To skip to the full list of players, click here
In these articles I look at the best cheap, high potential players in FIFA 16, with tonight’s post focusing on defensive midfielders. I’ll go through a few recommendations, then show you the full list of top quality players afterwards. For a full run down of how I choose the players and what the different columns in the table mean, click on “What are these articles all about?” below.
[expand title=”What are these articles all about?” tag=”center” trigclass=”noarrow”]
All of the players given here have a minimum potential of 80, so you know you’re getting quality. The maximum OVR for each player is 75, both to keep transfer prices down and to avoid presenting you with too many options and thus making it too difficult to choose the player you need.
The ‘Avai?’ column is short for ‘available?’ and refers both to whether or not you can buy the specified player at the start of the first season and how long their current contract is. Let’s take Y/2 as an example – Y means that yes, you can buy him at the start of a new career, and the number means he has two years left on his contract. Similarly, N/3 would mean that no, you can’t buy the player straight away, and he has three years left on his contract. These ‘no’ players are often available for transfer if you wait until the January transfer window, however. For some players this column is blank – this means that they are out on loan at the start and are therefore unavailable for purchase until the second season.
The figure in the player cost column refers to the price you are given if you scout the player. There’s also another column – ‘Enquiry’. This refers to the price the other team want for the player if you enquire about him. Often there is a large difference between the player cost obtained through scouting and that obtained through an enquiry. This leaves a lot of room for negotiation, so don’t be put off if a price in the ‘Enquiry’ column is high, as you can usually get the player for much less. Try bidding lower than what you think will be accepted – you may be surprised at their response. If the ‘Enquiry’ column is blank it’s because the team refused to give a price, either because the player has just joined them or because they are loaning him in.
And as a final note, in FIFA 16 EA update player OVRs and potentials every week. Mose of the time these are very minor changes, and most players won’t be affected at all unless they have had a very noteworthy week. Furthermore, some players occasionally disappear if they have been put in the reserve squad that week. So just bear in mind that these figures should be read as a guide only and not a definitive account of player costs, potentials, etc, for the entire season.[/expand]
So without further ado, let’s see the cheap young defensive midfielders that I recommend.
Emre Can: potential 83
Emre Can can play all over the pitch
Emre Can is my first recommendation because he is simply so good in pretty much any position on the pitch. Just look at his stats – he can pass, shoot, tackle and cross, while he has great sprint speed and is very strong too. Although his position is CDM, he’d be just as happy in defence or on the wing. Simply put, he’s one of the most flexible central midfielders in the game – and one of the most promising.
Liverpool will want £7m for him but you can knock that down to around £6m. His wages are £35,000.
Similar player: Ozan Tufan.
Eric Dier: potential 84
Eric Dier is a great ball winner but can score goals too
If you’re looking for a real rock in central midfield, Eric Dier is a good place to start. He’s a ball-winner, and with 78 stand tackle, 72 slide tackle, 74 marking and 83 strength, it’s going to be a tough ask for opposition players to get past him. He’s not a one-dimensional player, though, as he has a fierce shot, a powerful header and accurate free kicks, so he’ll score plenty of goals from dead balls. And on top of all that, his 80 stamina will see him cover almost every blade of grass, be that in attack or defence.
Send an enquiry to Spurs and they’ll want £6.5m for him, so you should be able to get that down to around £5.8m. His wages are £30,000.
Similar player: Panagiotis Tachtsidis.
Sergi Samper: potential 82
Sergi Samper has incredible passing and is extremely cheap
Finally, if you’d rather have a deep-lying playmaker in the mould of Andrea Pirlo, Sergi Samper is your best bet. He may only be 20 years old but his passing is already incredible – 84 short passing, 76 long passing and 81 vision will see him distributing the ball with pinpoint accuracy. Given his 82 potential, his passing is just going to get better and better – pair him with a ball-winner like Dier and you’ll have a fantastic central midfield for years to come.
He’s also very cheap – an enquiry to FC Barcelona will bring back a price of £2.4m, so you can get him for roughly £1.8m. His wages are 20,000.
Similar player: Rodrigo Dourado.
