The Ultimate Guide to Technical Attributes in Football Manager

Explore Football Manager's technical attributes in detail, understand key skills like passing, dribbling, and shooting to enhance your player strategy

Why Are Technical Attributes Key in Football Manager?

When managing a team in Football Manager, technical attributes are often the first thing that grabs your attention. They define how skilled a player is in executing specific tasks on the pitch, from passing and dribbling to finishing and defending. In this guide, we’ll break down each technical attribute in detail, explaining not only what they represent but also how you can leverage them to build a winning team. Whether you're looking to refine your scouting process or maximise player performance, understanding technical attributes is crucial to becoming a successful manager.

1. Corners: Delivering Precision from Set Pieces

Corners are a critical element in any set-piece strategy, providing opportunities to score from dead-ball situations. The accuracy of a player’s corner-taking ability depends on several key attributes:

• Crossing: Enhances the precision of crosses from corners.
• Technique: Affects the quality of the corner delivery, influencing whether it's inswinging or outswinging.
• Vision: Helps the player spot teammates making runs into dangerous positions.

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• Pro Tip:
• To improve your team's efficiency at corners, pair a player with high crossing and technique with teammates who excel in anticipation and heading. This increases the likelihood of converting corners into goals.

2. Crossing: More Than Just Whipping the Ball In

Crossing isn't just about launching the ball into the box; it requires a combination of attributes to ensure accuracy and timing. A good crosser can create goal-scoring opportunities from wide areas.

• Technique: Dictates the quality of the cross in terms of pace, height, and curl.
• Vision: Enables the player to pick out the best targets in the box.
• Decisions: Informs when and where to cross, especially with fixed cross-aim settings like "mixed" or "far post".

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• Pro Tip:
• If you're managing a team that plays with overlapping full-backs or wing-backs, prioritise players with strong crossing, vision, and decisions to optimise the flow of attacks down the flanks.

3. Dribbling: Mastering Ball Control and Beating Defenders

Dribbling is not solely about taking on defenders but also controlling the ball while in motion. A player’s effectiveness at dribbling is determined by multiple factors:

• Technique: Improves the complexity and success of dribbles.
• Flair: Allows the player to attempt the unexpected, including tricks and turns.
• Acceleration: Essential for beating defenders through pace after a successful dribble.
• Agility: to switch directions fast
• Balance: to keep stable as well as up-right, maintaining balance and momentum while mid-dribble
• Pace: speed of movement

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• Pro Tip:
• For a high-tempo, counter-attacking strategy, look for players with good dribbling, acceleration, and flair to exploit defensive gaps and transition quickly from defence to attack.

4. Finishing: The Art of Scoring Goals

Finishing is one of the most sought-after attributes in any player because it directly influences how often a player can turn chances into goals. However, it works best when combined with other attributes:

• Composure: Critical in one-on-one situations with the goalkeeper.
• Anticipation: Helps the player predict where the ball will be and react quickly.
• Technique: Enhances the player’s ability to execute difficult shots, such as volleys and curled efforts.
• Decisions: to select whether or not to shoot, the way to shoot, as well as exactly where to target the shot

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• Pro Tip:
• To build a clinical striker, balance high finishing with composure and decisions. These attributes ensure that your player not only takes good shots but does so at the right moments.

5. First Touch: Controlling the Game with One Touch

First touch is essential in dictating how well a player can control the ball under pressure. A good first touch can give the player the time and space to make the right decision in the next phase of play.

• Technique: Enhances the control of difficult passes.
• Composure: Allows the player to remain calm when receiving the ball under pressure.
• Decisions: to decide on the best way to manage the ball as well as how to deal with it next

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• Pro Tip:
• In high-pressure situations, players with strong first touch and composure can excel at controlling the ball and dictating the tempo of play, especially in midfield roles.

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6. Free Kick Taking: Mastering the Dead Ball

A player’s ability to take free kicks can change the course of a match. Free kick taking is an essential skill for converting set-piece opportunities, either by scoring directly or creating dangerous situations.

• Passing - to increase the precision of passes from free kicks
• Technique: Enhances shot accuracy, power, and spin.
• Vision: Improves the player’s ability to pick out teammates for indirect free kicks.
• Long Shots: Important for shooting from distance.
• Decisions: to consider his options where to aim the free kick

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• Pro Tip:
• Look for players with a combination of high free kick taking, technique, and composure to maximise their chances of scoring from set pieces.

7. Heading: Winning Aerial Battles

Heading is a key attribute for players in aerial duels, whether in attack or defence. However, it’s not just about accuracy; the ability to win headers depends on a combination of physical and mental attributes.

• Anticipation: Helps the player predict where the ball will land, giving them a better chance of getting into the right position.
• Bravery: Measures a player's willingness to engage in aerial challenges, especially in dangerous situations.
• Positioning: Vital for taking up the best possible position to meet the ball in the air.
• Jumping Reach: Determines how high the player can leap, critical for beating opponents to the ball.
• Strength: Enables the player to hold their ground and resist being outmuscled in aerial duels.

