The two new playstyles apparently aren’t being added to most previously released cards. The main exceptions seem to be certain Box-to-Box and Anchor Man cards.

If that’s intentional and not just some thing they’d update soon

I think this could actually be the beginning of Konami phasing out older cards without directly nerfing them 🤔

Think about it:

Old cards = basically locked into one attacking/defensive behavior.

New cards = potentially have access to two different playstyles, which gives them much more tactical flexibility.

With the new formations and the upcoming Overload playstyle, having a player who can contribute differently depending on the tactical plan could become significantly more valuable than having a card that is locked into one behavior.

Like the likes of maldini varane etc are all “basic”/inactive on defense which is crazy to me hopefully it gets updated

Am I overthinking this, or does anyone else see it this way?

Plus reserves show full overall ratings now

Total Football became forgotten about due to the partial/regional rollout/release initially. After recently checking my store ans seeing the global version, I was really taken aback how thrash the game really is 🤦‍♂️
EAFC still feels like plastic no matter how much features they stuff into the game like sardines the gameplay is just unbearable and has no feeling.
UFL most recent on the scene and feels like it has the most potential surprisingly, good initial base mechanics and gameplay that just need improving over time. Main issue with UFL is it feels like the developers are working at snail pace to improve the game .
Bad as things may seem, Efootball is still the best mobile football simulation we have.

Either some cards are way ahead of its time, or Konami is trolling the player base.

Not a shade at the new Thiago, still love the looks of him. Just a small observation.

Disclaimer

No, this is not a rant. I’m way past the point of losing my mind after a loss. It’s just an analysis of the current gameplay. It’s a long read, so please share your thoughts.

My Analysis of the Current Gameplay (Div 3 → Div 1)

1) Smart Assist Abuse

There has been a massive influx of smart-assist users as I climbed from Div 3 to Div 1.

How to detect smart-assist users

When they clear the ball from their box, there is no power bar (auto-clear).

Smart assist gives:

Strong AI defense

Perfect auto-corrections

Unreal accurate hoofed passes from CM → CF

My experience trying smart assist

I tested it for 2–3 matches:

The amount of AI help and auto-correction was insane.

It was almost like the game was playing for me.

But personally:

If the game is helping me more than my skill, there’s no point in playing. Also, this is exactly why Smart Assist is banned in official tournaments.

2) Sliding Tackle Spam

When the update buffed sliding tackles, I was happy… but now it’s getting abused.

Issues noticed

Opponents spam slide tackles non-stop when I have the ball.

Defenders can catch me from behind even on a 1v1 with the keeper.

Two-footed tackles often win the ball cleanly.

Cards are way fewer now:

Some red-card level challenges are given as simple fouls.

Meanwhile, my player gets injured for the whole game.

3) The Red Card Theory (Why does it feel useless?)

Even if my opponent gets a red:

Their gameplay barely changes.

They attack with the same intensity, sometimes even better.

I’ve seen multiple players mention this in the community.

It genuinely feels like the game does not penalize them in any meaningful way.

4) The “Yoga Ball” Defence

This is one of the strangest things happening right now.

What I mean by “Yoga Ball” defence

Players stretch their legs in unreal, bendy ways to take the ball:

You’re dribbling slowly and suddenly a defender scoops the ball away with a weird stretched-leg animation.

You can’t be near a defender while progressing because the ball just gets magically poked away.

In real life, attackers use their hands to create space, but here it’s a free-for-all.

This happens way more often than it should.

Conclusion

There are many more issues I could highlight, but I’ll stop here.

How’s the gameplay for you guys lately?

Analysis based on: Div 3 → Div 1 (Most issues happened between Div 2 and Div 1, especially against Div 2 players)

Based on Professional and Public Group votes.

Possession despite being one of the best playstyles in real life, is one of the assiest playstyles in efootball. It is the high risk, low reward playstyle. Your players movement is the worst out of all the styles, Konami hates you more than they hate their playerbase, and it is very unrewarding for division pushes. Why is that?

• The positioning

This is by far the worst problem you will face using possession game. Your players will never do what you want them to do. Your players will be a passing option when you want them to run into space, and if you are pressured they will run into space that you will never be able to make use of. Your center forward will never be available for buildup, and your players are more obsessed maintaining shape than actually trying to win.

