Impact of "Doesn't Enjoy Big Matches", "Inconsistent Performer" and related Pros and Cons

[Kewell_Beans]

Hi all, looking for some insight into the impact of certain Pro & Con player traits that appear in Coach Reports. Focusing on comfort in "big matches" and "consistent / inconsistent performer" traits, but also interested in any related or mitigating traits.

This post is a little bit long, but please bear with me!  Any insight, tips or advice greatly appreciated :-) 

Background:  Playing a local co-op save with a friend on FM15. We meet once or twice a month for 3-6 hours of game time. Currently half-way through our second season. We try to play as quickly as possible, as game time is quite limited. Started in League 2 in England, my friend manages Burton Albion while I took the reins at Tranmere Rovers. We both won promotion to League 1 in our first season, my friend (Burton) storming League 2 with 111 points, while I guided Tranmere to 2nd with 100 points.

In most saves I am guilty of not paying close attention to PPMs or mental traits such as comfort in "Big Matches" and "Consistent / Inconsistent Performer". I generally decide my "best eleven" through attributes and CA star rating, keeping an eye on Work Rate and Determination (see screenshot 1), tweaking the selection based on how players perform over time.

I am currently in 1st place with 51 points, while my friend is 2nd place with 50 points. A few weeks ago we were 12 and 10 points ahead of 3rd place, but we have both experienced a poor run of results and are now just 6 and 5 points ahead of 3rd place (Sheffield United, 45 points).

I have lost 6 of my last 12 league games, so I took a detailed look at Coach Reports for my First XI and Bench, and discovered the following:

 

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First Eleven

GK:  Good for Championship, Professional.

RB (WB-S):  Decent for Premiership, Driven, Professional, Explosive Pace.  Doesn’t Enjoy Big Matches, Inconsistent Performer, Competitive Streak, Poor in the Air.

CD-D:  Good for Championship, Professional, Good in the Air.  Fairly Slow Player, Competitive Steak.

CD-D:  Good for Championship, Consistent Performer, Professional, Good in the Air.  Fairly Slow Player, Competitive Streak.

LB (WB-S):  Good for Championship, Loyal, High Work Rate, Good Team Player.  Poor in the Air.

CM-D:  Good for Championship, Athletic, Professional.  Uncomfortable in Big Matches.

CM-S:  Decent for Premiership, Consistent Performer, Good Team Player.  Doesn’t Enjoy Big Matches.

RW (IF-S):  Leading Championship Player, Enjoys Big Matches, Professional, Great Pace.  Lack of Strength, Lacks Athleticism.

CAM (AP-A):  Good for Championship, Professional, Great Pace.  Doesn’t Enjoy Big Matches, Fairly Inconsistent Performer, Lack of Strength, Lacks Athleticism.

LW (W-A):  Good for Championship, Off the Ball Movement, Intelligent Player, Jovial Character.  Doesn’t Enjoy Big Matches, Lack of Strength, Lacks Athleticism.

AF:  Leading League 1 Player, Enjoys Big Matches, Good Team Player, High Work Rate.  Poor in the Air.

 

Bench

3rd choice CB:  Good for League 1, Enjoys Big Matches, Very Consistent Performer, Very Brave, Good Team Player.  Competitive Streak, Fairly Slow Player.

2nd choice RWB:  Good for League 1, Enjoys Big Matches, Strong Player, Athletic.  Fairly Inconsistent Performer, Fairly Slow Player.

3rd choice CM:  Good for Championship, Enjoys Big Matches, Consistent Performer, Complete Role Model, Professional, Very Brave, Good Team Player.  Lack of Intelligence, Lack of Movement.

2nd choice RW:  Good for League 1, Ability to Dribble, Skilful Player.  Lacks Athleticism, Lack of Natural Fitness.

2nd choice CAM:  Good for Championship, Enjoys Big Matches, Professional, Ability to Spot a Pass, Intelligent.  Fairly Inconsistent Performer, Fairly Susceptible to Injury, Lacks Athleticism, Lack of Strength.

