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FM23 tactics guide

We’ve gathered together all the best ways to craft FM23 tactics as well as some good research tools to find the most popular tactical setups out there.

FM23 tactics: numerous football players in purple kits high fiving and celebrating in the middle of a large, well-lit stadium.

FM23 tactics are the most vital part of playing the Excel spreadsheet of FIFA games. Bad tactics? You’re gonna lose, have no fun, and want to turn off the game. Good tactics? Then maybe you can win the Champions League with Wycombe Wanderers like I did when I was 9 years old!

So, head below to check out our personal tips for crafting your favourite tactics, as well as our favourite research tools to find player-made setups. For some other advice, check out our FM23 mobile, FM23 wonderkids, and FIFA 23 ratings to make sure you’re a football pro no matter where you go.

FM23 tactics explained

There are a handful of fundamental parts to FM23 tactics, all of which you need to fully understand before embarking on a wild climb through the Blue Square to the Barclays.

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Mentality

You use this tool to tell your team how you want them to play. There’s ‘very defensive’ and ‘defensive’ for more conservative play, ‘cautious’ for careful and balanced, ‘balanced’ for, uhh, I’m sure you can guess, ‘positive’ for slightly attacking balanced play, and ‘attacking’ and ‘very attacking’ if you want to go all out.

Formation

It is vital to pick the right formation in FM23. There’s not necessarily a right answer, but you need to pick one that works with the players in your squad, can be successful against the majority of teams you’re going to face, and is flexible enough if you need to change mentality or get a lot of injuries. You should, of course, train other formations too, so your team can get used to them.

Player instructions

Player instructions can be a little overwhelming, but luckily they’re also super legible. Within the menu, you can change the way an individual player plays depending on if your team is attacking or defending. There are a load of descriptors and different options and becoming accustomed to them is key.

Team Instructions

Team instructions are broader directions – like team pressing, offside trap etc. – to continue to fine-tune your team’s play style. In general, it’s a good idea to play quite wide and not have too high a back line, though this is by no means guaranteed.

How do I download FM23 tactics?

There are numerous services out there that can help you find player-made tactics if you’re struggling to find success. My personal favourite is FM Scout, one I’ve used for years, though FM Base also has a nice, easy-to-use layout.

With this as a foundation, you can charge forth and become an FM tactics master in no time. For something a little less challenging, check out our One Fruit Simulator codes if you like Roblox.