I thought there was a cursor mode where you could control the player off the ball?
I haven't tried it myself yet, but I do think there is one (I remember people were talking about how the keepers didn't respond well when using this mode).
Also, after you pass a ball to someone you can press R2 to tell the player who just released the ball to make a forward run for a layoff or a through ball. Timing is important, but if timed well it can be extremely effective.