I think Sergio Busquets in his early Pep days was the epitome of an anchor, even his player traits are made for that specific role. He used to swap between that and Half Back when the opposition team deployed 2 strikers or 1 striker and an AMC close to him. Great video!
I am enjoying your videos, watching one after another. Been playing fm for 3 years now but always playing safe using downloaded tactics. Learning a lot watching these. Thank you
thank you! and I did the same when I first started playing FM too (with downloading tactics.) It is much harder, but I think it's really enjoyable to work on your own tactic. Even getting small successes like forcing a goalie to make a save can be rewarding
@@johanvanbrakel2816 Inside forwards are great for some playmaking. if you check out my Libero video, I use a tactic with Monaco that doesn't have any playmakers. Uses a BWM and a BBM, Front 3 is Inside Forwards and a striker
99% of the time you need that boring 6 who just sits in the gap and cleans up. I often call it the janitor/cleaner role. One of my favourites to use. Will look forward to the pairing with the Vol as you teased!
Played that kind of midfield in my Bastia save. Works a smash! If you have the perfect players its like a machine. And I had that. Extremly good stuff on this channel!
Think ill give my defensive midfielder a few games as Anchorman after watching this. Im playing as a really low league Greek team (Diagoras), my DM has pretty good stats but just seems to play average in every game, it was the same last season with him, hopefully the Anchor role will wake him up a bit.
I love the Anchor. They can be useful to feel out matches as well; it's easy to change them to a DM(S) if you want a little more attacking threat without completely upsetting the balance of your team
@TheDeepLyingPlaymaker im guessing a players mental stats are the most important with an Anchor? Is there any good examples of Anchors in real life, I wouldnt mind watching how they play.
I must say, your guides on roles definitely is one of the most underrated FM related videos out there. Lots of videos showcase super tactics but don't exactly explain much about the roles and why they were chosen. Your role guides on the individual roles itself is superb in helping me understand what I needed to better improve my own created formations. Ironically, your explanation on the Anchor role and the difference between it and a DLP on defend is what helped me make the decision to switch from an Anchor to a DLP on defend for my formation. I was playing a 4-1-2-2-1 narrow formation but I had issues with possession displaced abit too easily when building from the back. I realised that my decision to use an Anchor was actually what contributed to it because while it provided alot of shielding for my defence, it was not contributing alot to the possession on transition. When I made the switch to a DLP on defend, my possession percentage actually shot up by like at least 3% on average and there were alot of expansive plays that allowed my wing backs to get forward easier.
that's so awesome!!! thank you for sharing. I always love reading about success stories people have with their tactics. That's why I find player roles so fascinating, both of them are defensive midfielders, with a defend duty, and hold position, but they play out very differently.
I think you could make them work! It may be a little top heavy, where you're not getting runners from deep in the center, so keep an eye on how your midfield is helping out in the attack
The Anchor is maybe THE role that i ignore the most...and on purpose :D Maybe its my mentality but i dont like sacrificing my offensive capabilties for some more defensive security. I usually go for the DLP if i want some structure in the midfield. The only time i can remember using an anchor was in combination with a regista so that he can be the "back up" for the free minded playmaker. Like Chris Führich currently is for Toni Kroos in the German Euro Team.
It's funny, even in the little tactic examples in this video it's really interesting to see how the Anchor doesn't like to venture like at all haha. I've been using the Anchor a lot more in double DM tactics like you mentioned; letting the more attacking role do his thing
You deserve more followers than you have. I've been playing FM for 10 years and I still find some of your content useful. Can't wait to see you start doing tactics videos where you show different tactics that work wonders for you. I'm looking to try different tactics in my save. Keep it up, Chief. Cheers.
Much appreciated thank you! I've started to delve into some tactic videos a little recently, so hopefully going forward should see a nice combination of role videos and tactic videos!
I deployed anchor and half back while one of my wide center back attack the flanks with an inverted wingback filling the hole in the midfield create 2 center back 2 defensive midfield 3-2 shape. Really stable even for my new promoted st albans side
I have a regen with 18 anticipation and 16 decisions playing as an anchor, he avg 5.3 interceptions p/90. He start most of my counterattacks from deep on my lowblock, he is a beast. Very underated role for people that play on key highlights, but for me is one of my favourites.
