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Steer clear of the obvious choices and opt for these surprise packages to overcome your opponents.
When looking for the strongest team to use against your mates or in Online Seasons on FIFA 19, it’s easy to just take the highest rated teams and play as them. Barcelona, PSG, Manchester City… they’re all up there as three of the very best teams in the game, but what about those underrated teams that may not look that great at first glance, but actually contain some very impressive players?
There’s a number of teams in FIFA 19 that may not have the stats on paper, but in-game they’re solid and can easily compete if your opponent opts for one of the very top teams. Here’s our list of the seven best teams in FIFA 19 that can battle it out with the best.
1. A.S. Roma – Serie A
Kicking things off are Roma in Italy’s top division. They have a 4.5 overall star rating, and boast an incredible defence with Marcano and Manolas at the heart of it. We’d recommend playing Marcano instead of Fazio because the latter only has 40 Pace. The full-backs, Florenzi and Kolarov, complete the back line, with Nzonzi and De Rossi ahead of them, in the middle of the park.
Edin Džeko up front is one of the best finishers in the game with a stat of 89, and he’s got Pastore behind him with four-star skill moves. On the right wing, Ünder isn’t particularly fast so swap him out for Perotti or Kluivert, then on the left side El Sharaawy can do a job for you. The only let down in the Roma squad is Olsen or Mirante in goal, but the solid defence should do a good job at stopping attackers before they have a shooting opportunity.
2. Atalanta United – MLS
They may have only come into existence in 2014 but Atalanta United have proved themselves as a force to be reckoned with after winning the MLS this season. They’ve built their team from the ground up with a number of South American players, and in FIFA 19, they lead the charge with Josef Martínez up front, who sports 91 Pace, 91 Agility, and 84 Finishing. Then Miguel Almirón is right behind him at CAM with his four-star skill moves and 89 Pace.
On the right and left wings we have Héctor Villalba and Ezequiel Barco respectively – both absolutely rapid players with four-star skill moves. Leandro González Pírez is a rock at the heart of the defence, alongside Michael Parkhurst, the Atalanta United captain. The options at full-back aren’t great, and your best choice in goal is Brad Guzan, but the other areas on the pitch definitely make up for it.
3. Cote d’Ivoire – International
The first international team on the list, the Ivory Coast have been a solid choice in FIFA for most of the last decade. They’ve lost some notable players over the years but others have filled the holes, such as Giovanni Sio up front. He’s a great all-round striker, and forms a good partnership up front with Aston Villa's Jonathan Kodjia.
Nobody is particularly skilful, but Gervinho and Konate offer immense pace on either side of the pitch. In the middle you have Franck Kessié, a six-foot tall player with 87 Strength, 86 Aggression and 84 Shot Power. His 96 Stamina and high/high work rate means he’s the epitome of a box-to-box midfielder and will outmuscle almost anyone.
Eric Bailly from Manchester United is the standout player in the defence, with 85 Strength, 87 Aggression and 81 Interceptions, while Serge Aurier from Tottenham Hotspur is a very versatile right-back. Goalkeeper is the only position which is slightly uncertain, as the 69-rated Badra Ali Sangaré is the best option.
4. Valencia – La Liga
It’s baffling how poorly Valencia are doing this season in La Liga considering the squad they have. Rodrigo and Kevin Gameiro make up a formidable and rapid strike force with impressive Finishing, while Gonçalo Guedes behind them has the ability to slice defences wide open with his through balls.
Parejo and Geoffrey Kondogbia in midfield are like good cop, bad cop – the former will pick out silky smooth passes and dribble around his opponents, while the latter is like a brick wall. If that’s not enough, Wass slots in right behind to pick up the pieces.
In defence, Gabriel Paulista and Jeison Murillo have everything you could want from a centre-back pairing, while José Gayà has some serious Pace to help him dart down the wing. Cristiano Piccini at right-back is the only weak link, but he’s a competent player nonetheless. In goal you’ve got the ex-Juventus 'keeper Neto, with 86 Diving, 82 Handling, and 82 Reflexes.
5. Celtic – Scottish Premiership
The Scottish League may not be as high as standard as Europe's top leagues, but Celtic are still a good team. On paper, the ratings don't look very high but if you utilise their strengths, you’ll be laughing. Leigh Griffiths up front is arguably the weakest player as he doesn’t excel at anything, but with the team he’s got behind him, he’s not got much too worry about. Callum McGregor and Tom Rogic in both CAM roles each boast a four-star weak foot and skill moves, and they can both put in some perfectly placed passes.
Further out wide there’s Scott Sinclair and James Forrest, who have 91 and 93 Pace respectively, plus four-star skill moves, while in the middle of the park Scott Brown is capable of holding the fort with 90 Aggression and 87 Stamina.
Filip Benković and Dedryck Boyata, the two centre-backs, aren’t too fast so you’ll want to keep the defensive line quite far back, but their defending is immense – especially Benković who stands at 6ft 4”. Playing Cristian Gamboa at right back over Mikael Lustig is controversial but he’s so much faster, which is one of the most important traits. The pacy Kieran Tierney is a shoe-in at left-back. Finally, Craig Gordon in goal is also 6ft 4” and will pluck balls out of the air with ease.
6. Mexico – International
The other international team worth considering is Mexico. While it may be tempting to play Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandéz up front, you’re actually much better off with Hirving Lozano and Raúl Jiménez – the former has incredible 93 Pace and four-star skill moves, while the latter is 6ft 2”, with some decent Strength to boot – the perfect partnership.
Since Lozano is up front, on the right side of midfield you’ve got Isaác Brizuela – a 92 Pace speedster with the Finesse Shot trait – while on the left you have Javier Aquino with 89 Pace and four-star skill moves. Fabian captains the team from central midfield and has very well rounded stats, alongside Gutierrez who has 91 Stamina and will not stop running. In defence, you’re looking at Sergio Araujo and Edson Álvarez as the optimal choices, with Miguel Layún and Érick Aguirre either side. Guillermo Ochoa is in goal, though it’s unlikely he’ll be pulling any scorpion saves out of the bag.
7. PSV Eindhoven – Eredivisie
PSV are one of the top teams in the Netherlands, but they are often overlooked due to the superiority of Ajax. When you take a look though, their squad is quite impressive. Luuk de Jong up front may not be fast, but he’s a true target man – 6ft 2” tall, 84 Strength, 93 Heading Accuracy, 81 Jumping, you get the gist.
With Steven Bergwijn on his left (87 Pace, 88 Dribbling, four -tar skill moves) and Hirving Lozano on his right (93 Pace, 81 Dribbling, four star skill moves), his lack of pace becomes much less of an issue.
Ramselaar slots in right behind at CAM – he’s not incredible, but his 84 Pace and 84 Stamina means he can roam freely and control the midfield. Behind him are Jorrit Hendrix and Érick Gutiérrez, both of whom have high Stamina and solid stats across the board. Gutiérrez is also notable as he has four-star skills.
In defence, Trent Sainsbury and Daniel Schwaab both have around 70 Pace so they’re not too slow for centre-backs, while Angeliño and Denzel Dumfries as full-backs are both rapid – the former having four-star skills which is impressive for a full-back. In goal, Jeroen Zoet is the man at 6ft 2” tall with well rounded goalkeeping stats.
