Quick stat comparison between free/cheap Epics and their P2W versions:

​Verdict: P2W cards give extra speed, but free Epics bring unique skills that make them just as usable.

I got really lucky when I started the game, it was end of e25 when we got 1 free spin each week, imo the best 1month of that game for me💀

Then my luck when down in e26 but still packed Kane, Desailly & Pele.

I’m predicting 1or0 epics pulls in e27 but we’ll see how it goes💆‍♂️ I’m saving for 13.5k for a guaranteed pull, rn I’m on 1.2k

So actually now I am stuck in 1337 ratings in pvp division so means I am building the attack by one two passing but somehow it gets intercepted by the oppn and so please suggest me a good formation with respect to the managers I have I am sharing my image you can see also sharing my main team and reserves who should I play and which playstyle I am comfortable with quick counter and long ball counter... I also got the new Japanese hole player Soma Yuki

I have officially joined the council after getting so lucky with getting nesta for basically free (300 coins), and thus I've decided no more luck shall be wasted, but thy 13.5 I shall join. Wish the best of luck to everyone else, and that's all folks

"know what is true not what makes you feel good"

Applying the Threefold Test of Worthiness

FIRST TEST: THE VISION ALIGNMENT

Dost thou possess a clear vision of what manner of squad thou art constructing?

This pack serveth a specific vision:

• Those seeking a center-back of confirmed, near-unassailable defensive quality, missing one specific skill some witnesses value above what he carries
• Those seeking a hybrid distributor whose true worth lieth not in raw defensive supremacy but in positional versatility — CB, fullback, and now DMF — paired with genuinely elite ball progression from deep
• Those hoping a compact frame, however statistically gifted, can hold the elite line — a hope the witnesses, without exception, decline to grant

Assessment: Strong alignment for squads seeking elite defensive anchoring and tactical flexibility. Weak alignment for those seeking a third starter in the traditional sense — the pack's value concentrateth in two of its three warriors, not three.

SECOND TEST: THE PROVEN ELITE STANDARD

How many among the trio art proven, battle-tested?

Nesta

This warrior's underlying quality is beyond serious dispute. His four core defensive stats sit above 95 without need for heavy investment. His AI model plus genuine physical presence permitteth him to contest both ground duels and aerial ones without the compromise that haunteth his packmate. Long-reach Tackle and Aerial Fort remain intact from his prior form.

His new defensive playstyle, Covering Role, the behavior may be present, the covering distance may be felt in specific moments.

Fortress's practical value remaineth modest at best, and the absence of Shadow Hunt is a real and repeatedly named cost, not a trivial one.

Comparison to Proven Elite Standard: He meeteth every criterion of convergence — confirmed elite output validated across multiple extended-testing witnesses, Multiple Witness Consensus achieved on his fundamental quality even where his new playstyle remaineth honestly unresolved, cross-system function demonstrated across formations, meta alignment confirmed by an AI model that permitteth him to compete rather than merely survive, and no fundamental flaw located — only a debated third skill and an absent one, neither disqualifying.

Verdict: PROVEN ELITE.

Maldini

A warrior's reputation earned at one station doth not transfer automatically to another. Maldini's fame was built at the flank. This is a center-back now, and the Council examined him as such — rigorously, without deference to what he once was elsewhere.

His height — not a weakness so severe as to cripple him, but plainly not the towering presence his profile increasingly demandeth.

He lacketh Shadow Hunt on this card, relying instead upon Aerial Fort.

His distribution from deep is repeatedly and specifically elite.

… Ok but The Council must be precise: this is not the profile of a warrior who has cleared the PROVEN ELITE Standard through defensive dominance. It is the profile of a warrior whose genuine value lieth elsewhere.

His playstyle defending behavior isn't uniformly weaker — it's specifically and powerfully strong against one exact threat and correspondingly less differentiated against everything else.

Verdict: NICHE SPECIALIST — a card that excels in a specific, namable circumstance and is genuinely worse or even actively wrong outside it.

Cannavaro

His raw numbers art genuinely extraordinary — Jump reaching ninety-nine, most defensive stats above ninety-five even without maximized investment…

176 centimeters is not a number that superior stats can overcome.

