Fantasy FC 89 Claudio Marchisio Player Review

Yet another return of a fan favorite promo in the Fantasy FC (previously Fantasy FUT) came flying into packs Friday evening and if you wanted any of them immediately it was just about impossible.  Yet again the price range fiasco rages on and it was near impossible to get hands on any of the highly sought after cards.  Luckily for us it wasn’t too long before some corrections were made and we were able to kick the weekend off with a past FUT favorite himself in Claudio Marchisio.

I am sure by now most will be well versed in how the Fantasy FC promo works and the potential upgrades available, but just to clarify that the Heroes are eligible for two upgrades based on the performances of past clubs, with Marchisio himself being linked to Juventus.  Honestly, it is not exactly an easy run of fixtures for Juventus who start off with the easiest of the four matches Feb 25 at home against 15th placed Frosinone, followed by Napoli away, Atalanta at home, and finally concluding by welcoming 12th placed Genoa at home on March 17th. 

If you are a Marchisio owner, with 3 out of 4 matches at home, you would hope that Juventus can pull off the two wins needed for one upgrade.  However, if you look at the league table it is clear that Juventus has struggled at times to put the ball in the back of the net this season and could be a concern for the 11 goals in 4 matches if they do not start off with a bang this weekend against Frosinone… Something to keep an eye on.

Meanwhile on the pixelated pitch it was straight into the midfield of my 4-3-2-1 for Marchisio this weekend and I decided to do a six match review instead of five in hopes of using Marchisio as both the attacking “box to box” CM (aided by the HUNTER Chemistry Style), followed by a run as my more defensive CM (aided by the SHADOW). 

Marchisio certainly produced some Hero-like performances all weekend long at the heart of the following squad:

Overall 

Rating: 9/10

In the end I was ultimately hoping that Marchisio would be the Swiss Army Knife style midfielder who delivers regardless of which position they play… And truthfully it was really close.  But in the end Marchisio fell victim to the same issues that plague a lot of the top tier midfielders when playing further up the pitch… A complete lack of PlayStyles to boost the performance.  Even with the HUNTER Chemistry Style contributing to some excellent looking statistics, there was still a lack of potency when the ball fell to Marchisio.  It still did not keep the Italian off the score sheet and a healthy six contributions in six matches was a solid return… The amount of missed chances could have easily seen this number at a goal per game ratio.  Worth noting that as a defensive CM with the SHADOW this card is bordering on the perfect player and overall a 10/10 is not far off.

Main Statistics – Defending 

Pace Rating: 9/10

Physical Rating: 8/10

Defending Rating: 10/10

PlayStyles: Anticipate Plus, Block Plus, Intercept, Press Proven, Relentless

 It really comes down to Pace at this stage in the cycle and if you have a player unable to get around the pitch they are going to get exposed.  The 94 ACCELERATION & 92 SPRINT SPEED are definitely in line with what you will currently face in every match and right from the off it was clear that Marchisio would not be a liability in this department… But I would ultimately suggest a Pace heavy Chemistry Style regardless of which you choose.

From a Physical standpoint I was more than happy with the amount of duels Marchisio was able to win and generally I felt comfortable going into most challenges.  Certainly not perfect and a few run ins with Winter Wildcard Gullit was enough to show the difference, but similarly some run ins with RTTF Kimmich were equally one sided, but in Marchisio’s favor.  

It was clear that the defending on this card was always going to be a huge plus and it was with this in mind that I saw Marchisio as a fantastic box to box option… And from a defensive standpoint that was correct as even with the HUNTER Chemistry Style applied, this card was still fantastic at winning the ball back.  The ANTICIPATE PLUS with 95 STANDING TACKLE and the INTERCEPT with 96 INTERCEPTIONS combo proved why they are highly sought after PlayStyles throughout the review.  I also included the PRESS PROVEN PlayStyle and it wasn’t until I started using Wildcard Gullit more consistently that you notice how often the icon appears immediately after a won tackle to retain possession… Marchisio similarly seemed to benefit throughout the review and after the ball was won it more often than not stayed in possession.

Value/Coins

Value/Coins: 5/5

If we just take the card at face value and pretend for a moment that Juventus earns zero of the upgrades, I still see this card as good value, especially as he starts to fall in price into Sunday-Tuesday.  Future Stars Warren Zaire-Emery is eerily close in statistics, remains at 2 million himself, and doesn’t have nearly the OP PlayStyles of Marchisio.  Then you throw back in the possibility of upgrades and it is a no brainer for value. 

Good vs. Bad 

Good vs Bad Rating: 5/5

Outside of the final Shooting statistics, PlayStyles, and end product… Marchisio does possess the ability to cause havoc in the offensive third of the pitch.

+ First off the Passing is incredibly solid with this card and was a bit of a surprise.  This year it has proven difficult to find players who are consistent passers of the ball, to the point that I considered a CATALYST Chemistry Style as well… But again the PlayStyles came through and the INCISIVE PASS & LONG BALL PASS worked consistently alongside the already solid statistics.

+ The Dribbling was a small treat with this card and perhaps the FLAIR PlayStyle played a small part in how effective the 85 AGILITY, 81 BALANCE, & 90 DRIBBLING worked while left stick dribbling.

It feels like a bit of an overstatement to call the Shooting on this card a negative… The fact that Marchisio contributed the goals he did was a huge bonus and a big part of the success I had during the review.  But in the end the missed chances did stack up a bit and the best way I can put it is this, come the final minutes of the match I simply would rather Marchisio not be the one with the ball at his foot to tie/win a match.

- The FOUR STAR WEAK FOOT was a true FOUR STAR and led to some goals and a few comical misses or frustrating saves.  The lack of PlayStyles is the ultimate negative and definitely impacted Marchisio’s overall offensive performances.

Closing Words

Definitely the return of the king for a card that has been FC Managers favorite long before PlayStyles were holding back offensive output.  If you focus on the defensive contributions and the ability to transition the ball from defense into attack… Whether it be Pace or Passing… This card is simply a midfield juggernaut and one that I wish I could hold on to for a bit longer.  Should Marchisio follow the similar price flow of a dip come Sunday through Tuesday I would highly suggest grabbing this card… Keeping in mind that a Juventus masterclass against Frosinone could see the price bump even higher on Sunday.  

Hoping you are well.  Cheers for reading