Pro Evolution Soccer 3 / Winning Eleven 7

Pro Evolution Soccer 3 / Winning Eleven 7
Counter Attacking FAQ
by EEEECHUTA ([email protected])

Version 1.2

Version History
1.0 - Initial Release
1.2 - Added section on customizing 4-3-3B
Solo Option for breaking defence added
More diagrams for finishing
Various fixes and edits

This FAQ is copyright protected:
Copyright 2004 Terry Lin

---------------------
CONTENTS
---------------------
1. THE PURPOSE
2. THE CONCEPT
3. THE SETUP
4. STEP ONE: PLAYING DEFENSE
5. STEP TWO: PASSING THE BALL UP
6. STEP THREE: SPLITTING THE D
7. STEP FOUR: FINISHING
8. MISCELLANEOUS TIPS

---------------------
1. THE PURPOSE
---------------------

This guide is designed for those who are starting out in the game or those who
need tips on how to score effectively. When I was a PES3 beginner, I was often
frustrated by the inability to "control my fate". Scoring was most often
accomplished by crosses which actually have a low success rate compared to the
strategies I will introduce below. On 3 star-diffculty , these strategies will
CONSISTENTLY produce a 3-0 game, even against good teams and you will sometimes
see incredible results like 7-1 games. Given how closely PES3 wants to mimic
reality, getting 3-0 games without a sweat is quite something.

---------------------
2. THE CONCEPT
---------------------

The core strategy that I utilize in all my PES3 matches is the "counterattack".
It is something that is employed in real soccer but I doubt it is as effective
as PES3 allows it to be.

You may have noticed that if you wait too long to attack, the CPU will
accumulate many defenders in the box, suffocating your attackers and giving
them very little space to operate in. The only reliable offensive option at
that point is to simply pass to the wing, where there is less defensive
pressure, and attempt a cross. Thus, a large part of scoring is simply left to
fate.

The counterattack strategy does not leave things up to Lady Luck as much as
crossing. Here's how it works: when the CPU is attacking, his midfielders and
defenders also come forward. Therefore, on a change of possession, his
midfielders and defenders have to run back, but there is a "lag time" before
they can all get back and crowd the box. Therefore, once you defender gains
possession of the ball, if you pass quickly to your midfielders and then to
your forwards, you often only see 3 or 4 defenders (instead of 6 or 7). At
that point, if you have 3 strikers, then you have a 3 on 3 or a 3 on 4
situation, which is a VERY GOOD scoring chance. With some clever 1-2 passing
and through passes, you can get a clear breakaway more often than you think.

Therefore, you could say that the whole point of the Counterattack Strategy is
to produce as many 3 on 3 or 3 on 4 situations are possible.

---------------------
3. THE SETUP
---------------------

The type of formation you select can change the entire outlook of the game. I
have tried many formations, and each has its own strengths and weaknesses, but
the one you want to use for the Counterattack Strategy is the 4-3-3B formation.

In the 4-3-3B, defense and offense is strong but midfielding is weak, and
that's perfect for the counterattack because "building up" your offense in the
middle will only give the CPU precious time to crowd the box. The midfielders
serve only as "relay points" to get the ball from the defensemen to the
strikers are quickly as possible.

With 3 strikers, you will have a CF (center forward), RWF (right wing forward),
and LWF (left wing forward). Make sure that the CF and at least one of the
RWF/LWF's are road runners and have respectable striking ablity. Speed is the
most important attribute for counterattacking, not height or heading ability.

CUSTOMIZING THE 4-3-3B

An important change that you should make to the default 4-3-3B formation is to
spread out the midfielders a bit more, and to stagger the back 2 midfielders so
that one is slightly in front of the other.

The other change is to bring your strikers WAY back, almost to the OMF
position, and to stagger them as well. In essence, reduce the space between
the midfielders and the strikers. It's the strikers who will be bringing the
ball up, not the midfielders.

In the end your formation should look like this

DF

-- LWF --
| DF CMF |
| |
| OMF CF |
| |
| DF --
-- DMF RWF

DF

The "basic" passing string once the ball is taken by your defenders would be:
DF->DMF->CMF->OMF->RWF->CF->LWF

----------------------------
4. STEP ONE: PLAYING DEFENSE
----------------------------

The most important skill you will ever learn in this game is how to play proper
defense. This goes double for the Counterattack Strategy, since the very first
step in executing the strategy is getting the ball back on your side of the
pitch. If you can't even do that, then you might as well stop reading becuase
you'll never even have a chance to use the strategy.

