Position Strength Issue

Currently on Fm2010 I have a small issue regarding players strengths in various positions.

I have a right back and when i play him at right back he has a green dot next to his name as its his strongest position. During an injury crisis I was forced to move him to left back for this dot to be changed to orange meaning this is a very weak position for him. THis would be understanable if I'd put him up front but RB and LB are fundamentally the same position but on different sides.

I can hear you you saying "ah but he'll have to use his left foot more than his right in that position, that'll make him weaker in that position" I could understand that argument to an extent but i dont think that would have a huge detrement on the players ability to play there and in my opinion shouldo nly make him slightly weaker not massivly weaker as is happening here.

Further frustration for me is that the player in question has equal ability with both feet so this shouldn't be hapening at all, with this player i see no real difference between the left back and right back position but the colour coded ability meter is showing otherwise. Its ruining my save, I have no other left backs and im unrealistically shipping loadso f goals from that flank because the game percieves my right back shouldnt be very good there - hope this is fixed for 2011

There's nothing to fix - players have prefferred and natural positions, just like in real life. I don't know if you have ever played much football before, but players are varied and different in mindset and philospophy.... some players understand the game from the centre, some players understand the game from the right, and other players understand the game from the left. Some are versatile enough to understand the game from no matter where they stand on the pitch.

Its far more than just a matter of which foot you kick with. Its about how you read the game, and where you feel comfortable playing. If you have been playing in this position since you were a 12 year old, then you become accustomed and naturalised to this position. It is much harder to simply swap positions at the drop of a hat and relies on more than just the foot you kick with.

In FM you have the option to retrain players and give them more positions. From what you have said in your OP, it sounds like your RB would be perfectly suited to also be trained as a LB. This will make him more versatile and give you more cover in your squad. But he is not going to become amazing in that position unless you help him out with training, too.

Personally in RL I played DL or ML in sunday league and you would think it would be easy to convert to DR/MR but in truth I found it really difficult when asked to play on the opposite side.

I think FM represents this fairly well and I haven't noticed a significant drop from playing a fullback on his wrong side.

Seriously, how many side-backs IRL that doing OK on the opposite side?

If IRL it's hard to find these kind of players then why should in-game players be able to operate 'competitively' without special training?

Currently on Fm2010 I have a small issue regarding players strengths in various positions.

I have a right back and when i play him at right back he has a green dot next to his name as its his strongest position. During an injury crisis I was forced to move him to left back for this dot to be changed to orange meaning this is a very weak position for him. THis would be understanable if I'd put him up front but RB and LB are fundamentally the same position but on different sides.

I can hear you you saying "ah but he'll have to use his left foot more than his right in that position, that'll make him weaker in that position" I could understand that argument to an extent but i dont think that would have a huge detrement on the players ability to play there and in my opinion shouldo nly make him slightly weaker not massivly weaker as is happening here.

Further frustration for me is that the player in question has equal ability with both feet so this shouldn't be hapening at all, with this player i see no real difference between the left back and right back position but the colour coded ability meter is showing otherwise. Its ruining my save, I have no other left backs and im unrealistically shipping loadso f goals from that flank because the game percieves my right back shouldnt be very good there - hope this is fixed for 2011

Err...

It's not which foot you kick with, it's positioning mainly. If you are used to the touchline being on your right, suddenly having it on your left will result in errors of judgement. You will also often drift too close to your left sided CB at left back, if you are normally a right back. It is why you often see FB's who don't usually play that side drifting out of position in a game and letting the winger have the space to cross. Paolo Ferreira when he started playing LB at Chelsea springs to mind...l

Paulo Ferreira isn't the greatest example, he does that on the right too

Orange is respectable.

Paulo Ferreira isn't the greatest example, he does that on the right too

Orange is respectable.

10 characters

Yeah agree with what everyone is saying. Most CBs struggle if they switch what sided CB they are so totally different wings would make a big difference.

Yeah demon rising made a very good point. Just because its opposite sides, it doesnt mean you should understand it just as well.

For example, im Right footed. But play as a left winger in real life. I tend to struggle more when im played on the right flank however. Some people are just natural in 1 position, and can play on the other side, just not feel as comfortable.

Yeah demon rising made a very good point. Just because its opposite sides, it doesnt mean you should understand it just as well.

For example, im Right footed. But play as a left winger in real life. I tend to struggle more when im played on the right flank however. Some people are just natural in 1 position, and can play on the other side, just not feel as comfortable.

Strangely ( at no level ) my two best positions were right and left midfield. Loved cutting in from the left, and loved getting up the touchline on the right. Hardly played Right mid, though, usually right back...