FIFA 16 | Good teams for career mode – Academica

Introduction: How do these articles work?

Each Sunday I examine a different team in detail and look at why they’re a good team for FIFA 16’s career mode. The teams are broken down into the following categories:

  • Tier 1: Teams in tough divisions that can push on to challenge for silverware
  • Tier 2: Teams that will have to fight for survival in a challenging division
  • Tier 3: Teams that start in a lower division but can hope to get promoted and work their way up higher leagues
  • Tier 4: Teams that start right at the bottom of the pile, with few funds or high potential players

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Academica (Tier 4)

Tier 4 sides start at the lowest rung of the football table. They’re great if you want a long-running career mode where you rise through the leagues.

Contents

  1. Why choose Academica?
  2. Lineups
    1. Strongest starting lineup
    2. Highest potential lineup
  3. Recommended purchases
  4. Suggested sales
  5. Future considerations
    1. Get a new central midfielder
    2. Renew contracts

Starting transfer budget: £675,000
Starting wage budget: £30,000
Default formation: 4-4-1-1
Board expectations: Finish mid table, cup quarter final
Key player: Gonçalo Paciência
Best young prospect: Rafa

Why choose Academica?

I haven’t done a career mode guide on a Portuguese side before, but Academica are a good one. The Portuguese league is dominated by three or four massive teams, with everyone else scrapping for what’s left. But Academica are worse of than most of these other teams. They’ve only got three players with potential 75 or higher (the second lowest amount in the league). And their budget of just £675,000 is one of the lowest in the division and will make it a real struggle to bring in quality players. Oh, and the board wants you to finish mid table. Not too difficult then!

There are a few bright spots though. In Gonçalo Paciência and Rafa they have two very exciting young players, and the overall quality of the squad is decent (without being great). They also have a good wage budget, which can be switched to transfer funds to help you buy a few more players.

Academica’s key player is Gonçalo Paciência. In real life he’s loaned in from FC Porto, but a couple of weeks ago EA set his status to being permanently at Academica. We’re not complaining, because with 80 potential and 71 OVR he’ll be one of your best players both now and in the future. He’s remarkably well-balanced too – he’s strong, he has good pace, 72 finishing, 76 dribbling and four star skill moves. That all means he can play right across the front line and can adapt to any attacking situation.

The team’s most promising young player is Rafa. First up, his potential is 82, meaning it’s vital you keep hold of him for the future. He’s probably one of the most flexible players in the league, being able to play in almost any position without suffering a large OVR drop (e.g. he only goes down three points as a striker). He’s great offensively and defensively, so can cover any number of players and positions should you need him to.

Strongest starting lineup

Changing the formation to 4-1-2-1-2, here is Academica’s strongest starting lineup, with OVRs in brackets:

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Highest potential lineup

Changing the formation again to 4-4-2, here is Academica’s highest potential lineup, with potentials in brackets:

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Recommended purchases

Key signings required: CB x2, RB.

Academica’s budget ratio is skewed heavily in favour of wages, but we’re going to totally reverse that so we can afford the players below. So before buying anyone, change the budget ratio to 76:24. This will give you £1,698,600 in transfer funds and £10,315 in wages. We’ll be keeping our transfers (mostly) in Portugal today, so let’s buy some players.

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

José Luis Moreno is a very promising young centre back

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

José Luis Moreno
Club: Once Caldas
Position: CB
OVR: 66
Potential: 77
Age: 18
Cost: £590,000
Wages: £2,600

In terms of potential, Academica’s weakest position is at centre back. João Real is one of the team’s best players in terms of OVR, but he’s 32 and will rapidly start declining. There’s not really a ready-made replacement already on the team, so I think we need to bring someone new in.

My suggestion is José Luis Moreno of Once Caldas in Colombia. His main asset is his strength – with 84 strength he’ll easily be able to win the ball back from most opponents. His tackling is good and his reactions stat is one of his best, so he should be able to latch onto loose balls quickly and clear the danger. And of course there’s his 77 potential, making him one of the most promising players you’ll have at Academica.

Once Caldas want £950,000 but I was able to cut that fee almost in half, as I managed to buy him for £590,000. His wages are £2,600.


FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Philipe Sampaio is rock solid at the back

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Philipe Sampaio
Club: Boavista
Position: CB
OVR: 65
Potential: 76
Age: 20
Cost: £600,000
Wages: £3,900

The other problem at centre back for Academica is that the next highest potential player after João Real (Ricardo Nascimento) only has 70 potential, the lowest of any player in the starting lineup. That clearly needs remedying and we need to buy another high potential centre back to take his place.

I suggest you buy Philipe Sampaio of Boavista in Portugal. He’s actually very similar to Ricardo Nascimento – not very fast, admittedly, but extremely strong, good in the air and with excellent tackling stats. But more so than Nascimento, Sampaio has 76 potential, so will grow into a much more competent player in a couple of seasons.

Boavista want £850,000 for him but you can get that down to around £600,000. His wages are £3,900.


FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Lucas Farias is super cheap for what you get

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Lucas Farias
Club: Estoril Praia
Position: RB
OVR: 64
Potential: 76
Age: 20
Cost: £500,000
Wages: £3,600

Aderlan, the first choice right back at Academica, is rated 67 with 71 potential, making this another weak spot in the team. We really need higher quality players than that if Academica are to not only survive relegation, but finish mid table as the board expects.

I recommend you buy Lucas Farias of Estoril Praia in Portugal. Don’t be fooled by his 64 potential, he’s actually much better than that would suggest. He’s fast and has 82 stamina, so can last all game, and his 70 crossing is better than the higher rated Aderlan. His defensive stats are also much better than Aderlan’s, so in practice you will probably find that Farias feels much better than Aderlan, even though his OVR rating is lower. But either way, his 76 potential means that in a year or two he’ll be higher rated than Aderlan anyway.

Estoril Praia want £750,000 for him but you can get that right down to around £500,000. His wages are £3,600.


Those transfers will leave you with £8,600 in transfer funds and just £215 in wages. That’s nowhere near enough to afford a scout or other players, so we’ll have to sell some players to raise some extra cash. Let’s see who we can get rid of.

Suggested sales

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Hugo Seco can be sold for about £400,000

First up, goalkeeper Lee isn’t really needed and can be sold for around £500,000.

Full backs Christopher Oualembo, Emidio Rafael and Tripy Makonda can be sold for £400,000, £400,000 and £500,000 respectively. Sell William Gustavo for £350,000 and, if you need the extra cash, Iago for £500,000.

Artur Taborda and Nuno Piloto can be moved on for £150,000 and £200,000 each. Finally, sell Hugo Seco and Selim Bouadla for £400,000 and £300,000.

All those sales should bring in around £3.2m – £3.7m, depending on if you decide to sell Iago. That’s a really hefty amount and will really give your finances a boost.

Future considerations: get a new central midfielder

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Francisco Ramos is a seriously well-rounded midfielder

The next area that needs improving is central midfield. Leandro Silva has 75 potential (and he actually goes up three OVR points if you play him at central midfield rather than defensive midfield), so we’re not worried about him. However, the next highest potential player is Nwankwo Obiora with 72 potential, which isn’t great.

Keeping the transfers within Portugal, I recommend you buy Francisco Ramos of FC Porto. He’s a real all-rounder in midfield and can play right through the middle, although he’s actually best as a defensive midfielder. He can pass, he can dribble, he’s got a powerful shot and is fairly strong too, not to mention his good defensive and ball control stats. He starts at 68 OVR so will almost instantly be able to slot into the first team, and his 80 potential will put him up there with Rafa and Paciência as one of the most promising players at Academica.

FC Porto want £1.4m for him but you can get that down to around £1.1m. His wages are £7,000.

Future considerations: renew contracts

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Academica

Gonçalo Paciência’s contract is expiring

As with last week’s article on UD Almeria, there’s a risk some of your best players will leave for free in the January transfer window. That’s because a lot of your players’ contracts are expiring, so you’ll need to renew them to make sure you don’t lose them for nothing. In particular, Gonçalo Paciência’s contract is running out, as is Rui Pedro’s (the highest OVR player on the team).

Make it a priority to look through the list of expiring contracts and renew those of the players you want to keep – do it as soon as you start a career with Academica.


That’s it for this week’s article on good teams for career mode. Academica start with a ridiculously low number of high potential players, but invest their decent budget well and you can add some real talent to your squad, helping you take them up the table.

I’d like to hear if you have any thoughts about the format of the article itself. Did you find it useful? Conversely, do you think it was missing something that you’d have liked me to include?

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