Which is the Best Formation EA FC 25 & custom tactics: Is it 4-2-3-1 Narrow, 4-4-2 Flat or some other formation?

The wait is over for all the football fans as the EA Sports FC 25 is back, and everyone will be choosing their best formation EA FC 25 according to their playing style, or some gamers will be searching for the best EA FC 25 formation. We have tested multiple formations alongside their custom tactics, which greatly impact gameplay. Before you waste your time experimenting, we have already analyzed the most effective formations to determine the best EA FC 25 formation with optimal tactics.

Given that FIFA branding is now a thing of the past, EA Sports FC 25 marks a major evolution in football gaming. To differentiate Street Football, Career Mode, and regular matches from Volta Football, the game features advanced animations, refined physics, and smarter AI mechanics. Thanks to expanded customization options, you can create custom teams, personalize kits, and implement strategic game plans. Although it no longer carries the FIFA name, EA has retained official licenses, ensuring that leagues, teams, and players remain authentic. The result is a redefined football experience with unmatched realism.

EA Sports FC 25 delivers enhanced tactical depth and flexibility in formations, allowing players to fine-tune their strategies for optimal gameplay performance. After the latest updates, three of the most effective narrow formations are 4-3-2-1, 5-4-1, and 4-1-2-1-2 (Narrow), each catering to specific play styles. For instance, 4-3-2-1 is an excellent choice for fast counterattacks, while 5-4-1 provides an ultra-defensive setup. The 4-1-2-1-2 (Narrow) offers a balanced approach between offense and defense. To fully take advantage of these formations, it is essential to optimize custom instructions, ensuring that strikers, inverted wingers, and overlapping fullbacks operate effectively.

These are some of the best EA FC 25 formations, but with upcoming patches and meta-shifts, new tactics may emerge. So, let’s analyze which EA FC 25 formation suits your style best, along with its pros, cons, and ideal custom tactics.

Also Read: EA FC 25 Ultimate Edition: A Complete Guide to the Game 

The EA FC 25 Best Formation

We are going to list some of the best formations alongside custom tactics, which also depend on the type of players you have in your EA FC 25 team.

Also Read: EA FC 25 Ultimate Edition: A Complete Guide to the Game 

1. 4-2-3-1 Narrow: Balanced Formation

• Tactical Present: Custom
• Formation: 4-2-3-1 Narrow
• Build-Up Style: Counter
• Defensive Approach: Balance, Line Height: 65

Player instructions

• GK: Sweeper
• Left and Right Centerbacks: Destroyer and Ball-playing Defender
• Left Back: Wingback
• Right Back: Wingback
• Center Defensive Mid Left: Holding Mid
• Center Defensive Mid Right: Deep-Lying Playmaker
• Center Mid Left: Shadow Striker
• Center Mid Right: Shadow Striker
• Center Attacking Midfielder: Shadow Striker
• Striker:  Advanced Forward

Player Focus

• Goalkeeper: Balance
• Left-back: Balance
• Right-back: Balance
• Center Backs: Both Defend
• CDMs: Roaming, Stay back while attacking
• CAM Left: Attack
• CAM Right: Attack
• CAM: Stay forward
• ST: Stay forward

Young Players Suggestion To Pick In Career Mode While Playing 4-2-3-1 Narrow Formation

Note: The players that are going to be suggested here are mostly not very highly rated but have the potential to be the greatest players for your career mode.

• Goalkeeper: Guillaume Restes
• Left-back: Alejandro Balde, Jorrel Hato
• Right-back: Pedro Porro, Tino Livramento
• Center Backs: Quinten Timber, Pau Cubarsí
• CDMs: Archie Gray, Arthur Vermeeren
• CAM Left: Gavi, Pedri
• CAM Right: Fermín Lopez, Lucas Bergvall
• CAM: Claudio Echeverri, Vitinha
• ST: Semih Kilicsoy, Marc Guiu

4-2-3-1 Narrow is another one of the best formations ea fc 25 has, which is a balanced formation, but it focuses on attacking more as the four forward players will mostly stay forward while the center defensive midfielder will be focusing more on the defensive play, but one of them will be playing as the deep-lying Playmaker.

Expect the Defensive midfielders to select the players that have good pace, especially around the wingbacks, because they are going to play a crucial role in transition when you are on the ball or off the ball.