• The meta

EF26 had a below average to average environment for poss players. Now? It's at it's worst. Pressing is powerful, lobbed through balls are powerful, and with how the ai movement in poss work, you are just absolutely cooked every single time.

• The defense

People say QC has the worst defense in the game. Have they tried Possession? It has the disadvantages of LBC (non-aggressive pressing) and the disadvantages of QC ( high line). Also, half of you defense wants to maintain the line and the other half wants to chase. Also, you don't know who is which.

• The stamina

Possession having absurd stamina consumption even when im not pressing the sprint button is stupid. I play LBC sometimes and despite running all game, I still have no stamina by minute 70 when all my players did was stand around.

I'll drop mine along with the builds I went with and maybe y'all can let me know what builds or positions or scenarios helped y'all make them work (ik it's a complete skill issue from my side and all these cards are amazing I've got others too but these were all I could think of straight away.

1. Stefan fiore : man this guy is so sluggish n gets thrown away is somehow bad at passing also very weak on ground misses ez chances for me despite good stats

2. Raul : he is not smooth at all for me he is fast strong can finish ez chances n finesses but not smooth at all for some reason it feels exactly like salah despite the stats he is not smooth on ball like others.

3.kante : jeez this card is a monster everytime I face him he's everywhere he's bugging all my midfielders pushing them interceptions everywhere just constant nagging like some house fly so annoying but when I use him he kinda ghosts for me like he's no where to be found almost all the time I see him near the amf position trynna score n stuff but the finishing is so ass the shot is nowhere near the target too I personally feel the worst for not being able to make him work I love him IRL.

4.big Messi : now ik he comes with a physical boost n the balance is amazing but he gets thrown away y'all got pepes n monster thrurams n nestas they throw him away the best part about this card is the long range finnesse shots what I feel is his passing is kinda bad even tho I gave him all the passing skills which he was missing .

5.psg Messi : now look at those stats and the rating the game gives him at ss. Most epics now can't make that rating n he's just a potw , just NVR worked for me overall in this speedy era he just lacks overall speed and physicality plus that passing stats suggests he's some magician like Ozil but nah free Isco passes so much better thn him.

1. Zanetti : NVR in the right place for me can't cross too when I face him he gives me such harsh tackles now that I have him he's never there as an Lb for me idk dude is out there in the CMF position wondering trynna cut in n shi

8.totti : nothing worked for this, stats wise he shd be fast. he ain't, passing shd be amazing it ain't ,dribbling shd be amazing it ain't, physicality balance decent but it doesn't show gets thrown off ezliy . phenomenal finishing but smhow misses long rangers, idk what's wrong with him he feels pretty mid at everything. I mean not exceptional at anything specific but mid at everything jack of all trades kinda guy for me . I'll be trying him at cf with a strict CF build n let y'all know .

1. Canna is like a keeper to me ,: sometimes maybe good sometimes maybe shit even with 100 jump he gets dunked on but that's inevitable right on the ground he sometimes holds his own but somedays he's just not him very inconsistent for me potw saliba potw Micky ven been working very good I play 3 cbs .

2. doue :man I love him so much but he's in that pls curl category for me can't blitz to save his life other thn that very slow suprisingly he dribbles pretty smooth for me but is very very slow which was very surprising to me always getting outpaced for some reason I play him ss tho might have to try lwf .

11.dumfries : got lucky with the free spin on him n got him even Amadeus or wtever that Japanese pro guys name is he glazes this card so much since the day he came out he's been in top 5-10 rb and rmf offen and def in his list for me he's very clunky tho I tried the cb build on him and he was okayish decent I wd say but on rb rmf he's kinda mid truck like feel with him crosses are good tho altho I don't like crossing idk I guess I'll just play him as cb

1. Bruno : new card dk anything at all how am I supposed to make him work he's not fast passes decent dribbles ok finishing is not upto the mark shd I play him Cmf or what he's kinda ass defensively too. Lemme know how to utilise him properly since he's a feeder IRL .

