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Welcome to the complete guide about the Football Manager Player Role
Combinations and duty Pairs by llama3, which has been updated for
Football Manager 2015 and released as a pdf file. The complete guide to
pairs and combinations can be downloaded / read in the bottom of this
post.
Here, the Sports Interactive Football Manager Tactics moderator llama3
analysis the best pairs, player role combinations and how to benefit from
lone striker tactical setups, to double wide men or utilizing a back three.
This in-depth Football Manager guide provides you with some basic
principles of player duty combinations that is worthy for creating a
successful tactic which exploits spaces between lines, is more defensive
solid or simply creates more chances through a good player role
combinations; destroyer / creator partnerships.
Llama3s player role and combination guide is a great appendix to The
Hand of Gods complete series relating the Football Manager Mentality
ladder and players rung of responsibilities for the different mentality
structures. It serves as a great appendix to the previous released post
about 11 essential tips to improve your Football Manager tactics which
provided you with some core principles for tactical design in Football
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Manager.
This guide serves a great appendix to another comprehensive Football

Manager guide: The Mentality Ladder by The Hand of God. You can read
the full guide here.
Written by Sports Interactive moderator llama3
Goalkeepers are still an important part of your teams tactical setup. Their
distribution and sweeping up are significantly linked to your overall team
style of play, and the players in your team. A well set-up goalkeeper can
significantly improve your teams performances.
Your goalkeeper has several options for distribution. He can act as a

creative presence, or tend towards playing it safe. The options are as
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follows:
A defender collect option

works well with building
play from the back, and
works particularly well
when you have a good
creative outlet, like a
ball-playing defender, a
deep lying playmaker, or
a regista, who can help
create chances from a deeper position and help maintain possession.
A quick throwing option supports a more direct counter-attacking approach,

appears to suit distribution to full backs/wing backs (who naturally tend to
have the most space from the back) and helps speed play out from the
back at a much quicker tempo.
The long kicking approach significantly suits a more physical taller option
further up the field. If you play a Target Man or a Wide Target Man, these
are highly suitable options to distribute long towards this works well if
your team is being pressed at the back and you are struggling to play the
ball out from the back.
A Sweeper Keeper can provide more creative options from open play, and
suits a counter-attacking game from the back in terms of his distribution.
A Sweeper Keeper will sweep up in front of, and wide of the penalty area.
He can compensate for a high line and the offside trap being breached. A
normal Goalkeeper will hold position far more, and as a result, tends to suit
being sat behind a deeper defence, claiming crosses and distributing the
ball safer. If you have a higher line it may be more appropriate to try and
beat the opposing forwards to the ball instead of standing up and facing a
shot, where the opponent has time to set himself. It may be less essential
to play a Sweeper Keeper if you have a Sweeper/Libero, or if you have a
Defender on a Covering duty.
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For the next part I will look into the

central defensive set-ups, and how to
achieve a cohesive backline. I will
discuss common central defensive
pairing, and then the less common
central trio with the aim to create a
better defence.
You have 3 central defensive roles

and 3 central defensive duties to
choose from. The roles are as follows:
Central Defender
Limited Defender
Ball Playing Defender
and the duties are as follows:
Defend (D)
Stopper (X)
Cover (C)
The player roles are fairly similar in most respects, and defensive
distribution is the most significant difference in the roles.
The Limited Defender tends to simply clear the ball as far away from goal
as he can ensures you do not get caught in possession at the back, but it
does turn over possession to your opponents quicker and can leave you
under sustained pressure A good idea if your team does not possess the
skill to keep hold of the ball in the backline.
The Central Defender will distribute the ball to nearby teammates, helping
you keep possession in the backline, and to calmly distribute the ball to the
midfield. There is the risk of getting caught in possession at the backline,
however it can alleviate pressure on your backline by keeping the ball, and
building attacks and distributing the ball to players in the midfield capable of
influencing the game in the middle and final thirds.
The Ball Playing Defender will look to influence counter-attacking
opportunities by playing through-balls in to players wide of, or in front of
himself. He can also help the team maintain possession with his superior
passing skills and licence, although he must me fairly creative and a good
passer, otherwise you can turn over possession if your player tries overly
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ambitious passes he is not capable of.
Central Defender & Central Defender

