Playing Against Perceived Lack of Width

[Jonny2J]

Hello,

Not sure if I'm the only one here but whenever I play against teams that play something like a 3-4-3, 3-5-2, 4-3-1-2 etc. I always seem to struggle.

I often automatically assume that right well there's some opportunities to be had here to control some space due to the lack of numbers in the wide positions, so I'd try and get my team to play wider, exploit the flanks yet I always seem to struggle against these formations.

I've done a lot of reading around theories regarding FM from the likes of your Cleon, rashidi, Lines & Diamonds/Pairs and Combinations.

Is it just me that defaults to trying to exploit flanks etc. or is this the same for others too?

[Marsupian]

I like to just start with my normal tactic and watch the first 10-15mins to see whether I should make changes or not. Before the match I look at how attacking their wide players are (usually you can see it from their formation and the players themselves) and have a good look at where they are probably going to be dangerous or weak. I use that information to decide my starting lineup (playing more attacking players where they are more likely to find space and playing more defensive players where they are likely going to pose the most danger.

One thing you have to watch out for is that when a they play a very attacking wingback on a flank where the strikers and an creative midfielder roam into the channel they can still be very dangerous down the flank. A narrow formation can also be really solid defensively if they shift from side to side fast enough and can deal with crosses well. Don't just look at the narrowness of a formation to asses where you can find space. A narrow formation that can shift well defensively but plays a very high line is probably more vulnerable in behind the defense than from being attacked down the flank with an overload. Because of this I usually only make tactical changes once the match has started and I can see how they play.