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Meet the most underrated players in FIFA 16
No Pelé? No problem! Be a FIFA 16 Ultimate Team champ with these criminally underrated players.
Every FIFA 16 Ultimate Team player wants to hit the holy grail, whether it’s that Pelé legend card you’ve always wanted, or an in-form Ronaldo or Messi. There are only a few players in Ultimate Team that can legitimately change your whole team. The chances of saving up over one million coins to buy yourself a superstar are slim, and the chances of finding them in a pack are even slimmer. But what if you want to be an Ultimate Team god without Messi or Ronaldo? Well, you can still do that, and we can tell you how.
You see, Ultimate Team isn’t just about having the best players, and you can build a solid team via the auction house, without having to go through the coin flip of a rare gold pack only to receive one of our troll players. Play a few matches, build up a little stash of FIFA coins and then hit the auction house to track down some of our most underrated players. These are our favourites, but don’t forget – FIFA 16 Ultimate Team prices fluctuate far more than previous versions, so there are loads of bargains out there for wheeler dealers. We’ve got every position covered, so read on for all our top picks.
Goalkeeper: Vincent Enyeama
Enyeama has been an Ultimate Team favourite for a few years now, and he's arguably been the best keeper in Ligue 1 since Hugo Lloris left Lyon for the green pastures of north London. At 5’11” [1.80m] he’s a little bit short to command the box with any real superiority, but your centre backs should have no problem dealing with balls into the box. Enyeama’s strength is as a shot-stopper: he’s not just good for his low price, he’s one of the best in the game. With reflexes rated at 91, only an in-form David de Gea has better shot-stopping stats than Enyeama, and when you can get him for around 700 coins, there’s no question that he’s earned a place in this side.
Centre Back: Juan Jesus
Juan Jesus has always been an underrated Ultimate Team beast, but this year he’s even better than ever. Most centre backs with decent pace stats will cost you a pretty penny, but JJ’s 80 sprint and 79 acceleration come on the cheap, and that’s not all. He’s a solid tackler with 80+ strength and tackling stats, and he’ll happily rebuff long balls all day with his 92 jumping stat. A bit of patience on the auction house and you could nab him for around 700 coins, which is an absolute steal.
FIFA 16: The most underrated players
© EA Sports
Centre Back: Kostas Manolas
Ideally, you’d grab Inter Milan centre back Miranda to play alongside Juan Jesus, creating a perfect link in your back line between the Brazilian pair. He’s a bit pricey though, so we’ll happily take Roma’s Manolas instead. Why? For a start, he’s quick enough to marshall most strikers, but every one of his defensive stats is 80+, as are all his physical stats, except for his 79 stamina. He’s only let down by a woeful and hilarious shooting stat of 19 really, and that helps you get him for a bargain price. At under 1000 coins – wait for it – he’ll Kostas you next to nothing! Haha!
Right Back: Bruno Peres
We love grabbing pacey wing backs for our teams – if you can beat the opposition midfielder with your wing back, it really causes problems for the opposition as you go forward, opening up two on ones that let you feed the ball into your strikers and wide men. If the opposition decide to stand off, Peres is the perfect man to punish them with 90+ pace stats and outstanding long range shooting as well (long shooting 81 and shot power 87). He’s not a great defender, but he more than makes up for that by steaming up and down the sidelines. A worthy purchase for a mere 650 coins.
Left Back: Juan Camilo Zúñiga
Zúñiga has very similar stats to Peres, and while he’s not nearly as dangerous from long range, he makes up for that with better defensive stats. Most importantly, the pace is still there – with 89 sprint speed and 88 acceleration, Zúñiga will get up and down the flanks for you, but he’s also a good tackler with stats around 80 for both standing and sliding tackles, and an 80+ stamina stat means you won’t have to worry about subbing him most of the time. Again, around 700 coins should net him on auction if you’re patient.
Centre Midfield: James McCarthy
The ultimate bargain workhorse in midfield, McCarthy does everything well. Granted, his shooting stat is under 70, but midfield partner Eremenko (we’ll get to him in a sec) more than makes up for that, and McCarthy shines as your midfield engine room, controlling the game from box to box. Both his short and long passing stats are 80+, he’s capable in the tackle, and 72 pace stat means he gets around the pitch well enough to cause problems for the opposition. Best of all, his 91 stamina means you won’t have to worry about taking him off. Yours for as little as 350 coins on auction.
Centre Midfield: Roman Eremenko
When you can pick this guy up for just 700 coins, Eremenko might be the most underrated played in Ultimate Team this year. CSKA Moscow’s attacking midfielder has a roomy bag of tricks, and plenty of ability on top. He’s technically excellent with good shooting, volleying and ball control, but he’ll cause havoc going forward, slipping through balls into your forwards with 88 vision and 80+ passing stats. Top that off with his 90 stamina, and we’re absolutely dumbfounded as to why he’s available so cheap. Still, we’re not complaining of course.
FIFA 16: The most underrated players
© EA Sports
Left Midfield: Maicon
You may be noticing a trend here: pace, pace and more pace. Although speed in FIFA 16 doesn’t kill as effectively as previous games, it’s still a tremendous advantage and one of the most potent stats in the game in terms of how it can affect a match. Maicon has decent finishing and crossing stats for a wide man, but really, he’s just in here for his reckless speed – 94 acceleration and 93 speed will cause havoc with your opponents back line. In fact, we reckon your opponents Maiconceed a few goals if you have him in your team… GG.
Right Midfield: Diego Perotti
It’s always baffled us how underrated and underused Diego Perotti seems to be in Ultimate Team. He’s the man that no-one wants. There are always swatches of Perotti’s available on the auction house for peanuts. And yet, he’s a thoroughly useful winger. His 82 pace isn’t the quickest, but he gets at opposing full backs with four star skill moves and a five star weak foot rating that makes him dangerous on either side of the pitch. Plus, he can pick a cross, his shooting stat is 70 – respectable for a winger – and he’s technically very sound with an 84 dribbling rating. And he’s just 400 coins! What’s not to like about this guy?
Striker: Didier Drogba
They say you can’t teach an old Drog new tricks. Completely wrong of course. This old Drog is lighting up the MLS at the moment for Montreal Impact, and is still more than worthy of a place in your side. Sure, he’s a bit old and slow, but Drogba’s as dangerous in the box as he has ever been, getting on the end of crosses, smashing in rebounds and bouncing off centre backs for 90 minutes. Heading is still pretty powerful in FIFA 16 if you’re adept at timing your crosses, and with stats like 88 for heading and 83 for strength, Drogba is a nightmare for opposition defenders. He’s a quality finisher, and he’ll even take your penalties and free kicks too, for just 700 coins.
Striker: Marco Sau
One ball over the top can decide victory when you have someone like Marco Sau in your side, especially when he’s up against a couple of old stallions at centre back, and trust us, there are plenty of those in Ultimate Team. The lesson here is that they can’t tackle what they can’t catch, and no centre back in the game can keep up to Sau’s outrageous 95 acceleration and 93 sprint speed stats. His 77 finishing is half decent too, and at the very least he’ll have your opponent sweating every time you get the ball in midfield. As if that wasn’t enough, you can nab him for around 600 coins. Bargain.
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