FIFA 19: Chelsea Career Mode Guide, Tactics, Formations & Tips

Chelsea have had an up-and-down season under Maurizio Sarri, and looking at their squad on paper, they are about the right place, fighting to finish inside the top four. The Blues have struggled to sign top talent in recent seasons, and this is something you must address on FIFA 19’s Career Mode, especially with the finances available to you.

Can you take Chelsea back to Premier League and Champions League glory in the years ahead? RealSport throws you the basics as you set up your Career Mode with the West Londoners on FIFA 19.

Team Rating

Chelsea receive a five star rating on FIFA 19, consisting of an 84 attack, 84 midfield and 83 defending. 

Formation

Maurizio Sarri has brought a 4-3-3 flat formation with him from Napoli, and you should follow suit on FIFA 19. Any variation of the 4-3-3 system can be used with Chelsea.

New goalkeeper Kepa goes in between the sticks, and he has a reliable back four of the committed Cesar Azpilicueta (90 standing tackle), Antonio Rudiger, David Luiz and Marcos Alonso.

The lively N’Golo Kante (92 interceptions) joins new signing Jorginho and the on-loan Mateo Kovacic in midfield, whilst Willian and star man Eden Hazard (95 dribbling) flank Alvaro Morata in attack.

On the bench opt for Willy Caballero, Andreas Christensen, Davide Zappacosta, Cesc Fabregas, Ross Barkley, Pedro and Olivier Giroud.

Tactics and instructions

Your main ploy with Chelsea is to counter-attack. try to get the ball forward to the wings as quickly as possible to get in behind the defence and either cross for Morata (86 heading accuracy), or strike at goal with the sensational Hazard (91 composure). The technical ability of Jorginho (89 short passing) should allow you to get those wingers into dangerous positions.

Ross Barkley and Pedro can add attacking impetus from the bench, but of course, the second most successful substitute in Premier League history, Olivier Giroud will always be a threat with his ability in the air (90 heading accuracy).

In your instructions, your focus should be on Eden Hazard. On the Belgian winger, change his defensive support to ‘stay forward’ and support runs to ‘get in behind’ to use his pace. As for chance creation, you may want to change this to 'free roam' to ensure he gets on the ball more often. 

Defensively, have a look at N'Golo Kante. To make the most of his abilities, put him on 'aggressive interceptions', giving you a greater chance of winning the ball back higher up the pitch. 

Training

During your training sessions you should be looking at the high growth players, indicated by the green icon. At Chelsea this includes Kepa, Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Andreas Christensen and Emerson.

The Transfer Market

Starting transfer budget: £112 million

Starting wage budget: £266,000

Who should go

Chelsea failed to ship some of their fringe players in real life, but fortunately you get another opportunity to do so on Career Mode. Danny Drinkwater and Victor Moses are not in Sarri’s plans, and won’t be in yours either. The pair should fetch you around £24 million and save you £189,000 a week on wages. 

Marco van Ginkel suffered yet another serious injury last year, and after a great season at PSV Eindhoven he needs to be playing regular football. The Dutch international is worth £14 million and can also take a huge chunk out of the wage bill with a salary of £86,000 a week. 

Lucas Piazon is still at the club after spending six seasons out on loan, and he can be sold for £3.5 million, saving you £49,000 a week on wages. As for the youth players, goalkeeper Marcin Bulka and centre back Marc Guehi can both be let go, and you should sell them for a combined £320,000, giving you back £6,000 a week in wages.   

Loans

Chelsea love a loan, and there are still a few more contenders in the current first team squad. Martin Taylor-Crossdale, Billy Gilmour and George McEachran all have futures at the club but are some way off first team football, so can be loaned out for the season. 

With plenty of options in defence and midfield, Ethan Ampadu can be loaned out for a short-term loan and you can then reassess the situation in January.

Who to sign

New transfer budget: £154 million

New wage budget: £596,000 a week

World class striker

It’s no secret that Chelsea are after a new striker, with Edinson Cavani and Callum Wilson linked with a move to Stamford Bridge. Both Morata and Giroud have an 82 overall rating, which isn’t good enough for a club who considers themselves title contenders. 