2nd choice LW:  Good for League 1, Fairly Determined, Fairly Intelligent, Professional, Off the Ball Movement.  Lack of Strength, Lacks Athleticism.

2nd choice ST:  Good for League 1, Loyal, Great Pace.  Poor in the Air.

3rd choice ST:  Leading League 1 Player, Relishes Big Matches, Consistent Performer, Professional, Resolute, Ability to Make Right Decision.  Poor in the Air.

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Observations

-  5 of my best eleven are either 'uncomfortable' or 'don't enjoy' Big Matches

-  2 of those 5 players are also "Inconsistent Performers"

-  4 of those 5 players happen to be 4/5 of my midfield (4-2-3-1), which is a bit worrying  

-  4 of my 7 league losses so far this season have come against Top 6 teams:  Burton (2nd), Sheffield United (3rd), MK Dons (4th) and Swindon (5th)

-  In our 9 losses this season (7 league games, JP 1st round, League Cup 3rd round), the 5 players who do not enjoy big matches achieved 9 good performances from 38 starts, approx 1 good game in 4.

-  5 of my bench players either 'enjoy' or 'relish' Big Matches

-  3 of those 5 bench players are also "Consistent Performer" or "Very Consistent Performer"

-  We have the 2nd best Goals For, 3rd best Goals Against and joint-best Goal Difference in the league

-  Player performance for my First XI ranges from 7.0 - 7.6, but we have been pants against Top 6 teams 

-------------------------------------------------------

I could be wrong, but it feels like I have built a team of flat-track bullies, dominating weaker teams but struggling against Top 6 opposition 

Can anyone tell me...

1. What does FM consider to be a "big match"? Does this just apply to Cup games and matches against a club's rivals? Would it include games against clubs with significantly higher reputation (all competitions)? Does the game consider that we are 1st and 2nd, making games against title and promotion rivals "big matches"?

2. Do traits such as "consistent performer", "professional", "determined", "resolute", "brave" or "high work rate" compensate for "does not enjoy big matches" or "does not feel comfortable in big matches"?

3. Are the effects of "does not enjoy big matches" and "inconsistent performer" negligible if the players are considered good Championship or decent Premiership players, with 3.5+ CA?

4. Am I better off dropping some/all players who do not enjoy big matches for some/all of the highlighted games on my schedule (see screenshot 4)?  Is it worth dropping 3.5-4.5 star players for 2-2.5 star reserves, with weaker attributes (but good for League 1) but stronger mental traits preferable?

5. Does "inconsistent performer" cause poor performance at random, or is this most likely to occur against strong opposition and/or big matches?

6. Would "fairly inconsistent performer" mean something like poor performance in 33% of games, and "inconsistent performer" 50% of games? Or is it completely random?

7. Do "inconsistent performer" and "does not enjoy big matches" fade away naturally with experience? Does tutoring remove or improve either trait?

 

[russell9]

1 hour ago, Kewell_Beans said:

Can anyone tell me...

1. What does FM consider to be a "big match"? Does this just apply to Cup games and matches against a club's rivals? Would it include games against clubs with significantly higher reputation (all competitions)? Does the game consider that we are 1st and 2nd, making games against title and promotion rivals "big matches"?

2. Do traits such as "consistent performer", "professional", "determined", "resolute", "brave" or "high work rate" compensate for "does not enjoy big matches" or "does not feel comfortable in big matches"?

 

Good questions. I would like to know the answer for 1 & 2 as well.

[phnompenhandy]

The player's overall match performance is lower than optimal when inconsistent - it affects all attributes.

Consistency applies to all matches. An attribute of 10 should = performs optimally in 50% of matches, randomly. I guess Big Matches means Consistency in Big Games.

An inconsistent Championship player is likely to perform better than a consistent National League player.

Consistency and Big Matches improve by the player getting experience and performing okay. If you drop him from all Big Matches his attribute won't increase.

Having said that, those attributes tend to increase with age. I habitually start off with 16 year olds in the lowest league I can get my hands on. Those hidden atts are usually in the 1s and 2s.

