Random bad ratings (especially for centre halves)

Has anybody else noticed a problem with certain players being given ridiculously poor ratings and there being no way of fixing it?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not daft enough to think that if a player simply looks good on his ratings he should constantly get 6.8+, and I'm also aware that other aspects such as being unsettled etc have an impact upon performances (I signed a Ghanaian who should have been outstanding but just never cut it). However, for example, I have a recently purchased defender who has top defensive ratings, a good height (6ft4) and has received interest from Bayern and AC Milan of around the £15,000,000. So, clearly, he's talented. I also purchased him from Southampton and there's no proof of any personal issues, so no problem there.

Still, English players can just not settle at other clubs, right? Or maybe his constant 5.6/5.7/5.8 ratings are due to lapses in concentration and awful mistakes, but his general play is ok? Problem is, I watch games on full match and he never does anything wrong (not to justify such a rating anyway). In the last game at Tottenham, I won 1-0 with the opposition creating one chance, and two of my centre backs were given 7s while this lad was given a 5.7. It wasn't anything to do with awful distribution, constantly being out of position or one glaring error that nearly cost me. It just seems he has to score to be given anything about a 6 and I don't get it.

I can imagine people replying saying, 'if you play three centre backs, this is probably why as he's probably not comfortable in that position' but that doesn't really explain much. Was just wondering if anyone else has had this problem, whether it's resolvable or whether I should snap Milan's hands off for the useless git!!

I agree! I have a dutch regen named "Eddy Merry", stats wise he clearly appears to be the best CB in the game right now, but he gets poor rating in every game.. I just can't get him to perform well...

I agree! I have a dutch regen named "Eddy Merry", stats wise he clearly appears to be the best CB in the game right now, but he gets poor ratings in every game.. I just can't get him to perform well...

If a player plays well and makes one mistake (especially for center backs) then that will significantly lower their ratings, even if they play well for the rest of the game

Is he a short CB? I seem to recall many people had problems that because 'headers won' is so important in a CB rating, their short CB would get a low rating despite playing well, simply because he doesn't win many headers. Whether this has been fixed since i read it, i don't know, but it is a possible cause.

Is anything glaringly obvious from his match stats, such as poor pass completion or tackle success?

Is he a short CB? I seem to recall many people had problems that because 'headers won' is so important in a CB rating, their short CB would get a low rating despite playing well, simply because he doesn't win many headers. Whether this has been fixed since i read it, i don't know, but it is a possible cause.

This. If he has 'Jumping' under 11-12 then he will likely get lower ratings on average compared to a DC with 14+

Yes, the jumping thing is really important.

I had a fullback who always did well but my ass man insisted his best position was in central defence. I started using him as a CB after an injury and he became a "mistake led to goal" magnet. I hadn't noticed his jumping was 7!

there are 3 possible reasons:

- you're conceding a lot of goals and losing matches. it doesn't matter how well a center back (or full back or goalkeeper) plays - if you lose 5-0, all the center backs are going to have low ratings. obviously this can be counteracted if your defender gets some goals or assists himself. on the other hand, if you're winning matches, it doesn't matter how bad your guy plays individually - his rating won't be that low.

- your defender is losing a lot of headers (or he's not even getting in a position to compete for them). usually this is caused by low jumping, but it could also be caused by low anticipation, positioning, or simply the opposition has a really good aerial threat. think Drogba v. Senderos...

- your defender makes some mistakes. simple enough... this correlates with the other two reasons. I've seen defenders get a 0.1 rating because they didn't win a lot of headers, made a lot of mistakes, and their team conceded a lot of goals to boot.

I don't think passing % has a big effect on ratings (unless your bad passes turn directly into goals). oh, also, missing a penalty lowers your rating, as does missing a lot of easy goal chances.

Hmmm. I've checked his jumping and it's 14, which isn't exceptional but doesn't warrant loads of headers lost and thus his average rating of 6.43.

I'll need to check the number of headers won, but that's probably it. It's certainly not down to missing chances (he never gets one) or mistakes for goals (I never concede) so will have to look into this one.

It could just be he has low consistency stat, its a hidden one.

Hmmm. I've checked his jumping and it's 14, which isn't exceptional but doesn't warrant loads of headers lost and thus his average rating of 6.43.

I'll need to check the number of headers won, but that's probably it. It's certainly not down to missing chances (he never gets one) or mistakes for goals (I never concede) so will have to look into this one.

I'm having the same problem with a new CB I'm using on a team, great stats, probably the best of all my defense, but he's always got the lowest rating and has more mistake prone games then the others. I'm sure it's got to be he's got poor consistency (blasted scouting report for not seeing that). If you play pure and don't show hidden stats like that then it's a chance you have to take and make sure you have a reliable backup.

What annoys me more is when 4-5 players all 'randomly' have a bad game at the same time, even the really solid ones. Nothing like getting decimated and seeing your entire back line has <6 rating, including the sub'ed defenders. *sigh*

He could also be getting complacent and not really arsed to put in a proper effort. Very common with defenders in a successful team.

He could also be getting complacent and not really arsed to put in a proper effort. Very common with defenders in a successful team.

This you can see if you look at the stats during the match, it'll say 'having a bad game' or 'feeling complacent'. I've only seen the complacency one once with a star winger I had. Usually it's the simple bad game.