Game guide
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There are 3 different types of football game available to you in FS:
Kickabout matches
These are "Friendly" matches where you can team up and play against anyone you like. You do not receive FSDs or experience for taking part in Kickabout matches but your stats will increase.
FS Club matches
These are competitive matches where you will play for your chosen FS Club against opponents from other Clubs, with all the results influencing your team's position in the league. Each FS Club game played (and completed) will earn you FSDs, experience, and your stats will increase.
Player-Managed Club matches
If you are a member of a Player-Managed Club (PMC), you can challenge other PMCs and compete in the PMC league. Playing PMC matches will earn you fame and stat points.
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Kickabout matches
Joining a Kickabout match
™Kickabout matches are an excellent way to train and increase your understanding of the game's controls before heading out into FS Club or PMC matches. To enter the Kickabout lobby, you will need to find a Kickabout Organiser NPC.
One place to find Kickabout Organisers is in your Clubhouse, but you will also find them throughout the world next to open-air pitches. You will be able to recognise them by the green icon floating above them. Simply left-mouse click the NPC and you will be taken into the lobby where you can join or create a match.
Skills
When you select a skill, its description will be shown below. Double-clicking a skill will add it to an available slot.
Players in games or lobbies
This column lists the names and character levels of all other players who are currently looking for a Kickabout match. This could give you an indication of what kind of match to create. For example, if there are seven other players looking for a Kickabout match then a 5-a-side game could accommodate them all. You can also change this view to show players who have already entered Kickabout games by putting a cross in the Players in Game box.
List of current Kickabout games
Here you will find a list of all the current Kickabout matches. First you will see the name of the match, then the number of players involved, the victory condition, and finally whether the match is password-protected.
Create
Create a match.
Join
Join a match you have selected.
VoIP On/Off (F1 in game)
Toggle whether or not to use VoIP communication.
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Create a Kickabout match
If there isn't an existing match that appeals to you, then you can create your own!
The Kickabout match creation menu allows you to specify a name for your match, and a password if you wish for your match to only be accessible to people you've given the password to. Under the Size heading you can choose between creating a 3 or 5-a-side match.
It is important to think about the Victory Condition you set for your match as it cannot be altered once the match is in progress. You can choose to have the match end either when one team scores a set total of goals, or after a set amount of time has passed.
Once you are happy with your selections, click the tick and your match will appear in the list for other players to find. If you have changed your mind about creating a Kickabout match then you can cancel the process by clicking the cross.
When all the required players have signed up for a match, all players will automatically be sent to the pitch and the match will begin to your specifications.
FS Club matches
FS Club match request
To access the FS Club match finder, click the "Match Request" logo on your Nokia PDA, this will bring up the following menu.
Choose number of players
Your options may be limited until you progress through the FS Club league divisions. Select between 3/5/7/and 11 a side games.
Choose game length
Allows you to specify the length of match you wish to play in. Select between 10/20/30/40... minutes games. Times may be limited dependent on match type (number of players).
Play a quick start game
Quickly get into the first appropriate game available if you're in a hurry.
Go play
Confirm your selection of match criteria.
Cancel / Quit
Exit the menu.
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Once you are happy with your choices and clicked the tick, the panel will change to display the number of team-mates who have also put themselves forward for this match type.
FS Club Information
The panel gives information on the FS Club you are representing and in which Division, as well as the specifications for the particular match.
The number of coloured boxes corresponds with the number of players required per team. In this case there are eleven boxes and six are green, indicating that six of the 11 players are ready for the match. When all of the red boxes turn green this means that your FS Club has a full team ready for this match type and the game will then search for another FS Club with a full team for the same match type. Once both your team and an opposing team are ready, all players will be teleported to the match lobby.
Here you can add your purchased skills to the load-out for the match, and select any match accessories you have. You can also choose whether to activate VoIP or not and check out your team-mates and the opposition, before clicking Ready and taking to the hallowed turf.
N.B. You may notice players in the world saying that they're looking for a 310, or a 720, or an 1130. This is short-hand for encouraging people to join up for particular match types. The last two numbers (eg 10, 20, 30) always correspond with the match length, while any numbers before relate to the number of players per side. For example, 520 would represent a 5-a-side, 20 minute match.
Player-Managed Club matches
Finding a PMC match
As a PMC member
In order to play a PMC match as a squad member, you must click the PMC button on your PDA and then the "Ready" button. This will allow your manager (or PMC member) to see that you are available to play a match.
