FUT Birthday Roberto Firmino Review

I can guarantee that no one saw this review coming and it comes as a complete surprise that we have gone with FUT Birthday Firmino in this weekend’s squad. The smiling Brazilian is certainly a perennial review candidate around here and it couldn’t have come at a better time, with the 5 STAR WEAK FOOT upgrade a welcome addition to what appeared to be a potential top performer. In all honesty a long hard look at the statistics left me wondering where exactly to deploy the Liverpool man based on a very balanced array of attributes. In the end I went for a bit of everything… playing Firmino as a striker across the 15 match FUT Champions review, followed by using him as a box to box CM and RAM in my following FUT Champions qualifying and Division Rivals matches… all of which were in the 4-2-2-2 formation. With the position movement it also meant some chemistry style changes as I opted for the HUNTER during the striker experiment, while opting for the SHADOW as Firmino moved backwards in the formation. Regardless of where he played, Bobby offered the Samba style all weekend long in the following squad:

Starting Formation:

Overall

Rating: 9.5/10
Pace Rating: 9.5/10
Dribbling Rating: 9.5/10
Shooting Rating: 10/10
Passing Rating: 9.5/10
Physical Rating: 9/10
Defending Rating: 9/10

I would have been nothing short of ecstatic if this card had found a way into the coveted 10/10 rating given my real life affection for Liverpool’s number 9 … but there were still some small deficiencies and perfection is hard to achieve. There is an argument against this card that Firmino is almost too well-rounded and had some of those defensive statistics been added to a more attacking focus he could have been the perfect attacker… but instead you are left with a card that can truly cover any of the midfield and attacking positions you throw at it.

Main Statistic - Shooting

Shooting Rating: 10/10
Weak Foot: ★★★★★

3 minutes. That was all it took for Bobby Firmino to open his account with Dinamo Parklund and set the tone for both the weekend and this review. Fitting that it was on his new and improved 5 STAR WEAK FOOT as well and certainly was a sign of things to come. The HUNTER chemistry style made for some ridiculous viewing in the shooting statistics, with the standouts coming in the form of 99 FINISHING, 94 SHOT POWER & 99 VOLLEYS. Similar to comments I have made in the past, I just wish the HUNTER gave even a +5 to LONG SHOTS but Firmino largely overcame the 86 rating with power and precision. Initially I was also concerned with the lack of a Outside Foot or Finesse Shot trait but neither seemed to cause any issues… the 24 goals in 15 matches a clear indication of that. For those FUT Managers who view this card as more or an attacking threat then a midfield presence … I can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.

Main Attribute - 5 Star Skills

Dribbling Rating: 9.5/10
Pace Rating: 9.5/10
Skills: ★★★★★
Attributes: Flair

Firmino stands right in the sweet spot for height at 181cm | 5’11 and benefits from the 91 AGILITY, 92 BALANCE & 94 DRIBBLING, while still holding his own physically with his 82 STRENGTH. Then you add in the 99 ACCELERATION & SPRINT SPEED and you have a card that can truly get around the pitch in a hurry. I mentioned the box to box experiment with this card and overall I can say that it went fantastic. More and more I was impressed with the ability for Firmino to carry the ball out of trouble and into attacking situations… the dribbling at pace being the most impressive difference from some of the cards I have been using of late. Much like Suárez there are just some unique body types that are suited for FUT and I would 100% place Firmino in that category. Then you add in the Flair trait which just seems to make executing a lot of dribbles and passes seem to come off smoother (which I don’t think is just in my head, but maybe) and you can really see the excellence of this card on the ball.

Value/Coins & Good vs. Bad

Value/Coins Rating: 5/5
Good vs Bad Rating: 5/5

Some significant drops in this card's price tag has really started to make it an enticing option for any squad looking to improve. While 1.2 million coins is not a small drop in the bucket, it is a price you would associate for a card with this many statistics and this level of versatility. Maybe just maybe there is some EPL and Brazilian tax sprinkled in, but if you compare the base statistics (minus the defending) of Firmino to those currently in FIFA you are left with one single comparison… PIM Éric Cantona sitting at 3 million coins with a 4 STAR WEAK FOOT.

The 96 SHORT PASSING along with the 96 VISION resulted in 7 assists taking Firmino into the 2.0 goal contributions per game… a total that I have not often come across in this FIFA. The card again just has so many weapons at your disposal and can solve problems based on the match and what you are needing at that moment. With all that said there were really only two complaints I would lodge with this card and would be the difference between what was a 9.5/10 rating and the perfect result. 1. I think that this card could have benefitted from the Finesse Shot trait and +10 more LONG SHOT statistics. The card still finds the net from impressive angles and under serious pressure, hence the 10/10 Shooting rating… but I would feel more comfortable letting fly from distance with those bonus statistics and traits. 2. I wish there was a way to trade the 76 DEFENDING for a number closer to 60 and spend the 16 extra statistics in more offensive areas. Of course then we would have a 3-4 million coin card on our hands… but those additions would truly take this card into the perfect conversation.

Closing Words

I tried to leave any real world bias at the door as I started this review… and the more I used this card the more I found myself scraping to find excuses why it wasn’t perfect to avoid the accusations. There is just so much to like about the card from the way it feels in the gameto the way it performs across a match. I would strongly recommend this card which has been highly benefited by a growing selection of Brazilian links to get Bobby into your squads. Much like Suárez it was nice to see a FUT fan favorite return to his former glory this weekend and as I sit here I am trying to think of ways that I can keep Bobby and still continue to review the more expensive cards that we will undoubtedly see in the future. I am interested to know from those of you that have used Firmino… Was it user bias? Or is this card truly the weapon that I experienced this weekend? I Hope you are safe and well. Cheers for reading.

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