The Three shadow strikers will give the attacking side of your team great playmaking, and you can use them in the center as well as wide players, but remember, all those players must have decent overall attacking stats.

2. 4411

• Tactical Preset: Custom
• Formation: 4411
• Build-Up Style: Balanced
• Defensive Approach: High

Player instructions

• GK: Goalkeeper++
• Center backs: Defender++
• Left Back: Fullback ++
• Right Back: Fullback +
• Center Mid Right: Box to Box ++
• Center Mid Left: Holding+
• Right Mid: Inside Forward++
• Left Mid: Inside Forward++
• Center Attack Mid: Shadow Striker++
• ST: Advanced Forward++

Player Focus

• GK: Defend
• Center backs: Defend
• Left Back: Balanced
• Right Back: Balanced
• Center Mid Right: Balanced
• Center Mid Left: Defend
• Right Mid: Balanced
• Left Mid: Balanced
• Center Attack Mid: Attack
• ST: Attack

Young Players Suggestion To Pick In Career Mode While Playing 4-4-1-1

• GK: Iker Casillas Fernandez
• Center back Left: Leny Yoro
• Center back Right: Antonio Rudiger
• Left Back: Rodrigo Hernandez Cascante
• Right Back: Daniel Carvajal Ramos
• Center Mid Right: Frank Lampard
• Center Mid Left: Moises Caicedo
• Right Mid: Mohammad Salah
• Left Mid: Jeremy Doku
• Center Attack Mid: Johan Cruyff
• ST: Thierry Henry

Note: The players that are going to be suggested here are mostly not very highly rated but have the potential to be the greatest players for your career mode.

This line up of pitting the entire squad on the backside of the team is majorly geared towards fending off against hyper active attack heavy sides. Tailored for players who finds joy in inflicting thousand cuts through defensive only to fire one right back in the form of a powerful counter attack.

This 4-4-1-1 line up sets the entire backline into defensive heavy mode, majorly looking to circle around attacking players and trapping them in their half. Both Center backs and Left back are set on Defensive heavy stance, exerting heavy pressure on the opposition, through aggressive defense and by out numbering them.

3. 4213

• Tactical Preset: Custom
• Formation: 4-2-1-3
• Build-Up Style: Balanced
• Defensive Approach: Aggressive

Player instructions

• GK: Goalkeeper ++
• CB: Defender ++
• RB: Fullback +
• LB: Fullback
• CDMs: Holding & Holding ++
• CAM: Play maker++
• LW: Inside Forward ++
• RW: Inside Forward ++
• ST: Advanced Forward ++

Player Focus

• GK: Defend
• CB: Defend
• RB: Balanced
• LB: Balanced
• CDM : Roaming
• CAM: Balanced
• LW: Roaming
• RW: Roaming
• ST: Attack

Young Players Suggestion To Pick In Career Mode While Playing 4-2-1-3 Aggressive formation

Note: The players that are going to be suggested here are mostly not very highly rated but have the potential to be the greatest players for your career mode.

• GK: Emiliano Martínez
• CB: Jorrel Hato
• RB: Marcos de Morais
• LB: Theo Hernandez
• CDM : Fabinho, Rodri
• CAM: Thomas Müller
• LW: Son Heung-min
• RW: Bernardo Silva
• ST: Harry Kane

This line up made for making great attacking plays with your Left and Right winger altered to make crucial plays to support your star player in the striking position. This line up is majorly made to deal heavy blow to the opposition while also pitting 4 players on the defense at all times.

This might not be the best formation in the game or suited tot he current meta right, now but this formation has proven to produce great results with aggression as the major focus. On paper this formation and build is the best for gamers who prefer a nice balance of attack and defense with aggression as major focus to pile up goals with midfield making plays.

4. 4-4-2 Flat: The Classic Formation

• Tactical Preset: Custom
• Formation: 4-4-2 Flat
• Build-Up Style: Counter
• Defensive Approach: Balance, Line Height: 50

Player instructions

• GK: Sweeper
• Left and Right Centerbacks: Destroyer and Ball-playing Defender
• Left Back: Wingback
• Right Back: Wingback
• Left Mid: Half Winger
• Right Mid: Half Winger
• Center Mid Left: Playmaker
• Center Mid Right: Box-to-Box
• Center Attacking Midfielder: Shadow Striker
• Striker Right: False 9
• Striker Left:  Advanced Forward

Player Focus

• Goalkeeper: Defend
• Left-back: Balance
• Right-back: Balance
• Center Backs: Both Defend
• Left Mid: Balance
• Right Mid: Balance
• CM Left: Attack
• CM Right: Attack
• LS: Build-Up
• RS: Attack

Young Players Suggestion To Pick In Career Mode While Playing 4-4-2 Flat Formation

Note: The players that are going to be suggested here are mostly not very highly rated but have the potential to be the greatest players for your career mode.

