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Player Review
92 - Icon
Hi guys, so I wanted to shed some light on this card as it was one of my most anticipated cards coming into FIFA 19. I am a United fan born in 92 so was just a kid when Van Nistlerooy led us to an incredible 2002-2003 premier league title and more.
You could say I am a little biased going into this review therefore, but please understand I am aware of the faults with this card and will be stating them in due course. Indeed this was one of the first cards I bought in FIFA 19 and sold almost immediately after 10 games much to my disappointment. Since then, I have gone through a long list of top quality strikers including (all prime) Eusebio, Pele, R9 Ronaldo, Cruyf, henry, Van Basten...name the icon chances are I've tried it. Used within the right team and with the right tactics however, THIS MAN IS A MACHINE and here is why I think he will be staying in my team. This is the first time I've taken the time to do a detailed review of a player simply because I felt the air of disappointment with his in game performance and I wished to give the card the credit it is due....when used correctly! (More on this coming up)
SHOOTING 9/10 (on his strong foot!!!, more on that soon) - On his right foot Van Nistlerooy is quite simply deadly. He is the archetype poacher, put it on his right foot within the penalty box and watch him bang it past the keeper. He has shot power only equaled (from my experience) by that of Van Basten. My Rivaldo and Best cards have their own goal tallies increased massively just from picking up rebounds after Van the man has smashed it at the keeper (lots of corners too!)
This is where I feel the card really represents extreme value for money, to my knowledge there are no other icons with such high shooting stats for 1.2 million coins. I believe only Messi has such high finishing at around the 900k mark but nowhere near this type of shot power. With 80 curve he is also more than capable of taking great finesse shots, for some reason he loves to hit the crossbar and have it go in.
Also related in the shooting field is that this guy IS A COMPLETE AERIAL THREAT - I have 30 goals in 16 games with Van Nistlerooy and about a 1/3 of these have come from corners alone. his high strength and almost 80 jumping mean he rarely fails to win a cross. And don't get me started on the volleys.
PACE 8/10 - I am not a pace abuser on this game, anyone that looks at my squad will see that. I have a midfield with an average pace rating of mid 80s. With a hunter chem style Van Nistlerooy reaches 95 acceleration and 96 sprint speed. For me I consider this to be great. I have used strikers with more pace but as I believe this card should primarily be used a triggerman I don't find it lacking in any way. (Bear in mind I switched him for 94 Messi and I'm not missing Messi's extra speed.)
PASSING (7.5/10) - i was pleasantly surprised with how his passing feels in game. With 81 short passing Van Nistlerooy is more than competent to receive the ball and play a nice 1-2 before smashing it into the net. Not much else to say here, he is no Scholes but he is no Van Basten or Shevchenko both of whom I found to be almost unpassable with. I'm happy with this stat.
POWER DRIBBLER 8/10 - I have called it power dribbling because he is where I think this card gets really interesting. Van Nistlerooy has often been accused of feeling clunky (I too said the same when I first got him), the truth is no he is not a Messi or Maradonna on the ball as he has 74 agility but what he does have is POWER. Think Balotelli with 90 pace, oh wait, we got that recently right? No he is not the best skiller nor the most agile on the ball but what he can do is bash through defenders due to his high pace and 85 strength stat. So many times I have pressed O when a cross has hit the ground just in time to see Van Nistlerooy bopping the likes of Naldo or Sane out of his way to smash it into the back of the net. He is hard to knock off the ball and in 50/50s this will create problems for a defence pretty much every time. His pace and strength combine to make a really great dribbler.
There is one major downside to the card however and I feel obliged to point them out:
Weak Foot - This is THE major downfall of the card and the reason I think he may not . I used to be someone who would not look at a player unless they had a 4* weak foot and would even try to buy players with 5 where possible. Playing with Van Nistlerooy then has been a steep learning curve for me. The truth is you are going to want to be shooting on his right foot. THe way I get around this point is simple if he receives the ball on the right hand side then bang it across goal. If he is on the left when the ball comes his way then finesse into the right corner, this means he is always shooting with his right foot and you'll be getting the most out of it. Another thing I've noticed is because he has amazing positioning he almost always gets himself on the end of a cross and when the ball is volleyed weak foot seems to make little difference. For me this is the only caveat on a card that has amazing shooting all around but there are ways around it.
Finally, in terms of tactics I play Van Nistlerooy in 4-3-2-1, I tell him to stay forward in order to maximise stamina and with the 'Target Man' instruction. I hope you guys enjoyed my review and if there are any questions you have about Van the Man or other players you'd like me to comment on I'd be happy to share my thoughts.
Cheers.