Ousmane Dembélé 97 TOTY Review: Is the 97-Pace, 5-Star/5-Star ST Worth 2M Coins? FC 26

In-game feel & playstyle

This is the 97 TOTY Dembélé played at ST, a distinct card from his 96 UCL RTTF variant. On the pitch he feels like a true Advanced Forward: 97 Pace paired with Explosive AcceleRATE means he hits top speed almost instantly, and with 95 Dribbling and 96 in-game dribbling he glides through tight spaces. The 5-star skill moves and 5-star weak foot remove almost every restriction in the final third, so you can finish with either foot and chain flair without fear. With a metaScore of 98.0 and an S meta tier, this is about as complete as an attacker gets in FC 26.

Strengths

• ✅ 97 Pace (97 Sprint Speed, 96 Acceleration in-game), blistering top speed with Explosive AcceleRATE for instant bursts past defenders.
• ✅ 5-star skill moves & 5-star weak foot, maximum flair and the freedom to finish confidently on either foot.
• ✅ 94 Shooting (94 Finishing, 98 Positioning), elite finishing and ghosting into the right spots as an Advanced Forward.
• ✅ 95 Dribbling (96 in-game), close control to weave through congested boxes.
• ✅ 90 Passing, comfortable dropping to CAM or drifting to RW thanks to alt positions.

Weaknesses

• ❌ 60 Defending, offers basically nothing tracking back, expected for a pure forward but worth noting.
• ❌ 77 Physical, can be bullied off the ball by stronger center backs in duels.
• ❌ 2,000,000 coin price, a massive investment that only big-budget squads can reach.

Best position, chemistry style & squads

Play him at ST as the listed card intends, with CAM and RW as natural fallbacks. His Pace and Shooting are already near max, so a chem style that boosts the few softer areas makes the most sense. A Hunter pushes Pace to the ceiling and lifts Shooting, ideal if you want a pure pace-and-finish threat. If you would rather shore up his frame and dribbling, a Hawk adds Pace, Shooting and the Physical he lacks. For links, he sits in Ligue 1 McDonald's and is French, so he slots cleanly alongside other Ligue 1 or France attackers and pairs naturally with PSG-heavy or French national-team builds.

Final verdict & ratings

Buy this if you have the coins for a top-tier endgame striker and want a 5-star/5-star, Explosive, 97-pace finisher who carries the attack by himself. Skip it if your budget is tight; the 2M price is the real barrier, not the card, and the 60 Defending plus 77 Physical mean he is strictly an attacking luxury, not a do-it-all forward.

Conclusion

An S-tier TOTY striker with almost no in-game weaknesses; the only thing standing between you and Dembélé is the 2M coin tag.