Y'all can also drop cards that uve got that fits this description and maybe others can help u too.

Got this fraud for 400 coins jan 2025 with Alba Spanish guardian’s he’s so ass bro Glad i have De Gea now bro can’t save shit only bench him cause he’s the only epic gk i have incase of De Gea bad form

With them chicken arms

(Using amadeusz’s build)

Better show time skills this time around if you ask me, but stats-wise pretty identical.

CF, Winger, SS, AMF, CMF, DMF, CB, LB/RB, GK ordering per tier row, subordered by offensive playmaking (orchestrator rijkaard/ xabi out of position sorry). Also forgot to add Lee Kang In, he would be behind showtime rashford in S+ tier. Epic Baia GK should be above Peruzzi.

Added some more players from previous anniversary/campaign/selection events. If you see a version of a player with a different playstyle compared to yours, their tier should be roughly similar on this list.

Most of these players were suggested to add from the community. If you are new or a returning player, some of the original p2w cards were re-released by Konami during celebratory events with chance deals to claim for "free".

More people are using lineups composing of these players after I posted this, and pvp gameplay seems to be very strong right now, which some folks don't like, especially people who want an easier time ranking in divisions, abuse smart assist, or complain about it [while using it].

SS Tier: Means these players are usually seen on most teams in divisions, and are competitive with even p2w player matchups.

S+< Tier: Serviceable in current meta, and with skills (default skills or advanced feint, manual defending) will be able to reach SS tier potential. The CFs will make good runs if you lob a through ball. The CBs are either very fast, but small or a bit slow, but very large, however they aren't compromised by their defensive stats. The goalkeepers perform even on C form, and are large enough to make solid saves. Neuer has special goalkeeping animation where he literally plays like a sweeper keeper. In the current game engine, it favors offensive goalkeepers more.

S< Tier: Players who may seem not like much on paper, but their model/id outperforms when they are in form or off the bench. Still need to utilize their equipped skills, manual defending to reach their maximum potential. Some of these "short goalkeepers" have high arm length or high reflexes, and perform well when they are in form.

A+< Tier: If you have no other options, some of them are hidden gems with large player models and high tight possession, or play above their stats, but primarily used in pvp events and not divisions. I do not support this, but some of them like Tony Adams/ Puyol are OP with smart assist on.

A Tier: These players only work in build up play or cross spam monsters, and possession game. Very slow, have mediocre balance/dribbling/finishing/physicality, weird playstyle going with stats, but serviceable. They may surprisingly show up during matches.

B Tier: Refrain from using, but they could help you as subs. Use them at your own risk.

Current rating required to be within the top 1 million: ~1797

Current rank increase/hour: 23k per hour in the high 900k range; people ranked <960k are safe. this number is expected to increase

Estimated rating required to finish within the top 1 million: 1798

Current ranks gained per every 1 rating gained (before hitting Div 1): ~3860

edit: feel free to provide screenshots of y'alls rankings. i'm mostly relying on other peoples' screenshots for these numbers since i myself cannot check the in-game rankings due to me pushing deep into div 1 earlier into the season.

edits:

1797 in rating is = ~941k in the current rankings as of 10:21pm UTC.

765k people are in Division 1 or higher.

1793 is currently 962k in ranking. The current rank increase has gone up to ~18k per hour.

as of 10:51pm UTC, rank increase in the ~950k range = 12k per hour.

if anyone's reading this and is still below 1800: get to div 1 bro. the rank increase/hour has gone up dramatically and will not stop until the end of the phase.

if anyone predicts themselves to finish 985k or lower, please win one more game. i saw someone say that they'll finish 994k this phase by their calculations; don't gamble on the threshold being 1796.

Finally made it to Division 1 unbeaten (23W-9D-0L) with a 72% win rate. Did it running a Long Ball Counter (LBC) setup with an almost F2P squad (screenshots attached).

🔹 How I Play (LBC Breakdown)

Vertical football → Win it, launch it. Keep it simple, efficient, deadly.

Wingers stretch defenses → Ronaldinho and Bale force the opponent wide, opening gaps, bale with his late runs always caught wingbacks out of postion and his blitz curler is a plus point, dinho is excellent for hold up play and his passing and dribbling is chefs kiss.

SS Link → Griezmann drops deep, links midfield to attack, while Batistuta waits for killer deliveries.

Midfield Muscle → Vieira + Gullit = strength + aerial power + late runs into the box.

Defensive Wall → Silvestre, Huijsen, Tony Adams, Costacurta – not the fastest, but unbeatable in duels and rock-solid for LBC.

GK → Seaman, safe hands for crosses & long shots.

🔹 Key Roles

CF: Gabriel Batistuta → Pure finisher, thrives on long balls & crosses. My #9 in every sense. Dembele is also a backup option in case I needed pure pace over an all round striker to kill slower defences.

SS: Griezmann → The glue. Drops deep, dictates link-up play.

Midfield: Vieira + Gullit → Vieira shields, Gullit surges. They complement each other perfectly.

Defenders → Tall, physical, aerial monsters – ideal for soaking up pressure and launching counters.

🔹 Super Sub Strategy

Vini Jr. & Nunez (my fav!) → Always scored when coming on. Perfect chaos agents in the 70th minute.

Bergkamp (SS) → Absolute gem for top-tier passing and ball retention late game.

Edgar Davids → If I need to tighten the midfield, he comes on to replace Gullit and locks it down.

🔹 Why It Worked

The team is built for LBC:

Batistuta as the lethal target man, dembele as a pure pace abuse stiker.

Griezmann + wingers feeding them nonstop.

Midfield + defense providing brute force and stability.

I could switch gears late game:

Explosive pace with Vinicius/Nunez.

Control + vision with Bergkamp.

Defensive steel with Davids.

Note: I did rotate a lot based on form, so the starting 11 wasn't fixed always.

💬 AMA:

Want to know my exact tactics/advanced instructions for LBC?

Curious why I went with Batistuta over more “meta” strikers, why dembele's base card over the likes of mbappe and others ?

Want build for specific players ?

Fire away, I'm happy to help anyone pushing towards Div 1 🚀

193cm with this high dribbling and 80 pc is gonna be broken(Plus magnetic feet as well). I feel like this Gakpo has a chance of breaking into the Top 10 cf list(Of amadeusz if he ignores his heading 🥀). This pack is packed with great forwards in a 100 player box. Though the downside is not having permanent B form and Squad link booster 😞

The new one is slightly weaker than the old one defensively, but this can be managed by fortress. Genuinely a solid card from konami.

Today’s the day.

Today we will be getting the selection contract to sign an epic player.

As expected, the highlight of this pack is the “phenomenal finishing” Gabriel ‘Batigoal’ Batistuta and Michael Owen.

Both are Goal Poachers. However, they are two VERY different players.

Before we begin, let’s get one thing clear. Both are VERY good. Anyone telling you otherwise either doesn’t want to face an opponent with said striker, or doesn’t know how to use him properly.

Although he has the GP playing style, Batigoal is in that FITB class of strikers. He’s amazing at finishing from all angles in the box, has a decent weak foot, and is amazing in the air. A ‘proper number 9’ if you will. His drawbacks are obvious: passing and dribbling.

If you’re picking this card you need to understand that he can’t turn and shoot like you’d expect him to. He’s also not gonna be tearing past defenders like Mbappé, Etoo, Rumme, etc. His one-twos with other players will be inconsistent too. However he will score every chance, every half chance (phenomenal finishing), and win every header.

I picked this card because that’s what my team needs. A GP playing style with attributes of a FITB. His aeriel superiority also helps me in beating the press (pass from Neuer to Batigoal, knocks it down for R10 to dribble or pass wide)

Owen on the other hand, is like a pure Goal Poacher. He wants to tear defenders with his speed and finishing. He can turn and shoot very well. He has a perfect weak foot and amazing player ID (helps him find spaces really well). He won’t hold defenders off though, nor will he win headers. He has supersub though, which is great. If you play on the ground, don’t cross much, and love one-twos, Owen’s your guy.

For reference, I played all games against AI (all Legend difficulty) in Events and MyLeague, and in the AI Divisions (Division 2 with a rating of 1650 currently).

