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Real Life Football Tactics Recreated for Football Manager 2021

Emulating the tactics of real life managers on Football Manager 2021. List updated on June 29th.

By Updated on Jun 29, 2021   370652 views   14 comments
Football Manager 2021 Tactics - Real Life Football Tactics Recreated for Football Manager 2021
Some of you must have noticed a certain trend in the tactics we have been published on FM Scout since last year.

I'm talking about tactic replications. Real life football tactics by real life football managers, converted to Football Manager tactics.

It's an aspect of the game I personally find intriguing, but it's not easy to create this type of tactics.

It requires deeper knowledge of real tactics and proper effort with research.

This is a selection of such tactics made for Football Manager 2021. Most of them are created by Boroboy and RDF. Thanks guys!

If you're passionate about replicating real life tactics, don't hesitate to share your own interpretations on our download area.

Now let's get to the list.

Real Football Tactics converted to Football Manager 2021 Tactics


Imanol Alguacil 4-1-4-1 R. Sociedad Tactics
RDF
Attractive football controlling possession and forward risky passes.


Ralph Hasenhüttl 4-4-2 Southampton Tactics
Boroboy
Progressive attacking football, relying on heavy pressing and quick chance creation.


Jurgen Klopp 4-3-3 LFC Tactics
RDF
Gegenpressing is still vital, but the pressing approach has become more proactive.


Roberto De Zerbi 4-2-3-1 Sassuolo Tactics
RDF
Adventurous football with a focus on passing and movement.


Nuno Espírito Santo 3-4-3 Wolves Tactics
RDF
The wing-backs are vital to the play. A counter attacking system.


Neil Warnock 3-1-4-2 Middlesbrough Tactics
Boroboy
Hard work and commitment are a must. Get the ball forward as quickly as possible using the flanks.


Gennaro Gattuso 4-3-3 Napoli Tactics
Boroboy
Solid in defence with a short passing style; emphasis on ball retention.


Márton Bukovi 4-2-4 Strikerless Tactics
NuFcPRO
Enticing football with more dynamism, fast passing, and off the ball runs.


Antonio Conte 3-5-2 Juventus Tactics
Airox-jjHD
Score and continue to attack looking for more goals, but at the same time defend compactly.


Ruben Amorim 3-4-3 Sporting CP Tactics
Maurordf92
Build from behind with vertical passes. Attack very closely with a lot of liberty.


Ruben Amorim 3-4-3 Braga Tactics
RDF
Stretch the play, getting the ball forward and to the key attacking players.


Pep Guardiola 4-3-3 Barcelona Tactics
Boroboy
All-conquering tiki-taka. Highly accurate short passes with emphasis on retaining possession.


Otto Rehhagel Greece Euro 2004 Tactics
CBP
Frustrate the opponents, recover the ball and break with speed and direct play.


Ralf Rangnick 4-2-2-2 RB Leipzig Tactics
Boroboy
High octane football, extremely demanding on players.


Steven Gerrard 4-3-3 Rangers Tactics
RDF
Win the ball back and attack at speed, with lots of crosses coming in from the wider spaces.


Rinus Michels 3-4-3 Ajax Tactics
SpeakingOfNirvana
Total football. Lots of possession, high pressing and also plenty of goals.


Ottmar Hitzfeld 5-2-1-2 Dortmund Tactics
SpeakingOfNirvana
Hit teams on devastating counter attacks whilst being defensively sound and compact.


Claudio Ranieri 4-4-2 Leicester Tactics
Boroboy
Guerilla warfare. Drawing opponents out before countering with devastating effect.


Jose Mourinho 4-3-1-2 Porto Tactics
msuatgunerli
A balanced, defensively sound 4-3-1-2 with the added threat of long balls from deep.


Jurgen Klopp 4-2-3-1 Dortmund Tactics
Boroboy
Quick counters and ultra-aggressive yet effective counter-pressing.


Carlo Ancelotti 4-3-2-1 AC Milan Tactics
Rashidi
Direct fluid attacking with aggressive wingbacks on the underlap.


