They may have replaced Dean Smith with Steven Gerrard in real life, but that doesn't mean you can't take the reigns of Aston Villa on your FIFA 22 Career Mode.
The team doesn't have harsh objectives to hit, has a small budget, and decent youth players, so it could be just the team for you if you appreciate a slow and steady building job.
Latest - Winter Transfers
Villa were one of the busier clubs over the winter transfer period, bringing in a couple of big hitters in Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne.
We take a look at all their signings and assess how they will work out for the club if you pick Aston Villa in your Career Mode.
Take a look at our report right here.
Team Rating
Aston Villa have a four-star rating on FIFA 22.
That is due to their team rating of: 79 ATK, 76 MID, and 79 DEF.
Starting Lineup and Formation
Aston Villa line up as a 4-3-3, and we will keep it like this, although a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 could be used.
The speed of Ollie Watkins through the middle should trouble defences, with width provided by Bertrand Traore and Leon Bailey on either side of him.
The midfield three is solid and hard-working, with John McGinn a box-to-box player, Douglas Luiz defensively minded, and Philippe Coutinho the ball carrying, attacking option.
Lucas Digne and Matty Cash are both going to be getting forward often, swinging in crosses.
The two centre-backs are pretty pacey, with Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa both having above 70 PAC.
Emiliano Martinez is the super-solid keeper between the sticks.
Tactics and Instructions
The only thing we've changed about Villa's default tactics is making the defence a bit deeper, which will leave space in behind the opposition to attack into.
That means offensively we have Fast Build Up and Forward Runs, to be quick and direct when in possession.
Traore is on Free Roam, which means Coutinho can pick up the ball out wide if the winger comes centrally.
In midfield, McGinn has Balanced Attack support, Douglas Luiz is set to Stay Back While Attacking, and Coutinho is on Get Forward.
Both the full-backs are set to Join The Attack and Overlap, which will create overloads out wide.
Development Plans
There are many young players with room to grow in the squad, so look to focus on these names in training: Bailey, Carney Chukwuemeka, Konsa, Emiliano Buendia, Jacob Ramsey, Douglas Luiz, Watkins, Cash, and Lamare Bogarde.
Changing player positioning is also an option you have, and you could switch Buendia to a CM as he isn't the quickest on the wing.
Transfer Market
Starting transfer budget: £35 million
Starting wage budget: £366,000 a week
Who should go
You're not playing European football, so the schedule should be clear enough that you can get rid of many players without finding yourself too thin, especially once you've brought in a few replacements.
Say goodbye to Viljami Sinisalo, Ashley Young, Ben Chrisene, Sil Swinkels, Marvelous Nakamba, Hayden Lindley, Jaden Philogene-Bidance, Caleb Chukwuemeka and Cameron Archer.
None of them has the potential to reach 80+ OVR, so you may as well add to your budget and invest in better replacements.
You could also look to sell El Ghazi, Traore and Trezeguet to pick up some bigger transfer fees.
Loans
Look to send out Carney Chukwuemeka and Bogarde on loan, who have the potential of 85 OVR and 81 OVR, respectively.
Villa has 14 players out on loan, and if you need extra reinforcements recalling Frederic Guilbert (RB) and Matt Targett (LB) are your best options.
Remember, Coutinho is on loan with the club, so if you like playing with him look to make the deal permanent.
Who to Sign
The starting XI is quite decent for a team with Villa's demands, with none of the positions in desperate need of attention.
Our priority would be signing more pacey wingers, as there isn't room for rotation there currently.
Winger options
Player | Age | Club | Cost | Wage | OVR | POT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Antony | 21 | Ajax | £41m | £15k | 80 | 88 |
Moussa Diaby | 21 | Bayer Leverkusen | £45m | £40k | 81 | 88 |
Raphinha | 24 | Leeds | £40m | £77k | 82 | 87 |
Jovane Cabral | 23 | Sporting CP | £27m | £13k | 78 | 86 |
Pedro Neto | 21 | Wolves | £25m | £53k | 78 | 85 |
After that, finding a promising CB to partner Konsa could make your defence formidable, with our top picks being Jurrien Timber and Josko Gvardiol, who are capable of playing at RB and LB, respectively.
Centre-back options
Player | Age | Club | Cost | Wage | OVR | POT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jurrien Timber | 20 | Ajax | £19m | £9k | 77 | 87 |
Josko Gvardiol | 19 | RB Leipzigq | £13m | £24k | 76 | 87 |
Goncalo Inacio | 19 | Sporting CP | £13m | £6k | 76 | 86 |
Leonidas Stergiou | 19 | FC St. Gallen | £2.2m | £2k | 67 | 86 |
Tanguy Nianzou | 19 | Bayern Munich | £3.6m | £15k | 71 | 85 |
Getting another striker in that will become your main man in the future is also a place to look at, with all of the following options having great potential and pace to play on the counter.
Striker options
Player | Age | Club | Cost | Wage | OVR | POT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Noni Madueke | 19 | PSV | £20m | £9k | 77 | 88 |
Giacomo Raspadori | 21 | Sassuolo | £9m | £19k | 74 | 87 |
Goncalo Ramos | 20 | Benfica | £4.7m | £7k | 72 | 86 |
Karim Adeyemi | 19 | Red Bull Salzburg | £4.7m | £11k | 72 | 86 |
Brian Brobbey | 19 | RB Leipzig | £6.5m | £27k | 73 | 85 |
Board Expectations
There is only one high priority expectation from the board and that is Brand Exposure.
Brand Exposure wants you to get a streak of 5 clean sheets in the season, and sign 1 crucial first-team player who is a defender.
Youth Development is of medium priority, which works with how you should plan on building the club anyway.
It wants you to sign at least 2 players younger than 20 with a potential greater than the average overall rating of players currently in the same position.
As well that you need to sign 4 players in your Youth Academy, a goalkeeper, defender, midfielder and forward.
The remaining objectives are all of low priority.
You are not in any European competitions, so Continental Success is void.
The Domestic Success objective wants to fix that, with you finishing in a Europa League spot this season, as well as reaching the quarter-final of the FA Cup.
The Financial target is a long term goal, where within 3 seasons you must increase your club worth by 50%. You can achieve this through player sales and competition prize money rewards.