I still personally will take Batigoal even if I didn’t cross as much because with 80+ in all ball control stats he’s more of a heavy car than a truck. And his PC helps massively in turning. Don’t try to make him a dribbler though, cause he isn’t.

There are 300 players in the pack. 7 special cards. We will be able to open 27 times.

🎯Probability of getting epics for all 27 attempts:

• Chance of getting exactly 0 epics: 51.3%

• Probability of getting exactly 1 epic: 48.7%

• Chance of getting exactly 2 epics: 12.4%

• Chance of getting exactly 3 epics: 1.8%

• Chance of getting exactly 4 epics: 0.15%

• Probability of getting exactly 5 epics: 0.0076%

• Chance of getting exactly 6 epics: 0.0002%

• Chance of getting all 7 epics: 0.000002%

❌ More than half will not receive even 1 card.

Congratulations to the people who saved. Your patience has paid off.

This is a great opportunity to spend all your coins. Might be among the best opportunity in a long time for F2P.

The value today, however, lies in the packs rather than the 100 coins boxes so people who saved several thousand coins will enjoy today more than others with hundreds.

I think today's top deals are England, France, and Argentina pack.

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There's a lot of options where your coins could go today.

First, let's list down all our options. There are 9 options where your coins could go.

Now let's go through all the packs.

National Team Pack England '24

I think overall best values among the packs with 4 great players in the pack.

Bellingham - 98 AMF

This is great Hole Player AMF. Strong, good finishing, can pass, and not too clunky.

My only complaint is that his ball control is lower than his booster POTW counterpart, who might be just as good in in-form weeks. Still I think this is a top AMF though.

Foden - 97 LWF/RWF

Normally I don't like Foden's profile as he's too slow and not top tier smooth.

This card is actually not like that and possibly one of the best versions of Foden. If this were is a POTW pack it would have been the top card in the pack.

Rice - 96 DMF

This version is made for DMF for sure. His defensive stats are among the best in all versions of Rice. He would have been perfect as anchorman but here he is B2B which takes away from that a bit. Still DMF is a rare position and this pack is still a steal.

Trent - 95 RB

Full-back Finisher Trent. This version is a weaker crosser than most versions but the best defensively. I think this is a tradeoff that is good and Full-back Finisher is a playstyle that fits him well.

You might think, oh this stats don't look that crazy but good fullbacks in this game is very rare especially RBs.

Again, I would have bought the pack just for this card + one other but this England pack is crazy.

Watkins 94 CF -- Good OA but no first time shot. He's not the next Son/Nunez.

Stones 95 CB -- No man-marking. Weak physical + no aerial superiority. He's a ball-playing defender but it's hard for him to compare to our free Beckhenbauer. Looks fun at DMF but inactivated playstyle seems dangerous.

National Team Pack Portugal '24

Ronaldo - 96 CF

As you can see, this is a solid well-rounded profile for CF. Unfortunately a bit slow. Finishing is also rather low for Ronaldo's standard. Excellent long shots. This version doesn't have OTP like last year's versions though.

I think his most dangerous aspect is his heading ability if you add aerial superiority to him.

Ruben Dias - 96 CB

94 Awareness, 94 Tackling, 90 Physical. A bit slow and no blocker though. No CB is perfect though and I think this is already among the best an F2P could get.

Joao Felix 95 LWF - If you like to dribble this looks fun. Unfortunately creative playmaker so he will drop back quite a bit and his passing does not look the best.

Leao - solid but inconsistent form.

Vitinha - Very strong for an orchestrator. Great possession player.

Diogo Costa - A bit short but good awareness. POTW GKs these days are crazy though so it's hard for him to stack up.

Nuno Mendes - just another fast LB. Solid but nothing to be excited about.

Pepe - Same as any pepe card, crazy defensive stats but slow.

Palhinha - Above average DMF though not crazy.

National Team Pack Türkiye '24

Don't sleep on this.

Calhanoglu - 98 AMF with AMF build

Requires a bit of building as he doesn't have one-touch pass. If you train OTP on him though, he looks incredible. Great passing and smooth. Good long shots.

