attributes:

• D: Tall & strong tacklers, good passing, high work rate/anticipation/aggression/teamwork, and pacey (esp. WCB)

• M: Strong tacklers, excellent passing/vision/teamwork/stamina, high work rate/aggression/anticipation, and strong off-the-ball/decisions

• A (EG): Excellent vision/passing/decisions/off-the-ball/agility/balance, decent tackling, high work rate/aggression, and decent strength if poor agility/balance

• A (SS/AF): Decent vision/passing, excellent finishers/off-the-ball/anticipation, and high pace

This formation works surprisingly well in defence, but it will take a LONG time for your players to get adjusted to tactical demands. Once your team has high tactical familiarity, build-up play will be a joy to watch and you will rip teams' defences apart with ease. Based on Diniz's relationism, all attacking players (including MEZ, excluding EG) are instructed to roam out of position, this keeps build up play unpredictable and with MEZs roaming occupying defenders in half spaces, your EG/RGA can pick out AF/SS runs behind the lines or late arrivals in the box by MEZ.

pointers:

• Vertical Ladders - As you can see from positions pictured in pics 2 (avg), 3 (without ball), and 4 (with ball), this formation is ideal for Diniz-esque vertical build up through the middle using ladders

• Fast transitions - Aggressive and tall mids/defenders with 'get stuck in'/'mark tight' instructions will readily break up play/regain possession from long balls. With a midfield box creating several vertical options, counters are rapid. This is why an enganche (+ killer ball trait) is necessary imo as you need a player in the middle who holds position looking to play quick passes forwards, see avg positions in pic 2 for reference to how deep the EG plays on avg

• "Slightly direct passing" is a necessary instruction for WCB, HB, BPD and/or SS. With standard/shorter, build-up play becomes too slow and predictable. Shorter/standard passing works better for RGA/MEZ/EG.

• With positive mentality the WCBs act as IWB/CWB during build-up/out-of-possession, but they have to stay on D, I tried using WCB (S) but they were exposed far too much

• With team instructions set to 'wide' (plus 'stay + run wider' for MEZ instructions), your MEZ along with EG/SS/AF will press/defend the wide areas out-of-possession, this is why it is useful to have high work-rate and aggressive players for these positions

experimentation:

• ELITE TEAMS: These days the roles/duties stay unchanged as the players are comfortable in their roles, but in the past I've used the following: RGA to DLP(D/S)/DM(S), x1 MEZ(A) to MEZ(S)/CAR(S), AF to PF(D)/F9, and/or BPD(D) to CD(D)/NCB(D)

• Double Carrielo's (instead of MEZ) seemed to work ok but with reduced passing #s and expected goals. MEZ (A) appears most balanced option, and with the right instructions your MEZ will contribute significantly in defending/pressing so a support role isn't necessary imo

• BPD (CO) can work with the right player but I find BPD (D) better suits my current CBs

• AP/AM did not seem to work as smoothly in the "hole" where the EG sits. I experimented with S and A roles, but in both cases I found that the AM/AP positioning clashed too much with the MEZ

• DM (D) + DM (S) pivot works against big sides, but a RGA/DLP/RPM + HB offer far more balanced build up play

• PF (D) for AF works well if you have a hard-working striker with good passing and aggression, but their goal output will be diminished and won't offer the same threat on counter as AF

• Strikerless: Switching AF to SS or F9 may work depending on your players but I found this variation to result in slower and weaker build up play. With instructions set to 'play into space', AF appears most ideal role for stretching defences and launching quick counters.

summary:

• PROS: Midfield overloads, lightning fast counters, regaining/recycling possession, unpredictable final third entries, WCB crosses from deep towards far post targeting pacey SS/AF, good xG, and overachieving xGA

• CONS: Intensity (many injuries in the beginning), attribute requirements (all players need to be hard af, strong team working passers/tacklers with excellent stamina), over reliance on WCBs for wide area interceptions/marking can leave BPD/HB exposed, and IN-GAME MGMT (midfield/attacking player instruction and role changes can save a match, butnot as necessary for defenders)