 

I suspect the actual formulae are more sophisticated than I make out, but that's my rule-of-thumb pitch.

[RBKalle]

19 minuti fa, phnompenhandy ha scritto:

The player's overall match performance is lower than optimal when inconsistent - it affects all attributes.

IIRC, physical skills aren't affected... Which is kinda logical... If you're having a bad day, you are absent-minded or distracted, but you don't lose your ability to run as fast or to jump as high.

19 minuti fa, phnompenhandy ha scritto:

Consistency applies to all matches. An attribute of 10 should = performs optimally in 50% of matches, randomly. I guess Big Matches means Consistency in Big Games.

Actually it's slightly lower. 20/20 Consistency means 20 in 25 matches played at full potential. So 10 = 40%

Consistency is IMO one of the MOST IMPORTANT ATTRIBUTE, just like in real life, but in FM even moreso. A top-player at face value could be a complete bust because he just can't deliver, whereas one with a less impressive set of skills can be a huge star because he'll rarely had a day off.

19 minuti fa, phnompenhandy ha scritto:

An inconsistent Championship player is likely to perform better than a consistent National League player.

It depends... A rather flawed, or one-dimensional, Championship player can easily be outperformed by a well-rounded and consistent L1 player.

Of course if the ability gap is like 40CA points and the NL player's best attributes are among the lowest of the Championship one, consistency won't be an issue... But with a CA gap around 15-20 points, I'd still pick a consistent player over one who is better on paper but won't showcase it if not once a month or so.

 

19 minuti fa, phnompenhandy ha scritto:

Consistency and Big Matches improve by the player getting experience and performing okay. If you drop him from all Big Matches his attribute won't increase.

Does it even increase?

19 minuti fa, phnompenhandy ha scritto:

Having said that, those attributes tend to increase with age. I habitually start off with 16 year olds in the lowest league I can get my hands on. Those hidden atts are usually in the 1s and 2s.

I suspect the actual formulae are more sophisticated than I make out, but that's my rule-of-thumb pitch.

Again, not true.

AFAIK, Consistency doesn't change much, if at all. Not sure about Important Matches though

[HUNT3R]

13 minutes ago, RBKalle said:

Does it even increase?

Yes. Consistency and Big Matches can increase or decrease depending on performances in matches.

[RBKalle]

1 minuto fa, HUNT3R ha scritto:

Yes. Consistency and Big Matches can increase or decrease depending on performances in matches.

By what margin though?

Also, isn't consistency increasing kind of a logical nonsense? A player can become more consistent by... being more consistent!

Important matches, fair enough, albeit, say, Zlatan hasn't really become more of a deciding factor in big games throughout his career (not to mention Higuain, choker extraordinaire).

[HUNT3R]

16 minutes ago, RBKalle said:

By what margin though?

That's something @Seb Wassell or @herne79 can probably answer with more accuracy, since it involves training/development. I wouldn't expect a very inconsistent player to develop into a very consistent player though. Certainly not IRL, so I wouldn't expect it in FM either.

[Kewell_Beans]

18 minutes ago, RBKalle said:

Also, isn't consistency increasing kind of a logical nonsense? A player can become more consistent by... being more consistent!

 

IMO there are many, many examples of players developing and becoming more consistent IRL. Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lucas Radebe, Jamie Vardy, Marcus Rashford, Thierry Henry? Good coaching and man management, a Manager’s trust and using the player’s qualities correctly (i.e. converting Bale to a winger/forward, moving Henry from LW to Striker, etc) have all helped many players to improve the quality and consistency of performances.

 

19 minutes ago, RBKalle said:

Important matches, fair enough, albeit, say, Zlatan hasn't really become more of a deciding factor in big games throughout his career (not to mention Higuain, choker extraordinaire).

 

Bale developed from misfit left back to a big game player. Just one example, there are many. Not sure we can seriously debate a player’s ability to become more consistent (= good coaching & man management, trust of the Manager, correct use), or a player’s ability to become a “big game” player with experience. It happens all the time, is realistic?

