Earlier this year the FIWC North American Champion, Joe Guastella, had a chance to visit the EA SPORTS studios in Vancouver where FIFA 10 was developed.  During his visit he got a chance to provide feedback on the game as well as get his hands on an early build of FIFA 10 to play.

With the game now on the shelves world wide, we got Joe to provide some hints and tips to help fellow footballers excel in this year’s footy title.

Don’t commit until you get help from 2nd Defender

When you are 1-on-1 defending against your competitor don’t press (close down on him) right away, this tactic will leave you vulnerable for an easy goal, as you will be unnecessarily putting your player out of position. What you need to do is contain the attacker until your second defender comes in to challenge. To call your help defender you will have to press ‘circle’ (on PS3).

Getting into Defensive position

It is very difficult to control your defender when holding turbo all the time, it is a common mistake that I see online all the time. If you press the ‘L2′ button on (PS3) which is the walk button your player will get into the best position to steal the ball away from the other player as he will be facing the attacking player, able to square up to the ball and make a higher percentage challenge.

Playing the Toughest Competition

Playing competition that is weaker than yourself will not help you improve your game. In order to succeed, especially in a tough tournament like the FIWC you have to play against the toughest competition (online) to get better. You need to learn from your mistakes, as losing against a top player will provide you with valuable experience that you can build on to become a better, more complete player.

1v1 Against the Keeper

This year, FIFA 10 has made 1v1 situations against the keeper harder than last in year’s game. When you are 1v1 against the keeper you will have to patient, don’t rush the shot. During the game there is an option to have the 2D map of the whole field. You should always play with this option on because sometimes the other player will try and rush his keeper out and unless you’re aware and prepared for this tactic you won’t see it coming and most likely waste a golden opportunity to score. If they pull out the keeper past the 18 yard box, the best way to score is to chip it over the keeper by holding ‘L1′ and pressing ‘circle’ (PS3). If the keeper stays in the box aim for one of the corners by using the ‘left stick’ and pressing ‘circle’.

Control you dribble

The biggest mistake people make is holding the ‘turbo’ button (R2) while dribbling. If you’re holding the ‘turbo’ button all the time you will never have the control and responsiveness needed of your player and the ball to create space. When you need to make a cut with the ball or maneuver your way around a defender, the best way to do this is to let go of the ‘turbo’ button. You should only be pressing ‘R2′ if you have a breakaway (just you and the goalie), are trying to catch the attacker, and if you are going straight. If you are trying to make cuts, let go of the ‘turbo’ button and you will have more control of your player on offense and defense.

Jostle

When you are fighting for a position whilst the ball is in the air, jostling is a big factor to winning the battle for the ball. To make the most of this particular 50/50 situation think about how your player is positioned, and worry less about the jostle against your opposition. When fighting for the ball, you need to be physical with the other player and attack the ball. By aggressively challenging the other player (moving towards them) you can cause them to make a mistake, giving you an advantage to gain possession in the midfield - which is crucial to control in this year’s game if you want to realize any type of success.

Passing

The best way to score a goal is by moving the ball around. If you just rely on one player you will never be a good FIFA player. Always look for the next player to pass to. If you keep the passing quick it will move defenders out of position for your chance to score. Something that works really well is if you make a pass and the player makes a run right, doing this will cause the opposition to attack the receiver and forget about the player that made the run, which will cause a breakaway.

Goalkeeper Charging

Timing is the key when charging, timed wrongly and you will concede an easy goal. To time the charge correctly you must read the attacker’s runs or steps. If you see him using the turbo when he gets the breakaway that’s the moment you should charge with the keeper - he won’t have time to adjust because of the limited control he will have as a result of the turbo.

Using Angles

A big part of FIFA 09 was the speed of players like Ronaldo and Messi. People complained about how fast they were and that they were too difficult to stop. To counteract those type of players this year you have to cut the angles. If you get beat by Ronaldo on the sideline, switch players so you’re controlling your CB and cut the angle as you’ll be able to track down quick players from an angle as opposed to trying to chase them down the field. Whatever you do, don’t run behind him because you will be left in the dust. Run towards your goal to cut the angle and neutralize the blinding speed some of these top players possess.

Anticipation

To be a good FIFA player you need to be able to see what your opponent is going to do, two, three steps ahead. FIFA is like a chess game, you need to read your opposition’s every move and it’s important to evaluate early on how he plays. If you are defending you have to read the opponents next pass and movement - by doing this you will know where to go and counter everything he does.