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Invaluable Tactic Tips by FM Stag

Football Manager tips you didn't know you needed, meticulously crafted to give you a tactical edge and unlock the master tactician in you.

By on Jan 28, 2025   3162 views   0 comments
FM Quick Tips - Invaluable Tactic Tips by FM Stag
This is a curated list of FM tips written by FM Stag and published here with his kind permission. Make sure to visit his personal FM blog at fmstag.com and follow him on X @FM_Stag for more gameplay tips.

Swap Positions

Mix up your attacks and confuse opposition markers by asking two of your players to periodically switch places in your tactic without having to lift a finger after setting it up.




The natural place to use this is on your wide players to switch flanks to vary up attacks, but you may have an AMC and ST who the push and pull of swapping can destroy opposition defenders' positioning.

Or you may have two creative CMs in a pairing. One a right footed agile dribbler and the other a left footed passer with good vision. Have them swap back and forth and watch it unsettle your opponent's midfield as they adjust to the changing threat.

You can select which role a player takes when he inhabits a specific position on the pitch by using the Personalised option on the position he is going to swap with.
This option used to be in Player Instructions when you clicked a shirt on your Tactics screen but then the developers hid it away in this "Player" tab in recent years.

Players with weak Tactical Familiarity

Switch your Tactic view to the 3rd option and make sure you don't have too many players with weak Tactical Familiarity in the same area of the pitch.

Ever wonder where those bad decisions and mistakes come from? This can be it.



Hover over the bars to see the reason. In this case, Gabbiadini is very familiar with everything, apart from specifically being deployed as an Advanced Forward and the intensity of the team press.

All worthwhile considerations while building a tactic and selecting players.



I'm a massive fan of judging players on their attributes and traits rather than selecting roles for them based on how Natural they are according to FM, but it's a balance between team cohesion, getting the best out of your players and playing the way you really want.

Monitor Analytical Data in-match

At half time, go to 'Analytical Data' and see the top passing combination for the opposition.

Use Opposition Instructions to Trigger Press on the passer and Tightly Mark the receiver.

If really being overrun in a certain area, maybe a tactical tweak required.




As with all the tips, this is contextual.

If the top passing combo is their CB back to their GK, then that's not a threat as such, just worth noting. This is best used to identify where opposition attacks might be originating, and to try and snuff them out at source.

Also worth remembering is that if the passing combo is something entirely harmless, then maybe you WANT the opposition to keep using that lane, so you use Opposition Instructions to instead stand off from those players. It depends on tactical context and the flow of the game.

Lastly, there's a bit of a backdoor route to access this analysis without having to wait for half time.

Click 'Tactics & Subs' in the bottom left then 'Opposition' then 'Best Performance' on the right.

Sneaky route to Analytical Data at any time in a match.





Force the opposition defender to risk a red

Struggling to break down an opponent but notice one of their full-backs has picked up a yellow? Focus play down that side using the Approach Play instructions in your Tactics screen.

Force the defender to risk a red; or stand off, letting your attacker breeze past!



I'm a 100% believer in focusing on what your own team are doing tactically rather than reacting to the opposition, but this simple tweak is too logical not to adopt in those frustrating games where you can't break through.

This advice is best used in short spells in games where you need to react to the game state. Focus play down that side and perhaps add Run at Defence and up the Tempo a little for 15 minutes after the card. It could be what unlocks a high value scoring opportunity.

I use it regularly when faced with those situations. So many times I see a full-back drop off where he previously would've tackled, allowing my wide player to go outside of him for a crossing opportunity, or comfortably cut or pass inside to change the dynamic of our attack.

Tactics screen shows positions in the defensive phase

Your Tactics screen shows your players' positions in the defensive phase, out of possession.

The Roles, Duties, Instructions and individual Traits your players have dictate how they aim to move when possession turns over and they transition to the attacking phase.

The reason there is no second screen showing the "in possession" or "when attacking" formation, is that player movement is very context-dependent.

For example, an Inverted Winger wants to cut inside the channel towards the centre of the pitch based on his Role, but he won't always do so. The movements he chooses to make depend on his individual strengths, weaknesses, Traits and the context of the location of the ball and the players around him.

