It is no wonder that creating shots is an integral part of being successful at FIFA 15. In FIFA 15, it is much easier to put away mid to long distance shots than in previous versions of FIFA. I’m not talking about finishing breakaways or general 1v1s, but just deciding to shoot when the alternatives are dribbling or trying to pass someone through. Sometimes, it’s just better to go with the shot when you have a chance, but the difficulty is actually making those shots.
If you can free yourself some space in this area, a shot is actually pretty dangerous. Some people get too confident when they’ve made it this far and instead try to dribble or pass through, but a deflected, missed, or saved shot is a far better result than simply turning the ball over. Not to mention, if you score from this range, the goals are generally quite pretty.
The first thing to consider is the strong foot of the player you are trying to create a shot for. Let’s paint a picture: you have just made it to the top of the box with Gareth Bale. You’re going to turn back and forth dribbling until you free up his LEFT foot. Preferably, you can do this changing of direction as you are approaching the shooting zone. It sounds ridiculous, but it’s incredibly difficult to defend. You can switch direction many different times, so why not make sure you’re on his stronger foot? Most people do not realize how much of a difference it makes to shoot with a player’s strong foot. You increase power and accuracy by around 50% at least just by shooting with the preferred foot.
Another way to free up space is by using a fake shot/lobbed pass (charge up shot/lob and press A before execution) to change direction. This move is more effective than simply dribbling in a different direction because it allows for a quick, drastic change of direction. When players are lunging in at you quickly, such changes of direction can be devastating and can free you some serious space to pull off your shot.
If you’ve successfully freed up space for your shot, you need to gauge how much time you have. One of the most important factors in how successful your shot is in FIFA is the time spent setting up the shot. If your player is sprinting and you suddenly slam the shooting button, that is a serious deprecation in shot effectiveness. However, if you’ve drawn a defender away and have a few yards of space in front of you, take this time to lay off the sprint button and then charge up and aim your shot — taking advantage of this free time. It really does make a difference.
The final thing to consider is general aiming. From this distance, it’s much more effective to aim for the far side of the goal. It just appears to be much more difficult for the keeper to save, especially with the increased shot power in FIFA 15. If you don’t have a feel for how much you need to charge up the power bar, play around in the arena. However, this is something most players seem to catch on to pretty easily. So, as far as taking the shot goes it’s pretty simple to pull off a successful shot: aim for the far side with a decent amount of power.