Playing defense in PES3 can be fun and beautiful thing, IF YOU DO IT PROPERLY.
If your idea of defense is to simply hold down the R1 and X button while
charging at the ball handler, you'd better read this part carefully.

The very first lesson is: NEVER USE THE SLIDE TACKLE. If you play proper
positioning, you'll never need it. The reason why the slide tackle is such a
poor defensive option is because the risks are far too great. The ref will be
on your back all day if you depend on this button. In addition, the slide
tackle is often unnecessary since the standard challenge (X button) has all the
range you need.

The second lesson is: PLAY THE BALL, NOT THE MAN. This means that when you go
for the challenge, the eyes should be focused on where the ball is going, not
on the man. You need to get near the ball in order for the challenge to work.
The third lesson is: DEFEND CONSERVATIVELY ON THE WING. The wing is often the
most vulnerable spot in a defense. (this is why I do not recommend a 3-4-3
formation, the defense is stretched way too thin, and the CPU will be able to
make easy runs to the corner and cross). You have to be VERY CAREFUL with your
wing defenders because there's nobody behind them to help out. If you rush the
attacker, and miss, you'll leave the wings wide open for a cross attempt.
Instead, stay back and deny the CPU the space he needs to make that run on the
wing. You'll find that just standing in front of him is enough to funnel the
CPU through the middle, which is exactly where you want him to go.

The fourth lesson is: WHEN DEFENDERS ARE MANY, DOUBLE TEAM AGGRESSIVELY. The
square button calls the nearest defender to pressure the ball handler.
Combined with the X button, you can perform a "double team" by holding both
down simultaneously. When the CPU tries to fight his way through the middle,
more often than not you will have many defenders waiting. Here's where you can
get aggressive and try to pressure the attacker into giving the ball up. You
will get the ball back much more easily when the area is crowded and attackers
have nowhere to go.

The final (and proably most important lesson is): LET GO OF THAT R1 BUTTON.
Holding down turbo all the time is an invitation to get completely beat by your
attacker through a simple change of direction. Instead, just persistently stay
with your man, cover him like a blanket and give him no room to operate. You
will discover that by just "walking around" with the attacker, he becomes much
less threatening. Getting the ball back is the natural result of successfuly
pressuring attackers, so don't get your objectives mixed up.

Finally, don't forget that L1 allows you switch defenders.

--------------------------------
5. STEP TWO: PASSING THE BALL UP
--------------------------------

Once you have the ball back in your hands, the next step is to get the ball to
your strikers as quickly as possible. The safest way to do this is to chain a
series of ground passes to your midfielders and eventually to the forwards.

The only advice I can give you here is LOOK AT THE RADAR. Even with the
"Wide" camera angle, you'll be making a lot of blind passes where you can't
even see the player that's going to be receiving the ball. Just knowing that
he's there is not enough, you have to make sure there isn't an opponent
standing right in front of him ready to take the ball away. Also, make sure
that before you pass you're not under pressure from the opposition, because
pressure passes often get intercepted.

-------------------------------
6. STEP THREE: SPLITTING THE D
-------------------------------

Now, you have the ball to your strikers, and hopefully you have the 3 on 3
situation. Here comes the fun part: splitting the D.

PES3 has a LOT of moves for beating an opponent 1 on 1, most of them dealing
with individual skills. I'll tell you this right now: If you want to score
efficiently, you're better off not using ANY of them. I've found individual
skills to be real flashy, but also real flaky in terms of splitting the
defense. Plus, since you won't use them very often, trying to bust out a
individual move in the heat of the moment often distracts you from easier
opportunties that could be had by passing.

Team plays, however, are a different story. They are far more consistent and
require less individual talent to execute properly. There are only TWO skills
that you must learn to master if you want to split the D on the counterattack.
They are... (drumroll): the Through Pass, and 1-2 Pass. I'll cover each in
detail

Through Pass (triangle button)

By now, you probably already know how to use this. If you ever see a striker
with open space in front of him, make that through pass and you'll at least get
a good run at the net. This button gets used a LOT on offense, so you'd better
master it quick. The typical situation where you use a through pass is this:

