With FIFA 21, the new virtual football season kicks off. We present to you 9 tips to make a successful start into the new year.
This is FIFA 21: FIFA 21 is the latest installment in the classic football series. Here you can compete in different modes and prove your football skills. Some examples:
- In Ultimate Team, you build your dream team.
- In Career Mode, you can manage your favorite club.
- Volta is the mode for street football matches.
- In Kick-off, you can play directly against friends on the couch.
Overall, FIFA 21 comes with some innovations that may surprise you at first. We have gathered some tips here that can help newcomers and returners ease into the game starting from the FIFA 21 release.
1. Beware, headers are dangerous again
This is especially a tip for returners: Those who got used to harmless crosses in FIFA 20 will be surprised in FIFA 21. Because getting down the wings and delivering high balls is once again a useful tactic. This was confirmed by two FIFA pros in an interview with MeinMMO.
Again, goals from headers are more common after corners. So it is important to defend consistently. Conversely, this also means that you should try to incorporate crosses into your offensive play again.
2. Dribbling works differently now
Included in the innovations in FIFA 21 is the new Agile Dribbling, which you can trigger using R1. Your player then keeps the ball very close and can dribble in tight spaces.
In FIFA 20, R1 was used for the Drag Back – probably the strongest move last year. However, it works differently this year: You can now perform it by pressing both shoulder buttons and the left analog stick. We have outlined how the Drag Back works here.
Another change: All players can now perform all skill moves. However, the success rates depend on skill level. 5-star skillers have the best chance to successfully execute tricks and can also perform better or faster versions of the moves that 2-star skillers can do.
3. Placement in FUT can bring a lot of coins
When you start in Ultimate Team, you must be placed in a division for Division Rivals. This can be done through 5 placement matches in Rivals or 30 Squad Battles against the AI.
The important thing: This year, there are coin rewards for division promotions. If you place in a high division, you will receive coins for all divisions you skip. This way, you can accumulate a nice pile of coins right from the start of FUT. We have described how earning coins through 5 matches works in detail.
4. Complete SBCs
Making coins in Ultimate Team is not that easy. However, there are other ways to improve your team beyond just the transfer market.
Especially at the beginning, it is worthwhile to complete Squad Building Challenges in Ultimate Team. Here you need to exchange players to receive rewards like coins or packs. This is particularly true for the classic SBCs:
- Hybrid Leagues
- Hybrid Nations
- League/Nations Hybrid
These SBCs have been a good starting point for years to earn some coins and players in FIFA. They are not too difficult to solve, but they usually pay off.
5. Don’t neglect the objectives
In Ultimate Team’s season progress, you can secure various rewards. These include cosmetics and packs, as well as coin boosts and loan players that can strengthen your team.
To receive these rewards, you need to collect XP – specifically through objectives. However, even in the objectives themselves, there are some treasures. For example, you can receive a rare player pack for 100 finesse goals (goals scored with shot + R1). Although it is untradeable, it could improve your team or provide SBC fodder. 100 goals can be quickly scored, for instance, in Squad Battles against easy AI opponents. By combining this with additional objectives, you can quickly rack up a lot of rewards.
By the way, there are also explicit co-op objectives this year, where you must play together with friends to receive rewards. You should pay attention to this and possibly team up.
6. When should you sell players?
When you receive packs in Ultimate Team, the temptation is great to quickly sell weak players. But this can be a mistake, especially at the start of FUT. Because often players sell for a price that their rating does not indicate.
This can either be because they have good stats that are not immediately visible on the card, or they are needed for an SBC. For instance, last year, Paderborn players went for crazy prices, although their stats were not impressive. So especially at the beginning, always compare the value on the transfer market before you sell one of your treasures for too little.
Additionally, the value of cards can change over time. TOTW cards, for example, are particularly expensive on the release day, but often decrease in value afterward. However, once they disappear from packs after a week, they can rise again. So it can be worthwhile to monitor the market and sell players at a later time.
A closer look at the topic can be found in our trading tips for FIFA 21.
7. Don’t just look at the expensive players
This is especially true at the start of the season. Of course, it’s great to have a Robert Lewandowski upfront who can score at will. However, the Bayern striker costs over 200,000 coins.
For that amount, you can alternatively build a much more robust team that might not be as strong at the top but convinces in depth. Even 3 Lewandowski goals won’t help if you only have defenders with 70 ratings at the back, allowing 6 goals.
Therefore: If you don’t have a huge coin buffer, take a close look at what teams you can build with your coins. Here you can find, for example, a strong Bundesliga team for the start that is about the same price as a Jadon Sancho card.
8. Those logged into FUT cannot access the Web App
This is a classic: You turn off your console after a poorly run match and want to trade a bit in the Web App. But: You cannot access it right now.
Ultimate Team only registers you as “logged out” once you leave the mode in the game and return to the main menu. It’s not possible to be logged into both console and Web App at the same time. So if you want to trade players after putting the controller aside, you must first manually exit the mode. Otherwise, you will have to wait a while before you can access the Web App again.
9. Detailed training in career mode is worth it
In the career mode, there are deeper possibilities this year to train your talents. This goes so far that you can not only improve their stats but also teach them a completely new position.
However, this takes time and may tempt you to simulate every training session. However, this is not really advisable: If you play the training sessions yourself and complete them successfully, the bonuses on the stats are stronger. Also, the new “determination” stat, which determines how well your players can tap into their potential in a game, benefits from good training.
We will update this list with more tips for starting FIFA 21 in the coming weeks. If you have any tips yourself, please write them in the comments!
Still undecided about whether or not to buy FIFA 21? Then find here 6 things you should know before buying FIFA 21.
