I am trying to set up the best 5-2-2-1 in EA FC 24. You'd better believe because we will definitely face off against a better player than I am. I can defeat these outstanding players just because of how defensively this formation is. Without wasting any more time, let's just move on to the custom tactics. Prepare for enough FC 24 Coins if you want to improve abilities of your your players.

Custom Tactics

Defence: The Defensive Style is always balance. We want to make a very narrow and compact defense, so 33 defensive Width and 55 Depth.

Offence: Build Up Play on balance, Chance Creation on Direct Passing, and an attacking Width of 60. We go a bit wider than usual because, nonetheless, our 3 forward players are going to be pretty narrow when we play in the game. By adding some width, we want to make sure the overlapping wing-backs are as wide as possible on the pitch. Obviously, this is a 5 at the back formation, so you better know that we're going to go for wing play, and we're going to go for cutbacks. Players in the Box on 6, and Corners and Free Kicks on whatever your preferences are. I put them both on one.

Instructions

Striker: Stay central and get in behind. Pretty self-explanatory.

Attacking Midfielders: Come Back on Defense and Get Into the Box for Crosses. We want them to come back because we want to defend in a 5-4-1 and be impenetrable. Also, we want them to Get into the Box for Crosses to add motion and make a move forward whenever we get the ball back. It's amazing if you can manage to put some players here that have the Trivela or Trivela+ play styles. Right foot on the right, left foot on the left, and the rest you know.

CDMs: The 2 are both on Cut Passing Lanes, Cover Center, and Balanced Attacking. They are CDMs, so naturally, they're not going to go forward too much, but we still need them to contribute in attack, or else we're going to be way too isolated up front.

Wing Backs: The 2 most important players in this setup. They don't have to be defensive players, I have Adama Traoré as one of them. You can also buy other FC 24 Players to help you in the game. They just have to be fast and great at Dribbling and Passing because we're going to go wide with them. We're going to cross the ball or go for Cutbacks. For that, we have them both on default and overlap.

Goalkeeper: There is nothing to say about it.

Gameplay

If I had to use one 5 at the back formation, I think 5-2-1-2 would be my go-to. The reason for that is your 2 wide players up top are not actually Wide Player, they’re Wide Cams, just like in 4-3-2-1 where you have Left & Right Attacking Midfielders. You have 2 wide cams up top, and I believe it gives you a better structure when you go forward. You have 2 more narrow players alongside your striker, and then the 2 very wide wing-backs are going to join the attack late and make unmarked runs.

Defensively, it defends in a 5-4-1, you have 2 Central Midfielders. And in this formation, you have 2 CDMs. That’s crazy. In a 5-at-the-back formation defensively, it doesn’t get better than this. This is probably the most defensive formation in the game. The way your 2 CDMs naturally place themselves on the pitch a bit in front of your Center Backs makes this formation really hard to go through. Even if your opponent wants to take the fight to the wide areas of the pitch, you have always 2 wide players at each side of the pitch defending against that.