Tactics Players Guides

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Built by someone who had too much extra time on their hands after FM 25 was cancelled

Striker Profiles

Poacher, Complete Forward, False 9, Pressing Forward, Target Man. The striker role is the load-bearing piece for everything else: a False 9 changes what your wide forwards have to do, a Pressing Forward changes what your defensive line is allowed to be.

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Filter by position

Showing 91–108 of 108

Lorenzo Lucca

ST • Target Forward • Support

Excellent Heading and Jumping Reach make him a strong aerial threat.

Good Strength and Balance allow him to hold up the ball effectively.

Shoots With PowerPlays With Back To GoalTries Long Range Free Kicks

Francesco Camarda

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and Off the Ball make him a lethal striker.

Strong Physical attributes like Acceleration and Pace suit an attacking role.

Plays Short Simple PassesShoots With PowerAttempts Overhead Kicks

Baba Ghafouri

ST • False Nine • Support

Exceptional finishing and first touch make him lethal in front of goal.

High anticipation and off the ball movement allow him to exploit spaces effectively.

Gets Into Opposition AreaMoves Into ChannelsTries Killer Balls Often

Bayer LeverkusenIran

Michal Michalik

ST • Poacher • Attack

High Finishing and Off the Ball make him a natural goal scorer.

Good Pace and Acceleration allow him to exploit defensive gaps.

Tries First Time Shots

MFK DubnicaSlovakia

Unknown Player

ST • Poacher • Attack

High Finishing and Composure make him effective in front of goal.

Strong Off the Ball movement to find space.

Places ShotsLikes Ball Played Into Feet

Unknown Player

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and Off the Ball make him a threat in attacking positions.

Good Pace and Acceleration allow him to exploit defensive lines.

Runs With Ball Through CentreKnocks Ball Past Opponent

GloucesterEnglish

Braiden Graham

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and First Touch make him effective in scoring positions.

Strong Acceleration and Pace allow him to exploit defensive gaps.

Unknown Player

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Dribbling and Finishing make him a threat in front of goal.

Strong Off the Ball movement allows him to find space effectively.

Ipswich (on loan from Liverpool)Irish

Bradley Ihionvien

ST • Pressing Forward • Attack

Strong physical attributes like Strength and Acceleration make him effective in pressing and challenging defenders.

Good Finishing and Determination support his ability to score and maintain high work rate.

ColchesterEnglish

Enrique Herrero

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

Strong finishing and first touch make him effective in scoring positions.

Good dribbling and pace allow him to take on defenders.

ColchesterSpanish

Dragutin Beljan

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and Dribbling make him effective in front of goal.

Strong Off the Ball movement aids in creating scoring opportunities.

Runs With Ball Through CentreShoots With PowerLikes To Try To Beat Offside Trap

Schalke 04Croatian

Callum Wilson

ST • Shadow Striker • Attack

High Finishing and Off the Ball make him a potent goal threat.

Strong Work Rate and Acceleration aid in pressing and quick transitions.

Likes To Round KeeperKnocks Ball Past OpponentTries Tricks

West HamEnglish

Barou Shouei

ST • Deep Lying Forward • Support

Strong technical skills in Dribbling, Finishing, and Technique.

Good mental attributes like Composure and Off the Ball movement.

Paupol Mputu

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and Composure make him a clinical striker.

Strong Pace and Acceleration allow him to exploit defensive lines.

Eddie Nketiah

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Dribbling and Finishing make him effective in front of goal.

Strong Off the Ball movement allows him to find space.

Moves Into ChannelsKnocks Ball Past Opponent

Leeds UtdEnglish

Samu Aghehowa

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Finishing and Composure make him a lethal goal scorer.

Strong Off the Ball movement helps him find space effectively.

Runs With Ball Down RightPlaces ShotsPlays With Back To Goal

FC PortoNigeria

Esedin

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

High Dribbling and Finishing make him a threat in front of goal.

Excellent Off the Ball movement to exploit spaces.

Places ShotsLikes To Try To Beat Offside TrapRuns With Ball Often

Sturm GrazArgentina

Erling Haaland

ST • Advanced Forward • Attack

Exceptional Finishing and Heading make him a lethal goal scorer.

