FIFA 16 | Good teams for career mode – Valenciennes FC

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: Valenciennes FC

Valenciennes FC (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 Valenciennes FC?
  2. Lineups
    1. Strongest starting lineup
    2. Highest potential lineup
  3. Recommended purchases
  4. Suggested sales
  5. Future considerations
    1. Get a new left midfielder

Starting transfer budget: £575,000
Starting wage budget: £10,000
Default formation: 4-4-2
Board expectations: Fight for promotion, cup round of 32
Key player: Opa N’Guette
Best young prospect: Angelo Fulgini

Why choose Valenciennes FC?

Every time I choose a tier 4 team, I try to make it more than just a team that has a low budget or lacks high potential players. In the case of Valenciennes FC, they’ve got both of those things, but they have something else too. Namely, their board wants you to fight for promotion. With one of the lowest numbers of high potential players and a restrictive budget, that’s an extremely tough challenge.

Luckily, there are some positives. The high potential players that you do have are very good, especially Opa N’Guette (more on him in a minute). They’re certainly not the worst team in the league, so a promotion push is possible with a bit of luck. And who doesn’t like a bit of a challenge when it comes to FIFA 16 career mode?

Valenciennes FC’s key player is Opa N’Guette. He’s their joint-highest OVR player and it’s easy to see why. His 92 acceleration and 82 sprint speed will be a real hassle for defenders, as will his 72 dribbling. He’s a winger, but thanks to his surprisingly good aerial ability and his decent finishing, you can play him up front. That flexibility in attack will be very useful if other players get injured or tired. And to top it off, he’s got 77 potential so will be excellent in the future too.

The team’s most promising young player is Angelo Fulgini. He plays at right back and will hold down that position for years thanks to his 78 potential. He’s got good pace and with his 6’2″ height he’ll also be decent at centre back. In fact, his stats are very well balanced so he can play in a number of other positions, including defensive midfield. And given that he’s only 18, with a few good seasons of growth he could exceed his 78 potential.

Strongest starting lineup

Changing the formation to 4-2-3-1, here is Valenciennes FC’s strongest starting lineup, with OVRs in brackets:

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Highest potential lineup

Keeping the formation at 4-2-3-1, here is Valenciennes FC’s highest potential lineup, with potentials in brackets:

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Recommended purchases

Key signings required: CB, LB, CM, LM.

Ideally we need four new players, but given Valenciennes FC’s budget we might struggle to buy all of them. We’ll loan one player in, but the rest will be permanent deals. Before buying anyone, adjust your budget ratio to 38:62. That will give you £416,100 in transfer funds and £13,055 in wages. Now let’s buy some players.

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Harry Souttar is cheap but has excellent potential

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Harry Souttar
Club: Dundee United
Position: CB
OVR: 57
Potential: 77
Age: 16
Cost: £200,000
Wages: £2,400

The player with the lowest potential in the starting lineup above is Yunis Abdelhamid with 69 potential, although he has the joint-highest OVR in the team. Still, he’s reached his potential, so we’ll need a player to replace him in the next few years. It’s not a desperate situation as he’s 27 and won’t start declining for a while, so the player we buy doesn’t need to be first team quality just yet. As long as he has high potential we’ll be OK.

My choice is Harry Souttar of Dundee United in Scotland. He’s rated 57 but has 77 potential, so will grow to become one of the best players in the team. He’s 6’6″ and his best stat is his jumping, so he’ll be absolutely dominant in the air, both in attack and defence. He’s also pretty strong, and that’s only going to get better as he moves towards his potential.

Dundee United want £275,000 for him but you can knock that down to about £200,000. His wages are £2,400.


FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Sakib Aytaç is a good replacement for Saliou Ciss

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Sakib Aytaç
Club: Antalyaspor
Position: LB
OVR: 66
Potential: 72
Age: 23
Cost: £0 (contract expiry)
Wages: £7,000

Looking at the highest potential lineup, we see that left back is another weak spot. Loris Néry has 71 potential, and the next best left back, Saliou Ciss, has 69 potential. If you want to replace Ciss, but it would be good if we could find a player who has the same excellent physical stats as him, and with potential that’s a little better than Néry’s.

