4-3-3 Control Possession FM18 Tactic

I used this tactic for my first season in a Bournemouth save, I managed to finish in 2nd and reach the final of the Carabao Cup. We dominated possession im almost every game but it usually took us until the 20min to settle into the game and then begin to dominate the ball, although we did score a number of early goals.


For this tactic to work the majority of the team need good passing abilities for their respective leagues.

I also believe that too many signings will see the tactic struggle early on, so I would try to keep signings to a minimum.

Both CBs are BPDs that we have, play out from the back as an instruction, so CBs will need to be comfortable on the ball. Fullback should be good in attack and defence as they support attacks but are always needed when defending.

The midfield has the 2 most important positions in the team; DLP on defend and a BWM on support. The DLP is the start of most attacks and sees a lot of the ball he drops a little deeper than the other two CMs. He needs good passing, vision, work rate and stamina and good defensive attributes are also important due to his defensive duties. The BWM is also very important as he is constantly pressing the ball when it is lost and although this is a controlling tactic he creates many goals from counter attacks. Also as we want to control possession winning the ball back fast is ideal and he does this very well must have all the attributes needed for a BWM especially tackling and determination.

Another important role is the striker as a Complete Forward I believe it works on support or attack, strikers need to be very well rounded physically and also should be good on the ball as they need to get involved in the build up of attacks.

My Results with Bournemouth

Please give feedback on tactic and let me know how you got on using it and any improvements or problems you may have had, Thanks