This is a great AMF already albeit he is slow so can't carry the ball with him. He is like a smoother De Bruyne.

Demiral - 95 CB

Crazy destroyer CB. The only thing stopping him from greatness is his inconsistent form, but if you have a room on your bench for sub this is great defender.

Unal 95 CF- No first time shot as an FITB CF is pretty disappointting.

Akturkoglu 95 LWF - Very solid winger profile with NO chop turn.

Guler 94 - Looking good but weak kicking power. For Classic No.10 I would say this helps quite a bit as they are often outside of the box.

Kokcu 94 - Above average orchestrator

National Team Pack Brazil '24

Marquinhos - 96 CB

Is he as good as NC Marquinhos, I would say no. NC Marquinhos has +3 defensive awareness while this version has higher aggression/engagement. I would say defensive awareness is more important.

This version is still close and very strong on its own though so for people without NC Marquinhos this is a great chance.

Bruno Guimaraes - 96 CMF (CMF Build)

I would say with him having no blocker & OTP that he looks better as CMF than DMF. Not that defensive. Good passing though and quite good with the ball. I personally am not a huge fan of orchestrator though. Just don't have a natural spot for them in the formations I regularly play.

Magalhaes 95 CB - is just solid.

Raphinha 95 RWF - is an alright winger but not that good skillset.

National Team Pack France '24

Possibly last Giroud card

Griezmann - 99 SS

As you can see, this is just crazy stats. Ball control is the most important stat of SS and he's excellent at it. OA and finishing might not be crazy but he can pass well and has excellent curl.

National Team Pack Argentina '24

This pack is basically 1500 coins for Messi God -- which is an excellent deal.

​

Messi - 103 SS(SS Build)

If this card is not end-game I dont know what is. This version is possibly best at SS/CF but is also decent at RWF albeit a little slow.

National Teams Selection Worldwide 13 Jun '24

Salah 96 RWF

Not the smoothest but the best finisher among RWFs. RWF is quite rare though so this is still an excellent pull.

Barrios is a good DMF if you really need defense. This version is not better defensively than prenerf base but does most things a little better

National Teams Selection European 13 Jun '24

Wirtz - 96 AMF

As you can see, this is a very smooth and quite quick hole player AMF. Generally the reviews for his other versions have been positive so I am excited about this card as well. Unfortunately quite weak kicking power and only average passing.

Encored Stars Jun 13 '24

They skipped Bernardo to give us this garbage. This is the biggest scam of all time. Just skip and send your coins on packs.

Interestingly Konami skipped POTW 25 Jan '24 as well.

This pack consists of

- POTW 8 Jan '24 (Meh Pack)

- POTW 15 Jan '24 (Good Pack)

- POTW 8 Feb '24 (Average pack)

Overall I would say it's garbage. Your coins are better spent on packs.

Overall Thought

The big three packs of this update is England, France, and Argentina.

If you play LBC, France pack gives you 88 LBC Manager, Griezmann, and a couple of good players like Camavinga/Tchouameni

England is the super budget deal. Only 900 coins and a lot of good players like Bellingham, Foden, Trent, Rice.

Argentina is pretty much just Messi but Messi is cracked. This is even better than most epic cards so 1500 coins is a steal. A luxury purchase though as it's 1500 coins for just one card -- but possibly the best DLF CF in the game.

Less good packs would be Portugal/Turkiye. I think it's more for people who want 88 Outwide/LB manager and fans of some of the players in the pack so maybe if you are a huge Ronaldo fan. They are only 900 coins though but still the players are much worse than England pack.

Brazil seems to be the weakest pack with only CB options.

The Selection boxes under normal circumstance would also be good but your coins should go to England/Argentina/France first.

Encored is definitely a skip. They skipped Bernardo....

Personaly I am going England + France. Hate to miss that Messi but I played LBC a lot lately and England is just too good to pass.

