Gaming
Games
The 9 best underdog national teams to lead to FIFA 18 tournament glory
It’s easy to taste glory on the world stage with one of FIFA 18’s big boys, but how about doing the impossible with one of these exciting underdogs?
Everybody loves an underdog story. Just look at how the whole of Europe got behind Iceland in 2016. Well, except perhaps England fans in that last-16 match.
If you’ve downloaded the recent FIFA 18 update and are looking for a national team to take to tournament glory in Russia, don’t be boring and pick Spain, Germany, France or one of the other big boys of world football. Take charge of an underdog and try to bring some much-needed glory to one of the game’s bridesmaids.
To save you the trouble, we’ve picked out nine teams you might like to try, highlighting their best players at the same time. If they impress you enough, you might even want to think about picking one or two of them up in your Career Mode game.
Yang lainnya
Denmark
While most of the creative responsibility in the Denmark side will fall on Christian Eriksen’s shoulders, the squad isn’t short of attacking talent. The Tottenham playmaker can use his outrageous passing ability (90 for short and 86 long) to find Yussuf Poulsen and Pione Sisto on the wings and both have the potential to worry defenders with their pace.
Feyenoord’s Nicolai Jørgensen is likely to start up front for Denmark this summer, but young Kasper Dolberg will be keen to show the world what he can do from the bench, although with 87 for shot power, you’re better off putting him on the pitch at some point.
Nigeria
Not content with having the best kit of any national team in Russia, the Super Eagles also have a squad peppered with exciting talent. Alex Iwobi might be the bigger name, but Gent’s Moses Simon is blessed with the kind of pace that terrifies opposition defences: 92 for acceleration and 91 for sprint speed. Add to that 93 for agility, 91 for balance and 72 for finishing and the Arsenal man should be fearing for his place. On the opposite wing you can deploy either Chelsea’s Victor Moses, or plump for Leicester reject Ahmed Musa – a man who, with 95 for acceleration and 92 for sprint speed, is even faster than Simon.
Senegal
Another team with real potency on the wings, Senegal’s pair of wide men could have full-backs waking up in a cold sweat this summer. With Sadio Mané on the left and Keita Baldé on the right there’s no escaping the Lions of Teranga’s electric pace, especially when you chuck in young Ismaïla Sarr, who with 92 for acceleration and 93 for sprint speed, won’t struggle to keep up with either. It’s not all up top where Senegal shine though: Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly is an absolute brick wall and has been one of the standout central defenders in Europe this season. No African team has ever won the biggest prize in football. Isn’t it about time you changed that?
Serbia
Look beyond Serbia’s ageing back line and they have one of the most exciting players in world football in their ranks: Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. The 23-year-old midfielder has got the lot: power, energy, technical ability and an eye for goal. His card is peppered with stats in the high 80s, from ball control, dribbling and passing, to strength, stamina and shot power. But while Milinkovic-Savic might be the lynchpin, Serbia are far from being a one-man team. With Southampton’s Dušan Tadić and the quick feet of Torino’s Adem Ljajić around the Lazio man, there’s more than enough creative talent to feed striker Aleksandar Mitrović.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic heads the ball home
© EA Sports
Croatia
There’s not a huge amount of depth in Croatia’s national team, but with so much talent in the centre of the park, there’s plenty to make up for it. With any combination of Luka Modrić, Ivan Rakitić, Mateo Kovačić and Marcelo Brozović in midfield, they’re a match for any team in the world, boasting creativity, ball-winning skills and absurdly good passing ability. The defence can’t possibly match up, although Monaco’s Danijel Subašić is a safe pair of hands in goal. At the other end, Mario Mandžukić certainly knows where the goal is, as does Andrej Kramarić, and with Ivan Perišić operating out wide, you should be able to get plenty of service to them.
Iran
Fresh off the back of a breakout season in the Netherlands, Iran’s Alireza Jahanbakhsh could announce himself to the world in Russia this summer. The hard-working winger might not be quite as quick as Nigeria’s wide men, but he’s no slouch, with 86 for acceleration and 87 for sprint speed. The 23-year-old is excellent with the ball at his feet, doesn’t tire easily and has a vicious shot on him, but he’s not the only Iranian with an eye for goal. Rubin Kazan’s Sardar Azmoun is a lively young striker, whose standout stats are his jumping of 90 and heading accuracy of 84, so you might want to stick a few high balls into the box for him.
Iceland
In reality, Iceland’s squad has recently been hit by injuries to some very important players – but fortunately they don’t carry over to FIFA 18. The team’s talisman is Everton’s Gylfi Sigurðsson, whose close control, passing and crossing will be vital in feeding Alfreð Finnbogason. The 28-year-old striker is a real danger man in the penalty box, with 85 for positioning, 81 for reactions and 82 for finishing. Out wide you’ll have Burnley’s Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson, who will also be looking to use his crossing stat of 80 to supply the Augsburg man. Can you get them to outdo the heroics of France 2016?
Egypt
Short-lived Champions League final appearance aside, this has very much been Mo Salah’s season, so why not make it his summer too? Having spent the whole year banging in goals for Liverpool like it's going out of fashion, he doesn’t have quite the same standard of team-mate around him while playing for his country, but he’s proved time and again that he can win games on his own. It’s probably something to do with his 88 for finishing, dribbling, ball control and balance, 94 for acceleration and 93 for sprint speed. That makes Egypt a fine choice to guide to glory – just try not to let your opponents work out what your game plan is.
Belgium
It’s a bit of a stretch to call Belgium underdogs, but if winning the tournament with any of the other teams here proves beyond you, The Red Devils are at least an outside bet compared to Spain, Germany, Brazil, et al. On paper the squad’s absolutely rammed with world-beaters, but as we all know, tournaments aren’t played on paper.
Still, with Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard and Napoli’s Dries Mertens at your disposal, plus Thibaut Courtois, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen at the other end of the pitch, this is a team capable of going up against the very best. Oh, and you can still pick Roma’s Radja Nainggolan even though he’s been left behind in real life.