My recommendation is Sakib Aytaç of Antalyaspor in Turkey, as he ticks both of those boxes. He’s got good pace but is strong as well, so can easily play at centre back if needed. In fact, he’s very flexible and can play in a number of different positions. He’s got 72 potential so will outgrow Néry, and could exceed that and reach the mid 70s if he plays well.

Even better, you can sign him for free. Just find him in the January transfer window and press ‘approach to sign on contract expiry’. He’ll then join your team at the start of the second season, and should have grown a few points when he arrives as well. His wages are £7,000.


FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Adam McDonnell is an excellent young midfielder

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Adam McDonnell
Club: Ipswich
Position: CM
OVR: 62
Potential: 75
Age: 18
Cost: £210,000
Wages: £2,650

Another weak spot is central midfield. The highest potential central midfielders are Adrien Tamèze (69 potential) and Abdoul Aziz Kaboré (71 potential). Obviously that’s not great, and we’ll need a higher potential midfielder to replace Tamèze at least.

I recommend you buy Adam McDonnell of Ipswich. He’s got decent pace for a central midfielder, so will be able to quickly cover ground in the centre of the pitch. Some of his best stats are his passing and vision attributes, so as he grows he’ll become a real pass master. And speaking of growing, he’s got 75 potential so will easily become your best central midfielder in a year or two. His OVR also means it won’t be long until he’s holding down a first team spot.

Ipswich want £300,000 for him but you can get him for around £210,000 thanks to his one-year contract. His wages are £2,650.


FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Rafik Zekhnini is a pacey, tricky winger

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Rafik Zekhnini
Club: Odds BK
Position: LW
OVR: 67
Potential: 80
Age: 17
Cost: £0 (loan)
Wages: £1,000

The final piece of the puzzle is left midfield. Lamine Ndao is a decent player but only has 71 potential. Sigamary Diarra is the only other option, and he’s 31 so will start declining very soon. We can’t afford to buy a player yet, but we can loan someone in.

My suggestion is Rafik Zekhnini of Odds BK in Norway. I really did save the best til last because this guy is amazing. He has 90 acceleration and 90 sprint speed so will breeze past defenders, and his four star skills will be brilliant and tricking his way through the opposition. He starts at 67 OVR so can go straight into the first team, and his 80 potential means he’ll grow really quickly. He’s just devastatingly good for his OVR.

He won’t cost anything as we’re just loaning him in, and I suggest doing a two-year loan. This will mean that you’ll have a bit longer to find a permanent transfer target, and it’s no bad thing having him for two years instead of one! And just to top it all off, his wages are very cheap at just £1,000.


Those transfers will leave you with £6,100 in transfer funds and a mere £5 in wages. Yes, £5 – I don’t think we’ve ever been left with so little in wages! Obviously we’ll need to raise some more cash if you want to buy scouts or more players, so let’s take a look at who we can sell.

Suggested sales

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Eloge Enza-Yamissi can be sold for about £250,000

The first player you can sell is Paul Charruau; he’ll bring in about £230,000.

As for the defence, sell on Moussa Niakhaté for £100,000 and Emmanuel Ntim for £50,000.

Moving into midfield, Eloge Enza-Yamissi, Elhadj Dabo and Sékou Baradji can be sold for £250,000, £40,000 and £100,000 respectively. You can also sell Ismaïl Haddou for £100,000 and Andy Faustin for £80,000.

Finally, Joia Nuno Da Costa can be sold for £100,000 and Gaëtan Missi Mezu for £50,000.

All of those players will make you around £1.1m – twice Valenciennes FC’s starting budget.

Future considerations: get a new left midfielder

FIFA 16 good teams for career mode: Valenciennes FC

Enrique Soto is fast and has excellent stamina

Rafik Zekhnini is obviously an amazing player, but he’s only loaned in, so you’ll need to get a permanent left midfielder for when he leaves.

My suggestion is Enrique Soto of Boyacá Chicó in Colombia. He’s got practically everything you need in a winger. He’s very pacey, but also has excellent stamina so can go up and down the wings all game. He’s great at dribbling but can cross very well too, so he can create chances both for himself and for his teammates. Add to that his 77 potential and you’ve got a great little winger on your hands.

Boyacá Chicó want £1.3m for him but you can get him for about £1m. His wages are £7,000.


That’s it for this week’s article on good teams for career mode. Valenciennes FC have a tough challenge meeting the board’s expectations, but even their low budget is enough to bring in some really talented players if you choose wisely.

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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