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

Norwich (Tier 2)

When I chose Bournemouth for my last tier 2 article, I said they were one of the most challenging teams in the Premier League because they had the smallest budget. Norwich are a real test for a different reason – they have the lowest number of high potential players, with just 1 player with potential over 80 and 9 with potential of 75 or higher. You’ll need to get as many high quality players as possible on a stiff budget if you want to survive in the Premier League – and that’s anything but easy.

Contents

1. Why choose Norwich?
2. Lineups
   1. Strongest starting lineup
   2. Highest potential lineup
3. Recommended purchases
4. Suggested sales
5. Future considerations
   1. Get a new left back

Starting transfer budget: £16,000,000
Starting wage budget: £70,000
Default formation: 4-4-1-1
Board expectations: Finish mid table, reach cup round of 16
Key player: Dieumerci Mbokani
Best young prospect: Nathan Redmond

Why choose Norwich?

Not only do Norwich not have many high potential players, but almost all of their players with potential above 75 have either already peaked or are just about to. That means that in a year or less they’re going to start declining – so you have to move fast to bring in replacements. Because so many areas of the pitch need strengthening, you have to bring in lots of players but somehow eke as much quality out of those signings as possible. Oh, and that board expect you to finish mid table, when realistically you’re looking at a relegation scrap.

However, the good part is that they have plenty of cash (one of the benefits of using a Premier League team as opposed to one in any other division). £16m is a lot of money for a team that could face relegation, so you should be able to bring in lots of players if you play your cards right.

Norwich’s key player is Dieumerci Mbokani. He’s a striker tailor-made for the Premier League – 84 sprint speed and 82 strength should help him overcome all but the toughest obstacles, while his 79 finishing and 79 heading accuracy mean he’s good in the air and with the ball at his feet. You’ll need him to be firing on all cylinders if you want to stay in the top flight.

The team’s most promising young player is Nathan Redmond. If Mbokani is going to score goals then he’ll need someone to feed him, and Redmond is just such a player. He’s lightning quick and has great dribbling – plus four star skills – so he’ll make beating defenders look easy. Use him to get into goalscoring positions and craft opportunities for the team and he’ll really come into his own.

Strongest starting lineup

Here is Norwich’s strongest starting lineup, with OVRs in brackets:

Highest potential lineup

And here’s Norwich’s highest potential lineup, with potentials in brackets. You’ll notice that there are barely any changes, seeing as most players have already reached their potentials:

Recommended purchases

Key signings required: CB x2, RB, LB, CM, ST.

Before we get started, adjust the budget ratio to 68:32. This will give you £13,355,200 in transfer funds and £120,861 in wages. Now let’s see who we can buy with that.

Miguel Rodrigues
Club: Nacional
Position: CB
OVR: 74
Potential: 81
Age: 22
Cost: £3.8m
Wages: £30,000

Norwich’s centre back partnership of Sébastien Bassong and Russell Martin are not the best in the world – at 74 and 73 OVR, they will struggle against the better teams. That wouldn’t be so bad if they grew, but sadly they are 28 and 29 and will start declining very soon. If you’re to have a safe, solid defence going into the future, you need to buy a couple of new players.

The first such player that I’d suggest is Miguel Rodrigues of Nacional in Portugal. Starting at 74 OVR, he’ll fit right into the starting lineup, while his 81 potential gives him much greater longevity than Bassong and Martin. He’s strong, good in the air and great at tackling, and isn’t slow either – everything you really look for in a centre back. Thanks to his high potential, he’ll hit the ground running and soon be one of your best players.

Nacional want £4.7m for him but I got that down to £3.8m. His wages are £30,000. Note that you probably can get him for less than £3.8m, but that is likely to spark a bidding war with other clubs as he seems to be a popular player. £3.8m should ensure he joins your team.

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Samir
Club: Udinese
Position: CB
OVR: 73
Potential: 83
Age: 20
Cost: £3.5m
Wages: £25,000

Because both Bassong and Martin will decline soon, we’ll need another centre back to partner Rodrigues. My choice is Samir of Udinese. Like Rodrigues, he’s strong, excellent at tackling and has a bit of pace too. That’ll make him feel right at home in the Premier League, where he’ll be able to cope with the increased physicality. He’s got even higher potential than Rodrigues and costs even less (although his starting OVR isn’t quite as high), so get these two centre backs and you’ll have two absolute bargains on your hands.

Speaking of price, Udinese want £4.3m for him but I negotiated that down to £3.5m. His wages are £25,000.

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Rick Karsdorp
Club: Feyenoord
Position: RB
OVR: 72
Potential: 81
Age: 20
Cost: £2.5m
Wages: £10,000

Norwich’s right back situation is far from ideal. Steven Whittaker is only rated 71 and has reached his potential, while the more promising Andre Wisdom (75 potential) is only on loan for the season. The only other right back on the team (Reece Hall-Johnson) only has 67 potential so really isn’t worth keeping. That means you’re going to need a new player, or else by the second season you’ll be left with Hall-Johnson and a rapidly-declining Whittaker, and that’s it.

I suggest you buy Rick Karsdorp of Feyenoord. He’s lightning fast and has 80 stamina, perfect if you want him to bomb up and down the flanks all game long. His crossing is excellent and his dribbling is good, so he’s strong going forward, but he can defend with skill as well. His passing isn’t bad either, so don’t be afraid to switch the play with him if you need to.

His asking price is £3.9m but that can be slashed down to £2.5m. His wages are also very affordable at £10,000.

