I'm not to experienced at CM3 either, but I have great success with an attacking 4-4-2 (attacking wingers). I've also heard other people having good experiences with sticking to the "good-old" 4-4-2. Also be careful that you put the players in the correct possition. That is, the correct possition in CM3, not necessarily in real life! If Zidane is listed as a left defender in CM3, he shouldn't play midfielder (just a stupid example..).
When I have found myself a goal or two behind, I usually turn up the heat on the tackling and pressing. This can lead to a few cards, but i's better than loosing.
Some times it pays off to push forward your central midfielders as well (right-click the player circle, and drag forward. you'll get arrows pointing forward). Substitute players when they start to get down to 60-65% condition. They're starting to get useless, no matter how good they've been earlier in the game.
But this need'nt work for you. You have to find out what your players are good at, and choose the tactics after that.
If you've got fast defenders with great tactical skills and teamwork, play the offside trap. If you've got fast, skillful winger, make them run with the ball. It takes some time and patience, but after a while you learn your players' strong and weak sides.
If you notice that a particular tactic works, don't change it too often (if at all). The players need time to adjust to the system, and you'll confuse them by changing things all the time. For the same reason, you should play the same formation on the senior and reserve teams. That way your promising youngsters adopt the team's style of play from early age. Needless to say, the assistant manager and coaches should also have MORE OR LESS the same tactical preferences as you.
Hope this helps getting you started. It works for me, anyway..
[This message has been edited by Divine (edited 11-13-1999).]
