3421 based around quick recycling and crosses

[ceefax the cat]

Just thought I'd share the system that just got me promoted from Serie C with Reggiana, which I think is quite neat. The premise in attack is that the strikers each drop off into their respective channels to receive the ball, hold it up for the wingers who cross immediately for the other striker and attacking mid who should be arriving in the box. No need to work it to the byline and all that. Both of my strikers are fairly strong and good at attacking crosses so I just wanted to lay on as much ammo for them as possible. 

To facilitate that, I wanted to be winning the ball fairly high up and ringing the box so that when the ball comes back out, we pounce on it and recycle it. That way my wingers don't constantly have to chase all the way back and will be in a position to cross sooner. Also, my defenders aren't the biggest and I find to sit deep with a back three is to invite all kinds of misery with the ball being switched from side to side while the ME fails to bring your defenders out quickly enough to stop crosses. I wanted to encourage the opposition to play long balls forward into the channels, where my mobile stoppers would be able to go over and close down the threat a long way from goal.

Accordingly, these are the instructions I ended up with:

Closing down and tight marking are taken care of as player instructions. Also, both of my wingers were instructed to Stay Wider, although I did also crank up the team width from time to time if I felt I could get away with it. I used Control against weaker sides at home (with offside trap occasionally), Counter against decent sides away unless I thought they were especially vulnerable to my style of play.

If I went ahead and didn't think I could push on and get more goals, I'd drop to Counter or Defensive, use Play Into Space and drop the defensive line slightly, while changing the CM(s) to a DLP(d) and the AP to support duty. If I needed a goal, Attacking + Pump Ball Into Box, change the CM(s) to a BBM or CM(a) and the right winger to Attack duty.

There's the shape. I started off with two DLF's on support because I'm a stickler for symmetry, but it turned out to work better with a bit of variety in the attack. I also started out with an attacking midfielder instead of an advanced playmaker, because I wanted him to burst between the strikers and get into the box.

Player instructions are as follows, starting at the back:

Ended up going up via the playoffs since Catania were rampant and I had a mid-season fart about with another formation that didn't really come off.

[Earnie is God!]

Promotion is good no matter how you achieve it.

This is a formation/tactic I've hardly ever used before and my current side would maybe have to take a lot of getting used to it but I might stick it in as a 3rd option and wait til it's at max before trying it out.

Where do all your goals come from and how is it defensively?

Thanks for all the details though, looks interesting.

[ceefax the cat]

17 minutes ago, Earnie is God! said:

Promotion is good no matter how you achieve it.

This is a formation/tactic I've hardly ever used before and my current side would maybe have to take a lot of getting used to it but I might stick it in as a 3rd option and wait til it's at max before trying it out.

Where do all your goals come from and how is it defensively?

Thanks for all the details though, looks interesting.

As long as I get my tweaks right, it's great defensively. Having the stoppers close down more and the wingers mark tightly made a big difference on that front.

My goals, overwhelmingly, come from crosses from the right (if I had a half-decent left winger I dare say it'd be more even). But it's all about crosses. The wingers cross from deep every time they get the ball and there are generally three players waiting for it, two of whom are very good at getting on the end of them.