Top of your shopping list then should be Inter Milan superstar Mauro Icardi. The Argentine offers 94 jumping, 92 positioning and 91 finishing, which take his overall to 87. This can grow to a potential of 89, meaning the 25-year-old will cost around £70 million with wages starting at £114,000 a week. 

Alternative options:

• Robert Lewandowski – Bayern Munich, Age 29, OVR 90, POT 90, Cost: £79 million, Wage: £180,000
• Antoine Griezmann – Atletico Madrid, Age 27, OVR 89, POT 90, Cost: £80 million, Wage: £128,000
• Gareth Bale – Real Madrid, Age 28, OVR 88, POT 88, Cost: £63 million, Wage: £312,000
• Ciro Immobile – Lazio, Age 28, OVR 87, POT 87, Cost: £55 million, Wage: £101,000
• Timo Werner – RB Leipzig, Age 22, OVR 83, POT 87, Cost: £45 million, Wage: £62,000

Young winger

Chelsea have managed to secure the services of Christian Pulisic for next season, but you should do one better by bringing him in straight away. With Willian and Pedro both the wrong side of 30, their ratings will drop this season, meaning you need cover. 

Pulisic should be your first choice, with the American able to play on both flanks and holding a bright future. The 19-year-old has a 78 overall than can grow to 86, and has fantastic stats of 93 acceleration, 89 balance and 88 sprint speed. You can pick him up for around £23 million with a wage of £21,000 a week. 

Alternative options

• Federico Chiesa – Fiorentina, Age 30, OVR 78, POT 87, Cost: £23 million, Wage: £40,000 
• Cristian Pavon – Boca Juniors, Age 22, OVR 79, POT 85, Cost: £22 million, Wage: £24,000
• Inaki Williams – Athletic Bilbao, Age 24, OVR 81, POT 87, Cost: £35 million, Wage: £27,000
• Leon Bailey – Bayer Leverkusen, Age 20, OVR 81, POT 89, Cost: £32 million, Wage: £47,000
• Hirving Lozano – PSV, Age 22, OVR 81, POT 86, Cost: £30 million, Wage: £19,000

Contracts

Eight Chelsea players have contracts up at the end of the season, with three of those needing to be renewed. You will want to have David Luiz and Olivier Giroud in your squad next season even if their levels drop, and worst-case scenario you can sell them on next summer. Out of the youngsters, make sure George McEachran is tied down to a long-term deal to see if he can reach his 81 potential. 

Cesc Fabregas and Gary Cahill fall into that gap of being aging players and outside of the starting lineup, but they are still useful players. Look to get two seasons out of them and then sell or release them. As for Willy Caballero, you should probably let him go at the end of the season. Fellow goalkeepers Rob Green and Marcin Bulka should certainly be let go.

Managerial objectives

It’s some demanding objectives for Chelsea, with the board expecting you to fight on all fronts. Domestic success is critical, for which you’ll be asked to win both the Premier League and FA Cup. Couple this with critical continental success, where you’ll need to win the Europa League, you have your work cut out.

Brand exposure is also critical, and for this you will need to gain £176 million in shirt sales and earn £334 million from competition prize money over three seasons. Sign big names and score plenty, and you are good to go. 

Financial has a low importance, and you will need to increase club worth by 15% within two seasons. Maintaining a profit and lifting silverware are key here. 

Lastly, youth development has a very low importance. All you need to do is sign one youth player and play them in one match. 

Back on top of the tree?

If you're playing on a testing difficulty, being able to claim three major trophies this season is a tall order. It may all hang on signing that quality striker, but even then, Chelsea don’t have the depth of the other title challengers in the Premier League. 

Aim for a top three finish and look to reach the finals of FA Cup and Europa League. Rotate your squad, rest all your big players in Europe and make sure you start the season well to have a chance of making it a fantastic season during your first Chelsea campaign. 

Full Chelsea player ratings

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