Jurgen Klopp 4-3-3 Liverpool Tactics
murderball
Heavy metal football. Very good defensively as well as offensively.


Antonio Conte 3-5-2 Inter Tactics
Boroboy
Direct aggressive style, overloading the opposition's penalty area.


Marius Șumudică 5-3-2 Gaziantep Tactics
Phantom25867
Do not give the opponent free space and to get out of the wings quickly.


Jorge Jesus 4-4-2 Flamengo Tactics
Broto
Control possession, work hard, solid defence and a dynamic and paced attack.


Brendan Rodgers Swansea 4-2-3-1 Tactics
Boroboy
It’s all about the ball. Dominating it, looking to win it back quickly, owning it.


José Bordalás 4-4-2 Getafe Tactics
Virgil-Fan-Dijk
High energy, high tempo pressing. Disrupt the opposition and counter at a rapid pace.


Marcelo Bielsa 4-1-4-1 Leeds Tactics
Virgil-Fan-Dijk
Aggressive pressing, vertical possession, maximum width. Loads of chances and lots of goals.


Ralf Rangnick 4-4-2 Tactics
themaiden83
High pressure and constant aggression on the second balls. Very direct.


Frank Lampard 4-2-3-1 Chelsea Tactics
Lewiskent101
High possession with high tempo passing and high pressing. Wings backs are important.


Ole Gunnar Solskjær 4-2-3-1 Manchester United Tactics
RDF
Play the ball forward and attempt risky passes.


Jose Mourinho 4-2-3-1 Tottenham Tactics
RDF
Noticeable changes to his system that he adapted over the years.


Fabio Capello 3-4-1-2 Roma Tactics
Boroboy
Solid in defence with creativity provided by trequartista and right wing-back.


Johan Cruyff Total Football Tactics
Boroboy
Dominate possession, score beautiful goals and defend as one to overwhelm opponents.


Ralph Hasenhüttl 4-4-2 Tactics
RDF
Narrow attacking shape that works well in attack but also helps if you lose the ball in attacking areas.


Valeriy Lobanovskiy 4-4-2 Tactics
Giro87
Very high pace of play, pounding pressing, ball often played low to the ground, very fast attacking.


Louis Van Gaal 3-4-3 Ajax 3-4-3 Tactics
Boroboy
Dominate possession, score goals for fun and strangle teams in defence like Ajax did in the '90s.


Maurizio Sarri 4-3-3 Tactics
Boroboy
Dominate possession, score beautiful goals whilst remaining strong in defence.


Pep Guardiola 4-3-3 Manchester City Tactics
RDF
Create overloads in central areas, while simultaneously stretching the field wider.


Hansi Flick 4-2-3-1 Bayern Munich Tactics
Boroboy
Dominate the ball, press opponents into the ground and score bags of goals.


Arsene Wenger 2003-04 Arsenal Tactics
RDF
Break down sides as players operate in lines and spaces difficult for opponents to defend.


Fatih Terim 4-1-4-1 Galatasaray Tactics
RDF
Possession and great defence. 3-man midfield help bridge the gap between defence and attack.


Julian Nagelsmann Leipzig Tactics
RDF
Master pressing to keep the ball, stop the opposition from getting anywhere near their goal, and score plenty.


Gian Piero Gasperini Atalanta Tactics
JDFM
Lots of goals, intricate passing and beautiful football.


Marco Rose 4-2-3-1 Tactics
RDF
Tactically intriguing football with emphasis on transitional moments and pressing from the front.


Diego Simeone Atletico Madrid 2021 Tactics
RDF
High degree of fluidity with shape shifting formations, but without favouring a slow build-up.


Max Allegri Juventus Diamond Tactics
Boroboy
Play from the back retaining possession to move up the pitch like Allegri did during the 2014/15 season.


Pepa Paços de Ferreira Tactics
Broto
Low but hard pressing block and quick transitions.