“... Bale played an integral role in his first season at Real Madrid, helping the club to win the 2013–14 Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League, scoring in both finals. The following season, he won the UEFA Super Cup and scored in a third major final to help the club win the FIFA Club World Cup.”

“... He has since earned over 70 caps and scored 31 international goals, making him Wales' highest scorer of all time. He was the top goalscorer for Wales in their successful qualifying campaign for UEFA Euro 2016, scoring seven goals; he subsequently represented his nation in the final tournament as they reached the semi-finals, scoring three goals.”

“... in the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final, Bale scored two goals, first an overhead kick and then a long distance strike, resulting in a 3–1 victory over Liverpool, to help Real Madrid win their thirteenth Champions League trophy.”

[Seb Wassell]

@RBKalle @HUNT3R - What can I do for you?

[herne79]

Reading through the OP I don't think this is really about consistency and big matches.  This also concerns FM15, not the latest version.

@Kewell_Beans  You've been heavily over performing.  If you had a major problem with consistency and whatnot you probably wouldn't have been able to do so.  I think you've come across the common "game has found you out" syndrome - you've just been promoted, teams see you as easy meat and played fairly openly against you.  Your tactical system has performed well in the space your opposition allows you to play in, or perhaps good on the counter, and now that you are comfortably top of the league the other teams have seen this and thought "hmm, not easy meat after all, better tighten up a bit".  Thus your tactical system isn't quite so effective anymore and you may need to adapt.

Of course your own expectations may also be having an effect here.  "Wow, this is easy, rocking the top of the league" and suddenly bang you hit a wall but you still expect to be winning.  You've forgotten you've only just been promoted and so might be expecting too much.  So personally I think your main issues surround your tactical system rather than your players.

I'd also suggest that "Pressure" (another hidden attribute) may have more of an effect in this particular circumstance than Consistency/Big Matches.  Again, you've just been promoted and are sitting top of the league.  Can your players handle that pressure?  You haven't mentioned anything about Pressure, so your players may actually be "ok" with it - not great but not bad either.  So again it perhaps comes back to tactical tweaking rather than the players themselves.

Consistency can of course have an impact.  It relates to the likelihood and frequency with which your players are able to apply their attributes (simplistically).  That's not to say a very inconsistent player will always have a bad game or a very consistent player will always have a great game, that's not how it works and it's not on that sort of scale.  It's just one of the many things you could term as being a "Match Engine modifier" along with such other aspects as morale, body language, tactical familiarity, team cohesion, Pressure, etc etc.  Also remember your players are part of a team, so a team full of very inconsistent players may well perform worse than a team full of consistent players with just a couple of inconsistent ones.

Anyway, to answer a couple of other questions:  No you can't improve consistency (or big matches) via tutoring, it comes with experience; Consistency is not on a scale of 20 = always, 1 = never, it's more to do with a sliding scale of 20 = more likely 1 = less likely; it would be very unlikely for someone to develop from very inconsistent to very consistent; a "Big Match" is usually defined as a big cup match, play off match or against a rival team (there may be one or two others, that's just what springs to mind).

I'll also add don't just focus on one or two attributes of a player.  You've done really well to analyse your players and it's good you've noticed some players seem to lack consistency, but consistency is not the be all and end all.  Sure it's an important attribute and I'd much rather have a team of consistent players than inconsistent ones, but look at the complete picture of your players and how they all function as a team together .  You already know they function well together (promotion, top of the league) so I'd have a look at what's been happening on the pitch, why you've lost a few recently and make some tactical adjustments.

[russell9]

18 hours ago, Seb Wassell said:

@RBKalle @HUNT3R - What can I do for you?

Hi Seb, could you answer this please.

1. What does FM consider to be a "big match"? Does this just apply to Cup games and matches against a club's rivals? Would it include games against clubs with significantly higher reputation (all competitions)? Does the game consider that we are 1st and 2nd, making games against title and promotion rivals "big matches"?

