There are different ways of dealing with this technique depending on your playing style. Here are a few examples to guide you through this, but one thing you need to know is that you don't need to play with an all-out defence to stop through balls. What you can do is try and set different Formations with different Tactics that you can save in Game Plan (the 4 slots under the pitch, one of which you can use specifically against through balls).

- The first strategy you can try to use is the marking option, which allows you to mark an opponent with one of your players and avoid, for example, an opponent striker to be left alone in your defence area. You can try to mark the higher striker (the one who usually catches through balls) with your DMF (Defensive Mid-Fielder) who will intercept passes by rushing for the ball before it reaches the marked player or by being between the passed ball and the receiver.

- Another useful strategy is trying to mark the opponent with a defender who has an "enforcer card" as well as to always move next to the striker or between him and the goalkeeper, so your defender will always be the striker's last obstacle. With this strategy, you can also switch control with L1 (PS3®) / LB (Xbox 360®) or with the right stick towards the direction of the defender while he is at the back and move him towards the goal. Now, with another player on your team, you can put pressure on the striker (who is supposed to catch the through ball) by holding Square (PS3®) / X (Xbox 360®), when your opponent has the ball in midfield. By doing that, you will be able to anticipate the moves of your opponent with the player you've previously selected.

- You can also try the offside trap with defenders who have good "Responsiveness", "Top Speed" and "Explosive Power" stats.

The players who use through ball passes can be easily predictable (they have the ball, they send it to strikers), so it's all about timing! Learn how to do it, train and try harder to grasp these strategies.