FIFA 19 PenaltyEA Sports

How to take penalties on FIFA 19 on PS4 and Xbox One

Ahead of the release of FIFA 19, EA Sports released a variety of videos detailing all the new additions and changes to this year's version of the game.

One thing they did not flag, and which may be initially confusing for long-time fans, is that they've also tweaked how to take penalties in FIFA 19. This will probably result in a few missed shots from the penalty spot while you get used to the transition, but taking accurate spot kicks isn't a big deal as long as you know how.

The target and power bar remain from FIFA 18 and can be turned on or off using the Up arrow on the D-Pad. Leave this on while you get used to taking penalties in FIFA 19, as it will show you the direction of your kick as well as how much power you are using in your shot.

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The biggest change to penalties in FIFA 19 is that you now should power up your shot before deciding on the direction of the penalty. In FIFA 18 and older games, this was the opposite, so it is where most gamers have problems changing to the new game.

Hold the shoot button (by default this is Circle or B) to power up your shot. The longer you hold this, the more powerful your shot will be, but hold it too long and your shot will sail over the crossbar. Once your shot is powered up, you can then move the left stick to aim the penalty kick towards the corners of the goal.

This can be a bit tricky at first, especially if your penalty taker has a quick, short run-up. However, you can also determine the speed of their run-up using L2 or LT to make the player run slower or R2/RT to have them sprint towards the ball. Holding the left shoulder button will give you more time to aim your shot and is essential when first learning the new penalty approach in FIFA 19.

If you have not put enough power on your shot accidentally, you can use R2/RT to run faster and therefore put more power behind the kick. This also looks great as the striker smashes the ball past the goalkeeper.

Players such as Neymar and Paul Pogba have their own unique run-ups in FIFA 19, but you can customise your own run-up by using the right stick to change the position of your player, moving them in all four directions.

FIFA 19 PenaltiesEA Sports

You can change your penalty taker before the kick by pressing R2 or RT. A list of all your players will then appear in the corner where you can select using X or A. This list contains short information on each selected player and shows it in comparison to your current penalty taker. The attributes shown are Foot, PWR (Shot Power), FKA (Free Kick Accuracy), CRV (Curve) and PEN (Penalty Kick Accuracy).

You can also do skilled penalty kicks by using R1/RB and shoot for a finesse shot or L1/LB and shoot for a chip shot. The latter allows you to do Panenkas, but these are very easy to save, especially if the goalkeeper doesn't move.

Saving penalties is more straightforward. If the opponent aims the shot before powering up, you can see their player's head looking towards the corner where they are aiming. Dive this direction and then you have a great chance of saving it.

You can taunt your opponent by moving along the line using the left stick before the penalty is taken. This can sometimes give you a psychological advantage before the penalty by putting your opponent off.

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