There are many formations in FC 24 to deal with strong teams. Some formations focus on defense while others focus on offense and some formations provide the best of both worlds. If you know formations deep down, single-purpose formations are great but formations that balance defense and offense are great for beginners. One such balance formation is called 4-5-1 formation which is a well-known formation in football and it is also called the 4-1-4-1 formation. This formation provides players with a good defense line and all the power to attack the other team. We have added FC 24: Best 4-5-1 Tactics and player instructions to this guide.

Tactical Setup for 4-1-4-1

Here is a complete breakdown of the tactical setup for the 4-5-1 formation along with instructions.

Mentality – Go on the field with a balanced mentality so your team can do well in terms of offense and defense. 

Team Shape – Keep the shape of the team flexible so they can easily defend the ball and attack the other team when required. Flexible team shape provides great versatility to a team.

Playing Style – Gain advantage over the other team by keeping a balanced playstyle. This way, the other team will keep guessing what you are doing.

Tempo – You can play at a moderate pace with a normal tempo to avoid unnecessary risks while keeping control of the game.

Width – Avoid overcommitting to the flanks or narrowing too much with a balanced width. The standard width of this formation is enough.

Defensive Line – To avoid your defense from getting too deep or too high, keep the defense line standard. You don’t have to worry about goals from through balls this way.

Line of Engagement – Press the other team without leaving any space behind by keeping the line of engagement balanced. You can balance out the pressure on the other team.

Pressing Intensity – Disturb the build-up play of the other team and gain possession of the ball when you are high on the pitch by pressing with aggression.

Counter-Press – As soon as you lose possession, choose counter-press to get the ball by pressing.

Dribbling – Keep dribbling at standard so your players can adjust their dribble according to the game. There is no risk of overcommitting in this approach.

Passing Directness – To keep your passes varied, use mixed passing directness. The other team won’t be able to predict the moves of your team and you can break their defense line easily.

Passing Focus – To exploit central areas, play through the middle of the field.

Time Wasting – In this formation, don’t waste any time chasing goals.

Tackling – When it comes to tackling, ask your players to be aggressive so they can get possession of the ball.

Marking – Use man marking to mark down big players of the other team to tackle them in the first place.

Crossing – With mixed crossing, get crosses from various positions instead of just one flank. When your team uses one flank, the other team can guess it and adjust their defense accordingly. With mixed crossing, you can use all the areas of the box.

Player Instructions

Goalkeeper – Ask the goalkeeper to play short passes to your center-backs to maintain possession and build from the back.

Full-Backs – Full-backs in support roles provide defensive stability while contributing to the attack when needed. Don’t forget to ask your full-backs to deliver crosses into the box.

Center-Backs – Center-backs should focus on defense all the time to avoid goals.

Defensive Midfielder – Use a defensive midfielder as a cover for the defense. He will also shield the backline. Disrupt the opposition by increasing the pressing intensity of the defensive midfielder. When the other team is disrupted, they will make mistakes and it is the perfect time to use your best players to launch an aggressive attack on them.

Central Midfielders – The central midfielders need to provide a link between defense and attack. They should also support the attack and make forward runs.

Wide Midfielders – For attack, they can provide width while tracking back to help in defense. To create space in the defense of the other team, ask them to stay wide.

Attacking Midfielder – The attacking Midfielder needs to link midfield and attack by playing between the lines. He also has to find space in order to create chances for goals.

Striker – As you know there is only one striker in this formation, he will have to work hard. His first job is to make runs behind the defense lineup of the other team. This way, he can use those chances to score goals and become a threat to the other team.

Follow this tactical setup along with all the player instructions to get the most out of the 4-5-1 formation in FC 24, win more matches and FUT 24 FC Coins easy. No formation guarantees you success so you need to make necessary changes to them according to your playstyle.