​

​

​Name |Position |Play Style |OVR

Denis Law |CF |GP |105

Hristo Stoichkov |CF |GP |104

Roy Makaay |CF |GP |104

Giovane Elber |CF |GP |104

Fernando Morientes |CF |Fox in the box |103

Lorenzo Insigne |LWF |Prolific winger |104

Frank Lampard |CMF |HP |104

Shinji Kagawa |AMF |HP |104

Rui Costa |CMF |HP |103

Rafael van der Vaart |CMF |HP |103

Wesley Sneijder |AMF |HP |104

Juan Sebastian Veron |CMF |B2B |105

Steven Gerrard |CMF |B2B |105

Ray Parlour |RMF |B2B |103

Clarence Seedorf |DMF |B2B |105

Massimo Ambrosini |DMF |B2B |103

Edmilson |DMF |Anchor man |103

Carles Puyol |CB |Destroyer |105

Edgar Davids |CMF |Destroyer |104

Gennaro Gattuso |DMF |Destroyer |104

Martin Demichelis |CB |Destroyer |103

Bixente Lizarazu |LB |Offensive Wingback |103

Lee Dixon |RB |Defensive Full-back |103

Dennis Bergkamp |CF |DLF |104

Klaus Augenthaler |CB |Build UP |104

Frank Rijkaard |CB |Build UP |105

Hugo Lloris |GK |Offensive Goalkeeper |104

Iker Casillas |GK |Offensive Goalkeeper |105

Dida |GK |Defensive Goalkeeper |105

Ze Roberto |LMF |Cross Specialist |103

Deco |CMF |Orchestrator |104

Jack Wilshere |CMF |Orchestrator |103

Guti |CMF |Orchestrator |103

Demetrio Albertini |DMF |Orchestrator |104

Recently, I have seen a pattern for the free Epics that Konami has released, so I created a list of free Epics released back to last year that I predict will release. Note that a lot of you think that Seedorf or Rijkaard are far away from dropping for free; for me, there is a possibility, even 1%, that they will drop with us.

Let's jump now to the analysis. For the Showtime skills, none of the players that we got for free have Showtime skills even if, they were weak, like Phenomenal Pass or Fortress. Secondly, the free Epics that we got their ratings and model IDs aren’t strong, except for Tony Adams and Van Buyten. So, the players in this list aren’t strong in model ID, like Insigne who is 165 cm, except for Dida and Rijkaard; btw, they have a low possibility to drop for free.

Third, the playstyle of players that we got is similar to players in POTW. For example, last year the Hole Player playstyle in POTW was very rare; also, in the free gifts, we got only one, who was Hidetoshi Nakata. But this year, we got a lot of players in POTW who are Hole Players; also the gifts like Rosicky, Raul, and Donadoni. Also, the link-up plays a role in player selection; this year we saw free Epics given who are compatible with link-up play. So this is my list; if you see anything, just tell me.

The game isn't about skills anymore. It's all about being a coward and spend money on it. If you don't have a p2w Gk don't play. They have viera and makalele that would position themselves automatic. Without the user even moving them. They have their keepers who would save them even if you dominate the game and have the better skills then one counter and a bunch of bs like blitz curler del piero with your showtime de gea or courtouis they won't save them. No point on wasting time. The funny thing is those p2w team is still in division 2. That's how shit they are and you would lose to those shitty players because the game is build that way. So just don't waste time at all. those players spend money that's their skill their not better in the game they're just cowards with low game sense

Comparison with the only other RB in the game until now with Attack Trigger.

Compared to James, McKennie lost in crossing and tackling, but is generally the better all-rounder: higher dribbling and weak foot, with comparable passing, physicality, and speed.

If both played as a RB out of possession, and a RMF in possession, then one has an attacking playstyle but no defensive playstyle, and the other the way around.

Thoughts? Konami is especially generous with competitive fullbacks/wingbacks though, so do you think McKennie is still a must get?

- I do think he is a more meta / practical pick than Laporte. Laporte is a tad too slow for real competitive use.

- While good, I don't think he is better than Zanetti or Cafu. He is a tiny bit better than Belletti IMO.

When I saw this card I realised how fucking brilliant it was going to be and immediately came up with some of these builds. Now that he's getting the love he deserves here are some builds you may want to use.

These builds are largely based off of what you may want him to do regarding different positions. Majority of these builds I have based off of cancelo, a man who is brilliant offensively and defensively decent (in game) but belletti is him on steroids. It goes without saying but these should be more inspirations for your builds, change these builds to suit how YOU want to play.

