FIFA 23 RTTF Roberto Firmino Player Review

This week marked the return of the most beautiful song known to man embedded in the return of the long awaited Champions League Knockout Stages.  Accompanying this was another long awaited format in the form of the FIFA RTTF promo.

There are a lot of intricacies to how these cards upgrade, but it is safe to say that the cards remaining at the final stages of the tournament will be incredibly juiced.  The addition of the Traits, Weak Foot and Skill Move upgrades can take these cards to some ridiculous heights.  

There were quite a few intriguing options in the mix and in order to know what card would be most sought after by the community, we posted a poll over on Instagram, with Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino handily winning the vote.
Firmino has traditionally been an EA favorite for promo cards and has produced some amazing past versions… FIFA 18’s PTG, FIFA 19’s Flashback, THAT FIFA 20 Scream Edition, Festival of Football in FIFA 21, and the most recent FUT Birthday in FIFA 22.  While all different versions with vastly different statistics there is one trend… they were all beasts… in the midfield.  

With past nostalgia in mind I set out to play Firmino as the box to box CM in my 4-3-2-1 formation and it was immediately clear that I had made the right choice.  The HUNTER chemistry style was applied to benefit the attacking side of the Brazilian’s game and generally felt like the best selection.  I could see the argument for a SHADOW in a more defensive role… but it was clear throughout the review that the HUNTER was working magic with the goal returns.

RTTF Firmino only added to the Liverpool forwards FUT Legend all weekend long in the following squad:

Overall 

I have been looking for a card like this for a while now and within a few minutes of the first match it was abundantly clear that Firmino was back in a big way.  The quality in a box to box CM always lies in their ability to be a presence defensively while contributing offensively, which Firmino juggled masterfully.

Having answered the initial question of his quality it now falls to the question of how many/if any, upgrades will Bobby receive?  Correct me if I am wrong, but there is a potential for Firmino to reach 96 overall should Liverpool win the Champions League.  Of course LFC’s form would suggest this is about as likely as Wayne Rooney becoming next Liverpool manager, but simply for conversation.  The card that wins receives +4 upgrades… but due to Firmino’s 5 STAR WEAK FOOT he would get an additional boost to a +5 upgrade, for a 96 overall… I think?

Main Statistics – Pace

Pace Rating: 9/10

In truth, this card’s standout trait comes in the form of the sublime dribbling and I could go on and on about the quality Firmino exudes on the ball… but without the presence of high end Pace, this review would never have got off the ground.
The 97 ACCELERATION is the star of this show and greatly contributes to the aforementioned dribbling in a massive way.  The card boosts forward despite the CONTROLLED AcceleRATE and allows quick separation to make a pass or take a shot in tight spaces.

The 96 SPRINT SPEED is less of an attraction and while it didn’t hurt Firmino throughout the review, it was not helping either.  Most cards could not catch Bobby once he had a step on them, but the Flashback Ramos-eque players proved too much to pull away from, despite an acceleration-induced head start. 

Value/Coins

Value/Coins Rating: 4/5

If you could see into a crystal ball that Liverpool would advance past Real Madrid… this card’s value would skyrocket and continue to improve what is an already impressive card.  The issue here though comes in the form of the 1.7 million coin price tag, which is where this card should be pricewise in two upgrades from now and not at this stage in the game.

There are not many cards better in the box to box role at this moment and any results for LFC only amplifies Firmino as a standout option amongst what is currently available.  But given the unknown I currently wouldn’t dive in at this price tag.  

Good vs. Bad 

Good vs Bad Rating: 5/5

There are tools here that can be put to extremely good use:

+ Someone at EA was abusing the cut and paste, leaving Firmino with 94 in literally every dribbling category.  The 94 AGILITY and BALANCE on the unique body type and dribbling style mixed perfectly.  The presence of the FLAIR trait seems to be doing the business yet again… all this, and we haven’t even mentioned the 5 STAR SKILLS.  

+ The Shooting is one area that is benefitting from the HUNTER chemistry style and delivered with a 6 goals in 7 matches performance.  Numbers that would make a striker jealous as the 96 FINISHING proved devastatingly accurate along with the 91 SHOT POWER to get it there.

+ With 6 assists in the same 7 matches it is clear that the 92 SHORT PASSING stood the stress test.  The 90 VISION with 82 LONG PASSING was also quality and made for a rather pleasing debut in the midfield.

The issues are what currently keep this card from a 10/10, hurt the value for coins, and why upgrades could be so huge.

- The Shooting is definitely good, but the 4 STAR WEAK FOOT and lack of any traits really hinders the potential for a variety of goals.  He scored the ones he should have, but it is the cards that score the ones they shouldn’t that help add wins to your game.

- The application of a SHADOW chemistry style would have shown more care in this situation as this card could defensively use a nudge in quality… but I really wanted a threat from midfield, which worked in the end.  But along the way the 73 STANDING TACKLE did not look ideal and had mixed execution in application.

Closing Words

This card is really everything you want in a high action midfield and has the potential to be game breaking with some boosts.

The issue is of course the colossal Champions League masters standing in Liverpool’s path, which could ultimately stop this card dead in its tracks.  Perhaps the key saving grace is the first match being played at Anfield which should offer an advantage.  I guess if they lose the price will plummet and would again be worth keeping an eye on given the quality.  

6 goals and 6 assists in 7 matches are again, striker's numbers and definitely highlights the key area in this card's quality.  However, I know playing Firmino as a striker is not the way to go as the speed of play would really sink these results.  Arriving late and in space made this card a dangerous weapon that was concealed and unleashed throughout a very pleasing review.

Watch the price.  Get in when he drops.  Pray for a win.  And the rest will be history.

Hoping you are well.  Cheers for reading.