FIFA 20: Barcelona Career Mode Guide, Tactics, Formations, transfers & tips

Barcelona are still among the top tier of European clubs,
having lifted the La Liga trophy 10 times since 2005.

In the same period, the Copa del Rey has been claimed six times (including the last four), and the Champions League four times. That said, the Catalans have not topped Europe’s premier competition since 2015.

With Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez ageing, time is ticking on whether Barcelona can lift the Champions League again. In two seasons time, the squad will be completely rid of the old guard that endured so much success under managers such as Frank Rijkaard, Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique.

That will be your task on FIFA 20’s Career Mode. Can you take this brilliant squad to one last European crown as a new dawn approaches?

Team Rating

No surprises here, Barcelona receive a 5 star rating on FIFA 20, made up by a 90 attack, 85 midfield and 85 defence.

Starting Lineup & Formation

Barcelona have lined up in a 4-4-3 for the last decade or more, and you should not move any different on FIFA 20. If you want to go really attacking, you could move to a 4-3-2-1 to bring your wide players closer to the goal, but things may become congested.

Marc-Andre ter Stegen (90 GK Reflexes) is the second
best goalkeeper on the game, and in front of him you should have Nelson
Semedo, veteran Gerard Pique (89 interceptions), Clement Lenglet and the pacey Jordi Alba (91 acceleration).

Midfielder destroyer Sergio Busquets (89 interceptions) sits behind Arthur and Frenkie de Jong in the middle of the park.

READ MORE: All the best young Defensive Midfielders (CDM) to sign on FIFA 20 Career Mode

The goal packed front three consists of Lionel Messi (96 composure), Luis Suarez (92 positioning) and Antoine Griezmann (90 ball control).

On the bench go for Neto (OVR 85), Samuel Umtiti (OVR 86),
Junior Firpo (OVR 79), Sergi Roberto (OVR 82), Arturo Vidal (OVR 84), Ivan Rakitic
(OVR 85) and Ousmane Dembele (OVR 84).

Tactics and instructions

This Barcelona starting lineup is not blessed with pace, but
that doesn’t matter too much. The Blaugrana have also been kings of looking
after the ball, so the key to breaking down even the most stubborn of defences
is shifting the ball quickly.

With a front three that clinical, you won’t need too many opportunities to score, and if it is on Lionel Messi’s (95 finishing) left foot – just pull the trigger.

READ MORE: All the best formations to use on FIFA 20

If you are looking for something different, turn to Ousmane
Dembele (93 sprint speed) off the bench who can use his pace to stretch the
defence.

As for your instructions, the majority have already been done for you. We have decided to change Lionel Messi’s support runs to Balanced Support to mix up his movement, opening up space for him to strike.

As for Antoine Griezmann, the new signing hasn’t been
seen out on the left wing since his early Atletico Madrid days, so make sure he
is getting into dangerous positions. Adjust his support on crosses to Get
Into Box for Cross.

Training

Your training sessions allow you to improve your players
outside of first team minutes. To make the most out of your time use players
with the Promising Player emblem. At Barcelona this includes Ousmane
Dembele,, Arthur, Frenkie de Jong, Carles Alena, Nelson Semedo and Junior
Firpo.

The Transfer Market

Starting transfer budget: £169 million

Starting wage budget: £989,000 a week

Who should go?

It’s a very strong Barcelona squad, so there is no desperate need to sell any first team players in your first transfer window.

If you look ahead to who you might sign though, Arturo Vidal can be sold to pave the way for a younger alternative. Sell the Chile legend for £22 million, freeing up a huge £185,000 a week from your wage budget.

READ MORE: All the best bargains on FIFA 20 Career Mode

The youngsters have to be the cream of the crop as they
battle it on the world famous La Masia academy, but there a few contenders who
don’t look like they will make the grade at the Camp Nou.

Left back Sergio Akieme is useful with a 67 overall,
but aged 21 and with a potential of 76, time is against him. Sell the young Spaniard
for around £900,000, freeing up wages of £21,000 a week.

It’s the same case for young centre back Jorge Cuenca, whose 65 overall can only reach 78. Sell the 19-year-old
for £850,000 to save £12,000 a week on wages.

Loans

Given how strong the first team squad, you can afford to
loan out some of the younger players to give them the senior minutes they need.

Senegalese international Moussa Wague is behind Nelson Semedo and Sergi Roberto in the pecking order, so it makes sense to send him out on a short-term loan at the very least.

READ MORE: All the best 2020 Contract Expiry signings in FIFA 20 Career Mode

Japanese winger Hiroki Abe and Dutch midfielder Ludovit Reis can be loaned out for the season, with both players having a 70
overall that can hit 83.

One other contender for a long-term loan is Alex Collado who can improve from 65 to 80. It may be worth sending the 20-year-old out for two seasons to give him time to get into the first team picture.

Who to sign

New transfer budget: £193 million

New wage budget: £1.2 million a week

A versatile forward

You will see that you don’t have anyone who can play as a
striker on your bench, which isn’t a massive concern, given the Barca front three
can all play through the middle.

Although what do you do if you want to rest all of Messi, Suarez
and Griezmann ahead of a big European clash or El Clasico? The solution is to sign
a player who can play as a striker and a winger to be used in rotation.

There are a few options, and we’ve gone with Fiorentina’s Federico Chiesa as the first choice.

The Italian international’s 79 overall can improve to an 87 potential, with stats including 87 acceleration, 86 agility and 84 sprint speed. You can pick the 21-year-old up for just £30 million with wages starting at £43,000 a week.

Alternative options

A new midfield anchor

Frenkie de Jong may migrate into the defensive midfield role
as the years go by, but on FIFA 20, the Dutchman’s defensive stats are not
strong enough. You should look for someone more reliable without the ball to
come in for Sergio Busquets in the seasons ahead.

This may come as a surprise, but we have opted for Arsenal midfield man Lucas Torreira.

The 5’6” defensive midfielder has an 82 overall which can rise to a potential of 87, so watch his 93 balance, 87 aggression and 86 interception stats improve. You can pick up the 23-year-old Uruguayan for £44 million with wages of £72,000 a week.

Contracts

Just one player has their contract running out this season
at Barcelona, young centre back Chumi. The 20-year-old has a potential
of 82, so try and issue a three-year contract to see how he develops.

Next season, keep an eye on Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Ivan
Rakitic, Riqui Puig, Alex Collado and Inaki Pena.

Managerial objectives

There’s no messing about at Barcelona, and you will receive
a demanding set of managerial objectives.

Continental success is marked as critical, and here you will be expected to win the Champions League. If that sounds tough, you will also need to win the La Liga title and the Copa de Espana for your domestic success tasks, which are also critical.

READ MORE: Manchester City FIFA 20 Career Mode Guide

For brand exposure, also with a critical priority, you will need to gain £180 million from shirt sales. With Lionel Messi at the club, this shouldn’t be a problem.

Youth development has a high priority, and here you will need to sign at least three players under 20 with a high potential. They must have a potential higher than the current average of similar players in your squad. You also must sign three midfielders to your youth academy.

Start a new legacy

You may only have one or two seasons to win a final Champions
League medal with Lionel Messi, but that could be the something fantastic in Catalonia.

With young players like Clement Lenglet, Frenkie de Jong, Arthur and Ousmane Demble at the club, there is enough there to continue and keep fighting for European titles. With Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid to contend with in Spain, can you keep them at bay and stay on top?

Full Barcelona player ratings

READ MORE: Real Madrid FIFA 20 Career Mode guide