Bofem

My cds are racing forwards to close down even though i have set closing down to 2 and tackling to easy...this is leaving lots of space for the second striker to exploit and more often than not, i concede ...please help

Fitz

Have you ticked tight marking for the CB players. This will cause them to stay tight to the opposition player even if you don't want them to close down?

retired_adriana6

sounds like you probably have too much of a gap between your defense and your midfield.

Are you using a DCM, what sort of defensive line setting are you using?

Bofem

no, i am not using a dm, i am using a 442 formation, but no matter what formation i use, i suffer from the same problem, except of course with man utd :p

and i am using zonal marking...even then i should tick the tight marking option?

retired_adriana6

That's kind of what I was getting at, personally I find that a DCM is a very good idea, otherwise particularly in a 4-4-2 you need to make sure there is not too big a gap between your back 4 and the midfielders.

Have a look on the highlights and see if there is a big gap when the opposition begin their attacks, if you don't want to use a DCM, barrowing one of the CM's should help, as will looking at the individual mentalities of your players.

retired_gwenlyn

I've just answered something similar on another thread. It is caused by a mixture of your mentality and defensive line. If however you want to be more specific and post more of your tactics, maybe we can help further.