Player career mode in FIFA is probably not as popular as the manager career alternative, but it offers just as much fun in my opinion.
In this mode, you have less control over the team as a whole, but way more control over the player that you create.
Technically, you can decide to play FIFA 23 player career with an existing player. However, I think it is more fulfilling to develop a player from scratch to a world-class level – but that’s just me.
Either way, this guide takes an in-depth look at some tips for FIFA 23 career mode player growth.
The same tips apply whether you’re developing an existing player or a newly created one, but the sample player that I used was the latter.
Shop Wisely
There’s a new addition to FIFA 23 player career mode in the form of making decisions, shopping, or dipping into investments that affect the personality traits and attributes of your pro.
In relation to player growth, you want to make sure that you’re shopping wisely in this section, especially in the earlier stages of your career when you need to improve your overall rating as soon as possible.
Shopping “wisely” in this context refers to prioritizing purchases that offer a training or attribute boost. Most of the available items only feed your personality growth which is okay too, but the ones with the aforementioned boosts should be prioritized.
If you check the sample image attached, you’ll see that the option to “buy a trampoline” offers a 5% training boost, +1 jumping, and heartbeat points.
If you’re particular about player growth, it is a better purchase decision than the “sponsor coach travel” option that only offers heartbeat points.
Play Training Drills
The rule of thumb in FIFA 23 career mode is to play all the drills and achieve excellent grades in them first, and then you can simulate subsequent sessions.
This is because simulated sessions automatically earn you the highest grade you’ve achieved when playing yourself, and if you never do so, you get a poor rating by default.
A poor rating means low XP, which in turn means that you don’t get to level up quickly. Leveling up increases the XP you earn for completing objectives and training drills, and that affects how quickly you can earn skill points and grow your player’s rating.
You can level up from level 1 to 40 in FIFA 23 player career mode, compared to a level cap of 25 in FIFA 22.
One other thing to note with training is choosing the right types of drills. If your pro is a defender, it does not make a lot of sense to focus on shooting drills instead of tackling drills.
In that same context, even if you focus on defensive drills (as you should), you want to make sure that you regularly select the drills that offer the highest XP per completion.
These drills tend to be the most difficult to achieve good grades in, but it should not be too much of a problem if you give them a few tries. Again, this makes it easier to level up.
If you’ve been shopping wisely, those training boosts will ensure that you get extra points on top of whatever results you achieve in each training session.
Play Games
Unlike the regular manager career mode, there are no hard and fast rules for winning sim games in FIFA 23 player career mode. In the same vein, there are no tips and tricks that substitute for the XP points that you earn from playing games yourself instead of simulating them.
Bearing that in mind, it is recommended that you play as many games as possible.
This is great for earning more XP, but it also helps to keep your manager rating in the green. If you don’t play games, you won’t meet the match objectives set for you, and that can be really bad for keeping your place on the team.
Obviously, if you’re not a starter, your chances of earning points and developing your player are significantly reduced.
Complete Match Objectives
Speaking of match objectives, these are detailed expectations revealed to you before every game. They are the things that the manager requires you to achieve, and if you’re successful, you earn extra points and your manager rating increases.
Usually, these objectives will include a minimum match rating and other general contributions expected from a player in your position. If you’re an attacker, for instance, that could include a specific number of goals or assists.
Completing match objectives is another way to earn XP to level up your pro quickly.
Grow Your Skill Tree
As you shop, make decisions, train, play games, complete objectives, and level up with XP earned, you will also gain several skill points along the way.
These skills points are the most effective way to directly increase your overall rating.
You can achieve that by “spending” the points on specific areas of your skill tree to improve your attributes.
For instance, if you’ve earned 9 skill points, you can share those points into minor improvements to your physical, dribbling, and shooting stats. Significant growth in this way will improve your overall rating.
In the sample attached below, I have spent my first set of skill points on improvements in the shooting category. Many boxes in the skill tree remain locked, so there is quite a bit of room for improvement for my 69-rated player.
Similar to setting up training drills, you have to make sure that you’re not wasting skill points on areas of your game that have less impact on the position that you play.
If you’re a striker, it is recommended that you develop your physical, shooting, and dribbling stats before anything else.
It is perfectly okay to want a complete player, but if you want your overall rating to grow quickly, improve the key categories first before investing in other areas that can grant you more rounded abilities.
Final Words
If you apply every one of these tips to your pro in FIFA 23 career mode regularly, it is possible to achieve a 90 overall rating within a year and a half.
At that point, if you started the game with a low-rated team, you may feel the need to leave for a bigger club to achieve bigger things in your career.
If that ever happens, request a transfer and chase that dream – I support you!
Meanwhile, we’ve got a separate guide if you’re also looking to learn how to improve players in FIFA 23 manager career mode, so be sure to check that out next.