Central Defender & Limited Defender
Limited Defender & Limited Defender
Ball Playing Defender & Central Defender
You can pair Limited Defenders as they do not affect the balance or overall
passing structure as they simply play direct, same with a pair of Central
Defenders who simply play a short passing game. The Ball Playing
Defender however plays through balls, and due to the increased creativity
should generally only be paired with just a simple Central Defender this is
because the Central Defender can help maintain possession at the back,
passing to his more creative partner instead of hoofing the ball clear like a
Limited Defender and his safety-first approach. Having 2 Ball Playing
Defenders can see your defenders playing with too much creativity, and
attempting too many risky passes.
The duties provide the variation in defensive approach, and these can
significantly change the way your defence balances. The Defend duty is the
standard approach, aiming to defend merely as guided by team instructions
on marking and pressing, holding the defensive line and winning the ball
when appropriate. It is a balance of the 2 extremes offered by the Stopper
and Cover duties.
The Stopper duty aims to step up early to engage the opposition and
quickly win the ball back. This can expose your team and open up space
for your opposition, stepping ahead of your defensive line.
The Cover duty will drop off to try and catch any players breaching the
defensive line. This can leave your opponents more time and space just in
front of your defence unopposed, but it can also prevent your opponents
from breaking through without a player to cover and track their runs,
reducing their chances of getting a clean shot away in behind.
Defend & Defend

Stopper & Cover
Stopper & Defend
Defend & Cover
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You can play most combinations of duties in the backline, however most
importantly you CANNOT play a pair of Stoppers or a pair of Covering
Defenders. The Stoppers will expose too much space in behind, and the
Covers will gift too much room in front of the defence, and fail to challenge
for the ball often enough. Both pairings can badly expose your Offside Trap
too, by either allowing room behind the full backs or behind the centre
backs, played onside by the full backs.
The Defend-Defend pairing tend to stay in line better and are significantly
better for shape retention, and playing an Offside Trap. The Stopper-Cover
pairing tends to exaggerate the best qualities of each individual, with an
aggressive defender to attack the ball early, reducing room for the
opposition forwards, and the covering defender can make up for the
aggressiveness of the Stopper with his excellent positioning and pace.
The Stopper can make up for the Covering Defenders deeper positioning
and sometimes lack of aggression by closing down the space in front of the
defence. This pairing can cause problems maintaining the Offside Trap with
the Defenders in line, allowing gaps for your opponents to exploit.
When playing 3 at the

back, you have to consider
the implications of the wide
players, and their
positioning. If your full
backs/wing backs are fairly
attack-minded then your
wide central defenders will
have to be able to cover
the space left out wide.
Having a back 3 can take a
player away from the flanks
or the central zone in the
pitch, and if this back 3 can
help with this attacking
deficit it is useful.
A Ball Playing Defender
can help out with the deficit
in creativity and Central Defenders can help retain possession. This is
worth considering, but the suitability of your players for their roles is
important. The real art with 3 at the back comes with the distribution of
roles:
Defend Defend Defend
Stopper Cover Stopper
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Cover Stopper Cover

The general theories are that you can either keep your entire defence in
line, preserving your offside trap and shape by keeping all on the Defend
duty. You can have Stoppers out wide, closing down opposition wide
players to prevent crosses coming in, leaving 2 defenders in the centre to
challenge the opponents, with the Covering defender capable of tracking
the runs of players in behind the Stoppers. You can invert this by having a
Stopper to close down space in the centre, forcing the ball to be played
wide, and Cover the balls into the channels for the opposition wide players
to chase in behind.
NOTE! Your defensive roles affect your defensive distribution, and

