The Backpage | DECISIONS, DECISIONS…

This week, Darren Cross offers inspiration for those struggling to pick a team to play as online…

One of the toughest choices I used to face when going online to play FIFA was which team to be. I’m not one of those players who uses the superpowers of Barça, Real, Man. United or Chelsea – not that there’s anything wrong with doing that; it’s your game and you should play it however you like – so I have spent a good chunk of time cycling through the leagues to find a club that will make things interesting.

Unless you’re playing against a mate, that kind of a delay is usually unacceptable to an online opponent. I mean, even taking 20 seconds to choose your line-up and formation is too much for some online players, who’ll flash that ready button at you repeatedly until you give in and start the match, so taking too long to pick a club will almost certainly result in the other guy backing out and sending you back to square one.

Hopefully, after reading this week’s blog, dilly-dallying over who to play as should be a thing of the past, because there are a ton of excellent, smaller teams who can really make your online experience more fun – and a lot more rewarding – when you choose to them.

I like to use teams who have lesser-known players or rising stars that I’ve seen in real-life but am yet to try in FIFA – like Werder Bremen winger Marko Marin – or a club that’s caught my eye for their real-world performances this season, like French league leaders Lille, or runaway Bundesliga table toppers Dortmund.

Since FIFA is so well researched these days, with players’ skills and attributes represented extremely accurately, playing with smaller clubs like these is often a great way to increase your player knowledge too. For example Marin – labelled by some as The German Messi – is quick, skilful and a great dribbler, so it’s a lot of fun to pick the ball up with him and take people on, especially if the opposition are playing as one of the superclubs. Lille wonderkid Eden Hazard, linked with a summer move to Arsenal, is another lesser-known player whose real skills have translated to FIFA especially well.

I played games recently using both of those teams and it was great, the highlight being an Eden Hazard-inspired thrashing of Real Madrid that caused my opponent to quit the match after 30 in-game minutes. That still really annoys me by the way, but that’s a whole other blog.

As well as discovering new players or learning more about ones you’ve already heard a little about, playing as one of the smaller teams also has tangible rewards. Beating one of the big clubs with a team like Lille will earn you far more reward points after the match, meaning you level up a lot quicker. Then of course there’s the pure satisfaction of being a giant killer. If things are going particularly well I like to throw in a ‘Shhh’ celebration or two after bagging a goal with one of the minnows. Maybe that’s why so many people quit on me, hmm…

Anyway, what I’m getting at is there’s a lot to be gained from playing as a small team. Best of all is that there’s nothing to lose; get beat by Barcelona and there’s no shame in that, but win the match and the glory is all yours… if your opponent doesn’t quit before you get the rewards of course!

See you next week
Darren