FMM17 tactics guide for newbies with updated player role descriptions and primary/secondary attributes.
Your Formation:
Analyse your squad - It can sometimes be a little tricky to get the most out of your squad but the best way to go about it is to find a suitable formation for the players you're working with rather than forcing your players to play in a specific formation that you're comfortable with or that has worked for you in the past. That's risky if you don't know the squad well enough. What works for one team may not work for another, so before deciding upon a tactic you should look at how many players are capable of playing in each position. It's also important to bear in mind that we need not only a starting eleven but also a handful of good substitutes to provide necessary cover. Otherwise your tactic will soon fall apart when injuries, suspensions or loss of form occurs. If you have a squad for example with 4 players capable of playing up front as a striker then going with a formation with 3 strikers is very risky since it leaves you with insufficient substitutes. Squad depth is one of the most underestimated aspects in the game for newbie managers so make sure when analysing to look for your best squad and not just your best eleven.
Adding/Removing players - If you're working with a very large squad it's imminent that not everyone is good enough to stay on at the club. The age and ability of a player needs to be taken into consideration when judging whether players are or aren't up to the club's standards. Also, take a look at their attributes and see if they fit the roles they need to be covering on the pitch. If they aren't good enough then you should consider selling them but if they're still at a young age and have potential to grow then sending them out on loan is best for their development if these players aren't guaranteed playing time during the season. If you have a good transfer budget to buy reinforcements I suggest knowing your squad well and building a formation first before delving into the market to strengthen your team. You would be off to a bad start if you ended up buying players you don't really need. Only enter the market when you know what type of player you're going to need to strengthen a specific position in the team.
Your Tactics:
Balance is key - A too attacking team will concede a lot of goals while a team too defensive will be struggling to create opportunities, so it's absolutely crucial to get the balance right. Successful teams have the perfect mix of attack and defence as even a tiny shift in the balance on either end of the pitch may affect your players' performance and the entire outcome of the game as a result. The safest way to go about it when starting a tactic is to maintain a 5 attacking and 5 defending outfielders balance. The attacking players also includes players whose job it is to attack and defend, such as Box To Box Midfielders. When going forward their job will be to attack and you therefore can't rely on them to always be back in time to defend and vice versa. There must always be a mixture of 5 defensive players on the pitch as well. However, this doesn't mean 5 players in the back line but instead 5 players who are defensive-minded or are assigned defensive roles, such as Defensive Wingers. For balance you also need to consider the space between each player as massive gaps between attack and defence will undoubtedly lead to problems with getting the ball forward and create scoring opportunies for your forwards.
Width creates space - Like balance, too little width will lead to very little to no space for your players in the attack. Too much width leads to major gaps in the middle, which leaves the opponent with oceans of time and space to create goal-scoring opportunities. So it's equally important to bring the right dosis of width into your tactical setup, without giving away too much space to the opponent. It's therefore recommended to have no more than 2 players playing on either side of the pitch. Having players play wide, such as Wing Backs or Wingers, helps to spread the play and utilise the whole pitch. In the attack, this creates more space for the players playing in a more central position who in turn can exploit the gaps in the opposition's defence. On the defensive side, Full Backs, help counter the opposition by effectively man marking opponent Wingers and stop their crosses from reaching the box or the threats from their Inside Forwards.
Do's & Dont's:
For example, a striker's role is closely linked with the midfielders behind him. Wide men affect the responsibilities of full backs and central midfield pairings have a massive responsibility in the team, depending on your formation, so it's vital we know and understand the interpretation of these roles and how well and effective these work together, or how badly some of the roles turn out to be in close proximity.
Goalkeepers - Sweeper Keepers basically do a Sweepers job so pairing them up with sweepers is a bad idea as they would walk in each other's way. Sweepers are better suited having a regular Goalkeeper behind them.
Defenders - From all the possible pairings in your defensive line there's two that you may want to avoid. Ball Playing Defenders play through balls so the increased creativity demands possession at the back in the form of a Central Defender. Pairing a Ball Playing Defender with a Limited Defender who yanks the ball forward at every opportunity is therefore not recommended. Same goes for two Ball Playing Defenders who, paired up, play with too much creativity and sharply increases the risk of losing possession due to the many risky passes.