duties affect your defensive approach. Defend duties stay in line
better, with Stopper and Cover duties useful in tandem closing down
and tracking space and runs, but at the expense of your offside trap.
Make sure you consider the space you vacate on the flanks if you play
3 at the back, and consider your approach to possession and your
players individual capabilities when assessing your roles and duties
selection.
The aim of this guide is to help people come up with a logical selection of
instructions when selecting the roles for their team. This will advise on
some of the aspects and issues to consider when you select the roles and
duties for your team. The guide is in 4 parts, but these parts all relate to
each other, and cannot be considered in isolation. A Strikers role is closely
linked with the midfielders behind him, and the wide men, which in turn
affects the responsibilities of the full backs which can again knock on to a
central midfield pairings instructions, etc etc.
The central midfielders have a massive responsibility in the team, and
depending on your formation, have very different demands. For instance,
the central pairing within a 4-2-3-1, will be much more defensive than the
trio in a 4-3-3.
This section assumes you have a 2-man central midfield pairing in either
the DM or MC strata. This pairing will often be outnumbered in football, and
as such is required to do a lot of jobs:
Protect the defence
Link play
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Create chances
Support attacks high up the pitch
As you can tell, its a lot for 2 men to do. Without doubt, the first aspect that
must be achieved is to have some protection for the defence in the centre
this means that 1 of your 2 central midfielders will almost certainly need to
be given a defend duty. If you do not, it will be too easy for opposing teams
to simply waltz unchallenged through the centre of your team, at pace,
giving your central defenders little realistic chance of stopping them.
Having a player who sits and protects the defence is essential. Some
appropriate roles for players who sit and protect include:
Central Midfielder (Defend)
Defensive Midfielder (Defend)
Anchorman (Defend)
Half Back (Defend)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Support)
You may notice the exclusion of a Ball-Winning Midfielder he should
only be paired with an above indicated sitting midfielder, as a Ball-Winning
Midfielder does not hold position, and this can significantly expose your
team. He can be very effective defensively when paired with another more
disciplined player, and does provide late support to attacks too, although he
is hardly creative and can be simply industrious.
The Deep-Lying Playmaker (Support) you will see is included in that list,
as he can bring the ball forward, but ultimately still holds the ball up and
holds position, but he can link play and create chances too. His forays
forward with the ball are fairly rare, but can expose the team when these
break down he also sits higher up the pitch, and is more likely to break
position to challenge an opponent, so should be considered carefully
before using as your most disciplined player.
A Regista simply does not suit the role of most-disciplined player, and
must be paired with someone who will sit and protect therefore a
Ball-Winning Midfielder is unlikely to provide good positional cover due to
that tendancy to go searching to win the ball. The part of such a pairing is a
more variable role, as this player is required to try and link play, create, and
support attacks, which is not exactly an easy job. He can be a runner,
designed to link play and provide a passing option, or late surge further up
the pitch, or he can be a passer, aimed more at keeping the ball moving,
and provide a through-ball or creating a chance.
The issue without having an outright direct attack-minded player in the
midfield, is that you will leave 1 player to perform all defensive duties, and
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both are likely to become quite isolated from each other too, meaning it is
harder to hold possession or build meaningful attacks.
The most appropriate options for the sitter/runner role in the pair are
the following:
Central Midfielder (Support)
Defensive Midfielder (Support)
Regista (Support)
Box to Box Midfielder (Support)
Advanced Playmaker (Support)
Ball-Winning Midfielder (Support)
The Ball-Winning Midfielder as discussed above, has more licence to
push and hassle high up the pitch with a partner who sits in behind to keep
hold of the ball. You will notice as well the lack of a Deep Lying Playmaker
(Support) from the list he does not make enough forward runs to
seriously support the attack. As part of a 3-man midfield he will be very well
suited, but as part of a 2-man system, it will simply isolate your attack from
midfield support.
Finally to note, the Defensive Midfielder (Support) can be a very effective
runner from deep, and still provide support in the final third of the pitch, a
very useful player in a counter-attacking system, yet he still retains an
excellent defensive position, and can form a formidable pair with a
disciplined sitting midfielder.
Midfield trios are in the vast majority of cases built around a 2 and 1
triangular set up, with the single player at the base protecting the defence,
or at the head, spearheading the attack. A flat midfield trio reduces passing
options considerably, the only real benefit is making your midfield harder to
play through. So otherwise I would stick to a triangular set up. The
formation plays a large part in what is required of your central midfielders
(in a pair, or in a trio), but the 2 variants of the triangle require different set
ups.
The AM Triangle consists of DM-DM-AM or MC-MC-AM they are

fundamentally the same, but the DMs provide better protection in front of
the defence, and the MCs provide better pressing of the opposition, as
they are stationed higher up the pitch. This midfield set up consists of 2
more defensive players, and a more attacking player. In almost all central
midfields, you will require at least 1 defend duty, and 1 support duty the
addition of a 3rd duty means you can choose generally to have another
support duty or an attacking duty (the attacking duty is probably better for
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the balance of your team the sheer

fact you have 3 central midfielders
means your attack is often more
isolated, and depends more on
midfield support so the extra forward
runs are important).
If you refer back to the 4 general
duties of a central midfield, you can
specialize them a little more by
spreading the tasks around. Your AM
is a good bet for supporting attacks, and creating chances so you can
have a specialized holding player, and a linking player. You can provide a
solid base to protect your defence and begin attacks with this pair, and it
can be a little more defensive than in a 2-man midfield.
You could set it up as follows:
Central Midfielder (Defend)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend)
Anchorman (Defend)
Half Back (Defend)
Defensive Midfielder (Defend)
Ball-Winning Midfielder (Defend) as long as partnered with a DLP(S) to
cover position.
with:
Central Midfielder (Support)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Support)
Regista (Support)
Ball-Winning Midfielder (Support)
Defensive Midfielder (Support)
and in the AM position:
Advanced Playmaker (Support/Attack)
Trequartista (Attack)
Enganche (Attack)
Inside Forward (Support/Attack)
Attacking Midfielder (Support/Attack)
Note, I would recommend the Attack duties in the AM position to help the
balance of your team. But that is not to say the support roles wont work
either this depends on your set up.
So there is a way of providing adequate defensive cover, support in linking
the play, and possible overloads in the final third, and overall creativity.
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With a balanced central midfield. As I touched upon earlier in the article

though, you need to consider how each role and duty affects the other
positions. If you play with a Central Midfielder on an Attack duty, then you
will need to sacrifice an Attack duty in the forward line (either STC or
AMR/L positions) in order to balance the movement, and create link ups.
The DM Triangle is an invert of the