High Off the Ball and Anticipation allow him to find space effectively.

Likes To Try To Beat Offside TrapKnocks Ball Past OpponentGets Crowd Going

Man CityNorwegian

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Pick a position, read the role theory first

The cards above are uploaded player profiles. If you're trying to figure out which role a player should be playing (or which type of player your tactic actually needs), start with the articles below. Each bucket links to the guides that explain the role distribution, the pairings that work, and the antipatterns that don't. Recent community uploads in each position are listed underneath.

Centre-backs

Stopper, Cover, BPD: every back four is a triangulation between aggression, recovery, and progression. Pairings here decide how high your line can hold and whether you keep clean sheets against pace.

Player pairings

Centre-Back Pairings

Stopper-Cover, BPD-CD, two BPDs. How centre-back duties shape your defensive shape.

12 min readRead

Defensive Line and Line of Engagement

The pairing rule for Defensive Line and Line of Engagement, all 9 combinations, and the gap that costs goals.

12 min readRead

Reading FM Attributes for Tactical Fit

The 13/15/17 working tiers in FM, hidden attributes that scouting won't show, and the per-role priorities that actually matter.

12 min readRead

Recruitment by Tactical Fit

Scout for system fit, not stat stars. The shortlist filters in FM that map to your tactic, and the role-attribute matrix to use.

12 min readRead

Recent centre-backs from the community

Semir Salahovic — Sassuolo
Matteo Rosati — Galatasaray
Sergio Ramos — Slavia
Martin Harrison — Millwall

Browse all (77) centre-backs

Full-backs and wing-backs

The position whose duty changes the entire shape of the team. Attacking full-backs turn 4-4-2 into 2-4-4 in possession; defensive full-backs let your front three stay aggressive without leaving the centre-backs alone.

Player pairings

Full-Back and Winger Pairings

Overlap, underlap, IF + attacking WB. The same-channel rule for full-back and winger pairings, and the cases where it doesn't apply.

12 min readRead

Wing Play vs Central Play

Build through the wide areas or through the middle? A working framework for picking the right one for your squad.

10 min readRead

Defensive midfielders

Anchor, Half-Back, DLP, Regista, BWM. Each one solves a different problem and creates a different gap. Pick the wrong one and your back four has nobody screening them.

Player pairings

Midfield Pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2

Double pivots and flat pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2: when each pairing works, when it collapses, and the AMC unicorn that rescues both.

12 min readRead

Player pairings

Midfield Trios

Holder, runner, creator: the role distribution rule for three-man midfields, the AMC variants, and the antipatterns that break them.

12 min readRead

Central midfielders

The role that does the most invisible work. Box-to-Box, Mezzala, Carrilero, Roaming Playmaker: the right pick depends on what the players around them are doing as much as the player's own attributes.

Player pairings

Midfield Trios

Holder, runner, creator: the role distribution rule for three-man midfields, the AMC variants, and the antipatterns that break them.

12 min readRead

Player pairings

Midfield Pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2

Double pivots and flat pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2: when each pairing works, when it collapses, and the AMC unicorn that rescues both.

12 min readRead

Attacking midfielders

The number ten lives in the half-space behind the striker. Trequartista, Enganche, Shadow Striker, AP: each variant trades creativity for off-ball discipline differently, and your midfield pivot has to pick up the slack accordingly.

Player pairings

Midfield Trios

Holder, runner, creator: the role distribution rule for three-man midfields, the AMC variants, and the antipatterns that break them.

12 min readRead

Player pairings

Midfield Pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2

Double pivots and flat pairs in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2: when each pairing works, when it collapses, and the AMC unicorn that rescues both.

12 min readRead

Wingers and wide midfielders

Inside Forward, Inverted Winger, traditional Winger, Wide Playmaker. The choice is whether the wide player attacks the half-space or hugs the touchline, and whether your full-back is the one providing width or not.

Player pairings

Full-Back and Winger Pairings

Overlap, underlap, IF + attacking WB. The same-channel rule for full-back and winger pairings, and the cases where it doesn't apply.

12 min readRead

Wing Play vs Central Play

Build through the wide areas or through the middle? A working framework for picking the right one for your squad.

