The Backpage | FIFA 13 Score More Goals
dmcdonagh
2013-01-26
In this week’s Backpage, football journalist and FIFA fan Darren Cross reveals his new tactic for hitting the back of the net more often in FIFA 13 Ultimate Team…
It happened by accident really.
There were a few minutes left of a game in which I was being well beaten, and as the ball fell to my midfielder Keisuke Honda – about 35 yards from goal – I took a wild swing at it. It was kind of a token effort really; I was beaten and just wanted the game to end so I could get back into another match and go again. But Honda absolutely smashed the ball and it flew straight past the keeper and into the top corner.
After completing an ironic Shhh celebration I started thinking about the goal. It stood out because it was the sort of effort I wouldn't normally think to try, and that gave me an idea... what if I built a max Chemistry team full of long shot specialists then took every available opportunity to shoot, even if that meant having a go from distances I wouldn't normally attempt to shoot from?
So I tried it, and the goals have been flying in ever since.
In this week's Backpage we’re going to pick out some cheap players that are great at scoring from range, then look at what I'm doing differently now in games so you can give it a go with your FUT squad.
The first thing you have to do is identify the long shot specialists that will still allow you to max out your team and individual Chemistry ratings. We know that the higher the Chemistry the better your players will perform, which is why I think long range efforts are more effective in FUT than in any other game mode. If you need more info about Chemistry and how to get the maximum ratings for your players, have a look through the Backpage archives.
I'm playing with a Russian Premier Division team at the moment, so I use players like Honda, Hulk and Witsel to take shots from range. Hulk in particular has an absolute cannon of a left foot and every goal he scores seems to be a worldy. Witsel has a Long Shot stat of 75 in regular Seasons mode, and that seems to be about the minimum that efforts from distance will be effective from, so aim to sign players with at least 75 when you start building your long range team.
The great thing about setting your team up to be a threat from distance is that you don't have to sign exceptionally quick players, as Pace isn't as necessary when you're not looking to run past opponents. That means the players you'll be looking at will generally be cheaper, unless they happen to be fast AND have a rocket shot, like Hulk.
Below are a bunch of players that are all dangerous from distance and relatively cheap compared to the more obvious long range specialists like Gerrard and Ronaldo. The prices I’ve mentioned are based on the 4-1-2-1-2 versions of each player, so if you’re using any other team shape then you should find these guys even cheaper.
Take a look then read on for more about how to make the most of their ability from long range.
PREMIER LEAGUE
Matt Taylor
Pos: LM
Club: West Ham
Nation: England
Long Shot: 87
Cost: 1500 coins
Jermain Defoe
Pos: ST
Club: Spurs
Nation: England
Long Shot: 83
Cost: 2500 coins
Yohan Cabaye
Pos: CAM
Club: Newcastle
Nation: France
Long Shot: 84
Cost: 4200 coins
LIGUE 1
Michel Bastos
Pos: LM
Club: Lyon
Nation: Brazil
Long Shot: 86
Cost: 2500 coins
Alain Traore
Pos: CAM
Club: FC Lorient
Nation: Burkina Faso
Long Shot: 88