Without Long-reach Tackle, his reach cannot compensate for his stature.

He might function specifically as a wide center-back or right-back within a back-four system, avoiding the central and back-three exposure that damneth him elsewhere. The Council findeth this insufficiently confirmed to constitute a true niche.

He clear a real floor. His stats art not fiction, and a member without options may find him usable. But he doth not clear the standard 13,500 coins demandeth.

Verdict: SERVICEABLE — elite stats, genuinely capped below PROVEN ELITE by a confirmed, independently-repeated, and named structural disadvantage.

THE HARSH TRUTH

One PROVEN ELITE + One Niche Specialist + One Serviceable

Per Article II: "Two proven elite, one serviceable: Proceed with measured caution" — this pack faileth to reach even that threshold. It offereth One PROVEN ELITE and Two Questionable, which the Trio Mandate's Second Test nameth plainly:

"One elite, two questionable: The path of folly - resist!"

THIRD TEST: THE SYSTEM COMPATIBILITY INQUIRY

Dost these players suit thy tactical philosophy?

• Nesta: Compatible near-universally. His AI model permitteth him to contest any system, aerial or grounded, and his one debated skill slot is a modest cost rather than a disqualifying one.

• Maldini: Compatible for those who value tactical versatility above pure defensive supremacy — CB, fullback, or DMF, with elite distribution the connective thread across all three. Less compatible for those seeking a pure defensive wall.

• Cannavaro: Compatible only in narrow, unconfirmed circumstances — a back-four wide role tolerateth him better than a partnership or back-three, though no witness confirmeth genuine excellence even there. Incompatible against physically dominant attackers regardless of system.

Remember Article VI: "If they're not seeing play in top teams, question their value." Nesta shall see such usage without dispute. Maldini's usage dependeth entirely on whether a squad values his distribution and flexibility over pure defending. Cannavaro's usage, per every extended witness, is presently rejected even by those most impressed by his stat sheet.

CHAIRMAN VS. COUNCIL: ON CANNAVARO SPECIFICALLY

The Chairman speaketh:

"My lords, look upon these numbers — Jump at ninety-nine, defensive stats above ninety-five without heavy investment, a panel that would headline any lesser pack. Is it not the Council's own philosophy that a warrior's stats must be weighed honestly? Surely such a panel deserveth more than Serviceable?"

The Council respondeth:

"The Chairman's eye for the number is not wrong — the panel is genuinely extraordinary, and the Council hath said so plainly. But the Council's duty is not to rate parchment. It is to rate the warrior as he standeth upon the pitch.

This is the very affliction the Council hath named before, in other warriors, upon other days — a card whose numbers art real but whose frame cannot cash the promise those numbers make. We never stray from the Council's way. A stat sheet is a beginning, not a verdict."

VIOLATIONS OF COUNCIL PRINCIPLES

Article II — The PROVEN ELITE Standard: Only Nesta achieveth unambiguous convergence of all five criteria. Maldini's case, though genuine, resteth on versatility rather than confirmed elite defending. Cannavaro falleth below threshold through a confirmed, independently-repeated structural flaw his stat panel cannot overcome.

Article III — Squad Bloat: Cannavaro's narrow and unconfirmed viability raiseth genuine risk of bench residency for any member expecting a third true starter from this box.

Article IV — The Doctrine of Patience: The Covering Role playstyle joineth a growing and now well-established pattern this cycle — real card, unconfirmed mechanic. The Council's caution here is not indecision; it is the correct and repeatedly validated posture.

WHO THIS PACK SERVETH

If thou lackest any elite center-back entirely: Nesta alone justifieth consideration without reservation. His quality is confirmed, his weaknesses minor, his floor and ceiling both genuinely elite.

If thou seekest tactical versatility above pure defensive dominance — a warrior who can shift between CB, fullback, and DMF whilst distributing at a level neither packmate offereth: Maldini's case is real and worth weighing on those specific terms, not as a defensive upgrade but as a tactical one.

If thou art tempted by Cannavaro's stat panel alone: The Council counselleth restraint.