The key part of building any system is considering how roles and specific players interact with each other in all three phases of play - defending, in transition and attacking. Though this is not a guarantee that every highlight will follow that pattern. Rather an instruction on what you would like him to choose to do whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Attributes like Anticipation, Decision and Teamwork are often more important than you think when it comes to players following your tactical plan. Team Cohesion based on morale and body language is crucial too.

This is why downloading or replicating someone's tactic is a fantastic idea to try and play or mimic a certain style, but it's no guarantee of similar success to the original user when it's with a different team of different players playing at a different level against teams with potentially a different style of play.



I see many people asking for that second Tactics screen to be added to FM, when I don't think it would give people what they are actually looking for. An understanding of player movement when transitioning to attack.

My advice is always to experiment with different Roles, Duties, specific players with specific Traits, Instructions etc and just watch games on Comprehensive. See how they interact and how it works bespoke for your team in that "moment" as they say.

Ctrl + Click on players in match view

When working on a new tactic or trying to figure out if multiple roles and duties complement each other in your system, watch some games on Comprehensive in 2D and use Ctrl + Click on the multiple players in question to keep their names above their head (thanks @FMheathen for the old click trick).

This ways you can easily see at a glance how they move in each phase of play and if anything needs adjusted.

Example - We've just won the ball back and about to transition to attack. I've Ctrl + Clicked my front three to track how they move as play develops. If someone is starting from too deep a position, or would perhaps be more useful if I added 'Moves into Channels' as an instruction to pull an opposition defender out of position, I can do that then review the impact of that tweak in the next lengthy highlight.



Consider the individual Mentality of each player

When building a tactic, don't just look at a player's Role and Duty and the overall Team Mentality, click in to Edit individual roles and consider the individual Mentality description of each player in your system.





You might have a tactic with the Team Mentality on Positive and a player role on Support, but the combination leads to the player being Very Attacking, like the example in the screenshots. So they might be rushing on the ball and keen to make riskier forward passes than "Positive" or "Support" would suggest, as they are individually Very Attacking.

This might be exactly what you intend, but it explains why sometimes people think their players should be more or less adventurous in matches than their Role, Duty or the Team Mentality would suggest at a glance, as they haven't clicked in to take a closer look.

Nullify your next opposition's biggest threat

Check the Data Hub > Next Opponent > Stat Pack and then use Opposition Instructions to minimise their impact in their next game against you.





Show Opposition Analysis in match

During any match, click Tactics & Subs > Analysis > cog icon > Show Opposition Analysis, to see the average positions of your team and the opposition's, along with a combined heat map of where the action is.

Notice any large gaps or opportunities to overload an isolated defensive weakness? Make a tactical tweak and exploit it!

Notice any gaps in your own overall shape? That'll explain why you keep getting hit on the break or conceding chances. Make a tactical tweak and close that lane.



In this one, I'm the team in red, so I'd notice that our wingbacks are successfully pinning back their wide attackers and their lone striker has three CBs ahead of him (he isn't getting in behind), so I could probably afford to change number 8's role (currently a BWM-D) to something more offensive, as his defensive positioning isn't critical, but our number 87 is up against a double DM pivot by himself so attacks through the middle will be very difficult. Changing number 8 to something like a CM-S might allow him to assist more capably when we attack while not compromising our defence, based on the current opposition (average) shape.

I'd also notice that generally we are sitting nice and high, pinning them back into their own half on average, but if I notice in the highlights that they are starting to launch the ball long as a response, I'd maybe drop the defensive line a little without risking inviting too much pressure.

Use opposition reports in your inbox

Actually use the opposition reports which appear in your inbox before a match to tweak your approach, even just through Opposition Instructions.

In this example, I could keep our best striker on the opposite side from Pfeiffer, Close Down Jasper and Krivak and start the game with a Positive mentality as they are out of form.



Tick this Show All Player Names option in Match Settings (Click the FM logo, then Preferences, then Match and scroll down a bit) so that when watching a match on Extended or Comprehensive, you can see who is losing their man, who is making the types of runs you want, who is getting dragged out of position and more.




These are my favoured match and camera settings but everybody has different preferences.



If you don't tick that option, you can still track specific player's movements by clicking on them to display their name in the match highlights.

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About Stam

I started FM Scout for fun in the distant 2004. I'm proud of how this place has grown into a vibrant community and I try my best to improve it every year. Husband and father of two.

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