Every time a new EA FC 26 patch drops, like one did last week, the conversation around the game switches to what players need to do to adjust to the changes. A new patch for the game means a new developing meta as players tinker within the new gameplay features to figure out what works and what doesn’t.
One of the biggest problems facing the game in its early months has been the difficulty effectively defending, with games in online competitive modes often ballooning to huge scorelines for both teams involved. The Patch v1.0.4 update sought to address this concern, and now for online players it’s critical to understand what the patch does and how to best operate within it to separate your opponent from the ball and get counterattacking.
What’s Changed In Defending?
A primary complaint from online gamers was that the logic used by defenders when going for a tackle simply did not add up. Often, players best positioned for a shoulder barge would attempt a standing challenge and concede a foul, or vice versa. This was particularly frustrating with players who carried badges that made them better suited to a style of challenge, who would still throw out the wrong one when in a position to utilize their skill.
To counter this, EA introduced the Advanced Defending option. Located in the Defending tab of the Gameplay menu, your Defending option now allows you to choose between Tactical Defending, in which the game continues to determine the best tackle type when you make a play on the ball, or Advanced Defending, which grants you more control and responsibility.
With this new mode on, you now have three choices for how to get the ball off an opponent without going to ground: the standing tackle, the shoulder barge, or stepping in and shielding the opponent off the ball. Instead of the game deciding the optimal choice, which many players felt it too often failed to do correctly, you now have total control over your defensive interventions.
How To Defend Effectively After The Patch Update
The first step to better defending on the new patch is to move to Advanced Defending. If you’re not confident in your play-reading skills, this may be an intimidating switch, but given the difficulties the game’s AI has shown with effectively managing this responsibility, it’s important to develop the skills to do so on your own. Even if this means a short-term blip when you get used to the new system, and make some growing pains-based errors, in the long term, you’ll benefit from taking more agency into your own hands.
Once you’ve got Advanced Defending on it’s all about knowing when to use your different tackle options to best win the ball. Here’s what to know about each tackling mode and when to use them:
- Standing Tackle: The standing tackle will see your defender lunge in and attempt to take the ball off the foot of an opposing dribbler. This is a move best used when you are squared up to your opponent and they are moving toward you, such as stepping out with a defender to meet a charging offensive player. This puts the ball between you and your opponent for an interception.
- Shoulder Barge: The shoulder barge is ideal when you are running alongside an opposing player with the ball. Instead of looking to move the ball, this tackle moves the player, shoving them off the ball with a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge. This move is best suited to running back with an opponent when you are level or ahead of them, to avoid a push in the back foul, especially with players who are Bruisers.
- Shielding: Shielding the ball is another option when running alongside the offensive player, particularly if the ball is away from them, such as when sprinting with a long dribble. This tackle puts your defender between the offensive player and the ball, then slows slightly to impede their path to the ball and take over possession.
Best Defenders In EA FC 26 Post-Patch
While this is a big change for how defensive responsibilities work, don’t worry that you now have to totally throw out everything you know about team selection, either. The best defenders before the patch will still be stellar defenders now, meaning if your team was fortunate enough to have players like William Saliba, Marquinhos or Fernando Heirro you’re still in business. If, however, you had some marginal calls where players with Bruiser or Anticipate missed out to slightly higher rated players without then it may be worth trying them back in the lineup to see if more defensive control means more value.
That wraps up the big changes to defending on this patch. Go change the setting and start winning more challenges!