Team X Team O

X O
-- --
| |
|X X bO |
| X |
-- --
O

X = opponent team (on defense)
O = your team (on attack)
b = the ball

In this case, the left defender has sagged off your LWF a bit to cover the CF,
at which point a through pass from the CF would lead to a chance on goal. A
GREAT way to create such a chance is to carry the ball forward on one side.
This will "draw" the defense towards the ball side, giving the attacker on the
weak side a little more breathing room. Quickly pass to the CF, and then
Through Pass to the weak side player (essentially switching the attacking side
quickly through ground passes)

1-2 Pass (hold down L1, push X)

The 1-2 is quite a bit more advanced in the sense that most begniners won't
learn to use it until after quite a few games. It's a good idea not to overuse
the 1-2 until you're very comfortable with Through Passing, because knowing
when to Through Pass is 10 times more important. You can't even complete the
1-2 without the Through Pass anyhow.

The 1-2, if used properly, can be an extremely powerful offensive weapon in
your arsenal. On the Counterattack, you will sometimes run into this kind of
situation.

Team X Team O

X O
-- --
| |
|X X bO |
| |
-- --
X O

X = opponent team (on defense)
O = your team (on attack)
b = the ball

Your CF is carrying the ball (b), but all 3 defenders are in their proper
position, and the middle defender is closing in to challenge your CF. What do
you do?

If you go for a Through Pass in these kinds of situations, you're just
surrendering a real scoring opportunity. Since both defenders are covering
your strikers' space, the most likely outcome would be an interception. At
best, the through ball goes near the sideline and you're forced to cross after
your run.

No, the best thing to do here is to use the 1-2. The reason is that since the
middle defender is closing in on you, he will most likely be beat on the 1-2,
since he has to turn around to follow the CF after he makes his run, whereas
the CF just has to accelerate. Result: CF breakaway on goal.

Here's the important thing. THE SUCCESS OF THE 1-2 IS DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL TO
HOW CLOSE THE DEFENDER IS TO THE PLAYER INITIATING THE 1-2. This means that if
you want the 1-2 have a good chance of working, wait until the defender gets as
close as possible before trying the 1-2 (don't wait TOO long, or you'll just
get dispossessed). It's even better if the defender is charging at you
(instead of you charging at him, and then 1-2'ing), because he will have to
reverse all that momentum to chase you after you give up the ball.

Also, you have to be careful with the the timing of the return pass. If you
pass it back immdiately (like the game tells you to do in the tutorial), the
ball will sometimes hit the trailing defender. If you pass it back too late,
the runner will be forced to stop or risk getting caught offside. Sometimes,
using a lob through ball (hold L1+triangle) can complete a difficult 1-2
situation, especially when there is still a lot of space to cover. Only
real-game experience will tell you when to use the normal through pass, or the
lob.

The other use of the 1-2 is simply to make sure that strikers don't just stand
there after passing the ball. Even if you attempt a 1-2 and the runner doesn't
break free, at least you create movement, and often you prevent the defense
from quickly trapping the new ball handler. As a general rule, ALWAYS hold
down L1 when using the direct pass on offense, because you never know what kind
of opportunites it will create.

Solo Run Option

Team X Team O

X O
-- --
| |
|X X O |
| |
-- --
X bO
<--------/

There is actually one last option to break defence that doesn't involve team
play, and that is the simple change of direction combined with change of speed.
Unlike the other two options, the Solo Run is almost always available to you on
every counter-attack, which makes it very dependable. However, it requires a
player with very high stats and quite often you'll be forced way into the
corner with no other option than to cross.

It's quite simply really.. if you have a FAST striker, you can create a run on
the wing with high success by simply dribbling forwards at normal speed, and
then when the defender gets close enough, turn outwards towards the wing and
sprint. While sprinting, if you slowly change your direction so that you end
up running straight, you'll find that the defender will always be a few steps
behind, and is unable to disposses you. HOWEVER, you will most likely end up
near the sidelines, where you can only cross. Sometimes however, if you're
timing is good and you started closer the middle, you can force you way through
without getting pushed too far into the wing, which is almost as good as a
genuine RWF/LWF breakaway.

---------------------------
7. STEP FOUR: FINISHING
---------------------------

Finally, you have the defense split, one of your forwards is blazing towards
the net. Now, you need to finish. In PES3, it's not always as simple as
pushing the shoot button. You need to stay cool and analyze the situation in
the few seconds before the goalie strips the ball from you.