As a Manager / Scout / Coach or Captain
PMC matches can only be created by either a manager a coach or the captain of a PMC.
Firstly, the match creator must click the PMC button on the PDA to open the PMC menu. Here they must click the "Create Match" icon which will bring up another box with a list of ready and available players at your disposal. From this list you can click on each of the members as you wish to add them to the squad. When all members are accounted for, press the "Submit team" button and this will put the squad below the PMC "Create Team" and "Edit Team" buttons. Use the "Edit Team" button to change your squad's line-up if you wish.
Once a team is submitted, press the "Create Match" to put your team on the list of teams available, or click on one of the ready teams in the list below to join that match.
The bottom half of the screen will show you what games are available - the data includes:
Team name
Simply the name of the opposition PMC looking for a match.
Lvl.
The level the team submitted for action.
Time
The proposed duration of the game.
Size
The amount of players required for that particular game (e.g. 5-a-side).
Opposition Team
The name of the opposing PMC.
Lvl.
The level of the opposition team.
Type
Indicates what kind of match is set up e.g. friendly.
Acc.
Indicated if the match requires the other team to accept a challenge or not.
Information on this feature will be available when it is live.
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The graphical user interface when you take to the pitch is quite different to the one you'll be used to from the lifestyle world. This is necessary to give you all the information you need to be able to co-operate with your team-mates and produce some stunning football.
The Scoreboard
This ought to be familiar to anyone who makes a habit of watching football on television. The names of the teams are abbreviated to three letters for tidiness; here we see that the visitors Calderfax are a goal up against Fretsby after four minutes and 54 seconds of play. Come on, Argyle!
Next up is the info panel in the top-right corner.
Info Panel
At the top is your character's Nickname with the green bar to the right indicating how close you are to being 'up for a sub vote' (more detail on this later). Below in the black bar is the position you have been allocated for the match and your current football level.
The final element of this panel lists the Nickname of the player you are currently targeting for a pass. The first two boxes to the right of this will display any yellow cards you have been given. The next box will display an offside flag when you are in an offside position, and in the final box in the bottom-right the P will illuminate when you have an active preload.
The Radar
Continuing in a clockwise direction, we have the radar. The radar shows a basic diagram of the pitch with colour symbols denoting the players; blue circles for your team and red triangles for the opposition. Your player will be marked with a white point in the direction you're facing. Here we see that our player also has a ball icon, indicating the position of the ball on the field. The team-mate with the blue circle around him is our pass target.
The radar is extremely useful in judging the defensive line to spring the offside trap or to beat it as a striker!
The Skills
These are the skills and / or tricks that you have selected to bring into the game. Some are passive, some are active, please see the slide on skills later in this section for more information.
The Chatbox
The chatbox will appear at the bottom of the screen when you hit return or when a team-mate sends a message. It works in the same way as the chatbox in the lifestyle world, in that you can click on the text field at the bottom to enter a message and then hit return to send it to your team-mates.
Commentary Box
At the bottom-left you will find the commentary box. Here you will see a summary of all the actions taking place on the pitch. If you don't catch the scorer of a goal, you'll be able to find out here. Likewise, you can find out which of your strikers just earned himself a ribbing for that howler of a miss.
The Intellicursor
At the centre of the screen is the intellicursor. Like a crosshair this GUI element will remain in the middle of the screen at all times, but its appearance and function will change depending on the situation.
In most situations it will look like this. The arrows as well as the icons either side indicate whether you would play a high or low ball if you were to pass or preload at that moment. The player nickname below indicates who the pass would go to.
The icons at either extreme alter depending on the position of your mouse.
This is a pass to feet along the ground and can be set up by aiming the intellicursor towards the bottom half of the screen.
A pass to feet through the air is chosen by keeping the intellicursor level.
Finally, this is a pass to your team-mate's head. It is triggered by pointing upwards.
Taking a Shot
When you have the ball and your cursor is pointing within the opponent's goal the intellicursor will change again to indicate that you can take a shot.
Targetting a Player
Your Player
This icon will appear at your feet at all times. Like a compass, the arrow will always point in the direction of the opponent's goal.
Your Team-mates
As stated before, when you have the ball you can highlight a team-mate to pass to. This is the other end of the exchange as a player who is targeted for a pass by the ball-carrier will see yellow rings around their feet. When you see this on your player you know that the ball is likely to be coming your way soon, so it is a good idea to maintain the same pace and avoid sudden changes of direction.
