As the Team of the Season event commences, players in EA FC 24 are gearing up to push their limits and climb to higher ranks. To succeed, it's imperative to shed bad habits and rectify mistakes. In this guide, we'll highlight 4 critical errors you may have been making and provide easy solutions to fix them.

Push Defenders Out Of Position

Heading into the discussion of pushing Defenders out of position, let's address a critical mistake in defense: pulling Defenders out of their positions. When you recklessly push out with your wing back, you create an open space that the Winger can exploit, potentially leaving your defense vulnerable. It's essential to recognize when you could have defended a dribbler with your Midfielder instead of breaking the defensive shape.

While it may seem tempting to confront the opponent by bringing your Defender closer and standing in front of them, it's a high-risk move, especially if the Defender is the last line of defense. A simple pass can exploit the gap created, leading to a conceded goal. To avoid this, assess the situation and consider if you have a Midfielder available to defend. If not, maintain a safe distance from the attacker and use the jockey button to stand firm.

By staying disciplined and not rushing out for a challenge, prevent the opponent from exploiting the man's advantage. Instead, you can anticipate the pass and position yourself to intercept or mark potential receivers. By analyzing the situation and moving the Defender back without breaking the defensive shape, you can effectively cover the potential threat.

In contrast, when the opponent carelessly pushes forward, it gives you an advantage. Instead of taking unnecessary risks, focus on defending strategically, anticipating the opponent's moves and positioning the Defender to mitigate the threat effectively. This disciplined approach minimizes the opponent's chances and enhances the team's defensive solidity.

Pay Attention To The Defender

One of the most common mistakes is failing to pay attention to the selected Defender. If you overlook their defensive intentions, you risk losing possession easily. It's crucial to monitor them and avoid forcing plays in the direction they're defending. Even if you believe they're covering one side, you must stay focused because their intentions can change rapidly. By neglecting to observe and react, they'll gain the upper hand with each touch on the ball.

You need to recognize the FC 24 Player with the icon above their head and anticipate their next move. For instance, when preparing to pass, you notice that the opponent has selected a Defender in front of us. As the ball travels, we need to keep an eye on them. Seeing that they persist in defending with the player rather than switching, you can anticipate a defensive challenge because of the acceleration.

Instead of advancing the ball, which would lead to interception, pull it back, evade the challenge, and create space ahead. As you push the ball forward, the opponent switches to a new Defender, advancing step by step. Anticipating either a tackle or jockeying, retract the ball again, exploit the failed tackle, and easily bypass them to score. Outplaying the opponent's anticipation becomes effortless when you're confident in your approach.

Understand The Intention Of Opponent

Understanding the opponent’s intention of attacking is one of the best traits you can learn. Instead of throwing your Defenders to random spots. So, observe the opposition's body language, use early player switches, and cover potential targets without breaking your shape.

Consider this example: You find space behind the defensive line and is about to enter the box. The opponent covers both passing lanes towards the Striker and controls the running lane. He should look out for the third option: passing the ball back. Instead, he ignores it, pushes towards the line with the selected Defender, and with 2 passes, you can score a goal.

Another example: if you defend one area well, the opponent will switch direction intentionally. After a side pass, understand the shift towards the other side. Spot the next passing stations and switch to either Defender there. Failure to anticipate will result in conceding a goal. You can use early and efficient player switches, controlling the closest Defender to potential targets.

Factors like the direction the opposite player faces or controls the ball serve as indicators of the game's direction. Once you see a side-switching pattern towards the left, you can take the Winger from the center towards the wing. By knowing the game's direction, you deny the pass, creating a man's advantage and getting the ball back.

Welcome, all players! Today we'll be taking a deep dive into the top 3 attacking formations in EA Sport FC 24 that can be used in the Team of the Season Weekend League. I recommend trying out all the formations discussed here to determine which one best suits your playstyle and tactical preferences. Let's get started!

4-1-2-1-2(2)

First, let's kick things off with the second variation of the 4-1-2-1-2 formation. This formation is widely regarded as one of the most well-rounded options: effective both offensively and defensively.

Custom Tactics

Defensive Tactics: Starting with Defensive Style, keep it balanced. This applies to all formations discussed here. Set the Width to around 40, though some prefer 65 or even 72 for a more aggressive approach. However, 65 Depth also triggers automatic pressing and Offside Trap, albeit less aggressively, reducing the risk of defensive vulnerabilities.