Here you go: Structured approaches focus on maintaining defined roles and responsibilities for each player. In a structured system: Role Adherence: Players stick closely to their designated roles and responsibilities. Defenders focus on defending, midfielders on linking play, and attackers on attacking. Position Discipline: There is less freedom for players to move out of their zones. Positional discipline is high to ensure the team's shape is maintained. Specialization: Each player is expected to excel in their specific tasks, creating a well-organized and predictable structure. Defensive Solidity: This approach often leads to a more solid defensive setup because players are not straying too far from their positions. Less Creativity: With strict adherence to roles, there is generally less creativity and fluidity in attacking play, as players are not encouraged to roam or interchange positions. Fluid approaches emphasize a more dynamic and interchangeable style of play. In a fluid system: Role Flexibility: Players are given more freedom to express themselves and contribute to different phases of play, regardless of their designated roles. Position Interchange: There is a lot of movement and fluidity, with players often moving into different areas of the pitch, leading to more unpredictable and versatile attacking patterns. Collective Responsibility: Players share more responsibilities across the team, with attackers helping in defense and defenders contributing to attacking plays. Creative Freedom: This approach encourages creativity and innovation, allowing players to make spontaneous decisions and take risks. Cohesive Unit: The team operates more as a cohesive unit, with fluid transitions between defense and attack, often leading to more entertaining and dynamic football. Comparison in Context Defensive Organization: Structured systems typically maintain better defensive organization due to the rigidity and role adherence, whereas fluid systems may leave gaps as players move around more freely. Attacking Play: Fluid systems are generally more unpredictable and harder to defend against due to the high level of movement and creativity, while structured systems rely on methodical and disciplined build-up play. Player Suitability: Structured systems might be better suited for teams with specialized players who excel in specific roles, while fluid systems suit teams with versatile players capable of adapting to various positions and responsibilities. Team Chemistry: A fluid approach requires high levels of understanding and chemistry between players to ensure they can seamlessly cover for each other and maintain the team's shape. Structured systems prioritize organization and discipline, while fluid systems emphasize creativity and collective play. And last thing, you will see in the bottom left corner of the pitch tactic screen if your tactic counts as structured or fluid. But it goes from: Very Structured: Strong defensive discipline, minimal creative freedom, clear role separation. Structured: Balanced defensive discipline, moderate creative freedom, defined roles. Flexible: Equal focus on both defense and attack, moderate role interchange. Fluid: High creative freedom, players contribute to all phases, greater movement. Very Fluid: Maximum creative freedom, cohesive unit, constant movement and interchange. GL & HF
@@TheDeepLyingPlaymaker been watching your videos on the box to box and mezzala as I’m using them in my 433 tactic with a defensive midfielder on support. I can win games though I’m conceding goals.
@@csvickers151 Hmmm... what are you using for the fullback position(s)? You maybe being getting caught on the counter. You could also try the DM on defend instead of support. You'll lose a little in attack, but gain some more defensive stability
I think a solid improvement to your vids would be accompanying your analysis with real world player archetypes. AKA deep lying PM is pirlo, mezzala is modric , anchor is busqets etc. I think it’d gives a good insight that people would then build on when identifying transfers
thank you for the idea!! I'll see if I can start working them in again. I've experimented with player examples in a couple of my other videos; sometimes the hard part is that there are so many good players out there, that I'll inevitably leave someone out (I can't showcase everyone haha) or even have my own biases on who a better player is But I think you're right in that it would add to the videos; maybe I can start to implement them again
thanks for bringing this up, I've had a couple questions about a discord channel but I had forgotten about it haha. I'll see if I get something going here in the near future; thanks again for the suggestion!!
I don’t understand why I never see my squad manoeuvring the ball like that…I loved seeing that ball behind the defence from the inside winger to the IF…but actually mi IF never cut behind the defence like that 😢
Hmm.. that's a tough one! You are welcome to copy the tactic in this video and make any adjustments you want! Should be a simple tactic to implement in your squad. Then you can change what you don't like about it to make it your own :)
This channel is my new go-to for anything related to FM tactics! So good :) I wonder if you could do a video on the Half-Back role? I've always been a little curious / confused what this role does!
Thank you for supporting the channel! It really means a lot. For the half back video, I'm not positive if it'll be the next video or not, but the release will be very soon!
I honestly love these videos, especially the pairings ones. I've only been playing since FM21 and you've filled a lot of gaps in my knowledge. Looking forward to seeing this channel grow 👍
Another great video! And it's probably an unpopular opinion, but for me, the anchorman role is the one I dislike the most. From my perspective, an anchorman is needed to create defensive solidity when other players lack balanced stats overall. For example, if you have a Mesut Özil in your team, you need a Makélélé to do the dirty work for him. So, from both ends of the spectrum, you have an attacking player lacking defensive attributes and an anchorman lacking attacking attributes but excelling defensively. Overall, I try to stay away from this role, as it can be really boring. I prefer more fluidity and creating trios or duos that can interchange more freely and have balanced stats overall. It's probably the Dutch way of tactical thinking-totaalvoetbal. However, I will use an anchorman from time to time, especially when I need to change my tactic at the end of a game to have a solid shape. In these situations, I don't want my VMC to push out of position-I just want him to help park the bus and stall time.
Love this perspective, thanks for sharing! I really respect the Anchor's ability to not be pulled out of position for anything. He won't chase down opponent's needlessly and we won't go tracking towards the ball either. But yea it does ruin fluidity or if you like to change advantage of positional play, because who's he going to switch standing in the midfield? At least with that mindset you know exactly where he's going to be haha
I mentioned it in another comment, but one thing I love about making these videos is forcing myself to use a role or seeing different ways I can make combinations that require a role. It's like a fun little challenge
Great series you are putting together here. A lovely assist from the IWB, I wish I had that much space in my game. Teams defend so low against me though so space can be hard to come by!
Out of curiosity, what kind of press are you using? Sometimes when teams do that to me, I lower my press and my defensive line to bring them out of their shape. Then you hit them on the counter 😝
@@TheDeepLyingPlaymaker Normally a high press, but have found success in dropping it to a midblock and stopping the counter press to allow them out as it were
There is something beautiful about the Anchor and knowing exactly where he's going to be all the time. Thinking about a Roaming Playmaker or something where you have no idea where he's going, but an Anchor is consistently in his spot
Need some help so in my tactic I need a dm that sweeps up behind the midfield 2 and can collect clearances from the opposition and intercept counters what role is best
