FIFA 23 is one of the most anticipated games of the year, with fans and footballers alike eagerly awaiting the next version of the long-running EA Sports franchise.
The new release is set to come out on September 27th, if players have pre-ordered the Ultimate Edition, while the standard edition comes out three days later.
The game will again feature updated squads, as well as a bundle of new features and refinements to gameplay.
Every single year, players are hoping to receive upgrades based on real life, but Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha has had the opposite happen!
The Ivory Coast international has received a stat downgrade, and his reaction has not exactly been calm.
Zaha Reacts to FIFA 23 Downgrade
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 30: Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace celebrates after scoring their team's first goal during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Brentford FC at Selhurst Park on August 30, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
Writing on Instagram, he said: “Me seeing my FIFA stats got worse. Must have been playing golf all season then.”
He posted a picture of himself being booked, with the yellow card replaced with his FIFA card.
Now, Zaha is only really half-right here.
His FIFA 22 rating was 82 before he received any special cards, while his FIFA 23 rating is also 82. He has moved from a left forward to a left winger.
We can compare his stats below (his FIFA 22 stats come first).
- 89 Pace | 91 Pace
- 87 Dribbling | 86 Dribbling
- 77 Shooting | 79 Shooting
- 73 Passing | 73 Passing
- 75 Physical | 76 Physical
- 34 Defending | 37 Defending
The Palace ace probably does have some room for complaint, here.
In 2021/22, Zaha scored 14 Premier League goals and laid on one assist; in 2020/21, before his FIFA 22 card was revealed, he scored 11 goals.
He clearly improved, and he’s already scored four times in five games this season.
As a result, the only bumps that he’s received are +2 in pace, +2 in shooting, +1 in physical and +3 in defending. The latter does not matter at all, while the shooting and physical boosts are tiny given the season he had last season.
The fact that he’s received a downgrade for dribbling is nuts, and Zaha has expressed his own displeasure.
We can understand it, but he remains one of the very best players at Palace on FIFA 23.
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