Best FIFA 14 formation for Barcelona

Being a popular choice in FIFA 14 and one of the strongest sides in the game, Barcelona, is always a fun team to play with. There are star players in every position and the bench has so much depth, that it gets kind of tricky to pick the right set of players to use in Barcelona. While the default formation and playing 11 are quite good in itself, there are a few changes one can make to truly unleash Barcelona’s potential.

Formation- Barcelona Default or 4-3-3(false 9)

The default formation of Barcelona is good enough and doesn’t really need changes. However, there is an alternative that you can try and that is the 4-3-3 formation, using a false 9. Usually when Messi plays as a center forward, he doesn’t get involved in the build-up early enough and is usually only there for the final balls. A player as good as Messi needs to be utilized more often and so playing as a false 9, he drops deep to collect the ball, and with the ball at Messi’s feet, there isn’t much you can’t do. On the wings, you need pace and that is given by Neymar on the left, and Pedro on the right. Another option one can put in the right is Alexis Sanchez, but as Sanchez does not have great stamina, it is recommended to sub him in in the later stages of the match. Neymar and Pedro are fast, good at dribbling and are immaculate finishers. Having an average height of around 5’5″, Barcelona is not the ideal team for crosses, so the dribbling skills of the wingers allow them to cut in and deliver grounded final balls to onrushing team-mates or they can simply finish themselves.

For the midfield we have the dynamic duo of Iniesta and Xavi, with Busquets giving them support at the back. Both Iniesta and Xavi are world class players, but in FIFA 14, Xavi’s pace has been drastically reduced and so in his place, one can use Fabregas who is the better passer, has greater vision, and is fast enough meaning he can contribute more to the build-up stages of play, and can finish as well. Behind these two we have Sergio Busquets playing as CDM, but a better option would be to play Mascherano in his place as Mascherano can work better defensively than Busquets, and is much faster than him.

For the back four, we have Dani Alves and Jordi Alba, playing as right-back and left-back respectively. For center-backs, we can use Pique and Puyol. I know there are concerns over Puyol’s pace at the back, but the speed of Alves and Jordi Alba could make up for it. In between the posts, we have the safe and reliable, Victor Valdes.

Everyone knows when it comes to Barcelona, it’s all about possession and even in FIFA 14, it remains the same. They play better when they have the ball with themselves for long periods of time. So in the middle of the pitch the play is slow, with the ball being passed around in the mid-field for some time. However, as you approach the final third of the pitch, that’s when you speed things up by passing the ball quickly and looking for key passes into the penalty box or behind a high defensive line.