AM Triangle, based with a single
holding player in a good defensive
position at the bottom, and 2 more
creative players in the MC strata,
aiming to support the attacks more.
You can have an interesting false
holding player too, and have the real
defensive player sitting in the MC
strata, a dummy that you cannot use in
the AM Triangle. This would consist
of having a support role in the DM strata, and a defensive role in the MC
strata. Once again, a mix of a defend, support & attack duties would help
balance your midfield to achieve your 4 aims.
You could set up in the following ways:
Anchorman (Defend)
Half Back (Defend)
Regista (Support)
Ball-Winning Midfielder (Defend)
Defensive Midfielder (Defend/Support)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend/Support)
with:
Central Midfielder (Defend/Support)
Deep Lying Playmaker (Defend/Support)
Advanced Playmaker (Support)
Ball Winning Midfielder (Defend/Support)
Pick 1 defend duty and 1 support duty, in either position, then add 1 more
player from below, as your creative outlet.
Central Midfielder (Attack)
Advanced Playmaker (Attack)
Box to Box Midfielder (Support) *if you are insistent you do not want an
attack duty, then a Box to Box Mid will at least get forward most out of the
Support duties.
This will again help your balance your midfield. Meeting your 4 aims.
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NOTE! Your central midfield has to provide defensive cover as a first

priority, but this does not mean you can neglect the forward runs, link
play & chance creation needed too. You need to pick roles to cover all
of these. It is harder to cover them all effectively in a simple pair, so
defensive cover is the first priority, as creativity/forward runs can
come from the flanks instead, but the defensive cover cannot be
replicated on the flanks instead, so is essential.
A 3-man midfield is generally more effective in a triangular shape,
with a balance of duties. It is easier to meet all 4 aims with this type of
set-up. Your duties will knock-on to other positions though.You
cannot afford to have an AMC and STC both on an Attack duty, and
the AMR/L as well, it will isolate your attack, so balance Attack,
Support and Defend duties through different strata in your team to
create the movement and structure to help your team.
Your wide men consist of Full Backs / Wing Backs and Wide Midfielders /
Wingers. Most teams will have 2 sets of wide players, some will contain
only 1 set of wide players. Your wide players have a very varied set of roles
and encompassing all types of duties. There is a lot of potential for variation
in your team in this area of the pitch. The formation you use will
significantly impact on the choice of roles and duties in the wide areas.
A solitary wide player has more responsibilities and has to be able to
contribute to all areas of play, whereas a pair of wide players can share the
specialisation for a more balanced set up. Sacrificing wide players is a way
of having more midfielders to win the possession battle, however wide men
used well can contribute to a possession game, a creative game, or be
used for their goalscoring exploits, or even their work rate and defensive
abilities this applies to all positions down the flank. A full back who gets
into superb advanced positions is a great asset to have, as is a winger who
tracks back and makes tackles too.
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A formation consisting of lone wide players automatically begins to restrict

your roles and duties significantly. A defend duty significantly reduces the
contribution a wide man can make in a system where he is expected to get
all the way down the flanks, as well as defend. Wide men in systems with
only 1 player on the flanks typically come from the more defensive
positions, to retain a good defensive shape, but then offer an outlet as the
team moves into transition/attack phases.
A wide man in the AM strata is highly unsuitable for this job as he
exposes his team with too much space behind himself, and provides less
tracking back or help in the midfield battle. So typically the wide men will
make several forward runs, but will also tend to be in a deep enough
position to offer the defensive cover. The further forward you place your
lone wide man (i.e. wide midfielder instead of full back), the lower your duty
should generally be (support instead of attack) to ensure that the wide man
can cover and link play with your defence as well as midfield and attack.
Crucially the wide man here must do everything, so he cannot sit and
defend only, or look constantly to get into the final third and shirk his
defensive work.
Some of the appropriate roles and duties for the lone wide men roles
are:
Full Back (Attack)
Wing Back (Support/Attack)
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Complete Wing Back (Attack) *be cautious of if he offers enough

defensive cover
Wide Midfielder (Support/Attack) *be cautious if he offers enough
defensive cover on an attack duty
Defensive Winger (Support/Attack)
With a team of 2 wide

players, it offers more
room for specialism, with
players able to be selected
on being individually good
defensively, or offensively,
without having the be
particularly proficient in the
other. Playing with 2 wide
players you can approach
your allocation of roles
and duties in 1 of 2 ways;
the more traditional
pairing of 2 natural wide players, with a more attacking and a more
conservative player,
or, having the wide midfielder come inside as a goalscorer/creator/passer,
leaving the full back / wing back to provide the main attacking outlet, whilst
the wide midfielder can still offer defensive cover on the flank too.
If you play dual wide men, you should almost certainly select 1 in the full
back positions, as otherwise a wing back can leave space behind trying to
sit further forward than he needs due to the existing defensive cover
provided by a man playing in front of him. Caution should also be taken
with playing wing backs with a traditional winger, as this rarely causes the
desired overloads, and more often simply leaves 2 players upfield,
exposing your team to the counter-attack. The wing back tends to suit
having space to attack, whereas if you play a traditional winger a more
traditional full back will provide a better outball and cover.
If you wish to play with wide men that stay wide then the following
combinations will be useful:
Full Back (Support) & Wide Midfielder / Defensive Winger / Winger
(Attack)
Full Back (Attack) / Wing Back / Complete Wing Back (Attack) & Wide
Midfielder (Defend/Support) / Defensive Winger (Support) / Wide
Target Man (Support)
Full Back (Attack) & Winger (Support)
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The 1st combination is a traditional option of more defensive player behind

