs bench is based on the ability to change the style of play wiithout having to make major changes to my tactic. That's not to say I don't timewaste...just that I consider TW a last resort.


Prepare well for a match and you won't regret

retired_josephine

Thanks for the continuing advice rashidi1. I've never checked the opposition much and never more than to see who might be easiest to tackle or might crumble under a hard close down. Now I can see that my target man might need to be shifted at times or swap in some different pieces/tactics to counter their players. Much to learn!

retired_kellyk

it

retired_sharonverm

I study the opposition before a game too. I'll switch my fastest centre back to match up with the fastest striker for example.

As for your comments, Rashidi, about the full back with low off the ball, I have no idea what you are talking about. I don't see how a FB having low off the ball has anything to do with you getting free kicks or more crosses. Off the ball is an attacking stat and is a player's 'movement'. For example, Dietmar Hamann should be low because he just sits in the middle, and Michael Owen should be high because he's moving all over the place. Maybe you were referring to positioning or something? I don't know, but I know that what you said really doesn't make too much sense.

retired_elpata

No he means low off the ball. Off the ball is not an attacking stat at all, its both defensive and attacking. If a player as low off the ball and Rashidi puts a fast striker on him with good off the ball 2 things will happen. 1 he will beat the man more often than not and be able to create crosses. 2 he gets the space because of the oppositions poor off the ball, then if he tracks him back and attempts a tackle, he is more inclined to give freekicks away, cos of tackling from behind.

If someone has low off the ball, it means they will not be in the right place. It also means a player wander a lot of strays.

retired_prashantsoni

i pay attention to all them factors and i must say it works, but a player at the yellow card limit i just play anyway, because its good to get the ban out of the way to get him ready for a big fixture pile up, or a big fixture in general