Bodø/Glimt Attacking Masterclass for FM22

This is a tactic recreation of one of the dark horses of European Football this year, FK Bodo/Glimt. It’s a 4-3-3-DM-Wide attacking tactic that exploits the full length of the pitch and attacks through the middle.

Bodo/Glimt have set their mark in Europe with a 6-1 victory over Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma in the European Conference League.

The tactic relies on high pressing and quick movement. It creates lots of chances and you have good finishers, you will score a lot of goals.

Tactic description

Bodo/Glimt’s tactic has a 4-3-3 formation as I have selected. In this setup, there are two tactics, the first tactic is fairly direct and quick in transition and the second operates at a much slower tempo.

This helps to break down opposition defenses that sit deep and defend in numbers.

Tactic Variation #1

In possession, the team relies on relatively short passing to move the ball vertically. The tempo is fairly quick and the players are asked to run at the defense and to be more expressive when fashioning out chances.

The work the ball into the box instruction is also activated but in cases where the team is spending too much time on the ball, which is rare, you can turn off this option.

In transition the team is asked to counter-press and counter once possession has been won, the goalkeeper instructions are dependent on the nature of your goalkeeper.

If you have a good sweeper keeper with high eccentricity, you can use a sweeper-keeper on support or attack duty. If you have a standard goalkeeper with low eccentricity, you can use a sweeper-keeper on defend duty.

When out of possession, Bodo/Glimt press aggressively from the front in numbers, so all the midfielders, wide players, forwards, and fullbacks have been asked to close down more. A risky approach, yes.

But one that works once the players are familiar with the press so training is going to be important. The defensive line here is higher and the line of engagement is also higher.

In this variant, the fullbacks are wider and the defensive midfielder drops deep between the central defenders. The central defenders are ball-playing defenders capable of good passing and bringing the ball out of the defense.

The midfielder on the right covers the half-space and creates chances from this zone. Offering support to the winger and the fullback around him. The midfielder on the right gets forward and offers an extra attacking option.

The two central midfielders are responsible for breaking down midfield transitions and creating chances. The wide players complement each other, one is an inverted winger and the other is a winger.

The forward is a deep-lying forward, capable of linking with the midfield and arriving late in the box while creating chances for himself and his teammates.

Tactic Variation #2

Variant 2 of the tactic operates the same way with player roles in attack.

But to break down tight defenses, the fullbacks are not asked to stay wide but to sit narrower. This brings them closer to the ball-playing defenders, not for defensive purposes but to serve as additional creative outlets.

The defensive line is much higher than and the line of engagement is might higher too. Fullbacks create chances from deep wide areas and combine with the defenders to create a blanket high up the pitch to curtail opposition counter-attacks.

In attack, the team instructions differ slightly. The tempo is lower and passing is shorter allowing the players to work the ball into the box.

Video analysis

Results so far…

the team has managed to score a lot of goals using this tactic and so far, our biggest win is against Molde in the Norwegian premier league.