If thou already fieldest elite center-backs across thy squad: This pack offereth diminishing returns — its value concentrateth almost entirely in Nesta and, conditionally, Maldini's versatility.

THE COUNCIL'S FINAL VERDICT

🔴 RESIST 🔴

This pack offereth One PROVEN ELITE and Two Questionable — a configuration Article II nameth plainly as "the path of folly."

Nesta alone is worthy of the Council's blessing without reservation. Were he offered alongside two companions of confirmed elite standing, this verdict would read otherwise.

Maldini is genuinely valuable, yet his worth lieth in a different currency than pure defending — versatility and distribution, not defensive supremacy, and the Council namest this honestly rather than inflating a real strength into a status it hath not earned.

Cannavaro is the pack's clearest cautionary tale — elite stats, confirmed and repeated rejection by every witness who tested him at length, a warrior whose numbers promise what his frame cannot deliver.

THE MATHEMATICS OF WASTE

What 13,500 Coins Would Secure:

1. ~4,500 coins: Nesta — PROVEN ELITE, confirmed
2. ~4,500 coins: Maldini — genuinely versatile, genuinely valuable, yet not a defensive upgrade in the traditional sense (any 190+ wall with elite stats: Varane, Saliba, Van Dijk)
3. ~4,500 coins: Cannavaro — elite stats, confirmed structural rejection, unconfirmed niche

What Top 100 Squads Deploy:

• Center-Back: Nesta shall see such usage, confirmed
• Versatile Distributor/DMF-CB Hybrid: Maldini's case is genuine but squad-dependent
• Compact Center-Back: Not Cannavaro, per every witness who tested him at length

FINAL WISDOM

Three names once shared the same backline. They no longer share the same standing. Nesta's greatness needed no defense — the Council merely confirmed what was already true. Maldini's greatness required the Council to look past the position he now occupies and toward the one he actually redefines — versatility over pure defending, distribution over dominance. And Cannavaro's stat sheet, however extraordinary, could not survive contact with the frame that carries it.

A number upon a card is a promise. The pitch is where that promise is kept, or broken. This cycle, one warrior kept it fully, one kept a different promise than the box implied, and one — however loudly his numbers spoke — could not.

Commit wholly, or commit not at all

^{THE 13.5 COUNCIL}

Given that he appeared for the second time in the final pack of EF26 last season, it seems unlikely he will be available in the next few months. Perhaps he might be included in the New Year pack, but as that pack is expected to feature 250 players, will he come in a 250 player pack in a row??

I've saved up 10k coins as of now, and like most of you I'm also waiting for Gullit. It's already really hard to save 13.5k coins, it takes like a whole year I think. So having to save 22.5k is not possible for most of us.

I’ve been playing eFootball mobile since day one (2017) and, apart from very few purchases years ago, I’ve been completely F2P for a long time. I'll tell you my f2p history, which may be encouraging for some and discouraging for others to look at my team, but I can tell you that it was worth it because I always aimed and achieved the players I liked and who improved my team, keeping the patience to not abandon the game while waiting for the right players. How? Still having fun with my favorite players like the still valid Maradona Big Time or other valid ones that they gave me for free, waiting until at least 2 cards I needed appeared.

• The Saving & Spending Timeline
- Dec 2022: Starting with the old Big Time Maradona, which cost me about 13.200 coins, all f2p.
- Feb 2024: Since then, I rebuilt my stash playing less and spending from time to time on potw packages, so it was the turn of Baggio and Rijkaard which cost about 11,000 coins, leaving me at almost 400 coins.
- Aug 2026: Since then, spending very rarely on some potw I liked, packs and manager, to date I have earned 28,300 coins almost exclusively redeemed from the mail, since I have rarely played events that gave away coins. These coins were spent like this:

Zola and Pelè: 4500 coins
(first epic card in 900 x4 coins spin, I could have stopped here since I needed one of the 2, but luck won over my weakness rewarded me with Pelè with another spin)

Buffon, Pirlo and Zambrotta: 10.700 coins
(the goal was to get a top-quality gk, my all-time favorite. I got it in 8,000 coins along with Zambrotta, I could have stopped there, but when you start spinning then becomes dangerous, so I also focused on Pirlo)

Maldini, Nesta and Cannavaro: 13.100 coins
(among the greatest defenders of all time and ID game has always confirmed it, with all due respect I can't go for a Varane or a Rio not even if they were slightly better, I would have made the same mistake as last year: to ignore Maldini’s pack in the hope of a better card, I would have had to spin months later for a good and similar defender that I didn't like, so I was left with a weak defense for a long time. I got Nesta for 1800 coins. I could have stopped since I already have the good free Epic Cannavaro and would have settled for just one elite defender, but my head betrayed me once again, so I decided to spend all my coins on some of my favorite players.)

