FIFA 22 Norwich Career Mode Guide: Starting lineup and who to sign

Norwich City are back in the Premier League again, but after a tricky start, they have already seen a change of manager.

However, in FIFA 22 Career Mode you have the chance to provide Norwich with some consistency and cement their spot in the Premier League.

Like all newly promoted clubs, the first season will be a challenge, but some astute signings should keep you afloat and build towards a bright future.

Team Rating

Norwich has a 3.5-star rating in FIFA 22.

The breakdown of the ratings is as follows: ATT 74, MID 74, DEF 74.

Starting Lineup and Formation

Let’s start off by scrapping the 5-3-2 formation that is Norwich’s current default in FIFA 22 and get a simple 4-2-3-1 (we prefer wide) in place.

Tim Krul (OVR 77) will be your goalkeeper as he is the highest-rated player in the squad.

Promising 21-year-old Max Aarons (OVR 75) is the obvious choice at right-back, with Greek star Dimitris Giannoulis (OVR 74) at left-back.

Grant Hanley (OVR 75) and on-loan Liverpool defender Ozan Kabak (OVR 76) will be your first-choice centre-back pairing for now.

The holding midfield roles should be occupied by Pierre Lees-Melou (OVR 76), and Mathias Normann (OVR 76) and they should provide plenty of energy and cover for your defence.

The three players behind the striker are where we have shuffled the pack. In the CAM role, we want to play Todd Cantwell (OVR 75) as he boasts the best passing attributes.

Either side of him on the wings we want the pace of Milot Rashica (OVR 76) and Christos Tzolis (OVR 74), preferably with Rashica on the left so he can utilise his long shots.

With the three creative players in behind, striker Teemu Pukki (OVR 76) should not find himself short of service.

Tactics and Instructions

Leave your centre-backs on default, you don’t need to do anything clever with them! Balanced is the best option for your full backs too as they should still get forward, but at the right time.

We would recommend instructing at least one of your CDM’s to ‘Stay Back While Attacking’, to provide a bit of cover should you lose the ball. If you still find yourself getting caught out, tell them both to stay back!

We like to leave Todd Cantwell to ‘Free Roam’ in the CAM role to allow him to get on the ball as much as possible.

The wingers we would leave balanced as they can create chances from out wide or inside positions.

Lastly, we would instruct Teemu Pukki to ‘Stay Central’ and let the wingers run the channels. This should mean he is in the box 99% of the time waiting for the chances to come his way.

Development Plans

Change Cantwell to a CAM. That should be your first task as manager as he can be the star of the show for Norwich.

Whichever wing you choose to play Rashica and Tzolis can be changed too, but that is not as crucial.

Pierre Lees-Melou can also be changed to a CDM to help his defensive stats, but again that is more personal preference.

The Canaries do have some promising young players, so make sure the likes of Andrew Omobamidele (POT 81) and Adam Idah (POT 79) are working on the attributes you want.

Transfer Market

Starting budget: £18 million

Who should go?

There are several members of the first-team squad that are not good enough in FIFA 22 to challenge for a starting berth, so can be let go.

Midfielders Lukas Rupp (OVR 73) and Kenny McLean (OVR 73) don’t quite cut the mustard in the Premier League, and with Billy Gilmour in the squad in the first season, they are surplus to requirements.

Centre-backs Ben Gibson (OVR 72) and Christoph Zimmerman (OVR 71) are also not quite up to scratch in the game and can bring in around £2.5 million between them.

Versatile full-back Sam Byram (OVR 73) will also struggle to get a look in with several players ahead of him in the pecking order.

Veteran goalkeeper Michael McGovern (OVR 67) is also unlikely to see any minutes, but he won’t bring in much in the way of a transfer fee either.

The following players can also be let go as their potential in FIFA 22 Career Mode is not high enough to become a first-team player at Norwich:

Jon McCracken (OVR 54), Shae Hutchinson (OVR 56), Tom Dickson-Peters (OVR 57), Flynn Clarke (OVR 57), Liam Gibbs (OVR 55)

In total, these sales should add around £10 million to your budget.

Loans

After selling possibly 10 players you won’t want to leave your squad too thin, but there are some young players that could benefit from a loan spell.

20-year-old striker Adam Idah (POT 79) is one of the first we would send out to get some game time, especially if we are only playing with one striker.

Right-back Bali Mumba (POT 78) is another who won’t see many minutes, so a spell away should help his development.

Norwich City has 11 players out on loan already, and three should certainly be of interest to you after the first season.

Sam McCallum (POT 80) is the most promising of the bunch and should be ready for first-team action in 2022/23.

Teenage winger Josh Martin (POT 76) and Scottish GK Andrew Mair (POT 75) should also have a role to play in the squad at some stage.

Who to sign?

After a bit of a clear out, you will probably need to add a Premier League quality centre-back to the ranks.

The five centre-backs on our shortlist are reasonably mobile, physically strong, and dominant in the air.

Former Newcastle centre-back Chancel Mbemba (OVR 79) is a viable option as he won’t use up your whole budget and can reach 82 OVR.

Benfica star Lucas Verissimo (OVR 79) is the most expensive option as he has the highest potential, but it could mean using most of your budget!

Transfer Options (CB)

Once the dust has settled and your summer clear-out is over, you may want to invest in a central midfield player too as Billy Gilmour will be heading back to Chelsea at the end of the season.

First-team quality is not essential straight away, but we certainly want someone who can come in and contribute to season one.

High work rates and stamina is a must for our hard-working Norwich side, and 21-year-old Nice star Hicham Boudaoui (OVR 75) fits the bill nicely.

Argentina midfielder Nicolas Dominguez (OVR 76) would be the perfect fit, but he could cost close to £20 million.

Transfer Options (CM)

Board Expectations

There is no pressure on your Continental Success as you won’t be competing in Europe during your first season.

Domestic Success is also of very low importance to the board, but Premier League survival should be your aim anyway!

Brand Exposure is a low priority for the board too, so marquee signings won’t be enough to keep you in the job.

Youth Development is of medium priority, so the board will expect some investment into the club’s academy.

Your Financial targets are the highest priority, so just make sure to spend within your means.