• Goalkeeper: Guillaume Restes
• Left-back: Josko Gvardiol, Nuno Mendes
• Right-back: Pedro Porro, Tiago Santos
• Center Backs: Antonio Silva, Luka Vuskovic
• Left Mid: Nico Williams, Grimaldo
• Right Mid: Cole Palmer, Jeremie Frimpong
• CMs Left: Gavi, Pedri
• CM Right: Fermin Lopez, Lucas Bergvall
• LS: Mathys Tel, Evan Ferguson,
• RS: Victor Boniface, Benjamin Sesko

4-4-2 Flat is great for gamers who don’t have only an attack-and-attack mentality and want to use wide midfielders to score goals. Another great side of this formation is that you can select a vast number of players who can fit in this formation, and it can also give you a bit of freedom to be more creative.

The one drawback of this best EA FC 25 Formation is that if you use the counter-attack or keep your players attacking, your opposition can overlap if you play any loose ball because the player playing into the line formation. No defensive midfielder can help the center back, but you can use one CM as the holding midfielder who can stay back while the other players attack.

Also Read: EA FC 25 Web App: Everything You Need to Know

5. 4-3-3 Attack: Attack is the Best Defense Formation

• Tactical Preset: Custom
• Formation: 4-3-3 Attack
• Build-Up Style: Balance
• Defensive Approach: Aggressive, Line Height: 95

Player instructions

• GK: Defensive
• Left and Right Centerbacks: Ball-playing Defenders
• Left Back: Attacking Wingback
• Right Back: Attacking Wingback
• Center Midfielders: Box-to-Box
• Center Attacking Midfielder: Shadow Striker
• Left Winger: Inside Forward
• Right Winger: Wider Playmaker
• Striker:  Advanced Forward

Player Focus

• Goalkeeper: Defend
• Left-back: Attack
• Right-back: Attack
• Center Backs: Both Defend
• Center Midfielders: Balance
• CAM Right: Attack
• LW: Attack
• RW: Attack
• ST: Attack

Young Players Suggestion To Pick In Career Mode While Playing 4-3-3 Attack Formation

Note: The players suggested here are mostly not very highly rated but have the potential to be the greatest players in your career mode.

• Goalkeeper: Guillaume Restes
• Left-back: Balde, Nuno Mendes
• Right-back: Pedro Porro, Arnau Martinez
• Center Backs: William Saliba, Matthijs de Ligt
• Center Midfielders: Tygo Land, Enzo Fernandez
• CAM Right: Fermin Lopez, Lucas Bergvall
• LW: Savinho, Julien Duranville
• RW: Lamine Yamal, Bukayo Saka
• ST: Endrick, Julian Alvarez

4-3-3 Attack is a single-approach gameplay formation for gamers who just want to keep attacking the opposition and don’t mind conceding goals because the high line in this formation is one of the highest, which can easily be countered by the pacey attacking players. Then you just have to pray that your opponent will make a mistake or that your goalkeeper becomes a god.

The good thing about this formation is that you can keep the pressure on against your opposition, but if you want to slow down a bit with attacking, then you can use the alternative custom tactics for this formation is 4-3-3 balance where your two center midfielders will play more like a defensive or deep-lying midfielder and help the defenders in dealing with opposition attackers.

In the Ultimate Team mode, most of the gamers select the ultra-attacking formation because it is the best defense for them. Still, the EA FC 25 has issues with defending against the lob passing, where it’s hard to control your player, and only selected gamers can handle it well. So, if you don’t play much of EA FC, then you should avoid this formation because it also needs a pacey build-up where your reaction time comes in handy, and that can mostly be improved when you give it a lot of time.

There were some of the formations that were considered to be the best formations for you, and by using them, you can win against your rivals or compete against top-level gamers with ease.

FAQ