Your Player
When the rings turn red, this means that the ball has been released by your team-mate and is coming your way.
Often, you will also see that there is a dotted line on the pitch. This shows the potential path of the ball, so you can be sure that if you meet this line at the point the ball arrives then you will gain possession. It sounds complicated in words, but it'll be instinctive when you play.
You will also often see that there is a green and white ball icon on the edge of the screen. When the ball is out of your view, i.e. off the edge of the screen, this icon will show you where it is in relation to your position so you are free to focus on getting into a dangerous position rather than having to look around for the ball at all times. The size of the icon will increase and decrease depending on how far away the ball is.
Your Player
The player you're targeting for a pass will be highlighted with blue rings around their feet. You can choose which of your team-mates to target by moving the intellicursor.
Intercepting Control
When the opposing team is in possession and you're in a position to make a challenge, the arrow icons will change to indicate an opportunity to turnover control of the ball to your team. You're also likely to see your intellicursor change to this configuration if you are accidentally running towards your own goal.
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Nobody likes playing with team-mates who don't pass the ball, score own goals and constantly give away fouls in dangerous positions. Because of this, Football Superstars uses a system that allows players to vote off members that are not playing the game with the word "team" in mind.
In the top-right corner is a bar that begins green but can gradually turn red if you perform certain actions. Committing many fouls, scoring own goals, not passing the ball, or leaving your character idle for a long period of time increases the amount of red segments on the bar. When the bar turns completely red, your team-mates will get the opportunity to have you removed from the pitch via a vote.
If, during the course of a match you have done something to incur a vote being cast, you will see this box in the top left of the screen.
While you see this, your team-mates will see two slightly different boxes, informing them that there is a player up for a vote.
Here you will see the name of the player who is up for the vote, and the reason for this. If you feel that the player deserves an early bath, then press the "Y" key at this point to vote him off. If you think that this is unjustified, press the "N" key, or simply don't vote at all.
The vote is decided by the majority, and if a player is sent off, he will not be able to play another game for 10 minutes afterwards as a punishment.
On the other hand however, it is possible to get your green bar back up to full health by playing more as a team player and by avoiding dirty tackles and scoring own goals!
Please note that persistent foul play will lead to an accumulation of yellow cards, and these will negatively affect your post match rating as well as the amount of FS Dollars awarded to you at the end of the game.
You don't get to the top in Football Superstars by playing dirty!
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In Football Superstars, your character's attributes come in three forms, and all affect your performance on the pitch. To take a look at your stats, open the Character Sheet using the PDA (You may need to click the extension arrow on the initial panel to reveal all of your attributes).
You will see that the three types have been separated into sections to make the system easier to understand.
Gym Trained Attributes
Gym Trained Attributes can only be trained in the gym or a Sports Centre if you are a subscriber. You will find Gyms and Sports Centres throughout the world, but perhaps the easiest place to find one is in your Clubhouse.
Once inside the gym, you will find a variety of machines with details of their uses above. Interacting with a machine will open a menu allowing you to spend money on training the attribute associated with that machine. In Football Superstars, you are only able to train at a gym six times for each level you gain from playing football. If you have used up your six sessions already then the machine will tell you to come back once you have levelled up.
When you are sure you want to train that attribute, simply click the "Train" icon and the attribute will be instantly and permanently increased. You can repeat the process as much as you want within your per level training allowance, but each time the cost of training will increase slightly.
Football Practise Attributes
The second category of attributes is Football Practice Attributes. These attributes are improved by successfully performing the appropriate actions in matches and attribute gains are awarded when the match ends.
Match Play Attributes
The third category is slightly different and involves Match Play Attributes, or Derived Stats. Your Derived Stats are calculated from the combination of a number of attributes in the other two attribute categories. For example, the Recovery Rate Derived Stat is calculated based on your Strength and Endurance Gym Trained Attributes as well as your Football Practice Recovery Rate.
All of your attributes in the three categories will contribute to your abilities on the pitch. For example, when you have trained your Interception attribute to a high level it will be easier to intercept and control a pass from an opposing player.
Other attributes will affect the visual effects you see in matches. For instance, as your Anticipation attribute increases it will become easier for you to judge the flight of the ball as the size of the potential landing zone circle decreases.
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As well as the basic attributes you can train using gyms and match experience, you can supplement your abilities with enhancements and unique skills bought from Trainers around the world.
Skill Trainers have all focused in on particular types of skill, and some are focused on training just one extra-special trick perfectly.
