Just an opinion but I don't tend to worry too much about pace and acceleration attributes if I want to play a high line (obviously if they are say 5 or below then that would be an issue), I'm looking at the defenders anticipation first of all. Look at Pepe at Porto, the guy in his 40's but never seems to get sprinted past, it's because of his excellent positioning and reading of the game. My defenders on my save with Walsall aren't the quickest but manage fine with a high line as their mental stats are pretty good for L2 level.
Just an opinion but I don't tend to worry too much about pace and acceleration attributes if I want to play a high line (obviously if they are say 5 or below then that would be an issue), I'm looking at the defenders anticipation first of all. Look at Pepe at Porto, the guy in his 40's but never seems to get sprinted past, it's because of his excellent positioning and reading of the game. My defenders on my save with Walsall aren't the quickest but manage fine with a high line as their mental stats are pretty good for L2 level.