Offensive Tactics: For Build Up Play, stick with balanced or opt for fast build up if you prefer a quicker pace. Chance Creation on Direct Passing is recommended for pushing players forward, forcing your opponent's team to retreat. Set this to around 35 to maintain control while attacking.

In terms of Width, keep it low to narrow your opponent's defensive line, allowing your Fullbacks more room to push forward. Aim for around 6 Players In Box during attacks. For Corners and Free Kicks, play them short to maintain possession and reset your attack.

Player Instructions

Striker: Designate 1 Striker as the main attacker, focusing on Get In Behind and Staying Forward, while the other plays a supporting role.

CAM: Ensure your Central Attacking Midfielder on Stay Forward and Get Into The Box For Crosses, prioritizing players with strong shooting and finesse shot traits. In midfield, instruct both Center Midfielders to Stay On Edge Of Box For Crosses and Cover Center.

CDM: The Center Defensive Midfielder (CDM) should be Stay Back While Attacking and Cover Center, while the other Center Midfielder serves as a playmaker.

Left & Right Back: Instruct them to Stay Back While Attacking and Overlap, exploiting the space on the wing created by the narrow width of the formation. Use the D-Pad to command your Fullbacks, allowing for precise control over their movements.

4-1-4-1

Let's delve into the 4-1-4-1 formation, currently regarded as one of the most potent setups in the EA FC 24, offering dominance and control on the field. With these tactics, you'll embrace a high-tempo Tiki Taka PlayStyle, aiming for 60-70% possession each match.

Custom Tactics

Maintain the Defensive Style on balance, keeping Width at 50 and Depth between 60-65 for optimal performance. In Build Up Play, opt for balanced and the Chance Creation set to Possession, facilitating the fluid passing game characteristic of Tiki Taka. Ensure Players In Box are positioned at 6, while Corners and Free Kicks remain lethal with settings at 3 and 2, respectively.

Player Instructions

Striker: Despite being the focal point, goals won't predominantly stem from this position.

Left & Right CM: Focus on empowering your Left and Right Midfielders to become goal-scoring threats. Have them Come Back On Defense, Cut Inside, and Get Into The Box For Crosses, essentially operating akin to auxiliary Strikers. Select FC 24 Players with strong finishing attributes for these roles.

Transitioning to the midfield, your Left Center Midfielder assumes a Box-to-Box role, necessitating robust defensive capabilities. Assign tasks of supporting the defense, venturing forward for crosses, and covering the wing when necessary.

Conversely, Your Right Center Midfielder emerges as a primary goal-scoring outlet, positioning himself to exploit opportunities in the box while providing defensive support. Meanwhile, your Defensive Midfielder plays a key role, intercepting passes, shielding the defense, and initiating attacks.

Fullbacks: Instruct both Fullbacks to Overlap, unleashing crosses to capitalize on a tall Striker's aerial prowess.

4-4-2

Last up, we have the 4-4-2 formation, undoubtedly the best attacking formation covered in this guide. This 4-4-2 formation is highly offensive and operates at a fast pace, leading to numerous high-scoring games.

Custom Tactics

Defensive Tactics: The Defensive Style is set to balance, with the depth brought down to 40. A Depth of around 65 is deemed perfect. Build Up Play remains on balance, with the Chance Creation set to Direct Passing again, bringing the Width down slightly to 45.

Offensive Tactics: We'll have the Players In the Box set to 6, and Corners and Free Kicks are crucial to maintain at 3 and 2, respectively. Like the 4-1-2-1-2 formation, we'll designate a supportive Striker and a more attacking one.

Player Instructions

Striker: This Striker's role is pivotal as the main goal-scorer in the team, while the majority of assists will come from the Right Striker. The right striker is instructed to Stay Central and Come Back On Defense, essentially playing more like a CAM in the EA FC 24.

Left & Right Mid: Moving on to the Left and Right Mids, much akin to the 4-1-4-1 formation, they should be instructed to Come Back On Defense, Cut Inside, and Get Into The Box For Crosses. With the Striker already designated to Get In Behind, these Midfielders can exploit the space created by pushing back opponents' defense.

Left & Right Back: Utilizing the D-Pad tactic to bring the Left and Right Backs forward is crucial, ensuring they Stay Back While Attacking and Overlap.

