The post-World Cup blues have been quelled; the big leagues are back and FIFA 15 is finally upon us. Not only that but the folks over at EA Sports Canada have exercised a degree of empathy with regards to the plight that gamers face while gunning for the elusive Platinum Trophy within the famed football series. Much like FIFA 14 before it, this year’s version tones down the game’s Trophy hunting difficulty, instead encouraging players to have a go of all the modes available and play with a degree of freedom that’d make the likes of Chris Kamara proud.
The vast majority of Trophies on the 46-strong list aren’t particularly taxing – you’ll unlock them without even breaking a sweat, either by chance or with minimal effort. That being said, there are a couple of flies in the proverbial ointment and that’s where we here at PlayStation Universe come in. Ever the bastions of gaming goodwill, we’ve cherry-picked a definitive list of some of the harder Trophies within FIFA 15’s extensive list and delivered a rundown on how to snatch them up en route to that shiny Platinum Trophy.
Underdogs 
Beat a 5 Star Legendary CPU AI team with a 3 Star or lower team
While this particular task looks to be a little daunting – especially against a difficulty as threatening as Legendary – it can be a walk in the park provided you alter the game for your benefit. Within the options menu you can manually set your opposition at a handicap, reducing their speed or shooting accuracy – do this enough and you’ll be on your way to the Trophy in no time.
On the Rise 
Earn Promotion in Seasons
Provided you have a decent grasp of FIFA 15’s gameplay mechanics, earning promotion out of division 10 shouldn’t be too tough an endeavour – if you’re struggling, however, why not click on over to our extensive Online Seasons guide to get you started on the road to victory.
Going All Out 
Against the CPU on Legendary, score a goal past the 80th using the All Out Attack mentality
Just like the ‘Underdogs’ Trophy, there’s multiple ways you can circumvent the supposed difficulty inherent with scoring a goal late on in the game against Legendary. One way is to pick a half-star team to face, bide your team, and then charge upon their goal from the 80th minute onwards – more often than not you’ll score, especially from headed crosses. Another is to tamper with the CPU difficulty sliders in the options menu, rendering the opposition completely useless and meaning that you can shimmy on through to their goal before slotting the ball home and unlocking this silver Trophy. Just make sure you’ve changed your team to ‘’all-out attack’’ mode by using the left analogue stick before you begin your siege or else it won’t count.
Controlled Defending
Perform a Standing Tackle and keep possession of the ball 10 times
This one sounds a little trickier than it actually is. In reality, the best protocol for standing tackles is to hold L2 to ready yourself, sound out the opponent with the ball, anticipate what they’re going to do next and lunge in with O; make sure you’re not close to the edges of the pitch as you can’t have the ball going out of play given the fact you’ve got to maintain possession afterwards. If you’re finding it challenging you can drop down a difficulty or even dumb-down the AI to your liking. Once that’s completed successfully, simply rinse and repeat – the Trophy will soon be yours.
Friends to the End
Finish a Friendlies Season
This one’s a cinch and enjoyable one at that – provided you’ve got a friend on-hand to play with you online – as all you’ve got to do play a points-based five-match season to completion. The outcome of the matches don’t matter and it’s made even easier by the fact you can have two-minute halves for each match, making the whole process incredibly quick. And if that wasn’t enough, one of you can even quit after the five minute in-game mark, which will result in a loss but ultimately still go towards the fulfilment of the season.
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Toe Poke
Score 1 goal with a Toe Poke
There’s definitely a hefty degree of luck around this particular Trophy as evident by its standing, but there’s certain ways you can make things turn in your favour. Firstly, set the game’s weather to rainy; this will cause the ball to slow down ahead of being received by a player, making toe pokes and slide finishes more common. Secondly, using speedy wingers in a 4-3-3, get ahead of the opposition’s full-back near enough to the byline and press triangle hard, sending a shooting into the box for your on-rushing striker. If it works, and the ball’s coming across fast enough in the wet grass, your striker should toe poke the ball ahead of the despairing ‘keeper. Failing that, you can also play a through ball (triangle) centrally for your striker to chase, if it’s optimal the ‘keeper should come out to try and collect the ball allowing your striker to get that inch-perfect toe poke into the net before the ‘keeper reaches for the interception. The same general idea can be applied to the ‘Extra Effort’ Trophy, too.
Keeper’s Best Friend
Prevent a goal with a sliding goal line clearance
Continuing the trend of luck-based Trophies, ‘Keeper’s Best Friend’ can be immensely difficult if you leave the game to its conventional devices, but as ever, if you tinker and tailor, things can become a little more bearable. For this particular Trophy it’s best to go down the two-player route: set your controlled player on your goal line and have your friend approach your penalty box; once the player’s around 30 yards from goal, send your ‘keeper out and have your friend round him before lining up and pressing a straight triangle through ball towards the goal (it should skim along the ground with a little bit of pace). Finally, as it approaches the line, press square to slide tackle and hopefully, with a bit of luck, you’ll clear the ball in the appropriate manner. Practice begets success so prepare to do this a couple of times in order to achieve the right result.
Best in Show
Win a division title in FUT Seasons
This Trophy’s a lot like ‘On the Rise’ but can be done offline, making it that little bit easier. Make sure the difficulty’s a decent reflection of your abilities and your Ultimate Team’s chemistry is as close to 100 percent as possible. Play as you would normally, rack up the points and secure your first division title.
Park That Bus
Playing against the CPU on Legendary, avoid conceding from the 70th on with Park the Bus mentality
Nothing untoward about FIFA 15’s ‘Park That Bus’ Trophy as you’ve just got to weather the proverbial storm on Legendary difficulty for roughly 20 in-game minutes. Provided you’re playing against a lowly-rated team you shouldn’t have too much trouble. If you’re still struggling, however, try to shift play centrally, as the AI’s ability from crosses can be at times frustrating. Either way, given the fact that most of your team will be in your own final third, most teams rated below four stars will be unable to get close enough to your net to score.
Knuckle Ball
Score 1 goal with a Knuckle Shot
This by far the most infuriating of FIFA 15’s Trophy spread, requiring a little bit a consistent technique and a whole lot of luck. It’s best to attempt a knuckle shot via a free-kick from at least 30 yards out. Use the likes of Ronaldo or Bale as your taker. Line it up so that the ball’s flight is directly over the very middle of the wall and fill the power gauge about three quarters of the way full. Now the next step’s of paramount importance: you’ve got to try and counteract the natural flight of the ball, so if your taker is right-footed pull the stick slightly right or if he’s left-footed pull it a little to the left. If done correctly the ball’s spin will cease in the air, creating an unpredictable flight and thus a knuckle ball. You’ve then got to hope that the ball reaches a corner of the goal that the ‘keeper can’t reach, thus unlocking the Trophy. There’s a lot of trial-and-error involved, but persist with it and try whenever you’ve got a free-kick that matches the above criteria.
We’ve got bundles of content for this year’s FIFA release, so don’t forget to check out our Online Seasons tips feature here, and our Career Mode best buys, too – before the all-important review later this week.
Have you picked up this year’s FIFA? Give us your views on the game in the comments section below.