The Backpage | EA SPORTS FIFA 13 More Players You Must Sign

In last week’s Backpage we looked at ten players I recommend checking out in your FIFA 13 Career Mode, and this week I have a load more for you.

It was really tough to decide on the final list because I found so many excellent players while I was researching the articles, so I may well cover those I left out in a future Backpage if you think it would be useful? Let me know if so by using the comments box below.

For now though, let’s take a look at this week’s recommended signings…

JAMES FORREST
RM
Celtic
Age: 21
Overall: 72
Value: £3.6m
Actual Cost: £4.9m
If you can give Forrest a full season of first-team football then he is going to improve ridiculously quickly. By the start of season two in one of my saves he’s gained ten points on his Acceleration stat, eleven in Sprint Speed and five Overall. You’ll have to pay slightly more than he’s worth to buy him initially, but you are going to make money on this player should you decide to sell him a season or two later.

ISAAC VORSAH
CB
RB Salzburg
Age: 24
Overall: 75
Value: £2.2m
Actual Cost: £3.5m
You’ll have to be patient if you want to sign powerful defender Isaac Vorsah, as the earliest I’ve been able to persuade Salzburg to sell is the January transfer window, but he’s well worth the wait. For such a big, strong player – Vorsah is 6ft 4in and has 90 for Strength – he’s remarkably quick and excellent value for money. He’s only 24 too, so you’ll get a good ten seasons or so for less than £4 million.

ZHANO ANANIDZE
CAM
Spartak Moscow
Age: 19
Overall: 75
Value: £5m
Actual Cost: £5m
Spartak wonderkid Ananidze is a really creative attacking midfielder who feels very comfortable and responsive in possession. It’s worth trying to buy him as soon as you can in season one so you can give him the chance to develop faster, as he’s restricted to the bench at Spartak. With regular football it won’t take long at all to add to his key attributes, which are Vision, Balance, Acceleration, Agility and FK Acc.

ALEXANDER KACANIKLIC
LM
Fulham
Age: 20
Overall: 67
Value: £1.1m
Actual Cost: £1.1m
In just one season of my latest save Fulham winger Kacaniklic has gone from a 67 Overall to a 75. He’s also added 13 points to his Acceleration stat, taking it to 97, and ten to Sprint Speed, making that 93. Oh and he’s quadrupled in value. If you’ve only got a million to spend and you need a quick winger who can dribble, you’ll do well to find anyone better than this guy.

JUAN MANUEL ITURBE
RW
FC Porto
Age: 19
Overall: 75
Value: £5.5m
Actual Cost: £6.5m
As you’ve probably worked out by now, I love signing fast wingers that can take players on and Porto’s Iturbe is another one that falls into this category. For £6.5 million you get a player with 90 for Acceleration, 91 Agility, 90 Balance, 90 Sprint Speed and 83 Dribbling, all of which should increase with time and games. He can also do 4 star skill moves and can play on the left or the right.

LORENZO INSIGNE
CF
Napoli
Age: 21
Overall: 75
Value: £4.9m
Actual Cost: £6m
If you have a look at Insigne’s profile on day one of your new Career Mode season, he can appear a bit pricey at first glance. Trust me though, by the end of the season it’s possible to take his Overall rating up to 79, his Acceleration to 96, Agility to 98, Balance to 96, Sprint Speed to 97 and Dribbling to 89. £6 million for numbers like that is not bad at all, especially when you consider that he’s still young enough to improve further. Well worth it.

FILIPPO BONIPERTI
CF
Empoli
Age: 20
Overall: 62
Value: £500k
Actual Cost: £500k
I think of Boniperti as the budget version of Insigne. He’ll only cost you half a million and he’ll quickly grow in ability and value if you can play him regularly, which really is the main thing to consider here. If you’re a lower league club then Boniperti should do the business for you from the start of the game, but he’s not quite ready for a league like the Prem or La Liga in season one. If you’re one of the top teams then it may be best to leave him at Empoli for a year or two then come back and sign him up when his attributes have improved significantly, which they will.

ANDRE CARRILLO
RW
Sporting CP
Age: 21
Overall: 77
Value: £7.5m
Actual Cost: £9.5m
Carrillo is pricey but it doesn’t take long at all to get his Overall rating into the low 80s, and that’s when you’ll start to see his value rocket. He has the Flair trait, can do four star skill moves and can easily add five or six points to his Acceleration and Dribbling attributes with just a season or so of action.

MUNIAIN
LW
Athletic Bilbao
Age: 19
Overall: 80
Value: £11.5m
Actual Cost: £14.5m
Iker Muniain is a player I love watching in real life, so I’m chuffed that the FIFA 13 version of him is just as exciting. He’s quick, good on the ball and can finish, so he can play on the left, right or as a centre-forward, plus he can do four star skill moves. He’s one I almost always sign when playing Career Mode as one of the bigger clubs.

GARY GARDNER
CM
Aston Villa
Age: 20
Overall: 69
Value: £1.5m
Actual Cost: £1.5m
Gardner forced his way on to this list after coming from nowhere in season one of my Villa save to push for a first-team spot in season two. At the start of the game I loaned him out to Nottingham Forest for the year and he came back with an Overall rating of 74. His Ball Control and Short Pass ratings had climbed significantly too, but my favourite attribute of his is Long Shots; Gardner is lethal from the edge of the box. He’s yours from the start of the game for just £1.5 million. Bargain.

That’s all for this week’s Backpage. I hope you find as much success as I have with the 20 players we’ve looked at over the last couple of weeks. Working on it has made me feel a bit like a scout or an agent. Oh that reminds me… I want a percentage of any profit you make, okay?

Thanks for reading and see you next time.

Darren
@Darren_Cross