Sir Alex Ferguson Man Utd Tactics
RDF
Blistering pace in attack to aid their counter-attacks and a rock-solid defence, like Fergie's Manchester United 2007-08.


Marcelo Bielsa 4-1-4-1 Leeds Tactics
Boroboy
Dominate the ball press high, create chances and score goals.


Johan Cruyff's 3-4-3 Tactics
RDF
Make the pitch as small as possible when out of possession, stretch the pitch when in possession.


Adi Hütter Eintracht Frankfurt Tactics
Boroboy
Attacking football starting with patient buildup from the back followed by quick vertical progression into the final third.


Paulo Fonseca AS Roma Tactics
JWM
Rather than being overcommitted to a press, revert to holding shape quite quickly.


Ernst Happel Feyenoord Tactics
Boroboy
Total Football used by Ernst Happel in 1970. Lots of Goals, solid in defence and high possession.


Sir Alex 4-4-2 Tactics
Cult of FM
Exciting, attacking, ground-breaking 442. Play like Alex Ferguson did with Man Utd in 1998/99.


Brendan Rodgers Leicester Tactics
Boroboy
Plenty of possession without sacrificing goals or exposing your defence.


Julen Lopetegui Sevilla Tactics
Boroboy
Solid in defence and plenty of possession with a high work rate and pressing off the ball.


Ronald Koeman 3-4-3 Barcelona Tactics
AVScholten
The libero on attack is the most important role in this tactic.


Ronald Koeman 3-4-3 Barcelona Tactics
Lewiskent
Wing play and crosses are crucial to Mauricio Pochettino philosophy.


Massimiliano Allegri 3-5-2 Juventus Tactics
Lewiskent
High tempo, possession based, structured, compact, disciplined. Allegri's Juve during the 2015/16 season.


Jose Mourinho Man Utd Tactics
Lewiskent
Suppress space in the oppositions half like Jose did during the 2017/18 season.


Pep Guardiola Man City Tactics
Cult of FM
Dominate possession in any form successfully.


Carlo Ancelotti AC Milan Tactics
Cult of FM
No wingers nor 5 at the back. Strikers and central mids pulling wide, while wing backs occupy these areas.



I will keep updating this list from time to time to ensure it includes all the tactic replications created for Football Manager 2021.

If there's a replication we haven't covered (here on the site) that you'd like to see, let me know in the comments.
Enjoy!

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About Stam

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Discussion: Real Life Football Tactics Recreated for Football Manager 2021

14 comments have been posted so far.

  • sadsac's avatar
    Any chance of a lee johnson tactic at sunderland
  • Scaller's avatar
    nice 1.
  • DerKaizer1303's avatar
    @Stam

    Could you possibly do Neil Critchley at Blackpool in 20/21 please?
    Thank you in advance!
  • nealwillo's avatar
    This is awesome! Where are the hoof ball tactics? Dyche? Pulis? Allardyce? Would be great if you added them to the collection! :D
    1
  • bezman's avatar
    Please do the one and only Mr Brian Cloughs Nottingham Forest Please.
  • simbo11's avatar
    any chance you could do some classic tactics like Shankly. Clough Busby
  • sadsac's avatar
    Any chance you could do a Brian Clough tactic please.
  • bezman's avatar
    I'm stunned that no one has done a Brian Cloughs Nottingham Forest European Cup winning tactic.
  • aljo_24's avatar
    is there a way to use those in editor for ai managers?
  • Stam's avatar
    I'll be updating the list later today with 3-4 new entries. :)
    Thanks for your suggestions.
  • silentwars's avatar
    How about a Tony Pulis anti-football Stoke tactic replica?
  • Ashn18's avatar
    Would you legends consider a Deportivo La Coruna tactic write up from 1999-2000?! I love the amount of detail in the work you both produce! Thank you!
  • steviet400's avatar
    Sir Alex Ferguson's Treble 4-4-2 and Simeone's 2015 defensive tactics. Thank you for all the work you do.
  • carlosh's avatar
    Hola....
    Muy bueno....
    Simeone 2021 Atlético Madrid...
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