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Francisco Varela
Club: Real Betis
Position: LB
OVR: 71
Potential: 81
Age: 20
Cost: £0 (loan)
Wages: £10,000

The left back position is even more dire than the right back is at Norwich, in that Martin Olsson is the only one in the entire team (Robbie Brady can play there, but he’s much better at left midfield). Given that Olsson is 27, it won’t be long before he starts declining. I’ll talk about a more long-term solution later in this article, but for now we need to loan in another left back to cover Olsson in case he gets injured or tired.

My choice is Francisco Varela of Real Betis. He’s quite similar to Karsdorp – fast, great stamina, good at crossing and excellent at tackling. Although his dribbling isn’t as good as Karsdorp’s that can be trained easily enough. He will provide ample cover for Olsson in times of need. If you want to give yourself a bit of extra leeway, you could loan him in for two years while you search for a long-term prospect.

Another similarity he shares with Karsdorp is the low amount his wages cost – just £10,000. That makes him extremely affordable for his OVR, which usually results in much higher wage fees.

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Sergi Samper
Club: FC Barcelona
Position: CDM
OVR: 70
Potential: 82
Age: 20
Cost: £1.6m
Wages: £25,000

Wes Hoolahan is one of Norwich’s best players in FIFA 16, but at 33 his stats will start declining from the moment you start a career mode. Getting the most out of him also requires playing a diamond-shaped midfield, which could be vulnerable to the league’s best teams. I recommend you therefore look for a central or defensive midfielder for his replacement and shift the formation to a flat 4-4-2. That will give you a little extra security when facing the division’s big boys.

With that in mind, I recommend you buy Sergi Samper from FC Barcelona. He will grow into the perfect deep-lying playmaker but is already fantastic for his age and OVR. While he may not be the most well-rounded player, three of his stats really stand out – 84 short passing, 76 long passing and 81 vision. He will be able to pick out a pass time and time again, starting attacks from midfield with ease. Played alongside the ball winner Youssouf Mulumbu, you’ll have a truly solid central midfield pairing.

Unbelievably, Barcelona only want £2.4m for him – and that can be further knocked down to £1.6m, making him one of the best bargains in FIFA 16. His wages are £25,000.

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?ukasz Zwoli?ski
Club: Pogo? Szczecin
Position: ST
OVR: 70
Potential: 80
Age: 22
Cost: £1.8m
Wages: £20,000

As with many other positions, Norwich are lacking a huge amount of real quality up front. Dieumerci Mbokani and Cameron Jerome are great, but the other strikers are sadly lacking. And at 29 and 28, Mbokani and Jerome tell a familiar story – they’ll be declining soon. You need at least one young, high potential striker who can grow to take their place in time.

My recommendation is ?ukasz Zwoli?ski of Pogo? Szczecin in Poland. Like Mbokani and Jerome, he’s perfectly built for the Premier League – 78 acceleration, 76 sprint speed and 84 strength is a deadly combination up front and will help him bully defenders rated much higher than himself. His finishing, heading and dribbling are all roughly equal, which means that when he reaches his 80 potential he’ll be an excellently well-rounded striker. His strong positioning will also help him pop up in the right place to bag plenty of goals. I’ve used him in my own career mode and can vouch for his ability, scoring tons of goals and growing well (and his physicals get even better, too).

Pogo? Szczecin want £2.9m for him but don’t be fooled, you can actually knock over £1m off that – I got him for £1.8m. His wages are £20,000.

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This will leave you with £155,200 in transfer funds and a mere £861 in wages. In order to raise some money to pay for scouts or more players, you could sell some of the players below.

Suggested sales

Norwich have lots of goalkeepers that you’re never likely to use. Selling Killip, Matthews and Kean will bring in about £550,000. You won’t miss them – none of them have potential higher than 68.

Because we’re buying so many defenders, that means you can sell a load to raise more cash. So out go Bennett, Coker, Hall-Johnson and Gafaiti for a total of roughly £1.25m. Now that you have an extra right back in Rick Karsdorp, you can optionally sell Whittaker for about £600,000. Just be aware that you’ll only have one right back once Andre Wisdom goes back to Liverpool at the end of the season, but you could use that money to buy a replacement.

You can ship out lots of midfield players, too. On the list are O’Neil, Eaton-Collins, Andreu, King and McGrandles, who can be sold for around £1.4m in total.

Finally, there are a few strikers who could also be sold to raise money. I’d think about selling Grabban and Lafferty for sure, who can bring in about £1.5m between them. You might also want to sell Loza, who will get you about £200,000.

All that in total can get you in the region of £4.7m to £5.5m – plenty of money to spend on scouts or new players.

Future considerations – get a new left back

While Norwich only have Olsson at left back in their current squad, they do have Harry Toffolo out on loan. However, with 74 potential you may feel he’s not good enough or you want someone with higher potential to eventually replace Olsson.

If that’s the case, I recommend you try Elmir Nabiullin of Rubin Kazan in Russia. He starts at 71 OVR, is 20 years old and has 82 potential. He’s extremely fast with 90 acceleration and 87 sprint speed, while his 73 dribbling will make him dangerous on the break. He can defend, too, thanks to his 74 marking, 74 stand tackle and 75 slide tackle. Best of all, he’s cheap – Rubin Kazan want £3m for him, and his wages are £10,000. He’ll make an excellent cheap left back with high potential to take over from Olsson as he starts to decline.

Don’t forget you can get Francisco Varela on loan for two years, so you could do that and try to scout a good left back (or find a regen on another team) over the next two years.

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That’s it for this week’s article on good teams for career mode. Despite the low number of high potential players in Norwich’s squad, they have a great budget so are well disposed to improve their ranks. However, given the high number of positions you have to improve, you have to spend wisely in order to get the most out of your transfer budget. If you can do that, you’ll have a great fun career mode on your hands as you fight for survival in one of the most competitive divisions in FIFA 16.

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?

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.