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• Pro Tip:
• A player with strong heading combined with high jumping reach and anticipation can dominate in both defensive and attacking situations, making them invaluable for set-pieces and aerial duels.

8. Long Shots: Threatening from Distance

Long shots measure a player’s ability to strike the ball accurately from outside the penalty area. This attribute becomes particularly useful when breaking down teams that sit deep in defence.

• Technique: Influences how well the player strikes the ball, affecting the power and spin on the shot.

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• Pro Tip:
• When setting up your team to take advantage of long shots, prioritise players with high long shots and technique to increase your chances of scoring from distance. Position these players on the edge of the box during attacking set-pieces for optimal results.

9. Long Throws: Extending Your Set-Piece Arsenal

Long throws can be a secret weapon in creating scoring opportunities from throw-ins. This attribute measures how far a player can throw the ball, but the effectiveness depends on how well teammates position themselves.

• Technique: Affects the quality of the throw, particularly in terms of pace and accuracy.
• Vision: Helps the player identify teammates in good positions to receive the throw.

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• Pro Tip:
• To make the most of long throws, set up your throw-in tactics with tall players who have high heading and anticipation. This combination will help turn throw-ins into dangerous chances, especially in the opposition's final third.

10. Marking: Staying Close to the Opposition

Marking measures a player’s ability to track and remain close to their assigned opponent. This is a vital skill for defenders, particularly in zonal marking systems or when dealing with opposition attackers who frequently move into dangerous areas.

• Anticipation: Helps the player predict their opponent’s movements, making it easier to stay close.
• Composure: Enables the player to remain calm while marking an opponent, avoiding rash decisions.
• Concentration: Ensures that the player doesn’t lose focus, avoiding lapses that can lead to goal-scoring opportunities for the opposition.
• Positioning: Essential for taking up an advantageous defensive stance.

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• Pro Tip:
• Defenders with strong marking, combined with high anticipation and positioning, are effective at neutralising key attacking players. Use them to mark the opposition's most dangerous forwards.

11. Passing: The Key to Ball Retention and Creative Play

Passing is fundamental to any team’s success, but not all passes are created equal. The best passers combine precision with vision and creativity.

• Technique: Determines the quality of passes, including power and spin.
• Vision: Enables the player to see opportunities that others might miss.
• Decisions: Helps the player assess when to pass, to whom, and how.

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• Pro Tip:
• To dominate possession, build your midfield around players with high passing, vision, and decisions. These players will dictate the pace of the game and find teammates in space.

12. Penalty Taking: Mastering Pressure Situations

Penalty taking is crucial for converting spot-kick opportunities. While finishing plays a role, penalty taking is more specialised, measuring how well a player can score from the penalty spot under pressure.

• Finishing: Directly affects how accurate the shot is from the penalty spot.
• Composure: Vital for maintaining calm in high-pressure situations, ensuring the player doesn’t rush the kick.
• Concentration: Helps the player focus fully on the penalty, reducing the likelihood of errors.

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• Pro Tip:
• When selecting your penalty taker, prioritise players with high penalty taking, composure, and finishing. These players are more likely to stay calm and score under pressure, especially in tense match situations.

13. Tackling: Winning the Ball Back with Precision

Tackling is a defensive art form that requires not just aggression but also anticipation and timing. Players who excel at tackling can regain possession without giving away fouls.

• Aggression: Fuels a player’s desire to win the ball back.
• Anticipation: Helps predict an opponent’s movements, enabling cleaner tackles.
• Composure: Ensures the player remains calm and focused when executing a challenge.

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• Pro Tip:
• Combine strong tackling with positioning and concentration to create defenders who can break up play effectively while maintaining their discipline.

14. Technique: The Core of Footballing Skill

Technique is the foundation of a player’s ability to control and manipulate the ball. It influences a variety of actions, including passing, shooting, and crossing. Players with strong technique can execute more difficult skills with greater accuracy.

• Technique: Enhances all aspects of ball control, whether it's shooting, passing, or crossing.

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• Pro Tip:
• Players with high technique can excel in various aspects of the game, particularly when combined with creative attributes like vision and flair. They’re often the playmakers or technical wizards in your squad who can produce moments of magic.

Conclusion

Understanding each technical attribute is key to optimising player performance in Football Manager. As we’ve seen, technical skills are often interlinked with mental and physical attributes, and together they dictate a player’s effectiveness on the pitch. Whether you're scouting for a set-piece specialist, a clinical finisher, or a creative playmaker, mastering the nuances of these attributes will elevate your team to the next level.

By combining the right mix of attributes with your preferred tactical setup, you can create a squad that is not only well-rounded but also tailored to your vision as a manager.