Now here are the other cheap, high potential defensive midfielders in FIFA 16:
| Pos | Name | OVR | Pot. | Age | Cost (£) | Enquiry (£) | Wages (£) | Club | Avai? | Foot | Weak foot | Skills | Traits | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDM | Julian Weigl | 72 | 84 | 19 | 2,200,000 | - | 20,000 | Bor. Dortmund | N/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | £4.6m in January | |
| CDM | Eric Dier | 74 | 84 | 21 | 3,500,000 | 6,500,000 | 30,000 | Spurs | Y/5 | Right | 3 | 2 | Power header | |
| CDM | João Palhinha | 69 | 83 | 19 | 1,500,000 | * | 1,500 | Moreirense FC | - | Right | 4 | 2 | On loan from Sporting CP | |
| CDM | Muhamed Bešić | 75 | 83 | 22 | 3,800,000 | 6,000,000 | 30,000 | Everton | Y/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Emre Can | 75 | 83 | 21 | 3,800,000 | 7,000,000 | 35,000 | Liverpool | Y/4 | Right | 4 | 3 | Flair | |
| CDM | Nahitan Nández | 67 | 82 | 19 | 975,000 | Right | 3 | 2 | Free agent | |||||
| CDM | Borja Fernández | 69 | 82 | 19 | 1,200,000 | 1,800,000 | 5,000 | Celta Vigo | Y/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Sergi Samper | 70 | 82 | 20 | 1,500,000 | 2,400,000 | 20,000 | FC Barcelona | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 2 | Long passer | |
| CDM | Niklas Stark | 71 | 82 | 20 | 1,800,000 | - | 10,000 | Hertha BSC | N/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Rodrigo Dourado | 72 | 82 | 21 | 2,200,000 | 3,900,000 | 15,000 | Internacional | Y/4 | Right | 2 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Karol Linetty | 72 | 82 | 20 | 2,200,000 | 4,100,000 | 10,000 | Lech Poznań | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | Injury prone | |
| CDM | Mario Pašalić | 72 | 82 | 20 | 2,200,000 | * | 15,000 | AS Monaco | - | Right | 5 | 3 | On loan from Chelsea | |
| CDM | Ozan Tufan | 74 | 82 | 20 | 3,100,000 | - | 20,000 | Fenerbahçe | N/5 | Right | 3 | 2 | Long shot taker | |
| CDM | Nampalys Mendy | 75 | 82 | 23 | 3,600,000 | 6,000,000 | 25,000 | OGC Nice | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 3 | ||
| CDM | Sergio Álvarez | 75 | 82 | 23 | 3,600,000 | 6,500,000 | 25,000 | Sporting Gijón | Y/4 | Right | 3 | 3 | Long shot taker | |
| CDM | Pablo Galdames | 66 | 81 | 18 | 775,000 | 1,300,000 | 750 | Unión Española | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Lewis Cook | 69 | 81 | 18 | 975,000 | 1,700,000 | 2,000 | Leeds United | Y/2 | Right | 4 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Mikel Merino | 67 | 81 | 19 | 975,000 | 1,800,000 | 5,000 | CA Osasuna | Y/6 | Left | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Andrés Cubas | 69 | 81 | 19 | 1,100,000 | 1,400,000 | 5,000 | Boca Juniors | Y/6 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Gonzalo Escalante | 71 | 81 | 22 | 1,700,000 | 3,000,000 | 4,000 | SD Eibar | Y/6 | Right | 3 | 3 | ||
| CDM | Anderson Esiti | 71 | 81 | 21 | 1,700,000 | 3,100,000 | 15,000 | Estoril Praia | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | Strength | |
| CDM | Walace | 72 | 81 | 20 | 2,100,000 | 3,900,000 | 10,000 | Grêmio | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 3 | ||
| CDM | Sebastián Martínez | 73 | 81 | 21 | 2,700,000 | 4,800,000 | 20,000 | Uni. de Chile | Y/5 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Matías Laba | 73 | 81 | 23 | 2,700,000 | 4,800,000 | 25,000 | Whitecaps FC | Y/5 | Right | 2 | 3 | ||
| CDM | Magomed Ozdoev | 73 | 81 | 22 | 2,700,000 | 5,000,000 | 20,000 | Rubin Kazan | Y/4 | Right | 2 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Joaquín Arzura | 74 | 81 | 22 | 3,000,000 | 5,000,000 | 7,000 | Tigre | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Jorrit Hendrix | 74 | 81 | 20 | 3,000,000 | 5,000,000 | 20,000 | PSV | Y/2 | Left | 4 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Eslem Öztürk | 63 | 80 | 17 | 400,000 | 650,000 | 1,500 | Beşiktaş | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Abdou-Aziz Thiam | 63 | 80 | 18 | 425,000 | 650,000 | 2,000 | AS Monaco | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Mahmoud Dahoud | 64 | 80 | 19 | 575,000 | 1,000,000 | 3,000 | Bor. M'gladbach | Y/3 | Right | 4 | 3 | ||
| CDM | Renan | 68 | 80 | 17 | 800,000 | 1,100,000 | 2,000 | Avaí | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Bruno Paulista | 67 | 80 | 19 | 825,000 | 1,200,000 | 5,000 | Sporting CP | Y/2 | Right | 3 | 3 | Power free-kick, flair | |
| CDM | Harrison Reed | 67 | 80 | 20 | 900,000 | 1,100,000 | 5,000 | Southampton | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Julien De Sart | 70 | 80 | 20 | 1,400,000 | 2,200,000 | 10,000 | Standard Liège | Y/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Sebastián Cristóforo | 71 | 80 | 21 | 1,600,000 | 2,200,000 | 20,000 | Sevilla FC | Y/3 | Right | 3 | 2 | Injury prone | |
| CDM | Abdullahi Shehu | 71 | 80 | 22 | 1,600,000 | 2,800,000 | 1,500 | Madeira | Y/2 | Right | 4 | 2 | Long passer | |
| CDM | Otávio | 71 | 80 | 21 | 1,600,000 | 2,900,000 | 1,5000 | Atl. Paranaense | Y/4 | Right | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Nikola Vukcević | 73 | 80 | 23 | 2,500,000 | 3,700,000 | 25,000 | SC Braga | Y/2 | Left | 3 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Gustavo Cuéllar | 73 | 80 | 22 | 2,500,000 | * | 7,000 | Junior FC | - | Right | 3 | 2 | On loan from Deportivo Cali | |
| CDM | Matías Kranevitter | 74 | 80 | 22 | 2,900,000 | * | 20,000 | River Plate | - | Right | 3 | 2 | On loan from Atlético Madrid | |
| CDM | Panagiotis Tachtsidis | 75 | 80 | 24 | 3,400,000 | 6,500,000 | 25,000 | Genoa | Y/4 | Left | 2 | 2 | ||
| CDM | Pelé | 75 | 80 | 23 | 3,400,000 | * | 25,000 | Paços Ferreira | - | Right | 3 | 2 | On loan from SL Benfica |
Thanks for reading! If you have any player recommendations of your own and have some ideas for the website, make sure you let me know in the comments below.
Don’t forget to connect with me on social media. I’m running the FIFA Scouting Tips YouTube channel, and you can follow me on Facebook or Twitter for all the latest updates.