FM 2013 Lower League Guide: If Nothing Changes, Nothing Changes

Hello and welcome to the final part of this FM 2013 Lower League Guide. After covering pre-season and players in part one, we looked at tactics in part two and part three is an extension on tactical tweaks.

In my field of work, you have to be innovative and constantly moving forward. We have a simple sentence around the office, ‘If nothing changes, nothing changes’. Basically meaning if you don’t do something to solve a problem, then it won’t fix itself and equally, if you don’t constantly adapt your thinking, then you will just stand still while the competition move forward.

I think those few simple words can be applied to FM13 lower league tactics. I have noticed the game change this year, long gone are the days of a click and play tactic to last the save, long gone are the super stars of lower league football and no more is it relatively simple to rise through the Football League ladder.

In previous years I have just skipped my way merrily on through to the squad selection, relying heavily on my ‘super tactic’ and nothing else, but doing so in the BSP was costly. Let me start by saying, if you are winning and looking comfortable, just keep doing what you’re doing, its obviously working for you…but if not, read on and try to implement the below thought process. I will explain every part of the game that could effect the next result, and how you can give your team the best chance of getting those vital three points.

Match training: Days before any match, your scout should come calling with an opposition report, check what match training he recommends and also use your common sense. If you have conceded too many goals, train defensive positioning, if you’re up against weaker opposition, do attacking movement etc, etc.

Scout your opponent (only usable after a number of matches): Using the opposition tactical analysis visible within your scouts opposition ‘team report’, start picking apart any weakness’ or strengths. This is a three part process, starting with the oppositions most used tactics. The team below always start with a 4-1-2-2-1, they then have an array of formations to use depending on how the game pans out. This tells me I need to be hyper observant in game to see when they are changing formation as to avoid been caught out.

Now you should look through your oppositions ‘tactics faced’. Here we can see which tactic causes the opposition more trouble, at first glance my opponents seem to be over powered when matched man for man in a 4-1-2-2-1, which makes sense and explains their formation changes mid-match.

But we can go even further, to better understand the opposition, try clicking on the tactic you might play and to the right will pop up even more information as below. Unfortunately there’s not much to go off here, but most of the time you can work out which reputation teams cause your opponents the most problems.

Find your own weakness’: Most of you will already know from experience which formations get the better of your tactic. But if you don’t try using the teams ‘tactic analysis’ found in report>tactic within your squad screen. The screenshot below would suggest I enjoyed success defensively when using a 4-1-2-2-1 but we scored a lot more goals using the 4-4-2.

To expand on that I can check the type of opponents my 4-1-2-2-1 has been used against. Lower reputation and similar reputation sides both seem to struggle against it.

Then the final factor is checking the tactics you have faced to see if the oppositions tactic has caused problems in the past.

Opposition form is key: The form your opposition has endured or enjoyed is so important, it can turn an underdog into favorites or vice verse. For instance, I can see below that Ebbsfleet have drawn 3 of their last 5 away games, that suggests we could be in for a sticky match with few goals so I need to be mentally prepared to make changes and use shouts if we are to break the opponents down.

Now as one last precaution, after continuing to the team selection, click on your oppositions team selection to make sure you know what their lineup may be and how they will shape up. Have a glance through their starting XI, pick out any key players that may cause trouble and try to gauge where the threat is coming from, you will need this information to set opposition instructions.

Analyzing the data: You have now scouted your opponents in full, so below is what I would have taken from all the information gathered above.

• The best formation for me to use is a 4-1-2-2-1, mainly because they seem to struggle when matched man for man as per their tactics faced information.
• I score fewer goals using this formation so must be open to switching to a 4-4-2 if things aren’t working, but I must also watch Ebbsfleet’s formation as they are prone to switching things up too.
• Based on the form and odds, it would seem my opponents will struggle to score, but they will play tight at the back and their anchor man may be key so I should close him down and maybe look to play counter attacking football as to draw them onto me and open up spaces.

You should have a really good feel for your opponent, I’m not saying you will be switching your tactic based on this information (I certainly didn’t) but it did prepare me mentally for what might happen in game and where problems may arise…if you’re prepared for a problem before it happens you can react much quicker. Lets see how that worked for me in game.

In game tactical tweaks

Going into my game with Ebbsfleet we were expecting victory and decided to match our opponents formation of 4-1-2-2-1 (which is also my main tactic,) we wanted to play on the counter and stick to my short passing game.

Half-time came around quick and as feared Ebbsfleet were solid at the back, very tough to break down. Using the match stats I analyzed the source of our problem, creating chances. Just one shot on target showed in the match engine as we were restricted to long range efforts and couldn’t pass our way around the opponents.

I had to make a change, so switched to a flat 4-4-2 in an attempt to take the game to Ebbslfeet, this would be very dangerous as we’d push more men forward.

The main reason for switching to this tactic was to play more direct football. We weren’t moving anywhere with a short passing game so I wanted to smash the ball forward quick and catch the opposition flat footed. Kincl was the key substitute here as he’s got amazing physical presence.

My last act before pressing play was to rattle the players, they needed to shape themselves and I wanted them to show me something different.

Just a quick tip, always watch out for opposition substitutions and be sure to reset your opposition instructions appropriately, subs are used to make an impact, if you don’t tell your player how to handle that added impact they could make you pay.

As originally feared this tactical change opened the game up a little too much, while we had the better chances Ebbsfleet took the lead late on, but my boys persisted and scored two excellent goals to finish off the match 2-1 victors. Yes this change could have backfired, but after weighing up the attacking side with the defensive I felt this was the right approach to get all three points and I was right.

This is just one example of many ways in which you can change a match, I’m not trying to teach you how to sort every in game situation as that is impossible…I just want to open your minds a little more to been a thinker and making those all important changes, but remember poor preparation makes for piss poor performances. So if you don’t research your opposition you could be missing out on some very important, match changing data.

As in part two, I want to remind you of a few shouts that could be used in game to avoid changing tactic. Here’s how I’d approach the touchline shouts while in the lower leagues. I’ll name a scenario and offer the appropriate reaction.

• Players making sloppy mistakes and opposition bossing the play: Get stuck in and retain possession.
  
• Having lots of chances and missing easy opportunities: Change your approach, so if you are playing narrow then play wider and pump ball into box, if you’re playing a very wide game already with plenty of crosses then play narrower and work ball into box.
• Taking too many long shots: Work ball into box
• Opposition sitting so deep there’s no space to attack: Drop deeper and play wider
• Constantly been attacked down the wing: Play wider and get stuck in
• Your defense keep getting caught out, with the opposition striker getting in behind: Play narrower and drop deeper

Well that is about all I have for today. Remember, if you’re winning matches with one formation and enjoying the game then great, keep it up, but if not you can still make changes that will help get you through those tough seasons. I did with Gateshead and now I have the players to use one attacking formation and we find ourselves flying in League 2 and already promoted to League 1 with 8 games to go.

Thanks for reading this three part series and please feel free to comment below. If you missed any of the other posts, the links are below.

Part one — FM 2013 Lower League Guide: Setup and Free Players

Part two — FM 2013 Lower League Guide: Two Tactics Are Better Than One