FIFA 23’s Chemistry Rework Should Bin Off Position Changes
In the final minutes of the Champions League final, Virgil van Dijk was playing up front. As arguably Liverpool’s best header of the ball (Ibrahim Konate and Diogo Jota would both like words), he was desperately trying to get his head on one of Andy Robertson’s or Trent Alexander-Arnold’s trademark crosses. Obviously it didn’t work out this time, but Liverpool’s desperate 2-1-7 formation for the last ten minutes felt reminiscent of the wild and weird FIFA formations that players puzzle over to maximise their team’s chemistry.
While FIFA limits you to regular formations that managers in real-life matches use (your 4-5-1s and 3-5-2s etc.), position changes mean that some players can end up in the most unexpected places. Van Dijk can’t be played up front without losing serious chemistry (which affects in-game stats), but Fabinho could. Similarly, a notorious poacher like Gary Lineker can start the match as a 6 by applying a few consumable cards. That’s a man who only saw his own half at kick offs and spent the other 89 minutes of his matches in the opposition’s penalty box. But in FIFA, it’s often preferable to switch things around.
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It’s not like this sort of thing doesn’t work in real life. Alisson Becker scored in the final seconds of Liverpool’s match against West Brom in the 20/21 season, a goal which saved the team’s poor year and guaranteed them Champions League football this past year. At that moment, if only for a second, Liverpool played a 1-2-8 formation with nobody left between the sticks. It was a risk, but it paid off. Real Madrid are not West Brom, however, and staunchly defended their one goal lead, largely thanks to an inspired
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