more offensive player, and is a very stable option.
The 2nd combination will have a player staying wide, but holding his
position / the ball far more, and can be asked to sit narrower, to provide
more space for the advancing full/wing back to move into and overlap. The
third combination is a variant on the traditional option, with the full back
pushing on to form overloads with the winger, but with 1 player sitting
deeper / narrower than the other during these moves to encourage good
link play and overlaps.
If you wish to play with the advanced wide-man coming infield, then the
following combinations will be useful:
Full Back (Attack) / Wing Back (Support / Attack) & Inside Forward /
Advanced Playmaker (Support/Attack)
Complete Wing Back (Attack) & Inside Forward / Advanced Playmaker
(Support)
The 1st combination will be for the full back to advance from deep into
space vacated by the IF/AP. If you are playing a wing back, you may have
much better movement and defensive cover by ensuring the WB & IF/AP
have opposite duties (Support-Attack or Attack-Support). If the IF or AP has
a support duty, they will tend to tuck inside earlier on, in a deeper position,
so it is important the FB/WB offers an outlet earlier on in the move.
The 2nd combination enhances the importance of this, as the CWB will
need cover from midfield & the man in front to provide tracking back,
should he be caught out of position. The CWB will tend to get into the final
third early, and an angled reverse ball into the path of an IF/AP(S) can
allow him the space to make more penetrating runs. If your IF is on an
Attack duty he will tend to be playing more as a goalscorer, so wide support
is generally required from the full back, although this burden can be eased
by a centre-forward or playmaker drifting wide to offer an outlet.
NOTE! Plan first how many wide players you are using before you
decide on their roles. If you are playing a lone wide man you cannot
afford to have them doing a defence-only job, they must offer an
outlet. Consider that they must also have a good defensive position to
begin with, or be able to track back and defend instead. Dual wide
men must work in combination, ensure they do not get in each others
way, yet are still capable of providing overlaps and overloads.
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The term strike partnerships does not simply include only the forward(s) in
the ST strata, it also includes the Wingers and Attacking Midfielders who
have a particularly close link to the Centre-Forward(s). All Strikers have a
partnership of some description, even lone forwards require supply and
link-ups of some description to function.
Football has moved from specialist to universalist theories of roles over
time, with the roles demanding more of each player, to be able to fulfill
additional requirements. The attempt to find space in modern tactics has
also necessitated the need for more unconventional partnerships too. In
this guide I will look at various types of pairing, a concept entirely
applicable all pairings, from lone forwards with AM strata support to a
simple a pair of forwards.
Many partnerships over the years have been build on getting the best out
of the physical prowess of players. A large player can provide an effective
target, holding the ball up or playing passes to a quicker team mate, or
playing him in behind instead. The larger player generally plays deeper,
flicking on the ball, winning aerial challenges, although it is possible for the
larger player to stay higher up, flicking the ball back into space or to a
teammate, coming in at pace.
The smaller player can look to break in behind or into pockets of space,
often created by the larger forward beating a defender to the ball. These
partnerships generally rely on good wide delivery & crossing from wingers
and full backs, and generally suit fairly direct tactics. There are generally
Target Man & Poacher combinations. Although an Advanced Forward can
provide a more rounded version of the Poacher, and the Bigger forward can
still be effective in a more creative role if he possesses the skills, e.g. Deep
Lying Forward or Complete Forward.
Probably the most common type of partnership in football. This can simply
be a case of 1 forward sitting slightly deeper than the other, providing his
more advanced partner with passes and through-balls to score, or
occupying defenders to allow his partner to gain more time and space. The
creator can exist as a forward, or as a midfielder instead, positioned to
assist the striker effectively. This type of system can rely on a number of
attributes, not just necessarily physical, but technical ability and mental
ability become more prevalent in cases of creative partnerships. It is a type
of football that is fairly versatile, but has a slight tendancy to suit more
creative/possession based systems as opposed to direct, attrition football
however its versatility can see it widely applied to many different systems.
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The most balanced roles for this type of partnership are Deep Lying
Forward & Advanced Forward (AF), however a Complete Forward can be
an exceptional creator or goalscorer (or both), generally shaped by his
duty. A Poacher is obviously a good goalscorer, but is less likely to feed
back in his supporting partner in space. A Trequartista is a superb creator,
and needs someone capable of attacking the space & chances he creates.
He can function from ST or AMC positions, but an Advanced Playmaker
can also be a superb deeper (& wide) creative force to supply an Advanced
Forward ahead of him.
The AF is a role that offers build-up play, as well as goalscoring ability; the
CF(A) & DLF(A) are good examples of this too. The Inside Forward can be
an excellent creator on a support duty with angled balls from out wide into a
breaking forward instead, whereas on an Attack duty, he can attack space
left by a more creative forward in a more advanced position ahead of him,
and be a prolific goalscorer.
The false nine and false

