Tactics of the Week | 20 October 2026
20 October 2026
Tactics Win the Game
Most Used Tactic / Formation of the Week: Long Ball Counter Still Strong, Quick Counter Takes Two Spots Including the Highest CS
The leaderboard remains extremely competitive this week. Long Ball Counter continues to occupy three of the Top 5 spots (including two under José Mourinho), while Quick Counter claims two entries and the single highest Collective Strength of the week. Fluid Formation with clearly different Attack & Defence shapes appears once at the top, and pure single-shape setups remain the majority. Squad synergy, manager proficiency, and clean transitions continue to separate the elite.
Top 5 Pro Tactics of the Week
Here are the five standout tactics from the current Top Division 1 / high-rank pro players:
1. JSLOVEKONAMI
Manager: Thomas Tuchel
Formation / Playstyle: 4-2-2-2 Quick Counter
Collective Strength: 3311
2. FUTEASY10
Manager: José Mourinho
Attack: 4-2-2-2 Long Ball Counter
Defence: 4-2-2-2 Long Ball Counter
Collective Strength: 3305
3. SOFIA
Manager: José Mourinho
Attack: 2-2-4-2 Long Ball Counter
Defence: 3-2-2-3 Long Ball Counter
Collective Strength: 3311
4. CoyoteOriginal7
Manager: D. Deschamps
Formation / Playstyle: 4-2-2-2 Long Ball Counter
Collective Strength: 3308
5. SVC_Bumbalabum
Manager: Jürgen Klopp
Formation / Playstyle: 4-2-1-3 Quick Counter
Collective Strength: 3324
Most Used Managers in Top 5
- Long Ball Counter: José Mourinho (×2), D. Deschamps
- Quick Counter: Thomas Tuchel, Jürgen Klopp
Most Used Player Cards of the Week
(Continuing trends + ongoing adaptation to Fluid Formation and dual Playing Styles)
- Eden Hazard
- Lilian Thuram
- Paolo Maldini
- Lionel Messi
- Peter Schmeichel
Honorable mentions: Virgil van Dijk, Ronaldinho Gaúcho, Kylian Mbappé, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Roberto Carlos, Roy Makaay.
Meta Summary
SVC_Bumbalabum’s Jürgen Klopp 4-2-1-3 Quick Counter currently posts the highest Collective Strength in the Top 5 with 3324. Long Ball Counter still occupies three of the five spots (two under Mourinho), confirming it remains a highly reliable high-level system. Collective Strength above 3300 continues to be the clear elite benchmark this week — all five entries clear that mark.
Fluid Formation Analysis (Attack & Defence shapes among the Top 5)
Two of the five players explicitly list separate Attack and Defence formations:
- FUTEASY10 uses the same 4-2-2-2 Long Ball Counter shape for both phases.
- SOFIA uses clearly different shapes (2-2-4-2 attacking / 3-2-2-3 defending), both under Long Ball Counter.
The other three entries list a single formation/playstyle, indicating either pure single-shape setups or Fluid Formation with matching Attack & Defence shapes that are simply not differentiated in the displayed data.
Patterns observed this week:
- Same-shape Fluid Formation (Attack = Defence) appears once.
- Different-shape Fluid Formation (attacking shape ≠ defensive shape) appears once and sits high in the ranking.
- 4-2-2-2 and 4-2-1-3 remain the two dominant base shapes.
- Quick Counter claims both the highest CS and two Top-5 spots.
- Long Ball Counter continues to be the most repeated choice across multiple managers.
Flexibility remains crucial. Players who understand how their squad transitions between phases under the Fluid Formation system continue to outperform pure copy-paste setups, even when the final shapes look similar on paper.
Bonus: Fluid Formation (Attack & Defence)
As of the v6.0.0 update, you can set separate formations for when you are attacking and when you are defending.
- Attacking formation: Players push higher, create overloads, and focus on build-up or direct runs.
- Defensive formation: Players drop into a more compact block, prioritising recovery and solidity.
On console you effectively have access to four shapes (main tactic attack/defence + sub tactic attack/defence). On mobile it is two. The formation switches automatically based on possession. Auto-Pick has also been updated so it can fill both the attacking and defensive shapes with one click.
This change rewards managers who design realistic travel distances for players so the team can actually shift between the two shapes without leaving huge gaps. Many top players still use the same base shape for both phases, while others experiment with more aggressive attacking shapes that recover into a deeper or differently structured block.
Bonus: Player Cards Now Have Attack & Defence Skill Branches (Playing Styles)
On the individual footballer level, player cards have received a major overhaul. Playing Styles are now split into two separate branches:
- Attacking Playing Style – Controls movement, runs, support, and positioning when your team has the ball.
- Defensive Playing Style – Controls pressing, marking, recovery, and line behaviour when your team does not have the ball.
A single player can now have one style for attack and a completely different style for defence (or only one of the two). New defensive styles have been added, giving cards more specialised behaviour out of possession. For example, a forward can be a Goal Poacher when attacking and switch to Front Line Pressure when defending.
This means squad building is no longer just about the overall rating or the attacking playstyle. You must now check both the attacking and defensive styles (and position proficiency) to make sure the player fits the role you want in each phase of play — especially important with Fluid Formation.
Test these high-performing tactics (or adapt them with the new Fluid Formation and dual Playing Styles) for your next Division push!
Weekly Tactics Report every Friday.
Drop your current formation and favourite player in the comments!
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