FIFA 23 lengthy players explained as acceleration gets reworked

FIFA 23 lengthy players remain overpowered despite a post-launch patch to tone down their abilities. Lengthy is one of the new acceleration styles in FIFA 23, and usually matches up with tall, powerful strikers and central defenders such as Erling Haaland and Virgil van Dijk. Below we explain exactly how the trio of acceleration categories work, and list the best examples to sign, in your FIFA 23 lengthy players guide.

New FIFA 23 acceleration styles explained

FIFA 23 now groups every player into one of three acceleration styles. 

Lengthy players start off slow when you hold down the sprint button, but maintain their pace for a longer time once they’ve built up to top speed. They tend to be tall players with high strength but low agility. [So most of the game’s best CBs fit into this category.] The most notable – and therefore priciest – examples in FUT are Liverpool super-defender Virgil Van Djik and England skipper Harry Kane. 

Explosive players burst into life with sudden quickness, but their speed gradually decreases the further they run. These players tend to be short, with high agility and lower strength. They’re especially effective when charging onto a perfectly timed through ball. We’re talking famously rapid names such as Sadio Mane, Leo Messi, Mo Salah, and Neymar Jr.

Controlled players are your default type of footballer. They offer balance in terms of both getting up to speed and maintaining it. In other words: solid, safe, often unspectacular. But that categorically does not make them slow. Cover star Kylain Mbappe is on the FIFA 23 controlled players list, as is Real Madrid talisman Karim Benzema and some lad called Cristiano Ronaldo.

Now we’ve explained the acceleration styles, you want to know which cards to target, right? We’ve listed the best in each category below. All ratings pertain to their base item. And you can enhance their abilities even further by mastering your FIFA 23 chemistry styles.

The best FIFA 23 lengthy players in Ultimate Team

These are the ten highest rated lengthy outfield players in FUT. If we’d included goalkeepers then Alisson (89, Liverpool) and Ederson (89, Manchester City) would have made the list too, but acceleration isn’t a priority between the sticks. Note that Haaland, Koulibaly and Rudiger all have FIFA 23 OTW cards in addition to their rare gold items, and the ‘FIFA 23 lengthy’ label applies to those cards in the exact same manner.

Top FIFA 23 lengthy players rated under 84

You’ll have noted that all of the players listed above are elite, and therefore cost a ton of coins on the transfer market. So let’s give you some FIFA 23 lengthy bargains too. Ultimate Team cards start getting super pricey at an overall rating of 84. So here are the best ten lengthy players with an OVR of 83 or less. If you need even more then try Zlatan Ibrahimovic (AC Milan, ST, 82), Emre Can (CM, Dortmund, 82), or Luis Muriel (ST, Atalanta, 82). 

The top ten FIFA 23 explosive players

These are the ten most explosive players in FIFA 23 Ultimate Team – and incredibly, three of them play for FC Bayern. Real Madrid winger Vinicius Jr is a particularly tantalizing inclusion, given that he also appears on the FIFA 23 best young players list. Indeed, these ratings also apply in FIFA 23 career mode – so don’t be shy about splurging big cash on the monster names below if you’re at the helm of one of a Champions League contender.

The best controlled players in FIFA 23

Karim Benzema appears on the top of this year’s FIFA 23 ratings, so naturally scores first place on the FIFA 23 controlled players list too. As with the lengthy list, we’ve left off goalkeepers. Otherwise, Thibault Courtois (Real Madrid, 90), Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern, 90), Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid, 89), Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (Barcelona, 88), Keylor Navas (Paris SG, 88) and Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris SG, 88) would all have featured here too. Whew!