Midfielders - Your central midfield has to provide defensive cover, link play and forward runs, so you need to pick roles to cover all of these. A 2-man midfield will often be outnumbered in football so it's crucial to offer protection to your defence first in the form of a Central Midfielder or Deep Lying Playmaker. Having a Ball Winning Midfielder as one of the two is very risky as he does not hold position, due to that tendancy to go searching to win the ball, and this can significantly expose your team. 3-man midfields are in the majority of cases built around triangular set ups, with 1 player at the base protecting the defence, or at the head, spearheading the attack. A flat midfield trio reduces passing options considerably, the only real benefit is making your midfield harder to play through, so a triangular shape is generally more effective.
Wide men - Plan first how many wide players you are using before you decide on their roles. Having lone wide players automatically reduces the contribution on either end as he is expected to get all the way down the flanks, as well as defend. Playing 2 wide players offers more room for specialism, with players able to be selected on being individually good defensively, or offensively, without having the be particularly proficient in the other. Wing Backs and Wingers will in most cases walk in each other's way as they are instructed to cover the same space so it's much more effective to go with Full Backs, who defend, and Wingers, who attack. Or Wing Backs, who overlap Inside Forwards that cut inside when moving towards the box.
Forwards - It's recommended to base your attacking chances around multiple routes of attack. This is needed to prevent the opposition defenders succeeding at their main job, nullifying your attack. Covering the flanks with Wide Men is one. The other is right through the middle. There are those who mainly focus on creating and those whose main focus lies on scoring. One depends largely on the other. Creators: Defensive Forwards, Deep Lying Forwards, Advanced Playmakers, Trequartistas and Wingers. Scorers: Advanced Forwards and Poachers. It obviously doesn't mean that creators don't score and scorers don't create but when pairing them up these combinations tend to be more effective. The other forwards, Inside Forwards, Complete Forwards and Target Men, do a lot of both -creating and scoring- and due to their strength and aerial Target Men in particular benefit from having Wingers on the flanks who provide them with crosses.
Player Roles - Description:
Goalkeepers
Defenders
Midfielders
Forwards
Player Roles - Attributes:
Primary Attributes - attributes needed to successfully perform a specific player role.
Secondary Attributes - attributes needed to distinguish good from great players for a specific player role.
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Tactics Guide For Newbies
FMM17 tactics guide for newbies with updated player role descriptions and primary/secondary attributes.
Your Formation:
Analyse your squad - It can sometimes be a little tricky to get the most out of your squad but the best way to go about it is to find a suitable formation for the players you're working with rather than forcing your players to play in a specific formation that you're comfortable with or that has worked for you in the past. That's risky if you don't know the squad well enough. What works for one team may not work for another, so before deciding upon a tactic you should look at how many players are capable of playing in each position. It's also important to bear in mind that we need not only a starting eleven but also a handful of good substitutes to provide necessary cover. Otherwise your tactic will soon fall apart when injuries, suspensions or loss of form occurs. If you have a squad for example with 4 players capable of playing up front as a striker then going with a formation with 3 strikers is very risky since it leaves you with insufficient substitutes. Squad depth is one of the most underestimated aspects in the game for newbie managers so make sure when analysing to look for your best squad and not just your best eleven.
Adding/Removing players - If you're working with a very large squad it's imminent that not everyone is good enough to stay on at the club. The age and ability of a player needs to be taken into consideration when judging whether players are or aren't up to the club's standards. Also, take a look at their attributes and see if they fit the roles they need to be covering on the pitch. If they aren't good enough then you should consider selling them but if they're still at a young age and have potential to grow then sending them out on loan is best for their development if these players aren't guaranteed playing time during the season. If you have a good transfer budget to buy reinforcements I suggest knowing your squad well and building a formation first before delving into the market to strengthen your team. You would be off to a bad start if you ended up buying players you don't really need. Only enter the market when you know what type of player you're going to need to strengthen a specific position in the team.