CM: For the 2 center mids, one should be more defensively oriented, instructed to Stay Back While Attacking, Stay On Edge Of Box For Crosses, and Cover Center. Having a player with the Intercept PlayStyle+, in this position, can be highly advantageous. The other Center Mid should operate more than a Box-to-Box player, Stay On Edge Of Box For Crosses and Cover Center.

It’s time for Team Of The Season and you have to do something different, something more effective to defeat your opponents with ease. In today’s guide, we give you three secret attack tips that you must implement into the game that will get you ranked up in no time.

Side Passing

Let’s start with my personal favorite method, Side Passing. Many players have the urge to pass the ball forward, which is why defenders mostly position themselves in the middle.

In this situation, you don’t need to force the ball forward, but instead look for wide players to pass the ball, which will create plenty of scoring opportunities as the ball travels.

Additionally, you need to see what defenders your opponent has and predict their next move. Then, a quick pass to the other side can force the opponent to make a simple mistake. This method is particularly useful against players who defend the middle very tightly.

And when you want to pass forward, it’s usually already covered. So once you find the forward pass, and you haven’t completed Side Passing, then continuous Side Passing is a good way to open the goal.

It should be noted that if the defender cannot complete the player switching quickly, this rapid passing will cause a lot of trouble. So it’s important to identify patterns and target goals ahead of time. It takes a lot of experience to understand every step of this type of pass, but in the end, it will give you an immense advantage.

I would like to give an example of how I use this technique to score goals in games. Since I had a feeling of being stuck when starting the attack from the left, I wanted to change the direction of the play with two quick Side Passings after successfully doing this to create an opportunity for a forward pass.

Unfortunately, the shot was blocked, but I’ll keep the ball there safely. At this point, there was only one optimal player to attack, and I had to act quickly. So, we side passed twice again, got ourselves into a 1v1 situation, and completed a simple Finesse Shot.

As mentioned before, the only way to stop Side Passing is to use player switching effectively, and excellent players can defend against this method. So if you want to master this skill, spending FC 24 Coins to buy talented players is essential.

Diagonal Runs

Moving on to the next one, this is an amazing solution for creating Passing Lines. You see, as we go straight ahead, there are two passing options, but neither seems guaranteed. Because they are all covered, and the passing lanes are not optimal, that’s why I use Diagonal Runs, which pushes the ball 45° away from the intended target and gives you a wider passing angle.

Whenever we see a potential runner behind the defensive line, be alert, because this can easily become a big deal for you.

We needed to create the best passing opportunity for him, so I took the ball away from him and ran towards the other side at a 45° angle to create an unstoppable through chance.

These Diagonal Runs are very effective for players who directly want to cover passing lanes. Once they try to catch up, you can defend them with Diagonal Runs, and they won’t be able to catch you until you create a passing option. Even if they run with the defender, this approach will give you the upper hand.

So in this example, when I get the ball instead of running straightforward, I’m going to give myself a diagonal angle towards the striker. This will allow me to deflect the ball away from the defender behind me, which will also allow me to carefully wait for the winger’s run and create better through-ball opportunities for the striker in front of me.

Once I see the opponent defending the wrong side of the attacker, I use the passing lane created by Diagonal Runs to find this striker, get a good Through-Ball in a 1v1 situation and score.

Sprint Boost

The last but not least offensive skill is Sprint Boost. You can gain huge acceleration with different types of Skill Moves, such as Stepover with unique animations. But today’s method will be simpler. It will confuse the opponent’s mind and thus give you the easiest chance.

When you make a run where there is space in front of you, drag your opponent there and he will try to defend. However, if he just walks, it will trigger the opponent.

It’s like you’re passing the ball inside the box and then you’re trying to cover the passing lane and then just use Controlled Sprint to get an explosive Sprint Boost so you can easily outrun your opponent and find the space you need.

Of course, this also applies to different areas of the pitch. Players with Rapid Playstyle+ are perfect candidates for this method. But this will work even without it. You just have to find the right position, get into your opponent’s head, push the ball fast enough and create your own chances.

That’s why opponents put themselves between me and potential shooting opportunities. But this opened up the space in front of me, and just by using Controlled Sprint, I could get an explosive Sprint Boost and find another shooting angle to score a goal.

All in all, these 3 secret offensive methods will be the key to giving your team a huge advantage in Team Of The Season. So hurry up and give it a try!