10 min readRead

Strikers

Poacher, Complete Forward, False 9, Pressing Forward, Target Man. The striker role is the load-bearing piece for everything else: a False 9 changes what your wide forwards have to do, a Pressing Forward changes what your defensive line is allowed to be.

Player pairings

Striker Partnerships in FM

Target Man and Poacher, False 9 and Inside Forward: the striker partnerships that solve isolation, plus the pairings that contradict.

12 min readRead

Gegenpressing: A Full Guide

Klopp-style gegenpressing in FM, including squad profile, line-and-press pairing, sustainable workload, and the antipatterns to avoid.

12 min readRead

Foundations

Mentality, Duty & Roles

How Mentality, Duty, and Role interact in FM, why duty trumps mentality every time, and the role-on-top-of-duty composition rules.

12 min readRead

Recruitment by Tactical Fit

Scout for system fit, not stat stars. The shortlist filters in FM that map to your tactic, and the role-attribute matrix to use.

12 min readRead

Recent full-backs and wing-backs from the community

Clinton Bassong — ADO Den Haag
Lee Jung-Hyung — Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
David Kalem — Osijek
Francisco Ortega — Olympiacos

Browse all (62) full-backs and wing-backs

Foundations

Mentality, Duty & Roles

How Mentality, Duty, and Role interact in FM, why duty trumps mentality every time, and the role-on-top-of-duty composition rules.

12 min readRead

Pressing Triggers and Intensity

Counter-Press, Regroup, Stand Off, Trigger Press: what each pressing instruction does in FM and how to pair them without contradicting.

12 min readRead

Recent defensive midfielders from the community

Samuel Gustafson — Galatasaray SK
Đorđe Stojković — Empoli
Michael Macrory — Millwall Reserves
Benjamin de Boer — Vaduz

Browse all (72) defensive midfielders

Foundations

Mentality, Duty & Roles

How Mentality, Duty, and Role interact in FM, why duty trumps mentality every time, and the role-on-top-of-duty composition rules.

12 min readRead

Recruitment by Tactical Fit

Scout for system fit, not stat stars. The shortlist filters in FM that map to your tactic, and the role-attribute matrix to use.

12 min readRead

Recent central midfielders from the community

Iban Arroyo — Athletic Club
Fabien Girard — AFC Metz
Hugo Sorbetky — SK Slavia Prague
Andrés Iniesta — Barcelona

Browse all (94) central midfielders

Playing styles

Tiki-Taka vs Positional Play

Why circulation density and zonal occupation aren't the same thing in FM, and the half-space occupation rule that decides build-up.

12 min readRead

Reading FM Attributes for Tactical Fit

The 13/15/17 working tiers in FM, hidden attributes that scouting won't show, and the per-role priorities that actually matter.

12 min readRead

Recent attacking midfielders from the community

Francisco Costa
Unknown Player — Chelsea
Rodrigo Amaral — Univ. de Chile
Shohei Kawada — Fukushima

Browse all (50) attacking midfielders

Playing styles

Gegenpressing: A Full Guide

Klopp-style gegenpressing in FM, including squad profile, line-and-press pairing, sustainable workload, and the antipatterns to avoid.

12 min readRead

Recruitment by Tactical Fit

Scout for system fit, not stat stars. The shortlist filters in FM that map to your tactic, and the role-attribute matrix to use.

12 min readRead

Recent wingers and wide midfielders from the community

Thiago Messi — Inter Miami
Craig Tudor — Burton
Szymon Garbacz — AS Roma
Daniel Rotllan — AS Roma

Browse all (127) wingers and wide midfielders

Playing styles

Counter-Attacking Excellence

Sit deep, win the ball, and break in three passes. The roles, instructions, and squad profile that make it work.

11 min readRead

Recruitment by Tactical Fit

Scout for system fit, not stat stars. The shortlist filters in FM that map to your tactic, and the role-attribute matrix to use.

12 min readRead

Recent strikers from the community

Jeffrey de Haan — Barcelona B
Unknown Player — Barcelona
Harvey Hall
Vitor Roque — ATP

Browse all (108) strikers