Your Tactics:
Balance is key - A too attacking team will concede a lot of goals while a team too defensive will be struggling to create opportunities, so it's absolutely crucial to get the balance right. Successful teams have the perfect mix of attack and defence as even a tiny shift in the balance on either end of the pitch may affect your players' performance and the entire outcome of the game as a result. The safest way to go about it when starting a tactic is to maintain a 5 attacking and 5 defending outfielders balance. The attacking players also includes players whose job it is to attack and defend, such as Box To Box Midfielders. When going forward their job will be to attack and you therefore can't rely on them to always be back in time to defend and vice versa. There must always be a mixture of 5 defensive players on the pitch as well. However, this doesn't mean 5 players in the back line but instead 5 players who are defensive-minded or are assigned defensive roles, such as Defensive Wingers. For balance you also need to consider the space between each player as massive gaps between attack and defence will undoubtedly lead to problems with getting the ball forward and create scoring opportunies for your forwards.
Width creates space - Like balance, too little width will lead to very little to no space for your players in the attack. Too much width leads to major gaps in the middle, which leaves the opponent with oceans of time and space to create goal-scoring opportunities. So it's equally important to bring the right dosis of width into your tactical setup, without giving away too much space to the opponent. It's therefore recommended to have no more than 2 players playing on either side of the pitch. Having players play wide, such as Wing Backs or Wingers, helps to spread the play and utilise the whole pitch. In the attack, this creates more space for the players playing in a more central position who in turn can exploit the gaps in the opposition's defence. On the defensive side, Full Backs, help counter the opposition by effectively man marking opponent Wingers and stop their crosses from reaching the box or the threats from their Inside Forwards.
Do's & Dont's:
For example, a striker's role is closely linked with the midfielders behind him. Wide men affect the responsibilities of full backs and central midfield pairings have a massive responsibility in the team, depending on your formation, so it's vital we know and understand the interpretation of these roles and how well and effective these work together, or how badly some of the roles turn out to be in close proximity.
Goalkeepers - Sweeper Keepers basically do a Sweepers job so pairing them up with sweepers is a bad idea as they would walk in each other's way. Sweepers are better suited having a regular Goalkeeper behind them.
Defenders - From all the possible pairings in your defensive line there's two that you may want to avoid. Ball Playing Defenders play through balls so the increased creativity demands possession at the back in the form of a Central Defender. Pairing a Ball Playing Defender with a Limited Defender who yanks the ball forward at every opportunity is therefore not recommended. Same goes for two Ball Playing Defenders who, paired up, play with too much creativity and sharply increases the risk of losing possession due to the many risky passes.
Midfielders - Your central midfield has to provide defensive cover, link play and forward runs, so you need to pick roles to cover all of these. A 2-man midfield will often be outnumbered in football so it's crucial to offer protection to your defence first in the form of a Central Midfielder or Deep Lying Playmaker. Having a Ball Winning Midfielder as one of the two is very risky as he does not hold position, due to that tendancy to go searching to win the ball, and this can significantly expose your team. 3-man midfields are in the majority of cases built around triangular set ups, with 1 player at the base protecting the defence, or at the head, spearheading the attack. A flat midfield trio reduces passing options considerably, the only real benefit is making your midfield harder to play through, so a triangular shape is generally more effective.
Wide men - Plan first how many wide players you are using before you decide on their roles. Having lone wide players automatically reduces the contribution on either end as he is expected to get all the way down the flanks, as well as defend. Playing 2 wide players offers more room for specialism, with players able to be selected on being individually good defensively, or offensively, without having the be particularly proficient in the other. Wing Backs and Wingers will in most cases walk in each other's way as they are instructed to cover the same space so it's much more effective to go with Full Backs, who defend, and Wingers, who attack. Or Wing Backs, who overlap Inside Forwards that cut inside when moving towards the box.
Forwards - It's recommended to base your attacking chances around multiple routes of attack. This is needed to prevent the opposition defenders succeeding at their main job, nullifying your attack. Covering the flanks with Wide Men is one. The other is right through the middle. There are those who mainly focus on creating and those whose main focus lies on scoring. One depends largely on the other. Creators: Defensive Forwards, Deep Lying Forwards, Advanced Playmakers, Trequartistas and Wingers. Scorers: Advanced Forwards and Poachers. It obviously doesn't mean that creators don't score and scorers don't create but when pairing them up these combinations tend to be more effective. The other forwards, Inside Forwards, Complete Forwards and Target Men, do a lot of both -creating and scoring- and due to their strength and aerial Target Men in particular benefit from having Wingers on the flanks who provide them with crosses.
Player Roles - Description:
Goalkeepers
Defenders
Midfielders
Forwards
Player Roles - Attributes:
Goalkeepers
Defenders
Midfielders
Forwards
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