Cost: 5400 coins
Lisandro Lopez
Pos: ST
Club: Lyon
Nation: Argentina
Long Shot: 81
Cost: 2000 coins
Bafetimbi Gomis
Pos: ST
Club: Lyon
Nation: France
Long Shot: 84
Cost: 650 coins
Mathieu Bodmer
Pos: CM
Club: PSG
Nation: France
Long Shot: 81
Cost: 350 coins
BUNDESLIGA
Rafael Van der Vaart
Pos: CAM
Club: Hamburger SV
Nation: Netherlands
Long Shot: 86
Cost: 1200 coins
Juan Arango
Pos: LM
Club: Bor. M’gladbach
Nation: Venezuela
Long Shot: 91
Cost: 700 coins
Andre Schurrle
Pos: LM
Club: Bayer 04
Nation: Germany
Long Shot: 88
Cost: 2000 coins
Sejad Salihovic
Pos: CAM
Club: 1899 Hoffenheim
Nation: Bosnia Herzegovina
Long Shot: 87
Cost: 650 coins
Zdravko Kuzmanovic
Pos: CM
Club: VfB Stuttgart
Nation: Serbia
Long Shot: 87
Cost: 600 coins
Sergio da silva Pinto
Pos: CDM
Club: Hannover 96
Nation: Portugal
Long Shot: 86
Cost: 350 coins
SERIE A
Hernanes
Pos: CAM
Club: Lazio
Nation: Brazil
Long Shot: 88
Cost: 1000 coins
Alessandro Diamanti
Pos: RF
Club: Bologna
Nation: Italy
Long Shot: 85
Cost: 1000 coins
Riccardo Montolivo
Pos: CM
Club: Milan
Nation: Italy
Long Shot: 85
Cost: 1300 coins
Fabio Quagliarella
Pos: ST
Club: Juventus
Nation: Italy
Long Shot: 88
Cost: 1000 coins
Josip Ilicic
Pos: CAM
Club: Palermo
Nation: Slovenia
Long Shot: 87
Cost: 600 coins
Dean Stankovic
Pos: CM
Club: Inter
Nation: Serbia
Long Shot: 88
Cost: 2000 coins
LIGA BBVA
Alberto Costa
Pos: CM
Club: Valencia
Nation: Argentina
Long Shot: 89
Cost: 2000 coins
Arda Turan
Pos: CAM
Club: Atletico Madrid
Nation: Turkey
Long Shot: 81
Cost: 1000 coins
Benat
Pos: CM
Club: Real Betis
Nation: Spain
Long Shot: 84
Cost: 600 coins
Jonas
Pos: CF
Club: Valencia
Nation: Brazil
Long Shot: 83
Cost: 450 coins
Cristian Rodriguez
Pos: LM
Club: Atletico Madrid
Nation: Uruguay
Long Shot: 82
Cost: 600 coins
LIGA DO BRASIL
Diego Forlan
Pos: ST
Club: I. Porto Alegre
Nation: Uruguay
Long Shot: 85
Cost: 950 coins
Leo Gago
Pos: CDM
Club: Gremio
Nation: Brazil
Long Shot: 85
Cost: 1500 coins
Elano
Pos: CAM
Club: Gremio
Nation: Brazil
Long Shot: 84
Cost: 350 coins
RUSSIAN PREMIER LEAGUE
Keisuke Honda
Pos: CAM
Club: CSKA Moskva
Nation: Japan
Long Shot: 83
Cost: 1000 coins
Balazs Dzudzsak
Pos: LM
Club: Dinamo Moskva
Nation: Hungary
Long Shot: 85
Cost: 850 coins
Kim Kallstrom
Pos: CM
Club: Spartak Moskva
Nation: Sweden
Long Shot: 84
Cost: 1000 coins
Once your new signings are in the team it's time to get out there and start busting some nets. The biggest challenge for me was to adapt my style of play so I could create space for a shot much earlier than I usually would. I did this by constantly reminding myself to shoot as soon as I was within a realistic range – about 30-35 yards – with a long shot specialist that could get a strike off with his dominant foot. If there wasn't space for a shot then I'd either use the face-up dribbling to draw the defender to me before pushing it around them on the side of my player's strong foot, or I'd pass the ball on and start again, looking for another opportunity.
After a couple of games it felt like less of a mental effort. The new style of play became more natural, and that's when it really started to pay off. I’ve definitely scored more goals since upping my shot count with specialist players, and often they’re the kind of strikes that make you watch the replays from every angle.
Try it and see how you get on, and please let me know @Darren_Cross if you find more bargain long range specialists in FUT.
Darren
@Darren_Cross
