The Best FM 23 Tactics: Attack, Defense and Possession

Football Manager has come a long way from the days when we celebrated goals just by watching text commentary, and it has improved the game incredibly. Football Manager 2023 (FM23) is out, the latest entry in the Football Manager series that's practically the only stop for anyone into football management. With excitement for the new season just getting started, I'm going to talk about the strongest tactics in FM 23. I've split the strongest FM 23 tactics into attacking, balanced play, and defense. You can use them comfortably depending on your opponent or your own footballing philosophy.

To help with that, I've put together this guide covering the best tactics for FM23. I've also broken down some basic principles for building your own tactics from your own ideas.

The Strongest FM 23 Tactics 2023!

The Strongest FM 23 Defensive Tactic 2023

In FM's more recent updates, managers tend to set up a deeper defensive block, meet pressure further back, and try to catch the opposing defense off guard with quick counters, so playing defense-heavy can be a good way to avoid taking risks and keep your job secure.

We know defensive systems are becoming a more viable tactical philosophy in FM23, so setting up deep and approaching through counter-attacks isn't a bad idea at all!

What Should the Strongest FM 23 Defensive Formation Look Like?

4-3-3 DM Wide (4-3-3 Defensive Midfielder Wide) is one of the most commonly used defensive formations in FM.

Keeping the heart of your defense solid at all times, placing a player in the DM (defensive midfielder) role to reduce the defensive contribution needed from your other, higher-pressing midfielders, will go a long way toward maintaining the width of the pitch and keeping clean sheets.

On top of that, playing with just a single striker and keeping him positioned high will make the opponent's counter-attacks less effective.

Which Tactics Does It Make More Sense to Use the Strongest FM23 Defensive Tactic Against?

It can comfortably be used against all tactical systems, including 4-4-2, 3-5-2 and 4-1-3-2.

What Instructions Should Be Given for the Strongest FM 23 Defensive Tactic?

Playing with a defensive mentality will help your players sit deeper and narrower, closing down tighter but more effective spaces.

For example, applying tight marking will make it harder for the opponent to find passing options. This is a higher-risk instruction, but since you'll have plenty of players waiting deeper within the shape, even if one player loses his marker, the gap you leave will still be small.

That's why tight marking and playing close to your opponent will make things easier.

Other ways to balance out a defensive mentality include tackling harder and/or having the odd player close down more. If you combine additional low-risk instructions with a defensive mentality, you can end up being very passive without the ball. After all, you need to win the ball back through tackles or interceptions to launch a counter-attack.

To balance your defensive approach a bit, you need to tackle hard and play man-to-man. This way, you'll be able to win the ball back immediately and break into counter-attacks.

As with team instructions, balancing support and attack duties among your individual instructions will make some of your players willing to take certain risks, such as passing, dribbling, and forward runs.

A common mistake among managers is switching to a defensive mentality to protect a lead when they have 4 or 5 attack-minded players on the pitch. In that case, you're inviting the opponent to press and push into your penalty area against a defense that isn't particularly good at defending. (don't do this!)

Which Player Types Should Be Used in the Strongest FM 23 Defensive Tactic?

Whatever your tactical approach, having players who can actually execute it is absolutely essential. A solid, well-thought-out tactic won't be worth a thing if it's made up of the wrong types of players!

If you don't have all the players you need to carry out your ideas, the transfer market should be your best friend. A good FM23 scouting guide is a great way to start finding the right types of players for your dream squad.

In terms of the player types you'll need for a defensive tactic, the attributes you should look for in your players will be things like tackling, anticipation, concentration, positioning and teamwork.

Since you'll be allowing the opponent into transitional positions, it's important for your defenders to be strong in the air. Because you leave very little space behind your defenders, the opponent will try to test your goal with aerial balls, and that's exactly when you'll be able to comfortably clear those situations with defenders who dominate in the air.

Midfielders and forwards with low teamwork and work rate won't chase down the opponent effectively, so instead of a talented-but-lazy player, more hardworking, team-oriented players will add character to your side.

If you have talented-but-lazy players like the ones I just mentioned in your squad, I'd recommend fielding no more than 1, maximum 2 of them.

The Strongest FM 23 Possession Tactic 2023

Systems built around dominating possession should either hold onto the ball exceptionally well, win it back at every opportunity, or both. Here, we'll focus on the first one.

What Should the Strongest FM 23 Possession Formation Look Like?

Formations suited to possession football should fill the center of the pitch and play close to teammates to make it easy to always provide support to the player on the ball. 4-4-2 diamond, 4-1-3-2 or 4-3-1-2 all offer 4 central midfielders who can be set up to support the right or left flanks and who can link defense and attack, which makes such tactics always great for possession. Even with 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 tactics, you can dominate the center of the pitch when your wide players are instructed to move the ball into more central areas!

What Instructions Should Be Given for the Strongest FM 23 Possession Tactic?

Because of the incredible possession-based mentality Guardiola applied at teams like Barcelona and Manchester City, and the huge number of goals it produced, people have tended to associate high-possession tactics with attacking football, but playing possession football is actually a relatively lower-risk approach compared to direct attacking football.