ten system are based on
the central striker dropping
deep, attempting to draw a
defender with him, or
simply allowing space for
him or a teammate to
attack and unsettle the
defence.
The false ten aspect is
the advanced midfielder
pushing from deep into the
vacated space to emerge
as a significant or main goalscoring threat. The main and obvious way of
achieving this is to select a False Nine and Shadow Striker partnership,
which will link up well in the final third, and tends to significantly suit a
possession and intricate movement based system. There are other roles
which can mimic this effect, sometimes by pulling wide instead, or simply
drifting for space.
The Trequartista in attack will naturally drift around, creating space that
players can attack, and again this can cause the central defenders the
conundrum to follow him, or allow him space. The Trequartista can drift
wide too, whereas the False Nine tends towards moving deeper.
The Deep-Lying Forward & Complete Forward (Support) will also act
similarly, but are more capable of holding the ball up, and occupying more
space higher up the pitch as opposed to constantly looking to move deep.
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They also have more defensive discipline than a Trequartista which can be
an important aspect for many managers.
In terms of alternative false ten players the Inside Forward on the
flanks can attack the space vacated by a forward dropping deep / drifting
wide, and cause the dilemma for full backs to choose to follow the player,
opening up space wide, or to leave him to the central defenders, where he
may gain space before he is even tracked.
Attacking Midfielders can push into the box to support attacking moves,
but are less suited to a prolific goalscoring role than the others outlined.
NOTE! Remember to split your duties to create good movement. Base

your attacking chances around multiple routes of attack to prevent
unifocal tactics being rendered useless by the opposition. Your
attacking partnerships and link-ups extend to the AM strata, as well
general creative & running support from deeper midfield positions
too. Have a partnership to suit your teams abilities and style of play,
and make sure you have plan B options too.
The argument of Philosophy has raged since wwfans 12-steps guide, and
it has been fairly ground-breaking, if not common sense. It helps us see the
Philosophy in a new light, it is not simply a creativity argument, it is the
debate of specialism versus universalism, something that readers of
Jonathan Wilsons Inverting the Pyramid will be familiar with.
It is an article I am covering elsewhere in the next few weeks too. In
essence a very rigid team is full of specialists, with each players job being
rather specific, whereas a very fluid team is an universal approach with all
players subscribing to the team game and instructions. Overall creative
freedom is higher in a more fluid system, because there are less specialists
to be singularly responsible for creativity. In short, if you want individual
players doing individual jobs (goalscoring, ball-winning, playmaking) then
you need a more rigid approach, or if you want a team ethic to pressing,
playmaking, etc, then go for a more fluid approach.
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Your team possession instructions are very variable. If you want a

possession orientated system, then shorter passing helps to create the
overall style, whereas ball retention acts more like the old shout, looking to
considerably reduce passing range to simply being an exercise in
ball-control, this can leave you blunt in attack, but it can also allow some of
your more creative players more time on the ball to work an opening. You
can add to this by asking your team to play out of defence, ensuring that
your team does not lose the ball lumping it upfield, trying to keep it amongst
the defence until openings into midfield become available. If you use
possession as a defensive tool, then this is quite important. However if your
possession-based team is trying to counter-attack, or simply play in a
defensive manner, trying to clear their lines, then this can be very counterproductive.
The direct passing option works in reverse to shorter passing, it aims to
move the ball from defence to attack in a swift manner, with go route one a
very direct option, to get the ball into the forward lines in an even more swift
and urgent fashion for rapid transition. You can elect to ask your team to
pump ball into box for Pulis-esque long-ball football to aim for the big
blokes up front, in the centre, or if you wish to play a quick transition down
the flanks, often in a counter-attacking style, then you can ask your team to
clear ball to flanks, to try and pick out swift dribblers to carry the ball
forward at pace. It is also a potentially useful way of getting your team to
clear their lines late in the game to hold onto a result.
You can modify the use of possession further, by indicating if you want to
play more through balls in behind a defence, with the pass into space
option, which works well against a high line. If your opponents sit rather
deep you can try and unsettled them by asking your team to run at
defence, in the hope of drawing some space or wriggling through a
compact line. You can also ask your team to either wait for a perfect
opening to score, or to try their luck whenever possible; work ball into box
asks your team to not waste possession with pot-shots, but shoot on sight
asks your team to make the most of any opportunity, useful if you are
struggling to create any chances, often through a compact defence, or wish
to test a weakness in the opposition goalkeeper.
Your teams use of crosses is important in possession-terms too.
Traditionally quick forwards can be aimed for if you drill crosses, this is
simply to get something at the end of it, and aims for a nippy forward to get
ahead of the defender at the near post to nudge the ball in. This delivery is
often better from the byline, or at least no further from the byline than the
edge of the penalty area, as the ball is meant to be low and quick. You can
make the most of a tall forward if you float crosses, which gives the larger
player time to set himself and attack the ball at its highest point, potentially
beating a shorter defender, often this is delivered from deeper so it can
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hang in the air, and also because it does not require much pace on the ball.
You can also hit early crosses, which means floating crosses from much
deeper, this can support a direct style of play, and it can help get the ball to
your forwards from wide if your wide-men are struggling to get past their
opponent, allowing them space and time to find their teammate.
Penetration refers to how you break through an opposing backline. Certain