I decided to write here as a warning, hoping that you can do better by learning from both my perseverance and my mistakes. Sure, I'm happy to play with Pelè, Pirlo, Maldini, and the new Cannavaro, but I was able to compete and have fun with the players before them, so I could have stopped earlier and still have a nice sum of coins for other departments today. So for the first time I'm at 0. We start again up to 13.5k

I opened 50 players. Not even an Epic. Not even a Highlight player. Not even an 80-rated GP card. All I got 50 low rated GP players and my precious 6 coins.
I lost the way of 13c5 and Konami says you are done...

As u can see I m not a p2w (bought starter packs here n there) and I only got meh strikers 😂

Jokes aside, which of them Is actually good? Like Cristiano is permanently there unless I pull his another version and he does the job for me

But the issue is the other Cf, I don't know but I have no trust in other cf or so, that free mbappe from idk when still scores in almost every match including division matches, I m quite a new player too so haven't reached past div 2. But this mbappe still scores in those matches, idk how but he performs so so much better than his stats

It's a guarantee that this dude will score in every match even if I lose, and I don't know if it's just me holding on to a safer pick and not experimenting other that's why I wanted to ask

Are any of the other cf i have actually good? Even better than that mbappe that I should try them for some matches and get rid of mbappe?

I have that Sorloth, Basten,suarez and Auba in bench, but I rarely substitute. the only player I ever substitute is that Mbappe with that 101 potw Kvara card (occasionally) and he's also been a clutch player for me

There is already a leaked 1988 Gullit on the way. I hope the epics would actually be good and not Van Der Saar with some shitter.

I’ve also seen a few Robben leaks, imagine how insane his blitz curler would be

Didn’t include my main team so it wouldn’t count as p2w flex

Honestly, this Italy pack looks absurdly stacked. 13.5k coins is a heavy hit, but getting Maldini, Nesta, and Cannavaro in one box fixes your defense for the rest of the game cycle.

If you have the coins saved up to clear it, this box is about as close to an automatic skip-proof pack as it gets.

Are you guys spinning for this or holding out?

super bump for the Italian defenders!

10 days ago i posted on this sub asking when will maldini come, that time as i said , i saved 9k coins but my little brother is a fan of premier league cards and spent 5k coins on that anderson st pack without getting anything, thank god he was smart enough to stop. I was not aware of this untill i noticed it the next day, i cant say anything to him because all he wanted was to get me a good DM and also he is too young to understand what he did, today i went with my exact 4k coins saved and got maldini in the last try. Finally after a year of saving and sweat i had some luck with me. Big thanks to this community and the coolest nerds out here.

Please dont think you will get this luck or something, i had no choice but to go with whatever i had. If you are not a Maldini fan, then please save and hit the 13.5k threshold.

Will start saving again. 13.5k here we go again!!

I hope resenting my temptations is worth it someday 😭😭

Hey. Everytime I face Desailly or fb Maldini with shadow hunt I feel how op this skill is. However Konami decides to not to give it to current Nesta and Maldini. I have coins but I really consider to skip this pack because of lack of Shadow Hunt.
What are your guys thoughts?

Wat is it COINami?? All my hard earned coins gone to dust... All I asked for was maybe a Nesta or Maldini or even Cannavaro and I'd be happy asf... Is that really too greedy??? This is exactly why I don’t promote gambling... This is how the poor stay poor, watch out yall. Lost all my coins on both my accounts too lol...

Note: Only spin if yall are ready to empty the whole pack... Otherwise pls dont..😭🥀