In Alexander Bay and Clarkswater, you will find Skill Trainers who focus on Possession skills, Defence skills, Attack skills, General skills, and Unique skills. In order to locate a skill trainer, keep your eyes out for the NPCs who look like the character below. You can also refer to the Product Finder on the Football Superstars website.
When you interact with a Skill Trainer you'll first see a confirmation box verifying whether you wish to continue. If you have already trained the maximum amount for your level, or have trained all of the statistics with that particular trainer, you will be told that you are not able to train at this point.
Once you have agreed that you would like to train, you will see a panel listing all of the available skills for purchase.
Once you've signed on the dotted line for a session with the Skill Trainer, you'll see a panel like this listing the skills available for purchase from this NPC.
The Skills Training Panel
Clicking each skill will bring up a brief description of the benefits it will give you in a match. Next to the skill you will see the price of the skill.
When you have decided that you would like to purchase the skill, click the Train button. The skill will then appear in your Character Sheet.
Skills you have purchased will appear in solid colour in the list, while those you're yet to buy will be in grey. This box displays descriptions of skills you are yet to buy, so that you can plan for which skills would best suit your style of play.
Your purchased Skills can be used whenever you play a game, and are selectable in the match lobby before you take to the pitch. Along with the usual information you will see a grid of ten grey squares, with a scrollable list of icons corresponding with skills you have acquired next to it. Clicking on these icons adds them to the grid. Clicking on an icon you have already placed in the grid will remove it and free up the slot for another skill.
Passive and Active Skills
It is important to realise that skills come in two types; passive and active:
- Passive skills are those which constantly upgrade your abilities as long as they are brought with you into the match.
- Active skills must be triggered during the match and will activate a one-time trick or a temporary enhancement. An example of an active skill would be the dummy skill in the top row of the grid. When one of these special skills is triggered, they will activate a special animation giving you a brief advantage in beating another player.
Using the Skills
When you play a match, the same 2x5 grid will appear in the bottom-right corner of the match screen, next to the radar.
There is an arrow on the left hand side of the skills grind, and this can be moved up and down the list using your mouse wheel or R and F keys to highlight a row of skills. The skills can then be activated with the Q and E keys, with Q corresponding with the left column and E the right.
Stamina
In order to use an active skill, your player requires energy to pull it off; you will notice that when you use a skill, your stamina bar will decrease. As always your bar will refill over time depending on your attributes, but it prevents the indefinite and repeated use of skills.
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Player Search is a great system with which you can find detailed information about any player in Football Superstars, and it can be a fantastic tool for scouting potential signings to your Player-Managed Club.
Bring up the Player Search interface by clicking the "Player Search" button on your PDA.
Player Search Field
Once you have the player search box open, you can type in a Nickname, First Name, and/or Last Name in the boxes on the left to search for a specific player. All the possible search results will appear in the window on the right, and by selecting the one you're after you will see details relating to that player below.
Replay
The Player Search function allows users to watch EVERY game of Football Superstars that has been played. To do this, find the player you would like to watch (maybe yourself) and click on the "Replay" tab.
After clicking the "Replay" tab, you can search all of the games played by that player and by clicking on one of the games, you will be asked if you would like to download the footage to watch in the FS replay viewer. After confirming, you will be taken to the replay viewer.
Positional Play Tab
Further information on their performance on the pitch can be found by selecting the Positional Play tab.
This operates in the same way as the Positional Play display in your Character Sheet. You can choose the information the diagram displays by selecting the match size you are interested in and the period of time you wish to view data from.
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Player Managed Clubs (PMCs) are possibly the biggest, most exciting feature of the Football Superstars world. There are loads of functions within the PMC setup, and this section will take you through the process of creating and joining a PMC, promoting members to become coaches, captains and scouts and most importantly, finding other PMCs to play against!
What is a PMC?
A PMC is a team run by a Football Superstar Player and made up exclusively of other Football Superstars (the Goalkeeper remains AI controlled in PMC teams). ANY player with a premium subscription can start a PMC, calling it whatever they want (within reason), designing the badge and kit, as well as deciding the style of football that team will play and of course who will play in it. From that point on, it is up to the manager to recruit players, pick the squad, get the tactics right and motivate your players to get the best out of them.
Creating a PMC
Anyone can create a PMC, there are however a couple of requirements that you must fulfil in order for the process to occur as smoothly as possible.
