How do you deal with certain types of strikers?

[Kuchiki]

I currently play a 4312 with a ml, mr, cm and a am and I'm up against a 4411 in my next match which is a formation which is likely to really attack my weaknesses. They're likely to play a dlfs or dlfa and I was wondering how people deal with specific threats in my case the am and the dlf linking up.

My tactical plan when I deal with this kind of threat is to change the roles of my cdd to a stopper cover combination and to have my mc man mark their amc. I don't really know if this is a good approach to use as it might start pulling my team out of shape so I'd like to know how others would attempt to deal with this threat.

Alternatively if my tactical changes don't work I'd then try to play more and more defensive to encourage men getting behind the ball to limit their attack.

[aderow]

Man marking can be dangerous because, as you said, it can lead to your team being pulled apart.

I think playing more compact, thereby limiting the space for the opposition AMC to operate in, is probably the way to go. Plus you have the advantage of having more players centrally so it may benefit you in attack as well. But be careful not to play too narrow especially if you start to notice opposition full backs start getting into the attack. Sitting deeper is an option but you may want to consider pushing higher as well. You just want to limit the space between your midfield and your defense.

[gunnerfan]

Lately, I find myself taking a page from rashidi's book and playing fluid when I want to keep things tight. You may also want to play a DM to cover the AM and use OIs to close him down.

[Overmars]

You could also consider using a 4-1-3-2 formation for such situations. It really only requires a couple of changes from your base formation, but that extra DM player can really come in handy.