Is there any reason my strikers might keep hitting it at the keeper?

They have good finishing, composure, decisions and that but they have this fetish for hitting right at the keeper. Their morale is superb

meanwhile, whenever a player scores against me I look at his stats and they're usually sub standard but they can still bang it in easily?

How often does this happen?

Try players with "Places shots" PPM!

Every match

Try players with "Places shots" PPM!

This...

I notice this happens far to much as well and the "shoots with power" PPM is useless as since 10.3, I never see them hit the ball any harder and even so it's still right at the keeping most times.

There are a lot of things that figure into this when it comes down to it but the bottom line is if you have a guy that will still put it on net tell them to place shots.

Every match

Don't believe you... every match your strikers miss a hatful, and the opposition score?

Lowering your strikers creative freedom is an oft suggested solution for this problem

Don't believe you... every match your strikers miss a hatful, and the opposition score?

Lowering your strikers creative freedom is an oft suggested solution for this problem

How does lowering creativity affect where they shoot the ball?

But I do believe him, because my guys do it every single match as well. For every 3-4 shots into the keeper though someone finally puts it into a corner, teams just good enough to generate those chances.

I don't know either, but its supposed to work.

I think you'd be better off increasing creative freedom. Then they'd try and do different things.

Anyway: the ME calculates that the shot will be saved, but there aren't enough "save" animations. It therefore tends to default to that one, so the shot has to go straight at the goalkeeper.

Don't believe you... every match your strikers miss a hatful, and the opposition score?

Lowering your strikers creative freedom is an oft suggested solution for this problem

I get this problem, not "every match" but I'd say every 1 of 3 games my strikers with "Shoots with power" decide to smash the ball at the keeper. Usually my top goal scorers have "Places shot" or neither set though.

Knowing other people have had this issue will make me think about asking all strikers to place shots.

Anyway: the ME calculates that the shot will be saved, but there aren't enough "save" animations. It therefore tends to default to that one, so the shot has to go straight at the goalkeeper.

I still don't totally agree with this because while my team is bouncing calls off a keepers chest on the other side my keeper is standing on his head diving left and right making saves as you'd expect. I've seen this with my most recent keeper in 2-3 games. Literally he looks like an IRL keeper making saves and my strikers look like that are shooting at the keeper not the net.

Really I think it's partly the PPM's, obviously placed shots have a better concept. But the power shot PPM seems terrible. My young winger with lower finishing, composure, and no shooting PPM's gets fewer chances then my strikers with 'power shots' but he has a higher goals per shots ratio. This obviously goes far beyond animations.

I still don't totally agree with this because while my team is bouncing calls off a keepers chest on the other side my keeper is standing on his head diving left and right making saves as you'd expect. I've seen this with my most recent keeper in 2-3 games. Literally he looks like an IRL keeper making saves and my strikers look like that are shooting at the keeper not the net.

I can only think of three "save" animations, straight, left and right. That could mean that a shot that is going slightly to the right is shown as straight down the middle, and it has to be significantly down the right to register that save animation, for example.

If it was solely down to PPMs, every team would do the same or very similar, as there isn't a great deal of flunctuation in PPMs.

I can only think of three "save" animations, straight, left and right. That could mean that a shot that is going slightly to the right is shown as straight down the middle, and it has to be significantly down the right to register that save animation, for example.

If it was solely down to PPMs, every team would do the same or very similar, as there isn't a great deal of flunctuation in PPMs.

Agreed... but at the same time what is power shooting doing? My guys don't shoot any differently with it and I've never once seen a shot that powered through a save. Every goal my strikers make is with a placed shot.

I'm not saying its proven or anything for sure. I just know what I see in my experience... an excellent keeper makes saves left and right all the time, a player with weak scoring stats and no power shot scores on fewer chances, ever goal scored by my strikers with power shot are still placed shots.

These are things I see in my games. The game is awesome, but we all know there are areas of the ME that need improvement. I just happen to think this is one of them based on these experiences. If indeed it is 100% down to animations then its all the more reason the graphics need updating (hopefully FM11 is updated enough). But I just think there is more to it then just the animations, I do agree the animations do have an affect just that they aren't the only cause.

I get this every match......with the likes of david villa and messi etc...

I did think that SCIAG could be right about not enough animations. But I will try to stop my players from shooting with power and see if it helps.