The Premier League season has concluded with the title moving to Stamford Bridge from Leicester City’s King Power stadium. This season once again proved that dominating the centre of the park is still one of the most important elements of being successful as a team once again powered by a dynamo going by the name of N’Golo Kante ended up winning England’s top flight.stadium. This season once again proved that dominating the centre of the park is still one of the most important elements of being successful as a team once again powered by a dynamo going by the name of N’Golo Kante ended up winning England’s top flight.
The story is similar in the case of the FIFA series. However strong may a team’s attack or defence be, it was difficult for a team with a weak midfield to dominate games in FIFA 17 and the same is likely to be the case in the upcoming edition of the game, FIFA 18.
A strong midfield is necessary when you want to win games, be it in the FUT mode or the Career Mode. Purchasing the best midfielders for your team on the game will always boost your chances of winning, and to help you in that endeavour in FIFA 18 in this article we list out those midfielders who will be the best in the business in the Premier League.
1) N’Golo Kante
The first of two French midfielders on this list, N’Golo Kante, in FIFA 18 will be coming off two consecutive years of winning Premier League titles with two different clubs. Described by former manager Claudio Ranieri as doing the work of two men in midfield, he has become a vital part of two dominating sides in the Premier League.
After winning the title last season with Leicester City, Kante was awarded the honour of Player’s Player of the Year and as a result, had his FIFA rating upgraded from 79 to 83. After another dominating season where he had table-topping defensive statistics, Kante, once again was a recipient of many post season honours for his performances with Chelsea.
Over the past season, Kante has shown the qualities of being an archetypical Antonio Conte player and has fit right into the 3-4-3 system at Stamford Bridge alongside Nemanja Matic. He has once again proven his quality and suitability to the Premier League, a fact which was recognised by FIFA when they awarded him a 90+ rated Player of the Season card. On the back of the bygone season, we expect Kante to be by far the best midfielder in the Premier League on FIFA 18 with an approximate rating of 88.
2) Paul Pogba
After joining Manchester United for a world record sum in the summer transfer window, Paul Pogba was expected to take the Premier League by storm and be head and shoulders above the competition, especially considering that he came off a run of four consecutive Scudetto wins with Juventus. Throughout the season, however, Pogba seemed to be burdened by the weight of expectation on his shoulders and looked like he was trying too hard to justify his world record price tag.
The 24-year old’s first few matches at the club were a flurry of tricks and flicks, making it look like he was trying to do it all by himself rather than trusting his teammates to do the job. He slowly settled into the side and grew into his role as a midfield lynchpin, even building a fruitful partnership with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. By the end of the season, it looked like Pogba had finally found his place in the United squad to kick on and succeed next season.
Rated at 88 in FIFA 17, Pogba was anyway one of the Premier League’s best midfielders. Now settled at his boyhood club, he looks to be perfectly placed to go on and become one of the world’s best midfielders. And, if his recent humiliation of Gary Cahill for France against England is anything to go by Manchester United fans are in for a treat next season. The midfielder is expected to be rated at 89-90 in FIFA 18 and be a dominating presence for France/ Manchester United in the game.
3) Kevin De Bruyne
Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne is one of the best attacking-midfielders in Europe with his vision, passing ability and long range shooting combined with an impeccable technique. Surrounded by the cream of attacking talent at City in the form of Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Gabriel Jesus, he is a perfect fit for the footballing style Pep Guardiola wants to establish at the Citizens.
Playing in a free No.8 role behind the striker alongside Spanish maestro David Silva at Manchester City, Kevin De Bruyne enjoyed a stellar season at the Etihad, taking control of games and running them as per his will. As a result, his rating, which at the time of FIFA 17’s launch was 88 was soon upgraded to 91.
FIFA 18 is expected to be launched in September, almost a month after the Premier League season restarts. If De Bruyne continues to provide the kind of output he showed in the previous season, expect him to be rated at something around 88-90, making him not only one of the best midfielders in England, but also in world football.
4) Christian Eriksen
One player who has been central to the Spurs’ meteoric rise up the Premier League table has been Christian Eriksen. A perfect foil to the talents of Dele Alli and Harry Kane, Eriksen’s vision, trickery and passing ability allow him to set up goals and key passes with ease in Tottenham Hotspurs’ dynamic attacking play.
Eriksen has long been underrated as a vital cog in the Spurs’ machine but has come to the fore in the last two seasons. His free-kick ability and set-piece prowess is second to none in the League and has been quoted by his manager to be “scoring at will” in training. For all those who do not realise what he provides in terms of attacking output, he has provided a total of 69 goals and assists over 134 matches in the Premier League.
The 2017-18 season was another heartbreaking one for the Spurs as they finished second in the League after looking like title contenders throughout the season. Eriksen has played a vital part in the London club’s progress and was crucial in avoiding the annual St. Totteringhams Day this season. Rated at 86 in FIFA 17, the Danish midfielder has shown that he deserves to be rated higher than his current level. Expect him to also be rated around 88-90 in the upcoming instalment of FIFA.
5) Mesut Ozil
On his day, Mesut Ozil is unplayable. Gifted with the ability to adjust the pace of the game as per his whims and fancies, the German playmaker when on form is one of the most watchable players in world football.
After a 2015-16 season where he finished with the most assists in the league, Ozil, in 2016-17 produced his best Premier League season in terms of the number of goals he scored with the highlight of his season being that goal against Ludogorets where he flummoxed three defenders before nonchalantly stroking the ball into the goal.
The German playmaker may look lazy and disinterested at times but his talent has never been under scrutiny. His ability to shape a game according to his will remains unchanged and he will once again be one of the Premier League’s best midfielders come FIFA 18. Expect a rating of around 88 for the Arsenal’s German playmaker.
