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

Southampton are currently teetering above the relegation zone in the Premier League, but their squad has enough quality to be much higher in the table.

In FIFA 22 Career Mode you have the chance to unlock the potential of this Saints squad and even qualify for Europe!

Some tactical adjustments and a good transfer window will help you on your way, so let us help you with the following Southampton Career Mode Guide.

Team Rating

Southampton has a 4-star rating in FIFA 22.

The breakdown of the ratings is as follows: ATT 76, MID 77, DEF 74.

Starting Lineup and Formation

Southampton’s default formation is an archaic 4-4-2 which we feel does not get the best out of their current squad.

Maximising the abilities of your best players is crucial, so you need to let James Ward-Prowse have as much of the ball as possible, and in more attacking areas.

With this in mind, we have reverted to our classic 4-3-3 (2) with a holding midfield player to give Ward-Prowse the freedom of the pitch and make the most of the Saints’ pacey forwards.

In goal we would start with Alex McCarthy (OVR 75), although a younger replacement should be signed.

Kyle Walker-Peters (OVR 77) and Romain Perraud (OVR 77) are the two full-backs, and both players have potentials of 82 or higher.

Our centre-back pairing of Jan Bednarek (OVR 76) and Mohammed Salisu (OVR 76) provides plenty of muscle, and again both have a potential rating of 82 or higher.

Spanish enforcer Oriol Romeu (OVR 78) is the holding midfielder in our three, with star man and captain James Ward-Prowse (OVR 81) partnered by Stuart Armstrong (OVR 77).

In our front three, we have gone for Scotland international Che Adams (OVR 76) through the middle as the most physical of our trio.

Out wide we have Nathan Redmond (OVR 76) and Adam Armstrong (OVR 76) to make use of their pace, with Armstrong on the left as he is the better finisher.

Tactics and Instructions

Your front three are all mobile, so you want them to interchange and swap positions therefore you should leave them on balanced positioning.

We like to instruct Adam Armstrong to ‘Cut Inside’ as it means he is closer to Adams for link-up play and he can use his stronger right foot to shoot from around the box.

Oriol Romeu needs to remain disciplined, so set him to ‘Stay Back While Attacking’ and ‘Cover Centre’ to ensure he protects the back four as effectively as possible.

With Romeu in the centre, you can leave your two other CMs to ‘Cover Wing’ which will also allow your full-backs to venture forward.

You don’t want them flying forward all the time though, so leaving them on balanced should strike the right… balance.

Development Plans

If like us you are going to use Adam Armstrong on the wing, then it is worth altering his primary position to LW, so he trains in the relevant attributes.

There are plenty of talented youngsters in your squad too, so make sure they are training for positions that suit your system.

Nathan Tella (POT 78), Tino Livramento (POT 82), and Ibrahima Diallo (POT 80) all have first-team futures at the club.

Transfer Market

Starting budget: £29 million

Who should go?

Within the Southampton squad, there are four first-team players that we have deemed surplus to requirements and selling them should add a little extra cash to your budget.

Norwegian winger Mohamed Elyounoussi (OVR 75) is the first on the transfer list for us as his lack of pace does not suit our style of play.

His sale could bring in an extra £5 million alone, although the experienced Shane Long (OVR 71) won’t bring in anywhere near as much!

Centre-back Jack Stephens (OVR 74) is next on the chopping block as he does not have the potential to reach the levels we are aspiring to.

Lastly, out of favour left-back, Sam McQueen (OVR 62), can be listed as he won’t overtake any of the other left-backs in the squad.

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 Southampton:

Oludare Olufunwa (OVR 57), Harry Lewis (OVR 62), Allan Tchaptchet (OVR 56), Ryan Finnigan (OVR 55), Caleb Watts (OVR 60), Dynel Simeu (OVR 58), Kgaogelo Chauke (OVR 58)

In total, these sales should add around £11 million to your budget.

Loans

There are several promising teenagers in the Saints ranks, and none more so than Tino Livramento (POT 82).

With two right-backs ahead of him in the pecking order (in FIFA 22), Livramento could do with a loan spell to help him reach his potential.

Saints are well covered in the full-back position too, and 16-year-old Thierry Small (POT 77) can also be added to the loan list.

A squad containing Redmond, Theo Walcott, and Moussa Djenepo will also see Nathan Tella’s (POT 78) game-time limited, so you may want to consider sending him out on loan too.

Southampton has just four players out on loan in the first season, but none of them should take up too much of your time as they don’t have the required potential for first-team football in FIFA 22.

Who to sign?

Once your set on who to sell, we would recommend bringing in a goalkeeper that can remain your number one for the next 10 years!

Good young goalkeepers are hard to find, but we have selected five with age on their side, and the potential to reach 85 OVR or higher.

Feyenoord’s Justin Bijlow (OVR 78) has the highest potential and lowest wages but is the most valuable on the list and could cost upwards of £25 million.

We like Leeds’ young stopper Illan Meslier (OVR 77) as he will likely command the lowest transfer fee, his wage demands aren’t too high, and he can still reach 85 OVR!

Transfer Options (GK)

There appears to be an emphasis on youth at Southampton, so we have continued on that same trend and want to bolster the central midfield ranks.

We are looking for a talented youngster to partner Ward-Prowse in midfield, preferably someone a bit more mobile and attack-minded.

Ajax stars Ryan Gravenberch (OVR 78) and Mohammed Kudus (OVR 77) fit the bill perfectly, but they could take up a large portion of your budget.

Going a bit left-field, Dynamo Kyiv’s 22-year-old Ukrainian midfielder Mykola Shaparenko (OVR 76) could be a hidden gem as he is mobile and has a potential of 84 OVR.

Transfer Options (CM/CAM)

Board Expectations

Youth Development is the highest priority expectation the board has, so make sure you leave enough of your transfer budget to invest in your academy.

The Saints board will be reasonably lenient in Financial matters, so you may need to shave a small amount off your wage bill. Nothing a good clear out won't fix!

Growing Southampton as a brand is not crucial to your future job prospects, but the board does want to see some improvement in the Brand Exposure category.

Your success both domestically and in Europe on the field are actually the least important factors to the board. Explains a lot...