formations; with central playmakers, runners from deep and forwards on
the shoulder of the defence suit playing through the middle. If you have a
numerical advantage in the middle, it makes sense to exploit it, as it does if
your chief playmaker is in a central position too. You may have a solid, but
unspectacular central midfield, or a numerical disadvantage of a 2-man
midfield pairing, so the majority of creativity will come from your wide-men
and their passing, crossing and/or dribbling abilities, in which case exploit
the flanks is a more pertinent point, especially if you are playing a wide
playmaker as your only midfield playmaker to ensure he gets on the ball.
You can exploit left flank, or exploit right flank if you wish to take
advantage of a weak opponent, a formation weakness, such as lone
wide-men, or to mask your own weakness down a certain flank. Exploiting
a single, or both flanks can be very effective in a counter-attacking system
for rapid transition. If you face a compact defence you can look for
overlap to try and create numerical overloads in wide positions, which can
help create space for teammates and get more balls into the centre from
wide positions. It relies on good energy and delivery from wide, but can be
very effective at breaking down a stubborn defence, although it can blunt
the directness of your wide-men who tend to hold the ball up and wait for
support and combination play instead, this can be a big problem if you like
your wide-men coming into central attacking positions in the final phase of
a build-up.
Your teams shape is partly inherent within your formation; i.e. central
midfield dominance, high pitch coverage, a low block, a wide midfield strata
all caused by what formation you use. Your shape affects both the way
you attack and the way you defend.
If you play wider you can often look to stretch the pitch and use more of its
width, but it can also cause your defence to sit wider too and create holes,
although sometimes that can give good pitch coverage if you want to press
heavily all over the pitch. If you play narrower you can compact play into
central areas, this can make you easier to defend narrow against in return,
but creates less holes between your defenders. A high or low narrow block
can both be effective defensive tools, depending on your opponents and
approach.
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Your defensive line looks at how high your team sits up the pitch, ranging
from a push higher up & much higher defensive line to compact play
into the central third of the pitch, leaving little room for your opponents, and
in the case of slow forwards, forcing them to rely on pace they do not have,
to drop deeper & much deeper defensive line to sit closer to goal,
leaving little room in behind for quick forwards, but taller forwards may
profit from this. This leaves more room in the midfield area too, but can be
used to draw opponents closer to you, opening up room to counter-attack
into.
You can ask your players to roam from position, which can cause
overloads or get your players drifting into areas of the pitch with space to
cause problems and receive the ball. The downside is that your players can
get caught out of position defensively. Conversely, you can ask your
players to stick to position, but that can make them easier to be marked
out of the game, although it provides a more solid defensive structure. You
can allow wide players to swap positions, which has the added link-up
with setting individual player instructions and roles, allowing you to swap
your left and right-footed wingers to get them to go round the outside of
your opponents instead of trying to come inside them. This works well if
you maybe want to exploit space round the outside of a packed defence
before your opponents can react, and vice versa.
Defending links very closely with shape, if you have a high block, then
using an offside trap can help negate the problems of being caught in
behind by fast players, although it can be hard to make the trap work if you
use a Stopper-Cover split, or a Sweeper in behind. The high block also
works very closely when you hassle opponents, to reduce their time and
space, in an already compacted area. If you wish to specifically prevent
individual players from getting any space, then tight marking or specific
man marking can enhance this. If you prefer a low block and remaining
compact, then the offside trap is far less effective, as there is less chance
being caught in behind, and can allow players space closer to your goal. A
particularly shape-focused team can choose to stand off opponents, not
closing down the opposition, and simply being hard to play through instead,
although this can leave your team long periods without having the ball, it
preserves more energy.
Your tackling strategies link closely with pressing and shape too if you
want to press high then get stuck in is more appropriate as it again,
reduces time and space for your opponents, but it can concede a lot of free
kicks, and quick, agile players can ride the challenge and find themselves
in space. If you wish to stay on feet, then this is more appropriate in a low
block where you try and keep shape. If you do not press in a high block,
then the opponents have time to simply play a quick forward in behind.
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Your tempo is linked heavily with passing style a team that plays in a
direct manner will look to transition the ball swiftly from back to front, and
that requires a high tempo, to increase the urgency. A short-passing style is
much more considered, and works best with a low tempo, waiting for the
opportunity, rather than forcing it. Occasionally mixing tempo can help your
short-passing into quick combinations to earn some space, and sometimes
you can play a direct game, involving simply taking a few moments longer
to spot the run from deep if a teammate.
However, the general rule is short passing + low tempo and direct passing
+ high tempo. Your teams creative freedom, to adhere to instructions more,
or make their own decisions as they see fit is allowed too. You can allow
your team to be more expressive, if you trust their creativity and decision
making more, or be more disciplined if you prefer them to play simply as
instructed. This ties in with philosophy (above).
You can ask your team to take a breather, to rest with the ball, useful in
physically demanding games (depending on conditions, intensity etc), and
in a more defensive strategy to waste time, a typical tactic late in the game,
when holding a result. You can also ask your team to take more risks
when overloading in search of a goal, allowing highly enhanced decision
making and attacking intent. Conversely you can ask your team to play
even safer to take less risks and simply keep the ball out of your own net
i.e. not double-Cruyff turns on the edge of your own penalty area with 3
attackers close by.
You can read part 7 of the Pairs and Combinations article about how
llama3 builds his team and put all knowledge from above together for
creating a better Football Manager Tactics in the chapter about Building
My Team.
Published: 07.12.2014
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This article was written by the SI moderator Llama3. Passion4FM would

