Football Manager 2020: Mentality explained - here's how to work with it

In Football Manager, mentality is one of countless adjusting screws for your tactics - but its importance is particularly great. We explain the basics and clear up a common misconception.

Posing the mentality question: In Football Manager 2020, a willingness to take risks plays a major role.

Anyone new to Football Manager 2020 is faced with a huge variety of options. The mentality is crucial here.

Football Manager 2020: Mentality as a measure of risk tolerance

You can see the mentality in the "Tactics" view at the top left. It can be set in seven levels from "Very defensive" to "Neutral" to "Very offensive".

• And contrary to what is often assumed, the mentality does not alone determine the defensive or offensive alignment.
• More importantly, it is a measure of your players' willingness to take risks: the more defensive the mentality, the more the team will be concerned with safety, for example when deciding on a pass. Conversely, with offensive mentality is played much more determined forward - and for this also with more risk.
• It is therefore quite possible to play a defensive tactic, but to act with an offensive mentality. This offers itself for example in counterattacking systems, which stand deep at the back, but when winning the ball quickly and energetically want to play forward.
• It also goes the other way around: an offensive tactic with a defensive mentality is possible, for example, in possession systems to let the ball circulate for a long time and with little risk.

In connection with these aspects also offers the view of the set passing game. Because this also influences safety, risk as well as game speed. So, as always, hardly any factor in Football Manager 2020 may be considered in isolation, as there are interactions between virtually all aspects - the mentality is no exception.