You'll notice that FM's in-game "possession" tactic doesn't use an attacking mentality. Instead, it favors a balanced approach. This makes players more conservative on the ball and lets them pass patiently until they find a gap in the opponent, which in turn means they take fewer risks.

When De Bruyne gets the ball, he's instructed to be more creative, because he might just be the best in the world at that! If those instructions are given to less talented players, it can throw off the whole system, because a player you give freedom to attack has a much smaller margin for error than other players. You get much better results running this tactic with a talented player tasked with quick, direct passes in attack!

Other features of the possession tactic include wide players carrying the ball into the center, which allows play to go from the center out to the flanks instead of the wide player having to battle the opposing winger or full-back.

Which Player Types Should Be Used in the Strongest FM 23 Possession Tactic?

I want to remind you upfront that possession football is a very demanding choice in terms of player attributes.

Technically, first touch, passing and technique are essential for nearly every player, especially your central midfielders.

Mentally, players will need anticipation, composure, concentration, decisions, teamwork, off the ball movement and vision.

This skill set lets players move intelligently to get themselves ready to receive the ball, bring it under control quickly, and then make the right decisions and passes even under heavy pressure.

If you can't get the ball into midfield, a possession tactic breaks down very quickly, so it's just as important that your defenders also have many of these same attributes.

A squad built this way will have the right DNA. From there, you can turn your attention to other areas. After all, you still need to be able to defend, battle, create, and score goals!

The Strongest FM 23 Direct Attacking Tactic 2023

Direct football is set up to attack with as little fuss as possible and get at the opposing goal quickly. It's an approach often used by less talented teams looking to make the most of a limited, specific set of attributes in their players.

From an FM 23 standpoint, both a direct passing style and a balanced or more attack-minded team mentality suit this kind of system.

What Should the Strongest FM 23 Direct Attacking Formation Look Like?

Formations that naturally position attacking players at the front end of the pitch, like 4-2-3-1 or 4-2-4, are very well suited to direct football. This style of tactic means players are in position to receive the ball earlier in transitions (direct passing), before the opponent has a chance to fully reset into their defensive shape.

Twin-striker tactics like 4-4-2, 3-5-2 or 4-1-3-2 can also be effective options. 4-4-2 is a less vertical attacking template since it's easier to stretch the game horizontally, while 3-5-2 and 4-1-3-2 are better suited than 4-4-2 for playing more direct attacking football.

Which Player Types Should Be Used in the Strongest FM 23 Direct Attacking Tactic?

The most useful roles here are wide players who can quickly play the ball out to the flanks as soon as they receive it and support with early passes and crosses! (players like Mané, Sané, Gnabry, Sterling)

Picking a striker as your target man to win headers lets you hold the ball up in attack straight from a goalkeeper's clearance and bypass the entire midfield with a single ball. I'd recommend playing him alongside a fast forward who's well positioned around your target man, can make quick decisions, and makes runs in behind. Adding another player of a similar type to that forward in your midfield will also let him get on the scoresheet.

Playmaker and possession roles aren't very well suited to direct systems since they slow down direct play, but a deep-lying playmaker who plays accurate long balls from deep can be effective. (Xabi Alonso, back in the day, was one of the best at exactly this)

Setting up your players for a direct system tends to work well with a more advanced group of attack-minded players. For example, a winger given an attacking duty in front of a support full-back. Direct play is about advanced runners quickly getting in behind by receiving longer passes as they're setting up their run.

Which Player Types Should Be Used in the Strongest FM 23 Direct Attacking Tactic?

Direct tactics work better with one-dimensional squads because they focus on what players are good at and minimize the behaviors they're weak at. Physical attributes are king here, plain and simple!

Acceleration, agility, balance and pace are crucial for wide players and fast forwards, while balance, jumping reach and strength are key for the forward you play as a target man.

Add a bit of stamina training for your midfielders and work on making your best attackers faster and more agile. Even a touch of natural fitness work can help players avoid injuries and be ready again for the next match.

Mentally, you'll need traits like determination, teamwork and work rate, while aggression and bravery will matter for your forward players and midfielders.

Technical attributes matter less for this style of football, but it doesn't hurt if some of your players (wide players especially) have good dribbling and crossing ability, and if a central midfielder also has strong technical quality!

Boost Your Team's Goals from Corners with the FM 24 Corner Tactic!

The old corner routine creation screen felt like a mix of outdated interfaces and was a bit messy. This year, though, it's had a fresh coat of paint and has been completely redesigned. While these changes have been very well received, corners, free kicks and throw-ins have also become much more important with the new features that came along with them. With the FM 24 corner tactic, you can add even more goals to your tally!

Start the Game 1-0 Up with the Best FM 24 Tactics!

Knowing the best FM 24 tactics has always mattered a lot, both at the start of the game and further into your save. Knowing the best FM 24 tactics and formations, especially the ones you should use early in the game, will let you start the game 1-0 up.

Build the Youngest Squad Around with the FM 24 Youth Development Tactic!

Looking for tips on developing young talent in Football Manager 2024 (FM24)? If you pick up a star wonderkid every year and can't figure out why you're not finding great players with real potential, that can be pretty frustrating. Luckily, there are a few changes you can make to boost your chances of having a golden generation and the stars of tomorrow's starting XI.