Match: Tactics

Tactical skill

How well you master a tactic depends on the tactical skill for that particular tactic. This skill is calculated from different players' skills together with an experience bonus for each involved player.

How effective your tactics are depends on how good your players on the field are. The better the players on the field, the better tactical rating you need to achieve the same efficiency. This means you need a better tactical rating in higher divisions than what you need in lower divisions.

Pressing

Pressing means that your players put pressure on your opponent and focus more on breaking your opponent's attacks than creating their own. Pressing could be a good option when you feel inferior and want to keep the score down.

Advantage: You can reduce the number of potential chances (for both teams) in a match.

Disadvantage: It will drain the stamina of your players faster than normal.

Relevant Skills: The total defending skill and the total stamina of all your players determine your Pressing tactical skill. If a player has the "Powerful" speciality, his defense skill counts as double. The more tired your players get, the less able they are to put pressure on their opponents.

Whenever a potential chance is foiled by a team using the pressing tactic, it is reported in the match report. You will never find out which team could have benefited from the chance. If both teams play pressing the effect is, on average, doubled. Additionally, when playing against a team focusing on long shots, a pressing team has a greater chance of preventing a long shot opportunity.

Counter-attacks

Counter-attacks (CA) mean you deliberately let your opponent control the ball, and as soon as they fail with an attack you try to make a fast counter-attack. Playing counter-attacks could be a good option if you have a very good defense and attack (but a bad midfield), and especially in combination with your opponent having an ineffective attack.

Advantage: You can gain additional attacks (you get the chance to counter-attack when your defense manages to stop an opponent's attack).

Disadvantage: You lose 7% of your midfield capacity.

Relevant Skills: The total sum of your defenders' passing and defending skills determines your CA tactical skill. Passing is twice as important as defending.

Only the team that is not dominating the midfield at the time of a failed attack is able to make use of the advantage of this tactic (and note that you have to lose the midfield before the 7% tactical penalty is applied). If you dominate the midfield, then you will just suffer the disadvantage. All counter-attacks are reported in the match report. Whenever your team receives a counter-attack attempt, the chance to have another one will decrease.

Attack in the middle

Attacking in the middle (AIM) means your team focuses on attacking down the center of the pitch at the expense of attacks on the wings. In practical terms, this means your team may successfully trade what would have been a wing attack for an attack in the middle. When this happens, however, the chance for it to happen again will decrease.

Advantage: Around 15-30% of your wing attacks will be converted to attacks in the middle.

Disadvantage: Your wing defense (on both sides) gets somewhat worse.

Relevant Skills: The total passing skill of all your outfield players determines your AIM tactical skill.

Whenever an attack is switched from the wings to the middle, it is shown in the match report.

Attack on wings

Attack on wings (AOW) works in the same way as “Attack in the middle”, only in reverse, meaning there is a chance that middle attacks are traded for attacks on the wings. As there normally are less attacks in the middle than on the wings, you convert percentage-wise slightly more of them. Also, for every time an attack is moved to the wings, the chance for it to happen again will decrease.

Advantage: Around 20-40% of your central attacks will be converted to wing attacks.

Disadvantage: Your central defense gets somewhat worse.

Relevant Skills: The total passing skill of all your outfield players determines your AOW tactical skill.

Whenever an attack is switched from the middle to the wings, it is shown in the match report.

Play creatively

Play creatively (PC) means players try to make more use of their specialties, and other attributes.

Advantage: You increase the maximum possible number of special events occurring during the match for both teams, but your own team will get slightly higher chances to get one of them (both positive and negative).

Disadvantage: Your team defense gets somewhat worse.

Relevant Skills: PC requires your field players have high passing skills and experience (with the first being the most important). If a field player is also Unpredictable, his contribution to the tactic will be doubled. To make good use of it, a SE-optimized team (i.e., one with many players having specialties, and the right combination of skills) is recommended.

Long Shots

When playing long shots (LS), your players are instructed to go for a long shot rather than try playing the whole attacking sequence through. In other words, you trade central and wing attacks for long shots. A long shot then pits the shooter against the goalkeeper. This can be useful if you have a hard time scoring on your central/wing attacks, but have decent shooters.

Advantage: The long shots tactic converts up to around 30% of side and middle attacks to long shots.

Disadvantage: Your wing and central attacks, as well as your midfield, get a little bit worse.

Relevant skills: Your outfielders' scoring and set pieces skills determine the LS tactical skill. Scoring is three times more important than set pieces.

When an attack has been converted to a long shot, a defending team using the pressing tactic has a chance to steer off the shooting opportunity. If the shot is not steered off, an outfielder (inner midfielders and wingers are twice as likely) takes the shot. The quality of the shot depends on the appointed shooter's scoring and set pieces skills, and the goalkeeper can attempt to save the shot using his goalkeeping and set pieces skills. For both shooter and keeper: A bit of both skills is needed, and it's better to have some of both skills than to only have a lot of one.

All long shots are reported in the match report, including any steered off opportunities.