1) You will need to be in possession of a Premium Subscription. In order to purchase one of these, you must log in to the Football Superstars website and visit the "my profile" section. Here you will be able to purchase a subscription on a monthly reoccurring basis.
2) As well as having a premium account, you will also need 50,000FSD in your bank account in order to register the club.
3) The team name must NOT contain any real world team names and / or profanity.
4) Finally, you will not be able to register your own team if you are already a manager, player or member of another PMC club until you resign from that team.
If you match the criteria above, you will need to get yourself to the Town Hall located in the main town square of each town. Inside here, you will see a registrar NPC who will guide you through the process.
Creating your team's name & logo
On this screen, you will be asked for your Club Name and also to design your club crest / badge. Team names may NOT be real world team names and may NOT contain swearing / profanity. Please also note that team names may not exceed 20 characters in length.
Designing the PMC's strip
Here you will be able to really express yourself as you decide if your team is going to look the part as well as playing it. Using the same layout system as the create-a-character menu, select your kit styles and colours for both your HOME and AWAY kits. How unique you make the kits is up to you, but once you have clicked confirm (the last box), you will not be able to change it afterwards.
Confirmation Screen
Here is the final chance for you to change any of your selections before committing the PMC. Review the name, kits and club badge before taking the plunge and clicking on the tick icon.
Once you have completed the registration, you will be ready to start putting the team together.
Roles within a PMC
One person can't run a team by themselves, and PMCs are by no means an exception to this rule. As well as the manager there are other positions that can be designated within the PMC to other Football Superstar players. Each role has different responsibilities and roles can only be assigned initially by the manager, but as more people join the team these roles and responsibilities will grow - here is an overview of the current positions at your disposal.
Manager* - Simply speaking the manager runs the PMC. From hiring new players and delegating roles within the team the manager has the final say in all matters. He is often the one who will give you the hairdryer talk after a terrible 1st half!
Coach* - Coaches provide on the field tactical knowledge and experience. Your coach needs to be able to direct play and make game changing substitutions when the game looks lost. A coach in the PMC can promote players up and including the level of coach.
Captain* - Sometimes your best player, sometimes the player that can motivate players best on the pitch - the captain is an honourable position to be bestowed upon anyone. Captains can form squads and send these squads to play against other teams.
Scout - A scout's main job is to get out in the world and find players worth recruiting for the PMC - the club's lifeblood effectively. Using the "Player Search" function, Scouts will have to watch replays of games and study form if they want to hire the best players. Once Scouts have found a transfer target, they are able to invite players to the PMC.
Member - The member is simply a player for the PMC who will be required to turn up to games and play the best they can. Although the lowest rank in the team, they are potentially the most important.
*Please note that only players with a premium account can be promoted to this level.
Management tab - This panel allows you to promote and demote other players around you. By promoting players to Captain and Coach level, you will permit other trustworthy members to make squads, hire new recruits and start games without the manager being online.
To promote or demote a player, simply click on the players name and use the relevant button to change their rank.
Applying to play in a PMC
In order to apply to play for a PMC team, you simply have to ask a member of the team that has the power to invite you to the PMC (Manager, Scout, Coach and Captain). If they would like to, they will fill in the PMC management invite tab and click the confirm button. An invitation will then be sent out to you and you can choose to accept or decline as you wish.
Finding a PMC match
As a PMC member
In order to play a PMC match as a squad member, you must click the PMC button on your PDA and then the "Ready" button. This will allow your manager (or PMC member) to see that you are available to play a match.
As a Manager / Scout / Coach or Captain
PMC matches can only be created by either a manager a coach or the captain of a PMC.
Firstly, the match creator must click the PMC button on the PDA to open the PMC menu. Here they must click the "Create Match" icon which will bring up another box with a list of ready and available players at your disposal. From this list you can click on each of the members as you wish to add them to the squad. When all members are accounted for, press the "Submit team" button and this will put the squad below the PMC "Create Team" and "Edit Team" buttons. Use the "Edit Team" button to change your squad's line-up if you wish.
Once a team is submitted, press the "Create Match" to put your team on the list of teams available, or click on one of the ready teams in the list below to join that match.
The bottom half of the screen will show you what games are available - the data includes:
Team name
Simply the name of the opposition PMC looking for a match.
Lvl.
The level the team submitted for action.
Time
The proposed duration of the game.
Size
The amount of players required for that particular game (e.g. 5-a-side).
Opposition Team
The name of the opposing PMC.
