FUT Hero Captain Robbie Keane Review

Round 2 of our FUT Hero Captain review and one that I was most looking forward to when this promo was released.  It wasn’t until well into FIFA 22 that I was able to test Hero Robbie Keane and it is too bad because I think it could have been a fantastic review at the time.  Week after week I turned to the Irishman when it came time for FUT Champs Qualys and Division Rivals due to his clinical nature and fantastic timing around the box.  Regardless of who I tried it just always felt more like a sure thing with Keane leading the line in my squad.  Next to NumbersUp Jota, there are not too many cards I have had this much faith in throughout the entire year.  However, with promo after promo Hero Keane was slowly phased out of the usable player list and why I was so excited to get started with this review throughout the weekend.  The 3-5-2 seemed like it would suit Keane perfectly and the HAWK chemistry style could only really be challenged by an ENGINE application… Honestly, it is almost impossible to split which is better and while I don’t think you can go wrong either way, you will also be missing the benefits of the one you leave out, which is ultimately one of the main issues with this card as you will see throughout the review.  Regardless of chemistry, Robbie Keane still put on the style all weekend long in the following squad:  

Starting Formation:

Overall

Rating: 9/10
Pace Rating: 9.5/10
Dribbling Rating: 9/10
Shooting Rating: 10/10
Passing Rating: 7/10
Physical Rating: 8/10
Defending Rating: N/A

15 goals and 6 assists in 15 matches do not tell the full story of this review.  In fact, I find those statistics to be some of the most misleading results I have had this season.  For one, while I contend that a goal a game is an excellent return in his FIFA (for the average 14-16 win WL player) Keane’s clinical ability actually hurt this total as I had more rage quits this weekend than I have in a long time.  Sometimes 15 - 20 minutes was all it took for a brace and my opponent to see their way out the door.  Conversely, the 6 assists doesn’t begin to scratch the surface of my frustrations with this cards passing… if it weren’t for Hero Captain Cahill I would have probably just chalked up to gameplay… but again, this is where the ENGINE conversation could pick up steam and it wouldn’t be a bad argument either.      

Main Statistic – Shooting

Passing Rating: 10/10
Weak Foot: ★★★★★
Trait: Finesse Shot

I would have argued to the ends of the earth that Hero Keane had a hidden 5 STAR WEAK FOOT months ago, and now that it is official I was extremely happy that nothing has changed.  This card has always had the power and accuracy on either foot and most importantly the FINESSE SHOT trait also transfers over to the weak foot as well.  I would say this is ultimately what separates a 9.5 from a 10/10 Shooting Rating and Keane demonstrates it time and time again with minimal fuss.  It also doesn’t hurt that the HAWK application produces the perfect 99 statistics in all important Shooting categories except for the still impressive 92 VOLLEYS.  This card can bang them in for fun and fun is what I had in front of goal with this card throughout the weekend.

Main Attribute - Dribbling

Pace Rating: 9.5/10
Dribbling Rating: 9/10
Skills: ★★★★
Height: 175 cm | 5’9

Lots to like about the feel of this card on the ball and it isn’t rocket science figuring out why.  The 98 ACCELERATION on a 175 cm | 5’9 card is always going to have them on the front foot in a hurry, and unlike recent reviews, the 96 SPRINT SPEED also felt accurate.  Then you mix in 92 AGILITY & 92 BALANCE with a healthy dose of 94 BALL CONTROL & 92 DRIBBLING and the results are some responsive and slick dribbling.  The 9/10 rating comes from the fact that Keane was still not quite perfect on the ball and could have some moments where the card almost got stuck in certain turns, which I would equate to a lack of FLAIR trait, the AVERAGE body type, and the absence of the 5 STAR SKILLS.  But beyond those small moments, this card still feels great and can cause issues for opponents in those tight spaces in and around the box. 

Value/Coins & Good vs. Bad

Value/Coins Rating: 5/5
Good vs Bad Rating: 4.5/5

730k is a bit of a steep price for this card and given some of the passing escapades and some moments where a lack of strength was disappointing I was leaning towards a slightly below 5/5 for this card's Value/Coins.  But then I started doing some comparisons and if you simply put in the base statistics for this card and look at the comparable options there are numerous quality cards and some of them for a considerable bargain compared to Keane.  But then you click on the 5 STAR WEAK FOOT and it starts to become clear the value of this card overall as there are only two cards left to compare with… PIM Eusebio and Prime Ronaldo… Not bad company, and while I realize those cards have hidden traits and I wouldn’t dare say Keane is on the same level, they are also 2.5 million coins more. 

I am not sure what the price would be on this card if the 80 base Passing and Physical statistics were higher and in truth would probably make this card largely inaccessible for many… but it is those two categories that ultimately caused all the problems throughout this review.  I can live with the poor physicality and I wasn’t expecting much from a smaller card with only 81 STRENGTH.  But what drove me over the deep end time and time again was the 86 SHORT PASSING, 86 VISION, 77 CROSSING & laughably low 68 LONG PASSING.  Yes, an ENGINE could have helped, but there was truly no fixing what I was dealing with this weekend and if you can’t tell, was the bane of my existence for the majority of the review.

Closing Words

The passing was poor.  The physicality could be better.  But it is still worth noting and celebrating just how class this card was in front of goal.  There are moments in most matches where you are lamenting missed chances and as I sit here I can not remember any glaring moments for Keane this weekend.  If you are left with those matches outshooting opponents by massive margins with zero results I am not guaranteeing Keane fixes that because this is FIFA and I don’t want the inbox full of hate messages… but I will say he solved a lot of this for me this weekend and was a reliable threat in front of goal.  In the end that sets up the perfect title for a review of this card:  “The Keane Experience: Sacrificing Intricacy for Potency”.  Hoping you are safe and well.  Cheers for reading. 
 

Game Stats:
 

Game Highlights: