I am often guilty of taking out the attacking midfielder in FM because they appear to be unproductive when you look at the stat line. Starting at the front, the attacking midfielder returned in the shape of an advanced playmaker. The two wide players were not supporting the forward enough either, leaving Toney isolated.Ī big departure in many ways from the original system. They did, but the regista was unnecessary and I wanted the attacking midfielder back in the system. The first dip into the game was essentially taking my FM19 system and applying it to Brentford to see if the basic ideas still worked in the game. The first week of FM21 was spent experimenting and working out how best to combine these ideas. This four also enabled counter pressing with the midfield two providing natural cover. This also tied in with Jose’s Real Madrid who used a 4-2-3-1, the front four staying relatively high to start counter attacks. On my FM19 saves I had really enjoyed using a 4-2-3-1. Pressing would have to be a part of the playing style. The team should have a higher proportion of possession than the opposition, but not because they are careful with the ball, but because they are excellent at regaining possession. Establish position in the opposition half and play from there. My preference has always been for teams to attack at speed and watching Real hammered this home. That particular side was characterised by extremely rapid attacking, lethal counter attacks and being a threat from crosses/set pieces. The highest scoring league tally belongs to Jose Mourinho’s 2011-12 Real Madrid with 121 strikes.

I should also note that for a future project I have been researching the highest scoring teams in the last 25 years. As long as you are not leaving huge gaps as your team improves and your players improve the opposition back off, attacking you less. Defensively most of the time FM sorts itself out. My most enjoyable saves have always involved getting forwards scoring bundles of goals. Nothing was keeping me interested any more.Īfter getting used to a few changes to the interface I spent a lot of time experimenting with tactics. Then came the point where I had done everything I wanted. I had grown very familiar with FM19 and the additional time meant that I was able to apply hexagonal theories and create a different style of play that I became very pleased with. Every 3 years I purchase the new FM game.

Best football manager 2021 tactics