like to thank him for writing this excellent Football Manager guide on
pairs and player role combinations in Football Manager and for letting
us re-distribute it on our website to our audience.
The original version of this Football Manager guide can be found on Sports
Interactive Community forum Sigames.com. There is also an updated
version for Football Manager 2015 which you can read/ download by .pdf
file above. The original thread for the the complete guide to Football
Manager 2015 player role combinations and duty pairs can be found here.
Passion4FM encourage you to use the comment field on the original thread
if you got any questions to the author.
Tags: Fluidity & Duties, FM14, FM15, Mentality, Tactical Discussions
Espen manages Passion for Football Manager

with his unique vision providing the Football
Manager community with excellent tips & tricks
since 2012. The admin of Passion4FM is a real
sports junkie who follows all kinds of sport,
particularly football and cycling. The Football
Manager veteran's main interests are football
tactics, spotting new emerging talents and youth development.
Website: http://www.passion4fm.com/
13/02/2015 16:38
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Home / Football Manager Football Manager 2014 Football Manager

Football Manager, Football Manager

2014, Football Manager 2015, Football Manager Guides and Tutorials,

This guide serves a great appendix to another comprehensive Football

Your goalkeeper has several options for distribution. He can act as a

A defender collect option

A quick throwing option supports a more direct counter-attacking approach,

For the next part I will look into the

You have 3 central defensive roles

ambitious passes he is not capable of.

Central Defender & Central Defender

Defend & Defend

When playing 3 at the

Cover Stopper Cover

NOTE! Your defensive roles affect your defensive distribution, and

The AM Triangle consists of DM-DM-AM or MC-MC-AM they are

the balance of your team the sheer

With a balanced central midfield. As I touched upon earlier in the article

The DM Triangle is an invert of the

NOTE! Your central midfield has to provide defensive cover as a first

A formation consisting of lone wide players automatically begins to restrict

Complete Wing Back (Attack) *be cautious of if he offers enough

With a team of 2 wide

The 1st combination is a traditional option of more defensive player behind

The false nine and false

NOTE! Remember to split your duties to create good movement. Base

Your team possession instructions are very variable. If you want a

Penetration refers to how you break through an opposing backline. Certain

This article was written by the SI moderator Llama3. Passion4FM would

Tags: Fluidity & Duties, FM14, FM15, Mentality, Tactical Discussions

Espen manages Passion for Football Manager

Private: Football Manager

Pep Guardiolas Tactical

Top 10 Football Manager

Football Manager 2015

SHARE YOUR FOOTBALL

FM15 New York City

Are you a passionate Football

Passion for Football Manager

Manager fans or an aspiring

gives YOU an unique insight to

sport journalist? Do you like to

the wonderful world of Football

broadcast your opinions and

Manager, so you can enjoy the

Football Manager series even

Join Passion4FM's Author

The #1 Football Manager blog

program! Write football related

gives you all the resources and

articles or share your best

tools which lets you succeed.

Football Manager tips and your

Read High Quality Football

love for the game. Guest Writing

Manager Guides, Tutorials &

your own football website / blog

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