Make Your Tactics Team Specific

Something I think a lot of people are struggling with this year is team specific tactics.

Judging by a few of the topics appearing about the game being hard, players being rubbish, losing a lot of games etc implies to me that people are used to doing the same thing (i.e. a tactic or even training) and getting repeated success.

This year more than ever I think the players idividual role comes into play and it's lead to my Newcastle side ending up with the most random formation I've ever used:

- - - - - - - - - - - - - Cisse
- - - - - - - Nem - - - - - - - - - - - HBA
Jonas - - - - - - - -Cabaye
- - - - - - -Tiote
Santon - Colo - - -Taylor - - - Perch
- - - - - - -- - - Krul

As woeful as that attempt at a diagram is (at work so no screenshot available) you can see what I think in the default tactics is called an assymetrical 433, due to how the midfield/forwards are offset. Each player is set to their best position with their favoured role (i.e. ball winning midfielder for Tiote or Advanced Playmaker for Wellington Nem) and it seems to be clicking pretty well, as of January 1st we sit 3rd having only lost 3 games in 20.

The point of the topic really is to se ehow others are dealing with tactics? Have you ended up with any strange ones? Or contrary to my points are you finding something that works regularly?

For those struggling with the same formation all of the time I suggest you give this a shot

I've not looked to simply playing players in their actual favoured roles/positions, so may be something i have a look at.

You're Arsenal right? So how have you gone about setting them up?

I run a 1-4-5-0 simply because strikers contribute little. I feel this is somewhat realistic, but is spoiled due to most chances on target being saved unrealistically. The defence exists to stop the forward from getting these chances, because the keeper is at a disadvantage in a 1 on 1 situation. My tactic gives me goals and concedes few, but it's hardly realistic, so I'm not that keen on it.

I think my tactics really are based on what the engine lets my team do. I've tried 442, 4132, 4141, 4231, 541, 451, and 352 formations and variations thereof, but really any one of them are only successful situationally.

I've used a few weird ones with Newcastle in a few different saves. But I tend to do better with a front two and two defensive mids, I may need to make a 4222 formation to see how it settles.

Nice article.

woww great...
i'm using new castle too, now in December 1st season i'm in 14th
i tried to use different tactic from 442, 433, 424,353,343 still no luck.
even if i played with bottom team, i still lose, i was win 2-0 but in the end they can made it draw.
this year FM really made me how to become REAL MANAGER.
hahaha

Having struggled with FM for the 1st time in years I was intrigued when I read this thread. So, after bumbling around with 4-4-2 & 4-5-1/4-3-3s with varying degrees of no success I went back to the drawing board. Taking on board the OPs comments about asymmetrical formations I started with the standard asymmetrical system and built it around my team (Leeds). I've had to tweak it along the way and adjust little aspects depending on who I'm playing & what players I have available but I am now getting results and am in contention at the right end of the table.

I have been using 4-4-1-1 and 4-4-2 with Tottenham, with each player playing in their best individual role.

Signed Jack Butland, Jack Robinson, Nathan Redmond and Wilfried Zaha.

Just finished the first season as Premier League runners up, FA Cup semi-finalists, League Cup semi-finalists and Europa League semi-finalists.

Style - Fluid
Strategy - Attacking
Passing - Shorter
Creative Freedom - More Disciplined
Closing Down - Press More
Tackling - More Aggressive
Marking - Man Marking
Crossing - Default
Roaming - Stick To Position

I tried playing my players in their prefered positions and it work well for something like 3 matches and then i started getting beat again, i ended up changing to a 4-2-1-3, its basically the default 4-3-3 but i pushed one of the midfielders into the space behind the strikers.

I'm use the strikers as a TM or CF with an AF either side and then have BBM and DLP with an AP behind the front 3 and then my tactics are tempo full, narrow play, through the middle, direct passing drill crosses and then set the play to overload.