Fifa 09

It's almost 8 months sinse its release and I finally bit the bullet and bought Fifa 09 on Saturday because '08 was getting a little tired.

As the loading screen appeared, expectations of the new version ran through my head and I was eager to start playing Manager Mode.

The first time I play the game I always start off with the idea of starting with a lower league club and working them up into the Barclays Premier League. So I selected Aldershot Town as they have the worst overall rating. I must admit that I was impressed with their forwards and midfielders particularly Grant, Harding and Donnelly and they have proven to be reliable.

In manager mode you are asked to organise 4 pre-season friendlies, and the new feature of being able to negotiate revenue distribution meant that i was able to secure my first match with Manchester United having settled with a 80:20 split and the game being played at Old Trafford.

The menu system has had a re-theme, its slick but I feel it has lost legibility, so and im still coming to grips with the colour contrast with the darker theme. Eventually I was ready to play my first match and immediatly I shuffled my lineup to suit my 4-3-3 playing style as apposed to Aldershot's default 4-4-2.

The game started as expected, and after some new opening sequences and animations to introduce the players, i was exposed to the explosive attacking abilities of the likes of Giggs, Ronaldo, Fletcher, Carrick, Anderson & Rooney. I found that defending in 08 was tough, but 09 was even tougher and without changing tactics I soon found that my ordinary defenders we're, despite my best efforts, having rings run around them. At the end of the first half my players trudged off the field very tired down 2-0.

The game play has definatly improved with slight enhancements here and there. For example tackle animations are simply brilliant, I made couple of late tackles and the physics of the player having his legs removed from under him was very convincing, so much so I had three bookings in the first half.

After Ronaldo poked the ball through my goal keepers legs he ran to the corner and celebrated in a brand new celebration which changed the temp of the game and United's domanance of the possession leading to their second goal. I did however manage to keep Rooney goalless but he's only one of 10 players capable of making you look bad. The enevitable was about to happen and it came in the form of Carrick putting the home side up by two with a cheeky header from a gorgeous, pin point cross from Giggs. Damn!

As the players were stood poised for the second half, I hit pause, had a squiz at the; man-marking, stamina of my players and how on earth I can come back from what seems the impossible. After fiddling with some man to man marking I unpaused the game and change my attacking tactics to Counter Attack + Midfield Press + Box Overload hoping that I could catch them on the break (yeah, wishful thinking). I also held off subbing my midfield, even though they were shot to bits, and aimed on running them dry till the 70th minute, where I would replace the entire midfield.

Kicking off the second half I slowed down the pace of the game with plenty of short passing around the field and trying my best to keep as much of the possession as I could. Then an opportunity presented itself after Harding plucked a lobbed pass from Fletcher and United were on the back foot. After a short run I made a through ball to Grant who was tightly marked by Ferdinand (I think) but managed, using the first touch stick, knocked it away from his marker and after 2 or 3 steps drove the ball low and hard into the bottom corner. I was punching the air, it was exhillerating after 57 gruiling minutes, I managed score my first 09 goal, great stuff.

As you can appreciate I was now wired, the crowd was quietened a bit and I realistically thinking I could win this match That was until moments later Ronney hit the post from about 20 yards out. The crowd were back in full voice after that and I realised my defense were really really tired & struggling to make tackles. So I hit pause again and went from a 4-3-3 to a 5-3-2 to add another man in the back line.

I will have to work on player fitness as these players at the 80th minute mark were walking wounded and the passing was terrible. Im a massive fan of counter attack football and love seeing a team pounce after a failed attack. It was my fortune that this was how I scored the first time, and was to be how I leveled the game in the 87th minute. 

I had 9 in the back in the box for a United corner, as they had 7 men in the box.  I was baffled that they were looking to score a 3rd which really gives you the feeling that they are unrelenting, it is actually quite scary. Anyway it gives insight that there is no ease off mode in the game and that clubs will always be hungry for more goals. The corner was whipped in and headered clear by one of my defenders, and with a heroic run up the middle I was able to slot a through ball to Davies who mirrored Grants first goal banged it home, hard into the bottom corner. I was up, off the couch and fist pumping and screaming "Come on!"

Wow, the tension was incredible, incomparible to Fifa 08 in the sense that my heart was racing from playing a video game. But from the game I was able to witness Christiano Ronaldo wrong foot my players over and over with his dashing footwork, Rain bog down the ball as it hits the turf from being lobbed out of the backfield, and players flop all over the field as they are brought down in a theatrical manor from late / miss timed tackles. The animation quality is supurbe and possibly as good as its going to get on a PS2. The stadium ambience and commentary was fresh and of course had a few old quotes but these went relativly un-noticed.

It was clear that Aldershot Town as it is currently could never cut it each week in the Premier League and although I felt I handled United well the void in class was vast which made the game very exciting. So the match was great fun, realistic and enjoyable, playing with a superior club would no doubt have its own experience which I will eventually do once i'm done with Aldershot Town.

In the meantime I have started to work on building the squad by upgrading the Defense Trainer and Fitness to help the backfield. I have sold 3 defenders as they are beyond help and training, and this will give me a bit more cash. I will explore the Transfer Market next season after I win the league, and hopefully the board will allow me to spend more than 47 on players then.

EA have done a great job with 09, you can feel the difference and there are little enhancements here and there that make it easier to manage your club. I'll keep yuo posted how I get on once I promote into the first division.