Alexis Sanchez has finally completed his transfer to Manchester United, meaning the Red Devils will now be much stronger in FIFA 18.
As a result, more and more players will be likely to choose United in Online Seasons. They are already a five-star team, and have upgraded from 84-rated Henrikh Mkhitaryan to 88-rated Sanchez.
The Chile international is equal or better to Mkhitaryan in the majority of his stats, aside from defending, but is unlikely to be utilised in a role that requires him to track back too often in FIFA 18.
Goal analyses how Sanchez will fit in at Manchester United and where to play him to get the best out of him in the game.
Sanchez's best position at Man Utd in FIFA 18
By default, Manchester United's tactical setup in FIFA emulates their real-life formation, utilising the 4-2-3-1 favoured by Jose Mourinho with three attacking midfielders supporting Romelu Lukaku.
Next Match
Although in tremendous form in real-life, Jesse Lingard is United's weak link in attack in FIFA 18. He has an overall rating of 78, with a pace score of 83 and shooting and passing stats both in the 70s. Alexis will provide a huge upgrade on Lingard, and can be played anywhere across the attacking three with Juan Mata and Marcus Rashford.
Mata's excellent passing and dribbling should keep him in the team, but some FIFA gamers prefer to have more pace than his 67 statistic offers. As a result, Anthony Martial may be used with Rashford and Sanchez in the trio behind Lukaku.
Alternatively, Sanchez could be used as the lone striker himself due to his excellent shooting, passing and dribbling ratings, or alongside Lukaku in a shift to a front two. This could work with a 4-4-2 or 4-1-2-1-2 approach, or even as part of a 3-5-2 thanks to the Red Devils having an abundance of strong, powerful centre-backs.
Sanchez's Man Utd stats in FIFA 18
Sanchez's arrival makes him the third-quickest attacking player at Old Trafford in FIFA 18. Only Rashford and Martial have better pace than him, while he is also the club's third-best finisher behind Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
His greater pace makes him a better option up front than Ibrahimovic, who lacks speed and stamina to be a proper asset for most gamers. The Swedish striker's overall score of 88 comes in at one less than Sanchez's initial FIFA 18 rating, which saw him receive an 89-overall score in Online Seasons and FIFA Ultimate Team.
However, the Online Seasons database is constantly being updated with players receiving upgrades and downgrades to individual statistics and overall ratings. That saw Sanchez drop down to an 88-overall rating from December 21 onward.
A strong second-half of the season could see the 29-year-old return to his initial score, or even get bumped up further ahead of the release of FIFA 19.
| Player | Pace | Shooting | Passing | Dribbling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexis Sanchez | 86 | 84 | 80 | 89 |
| Romelu Lukaku | 83 | 85 | 70 | 74 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimovic | 65 | 88 | 81 | 82 |
| Marcus Rashford | 92 | 76 | 70 | 81 |
| Juan Mata | 67 | 76 | 84 | 84 |
| Anthony Martial | 91 | 79 | 70 | 85 |
| Ander Herrera | 73 | 72 | 81 | 83 |
| Anders Lingard | 83 | 74 | 72 | 80 |
Sanchez's Man Utd FIFA 18 potential
EA Sports
As Sanchez turned 29 in December, he is 28 at the beginning of career mode. This means that he has already reached his maximum score in FIFA 18 and his overall rating is the same as his potential rating. Rashford, on the other hand, is still a teenager and can develop from an 81-rated player into an 89-overall one during the process of a long career in the game.
Paul Pogba has the highest potential of any outfield player at the Old Trafford club, at 92, while David De Gea can progress to a 93-rated goalkeeper. Lukaku is the only other player on United's books with the potential to have a better in-game rating than Alexis.
Sanchez signed a four-and-a-half year deal with United, keeping him at the club until 2022. Along with Lukaku, this is the longest contract of anyone at Old Trafford in FIFA 18, meaning that you will not have to think about finding a replacement for him for many years.