Knuckle Shot
New moveChecked
In one sentence
A Stunning Shot struck with 50–65 % power at an almost still ball becomes a knuckle shot, aimed as if Finishing were 5 higher. How the ball then flies differently could not be traced in the code.
Who does this affect?
Both: the shot type is chosen the same way for the player you control and for CPU players. CPU free-kick takers with the skill also use the Stunning Shot modifier and are rated higher as free-kick takers.
How it works
When the conditions below are met, the game labels the shot as a knuckle shot and adds 5 to his Finishing inside the aiming calculation. The window is narrow: a Stunning Shot, power bar from 50 % up to (not including) 65 %, his stronger foot, and a ball moving slower than 30 km/h. The knuckle label is passed on with the kick, but no code was found that reads it to change the ball's flight, so any wobble or swerve could not be confirmed.
When it applies
- Stunning Shot command, ordinary shot (not a Controlled Shot, not a chip).
- Power bar 50 % or more and under 65 %.
- The standard instep shooting kick is used.
- Stronger foot, or Weak Foot Accuracy at its top level.
- Ball moving slower than 30 km/h when he strikes it: a ball he has stopped, a slow roll-out, or a dead ball.
Without it
The same Stunning Shot is an ordinary shot with plain Finishing.
Which stats it reads
Finishing raised by the skill
Knuckle shots aim as if Finishing were 5 higher. Biggest effect from 60 to 85, about half from 90 up; not wasted at 99 because the +5 is added inside the shot after the 99 cap.
Weak Foot Accuracy decides if it happens
With the weaker foot the knuckle shot only happens if Weak Foot Accuracy is at its top level.
In numbers
Finishing → · degrees
Chart values
| 60 | 2.19 | 2.32 |
| 80 | 1.50 | 1.67 |
| 99 | 1.33 | 1.36 |
| 120 | 1.23 | 1.25 |
Common questions
Does Knuckle Shot need high Kicking Power?
Short answerNo
Kicking Power is not part of the trigger and not read by the knuckle code.
Does it work with the weak foot?
Short answerPartly
Only if Weak Foot Accuracy is at its top level.
Can I knuckle a moving ball in open play?
Short answerPartly
Only if the ball is moving slower than 30 km/h when he strikes it.
Does it make the ball wobble or swerve?
Short answerPartly
The shot is labelled as a knuckle shot, but no code was found that reads this label in the ball's flight, so a different flight could not be confirmed.
Does it make free kicks better?
Short answerPartly
Not shown: the free-kick code reads the skill only to cancel Dipping Shot's topspin. Whether a Stunning free kick can also take the knuckle label (and its +5) was not traced.
Not yet confirmed
- How the knuckle ball flies: the label is handed on with the kick, but nothing that reads it was found anywhere in the game code.
- Which free-kick style keeps Dipping Shot's topspin for players who have both skills.
- Whether direct free kicks go through the same knuckle check as open-play shots was not traced.
- A special match mode forces the knuckle shot type for everyone; it is probably a training or challenge mode.
The maths
ConditionPower window 50 % to just under 65 %. At 65 % or more the shot can become a Rising Shot instead (if he has that skill).
ConditionThe ball must be moving slower than 30 km/h, so a first-time Stunning Shot on a pass almost never becomes a knuckle shot.
DetailDirect free kicks: the free-kick code reads the skill only to stop Dipping Shot's topspin (if he has both), unless he uses one particular free-kick style that could not be identified.
DetailOne +5 per shot: it does not stack with other +5 shot skills; Phenomenal Finishing's +7 replaces it.
DetailNot used by this skill: Kicking Power — not part of the trigger and not read by the knuckle code.; Curl — not read.
Booster points per stat
FinishingBooster points count here.