SITUATION 1: CF Breakaway

If your CF gets a breakaway, this means a head to head confrontation with the
goalie. However, the presence of defenders actually makes a big difference on
how you should finish. If you're under a lot of pressure from behind (which is
like 95% of the time), and the goalie has come out to stop you (looks like
you're being sandwiched), then the chip shot (press R1 after square) is the
best option. Make sure you get enough height into the chip shot or the goalie
will still catch it. Don't get too excited though, it's not easy to time the
chip shot and the chance of making the goal is not that high. I'd put the chip
shot success rate at somewhere around 20-30%, after factoring in the pressure
you feel when such an opportunity arises.

If you're TOTALLY free with no defender in sight, the dummy is the best option
(press X after square). Once again the timing is tricky, and it's not
guaranteed to work. Truthfully, in over 100 games of PES3, I've never had the
opportunity to use the dummy, mostly becuase there's always a defender closely
following behind if I ever get a breakaway on net. In practice however it
works very well.

Finally, if you're closing in on net and the goalie hasn't really come out
(usually shortly after a "surprise" change of possession) just tap square for a
ground shot. If such a situation arises, the success rate is extremely high,
roughly 60-70%.

SITUATION 2: RWF/LWF Breakaway

RWF/LWF breakaways are a little different because you're a bit to the side of
the net, and often there's still a defender beside you, covering the space you
need to turn towards the goalie. If you keep running straight, your shot angle
becomes worse and worse, forcing you to take a difficult shot.

Truthfully however, I always prefer a RWF/LWF breakaway as opposed to a CWF
because I seem to score with a higher percentage.

The best scoring strategy I have for a RWF/LWF breakway is the 180 turn->pass
back. It's much more reliable than trying to force your way through the side.
Here's how it goes: Keep running straight until you're almost at the goal line.
When you get there, make a sudden 180 turn, which almost always fools the
defender and gives you a little room to move around. LOOK for any trailing
attackers that are charging towards the net (DON'T BE AFRAID TO DRIBBLE AROUND
A BIT), and then when you see any opening, center the ball and one-time it into
the net. The success rate for attempting such an attack is roughly 50%, which
is very good considering that RWF/LWF breakaways are not uncommmon.

X O
-- X O
|
|X O<------- pass here to score
| X
-- O
fooled----->X b
defender O<-- you with the ball

If you don't see any open players, then after the 180 turn, try to dribble up
towards the net, and try a 45 degree diagonal shot. The success rate is lower
but still quite high compared to the CWF chip shot (30-40%).

X O
-- X O
| \
|X \ O
| \ X<--------- defender playing CWF tight
-- \ X O
fooled----->X b
defender O<-- you with the ball

---------------------
8. MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
---------------------

- On Corners: Aim at the goalie, power halfway, and curl it away from the
goalie.

- On Shooting: It's always better to let go of R1, dribble at normal speed
once, and then shoot. Accuracy and power go up.

- On Freekicks: Never try the direct shot. Only the CPU can do it. Instead,
Lob Pass the correct distance and attempt a header.

UPDATE
I've had quite a few readers telling me that the above is untrue. Doug Kiley
([email protected]) tells me that inside 30M, his success rate is around
15%, which I think is fairly decent. Here's a method that was sent to me by
Mark Stuart ([email protected])

--BEGIN QUOTE--
Ohh, I wasn't expecting a friendly response from that. Anyway, David Beckham
has some kind of secret stats in this game. His corners and freekick accuarcy
is much better than other, even others that are of the same stats(e.g.
Rivaldo). When I get a freekick about 5 metres outside of the box and on the
left hand side, I make sure that Beckham is taking it, then aim about 2/5 of
the goal from the left (the keeper should be on about the same distance from
the right post). Then push square until then power bar is half full and hold
left. It should fly in. If you are further away from the goal put a tiny bit
more power on it and slightly hold up (10 o/clock on a clock). If you are
nearer to the goal(right on the edge of the box, almost a penelty) put half
power on it, and slightly hold down aswell as left (8 o/clock on a clock). With
these stategy's, aslong as it clears the wall, it should go in. Curling the
ball makes it be powerful, yet not go too high. This is one reason Beckham is
the best free kick taker in the game.

With other people( Rivaldo, Figo etc...) you may have to hold R2.

From the right side it will be very hard to score in the top right hand corner
--END QUOTE--

Personally I still can't score consistently off the free kick, but of course
with practice your mileage may vary.

- Try to relax when playing the game. It particularily helps on defense and
finishing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(c) 2004 Terry Lin

[email protected]