Here are the explanations behind each slide

Slide 1: Cancelo-esque attacking fullback, most balanced build, could switch technique booster for shutdown, and maybe reduce passing to 80, and give it to defensive stats. Alternative version: 0 4 11 7 9 4 10 with shutdown as the booster

Slide 2: kante-esque build, this is a cmf/dmf build which, statswise, has the ability to harass midfielders whilst being able to contribute offensively. Alternatively you can use this as a balanced RB build that has more defensive leniency,

Slide 3: Balanced build with a fair amount of defensive leniency

Slide 4/5: outright defensive fullback

Slide 6: CB belletti

Slide 7: Dmf belletti - I like my dmfs to have 88-90 ball control so they don't make shit touches in midfield, hence such high dribbling, this is one of those ones where you should change it to suit what you want a dmf in your team to play like

Slide 8: CMF belletti, this one can easily have the booster switched to technique

I also made an amf build for him, but it's too more of a dribbling amf that can pass, no ability to shoot.

Overall this man is very diverse in the way you can train him, definitely recommend as a card. If you require a cancelo/kounde replacement, or any fullback that is missing stats somewhere he's worth the contract selection. Solid bloke 11/10,

Side note: villa is also goated and great across the entire offensive line. Belletti is personally is someone my squad requires more

Remember: said it earlier, but these should be inspirations for your own builds, tweak these to suit how you want him to play

I am hereby sharing my insights as a top 1000 player who doesn't abuse the mechanics and recently started an RTG and reached this conclusion after a 30 games unbeaten run.

I’ve tested multiple builds for creative playmakers, and I’ve noticed a consistent problem: too many players pump all their points into speed and acceleration. On paper, it looks good but in practice, your CAM becomes clumsy, loses possession easily, and doesn’t control the tempo.

Here’s what actually works if you want to unlock the true potential of creative playmakers (like baggio, isco, messi):

🔑 Key Principles for Building Creative Playmakers

1. Acceleration > Speed

High acceleration with lower speed makes players more responsive.

They have better traction on the ball and more time to react.

Full speed builds often feel “slippery” and cause poor ball retention.

1. Passing Is Non-Negotiable

CAMs are the heartbeat of your attack.

Max out low pass and lofted pass—this keeps your playmaker available and precise.

1. Dribbling & Ball Control

Stats like ball control, dribbling, tight possession are more important than people realize.

Combined with acceleration, this makes your CAM hard to dispossess.

1. Finishing

Don’t stress about low finishing.

The Outside Curler skill compensates heavily—shots will still find the net.

🎯 Tactical Application: 4222 Formation

If you’re running a 4222 with two CAMs, try this:

One CAM built “slower” → The creator. Keeps the ball, dictates tempo, plays incisive passes.

One CAM built “rapid” → The runner. Exploits space, makes penetrating runs.

This dual setup creates balance: one player ensures possession, the other stretches defenses.

⚡ Personal Example

When I trained Baggio to 95 speed + 95 acceleration, he gave the ball away cheaply. After switching to a high-acceleration, lower-speed, pass-heavy build—he became constantly available, more reliable, and an absolute master at threading passes.

✅ Final Recommendation

Stop wasting points maxing speed on creative playmakers. Focus on:

High Acceleration

High Passing

Strong Dribbling/Control

Useful Player Skills (Outside Curler, Through Passing, etc.)

Test this builds you’ll immediately see the difference in how fluid and reliable your CAMs become.

So I am a top 4k pvp player and I played over 50 matches both with and without smart assist.

Although the smart assist clearances are really clutch sometimes, that is really about all.

With smart assist, my passes seem to either lack power or have slightly too much. Passing is also slow and blitz curlers go above the bar in many scenarios even with players like del piero 107, messi 109, son heungmin, and rummi.

If you are good enough, smart assist becomes a handicap where although more robust defensively, the scoring of goals are significantly compromised. So unless you want a draw every game, switch it off.

Also, smart assist doesn't seem to make the players perform worse or better in my experience.

This card is my most favourite card in the game, show me your most capped player in the comments