Lvl.
The level of the opposition team.
Type
Indicates what kind of match is set up e.g. friendly.
Acc.
Indicated if the match requires the other team to accept a challenge or not.
The future of PMCs
Running a PMC can be a day to day job depending on how seriously you take it. The best teams out there will be run like well-oiled machines and every member will play their part with 110% dedications and devotion.
Resigning from your PMC is a very serious issue, and as such cannot be taken lightly. This is especially true if you are the owner as leaving will disband the team. If you are planning on leaving, please ensure that you have delegated your powers to another member of your PMC who is a subscriber BEFORE you leave.
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Football Superstars is the closest you'll get to playing the beautiful game without ever leaving your chair. If a tactic works in the real world, it'll work in the game! As long as your team-mates are on the same page, of course! Here are some general tips to help you out on the pitch.
Pre-loading
All the best players plan their next move even before the ball reaches them so that they can be first to the ball and quick to move it on to cause problems for the opposition.
In Football Superstars you can preload your next action so that it will happen immediately when the ball gets to you. When the ball is loose, having been kicked by a team-mate or opponent, you can hit the spacebar to make a pass to your currently highlighted team-mate and then as long as you make it to the ball within two seconds of triggering your preload you will automatically carry out a one-touch pass.
Similarly you might want to preload a shot to header or volley at goal from a cross. Just aim and click where you want to shoot as normal, but do so whilst the ball is en route to you and get to the ball first to test the goalkeeper. From the opposite perspective, defenders can preload their clearances in the same way to make sure the man they're marking doesn't get a touch.
The Offside Trap
In 7-a-side and 11-a-side matches, the offside rule comes into play.
If you're one of the defenders it's important that you co-ordinate with your back line to make sure you don't let the opponents get through on goal. Use VoIP and the chatbox to plan whether you're going to defend high or low and when to step up to try and catch the opposition out.
Tackling
You can tackle in two ways; standing and sliding.
A standing tackle can be attempted with a left mouse click when the opposition has the ball and is an attempt to cleanly snatch the ball from the opponent's feet. Approach the ball-carrier from the front or side and try to anticipate their movement to make sure you commit to the challenge at the right time or you could miss and let them spring past you.
Desperate times call for desperate measures and sometimes a slide tackle is the only option.
Hit the spacebar when the opposing team has the ball to go to ground and try to deflect the ball away from the ball-carrier at full stretch. If you don't get your timing and angle right you're likely to concede a free kick and might end up in the referee's book.
Keeping Possession
Mr. Tzu would have you believe that attack is the secret of defense, and that's right to an extent, but you will always be vulnerable to a counter-attack if your opposition has their wits about them. Perhaps a better form of defense is making sure you keep the ball; after all they can't score without it!
Remember that you don't always have to send the ball up the pitch. Sometimes it's more sensible to knock the ball to a team-mate in your own half if all of your attacking players are marked and likely to concede possession.
Receiving a Pass
When you see a yellow ring around your feet, this means that a team-mate has the ball and has you targeted for a pass. When this happens it is sensible to either stand still or continue moving in the same direction, being careful not to vary your pace too much. When the ring turns red it is an indication that your team-mate has made the pass, and a dotted line on the ground will indicate its potential path. Try to meet this line at the point the ball arrives to ensure you collect the ball and don't let your opponents intercept.
Don't Chase the Ball!
It only takes one player to make an interception, so once one team-mate has committed to making the move it is sensible for the rest of the players to take up defensive positions or look for dangerous space to occupy in the opposition's half. If several players all try to tackle the same player or intercept the same pass and the opposition happens to bundle through with the ball then it leaves you at a severe disadvantage as your team is left out of position.
Marking
Marking is for life, not just for defenders. When the opposition has the ball it's sensible to look for opposing players in space and get close to them to decrease their chances of receiving a pass. This is especially important in and around your own box, as any touch the opposition gets in this area could be dangerous.
Remember that it only takes one player to mark another. Ideally you should have nine men marked, with your tenth free to pressure the ball-carrier.
Know your Role
If you are selected to play centre back for a match but end up wandering into the final third then your team-mates have every right to ask questions about your contribution to the team, as opposing strikers skip through holes in your defense over and over again. It's always best to play in the position you've been assigned; you might even learn something about the position or gain in attribute areas you wouldn't under normal circumstances in your usual position. If you really can't abide playing in the position you've been assigned then ask your team-mates if they'd be interested in swapping.