[RBKalle]

21 ore fa, Seb Wassell ha scritto:

@RBKalle  - What can I do for you?

How much can Consistency actually improve? And what's the timeframe for it?

Is the performance penalty for a "bad day" fixed or random? I remember reading it was -10% to Technical and Mental attributes or something similar... Is it accurate?

[enigmatic]

The performance penalty [range] is actually hugely important for understand if we should care all that much about it.

If the performance penalty is ~10% every time, I'm picking my player with 14 attributes over my player with 12/13 regardless of whether the first has consistency issues. If it's massive in some areas (which would be closer to reality), I'd have a rethink, and be a bit more aggressive about using substitutions.

Logically, I'd say the performance penalty ought to vary from match to match (being bigger sometimes for very inconsistent players) and ought to sometimes be quite big for some attributes (finishing, crossing, composure, concentration, work rate, determination) lower for others (dribbling) and nonexistent for others (physicals, general technique) . There's also a good case for it interacting with other attributes (adaptability, pressure, ambition) to determine when a player has an absolute stinker of a game and when they put together a string of good games. But SI doesn't always do things logically...  

 

[Seb Wassell]

4 hours ago, russell9 said:

Hi Seb, could you answer this please.

1. What does FM consider to be a "big match"? Does this just apply to Cup games and matches against a club's rivals? Would it include games against clubs with significantly higher reputation (all competitions)? Does the game consider that we are 1st and 2nd, making games against title and promotion rivals "big matches"?

There's not really a definitive answer as it is relative and will vary from situation to situation. Examples would be: rivals, significant knock-out rounds, matches that could decide league placement, high reputation matches, etc. Of course there is then relativity within this, one team's "big match" is another's norm, an FA Cup 3rd round tie isn't big until you draw your rivals, and so on. For more specifics I would suggest asking the ME guys 

[Seb Wassell]

1 hour ago, RBKalle said:

How much can Consistency actually improve? And what's the timeframe for it?

Undefined. Like any attribute there's no real cap provided there is enough time and opportunity (Consistency is not weighted so it does not contribute towards CA and PA, thus is not limited in this way like some). Obviously the lower your Consistency and the older you are the less chance you have it becoming "good".

1 hour ago, RBKalle said:

Is the performance penalty for a "bad day" fixed or random? I remember reading it was -10% to Technical and Mental attributes or something similar... Is it accurate?

Consistency alters CA. Very roughly, Consistency determines at what percentage of your CA, and thus attributes, you play will to that day. A player with 20 Consistency isn't going to perform to their best every match (let's pretend the scale is 1-25 rather than 1-20 to help illustrate this) but they will perform to their best a much higher percentage of the time than a player with 10 Consistency. In terms of the scale of the drop-off from max CA and affected attributes, I am not certain - one for the ME guys - however I understand it excludes Physicals but is not a fixed variable such as 10%.

[___tomgardner]

@Seb Wassell @herne79 Are you talking about fm19 here? Can consistency and important matches improve via mentoring at all? Or is it purely games/experience? Cheers

[phnompenhandy]

2 hours ago, ___tomgardner said:

@Seb Wassell @herne79 Are you talking about fm19 here? Can consistency and important matches improve via mentoring at all? Or is it purely games/experience? Cheers

They've never been affected by mentoring.

[Seb Wassell]

8 hours ago, phnompenhandy said:

They've never been affected by mentoring.

^

[___tomgardner]

5 hours ago, Seb Wassell said:

^

What does mentoring actually affect?

[phnompenhandy]

1 hour ago, ___tomgardner said:

What does mentoring actually affect?

Determination and Professionalism mainly as well as preferred moves.

[enigmatic]

All the hidden personality attributes, including useful ones that people ignore like Pressure (and pretty useless ones like sportsmanship)

[Baodan]

On 02/03/2019 at 18:30, enigmatic said:

All the hidden personality attributes, including useful ones that people ignore like Pressure (and pretty useless ones like sportsmanship)

Do you have a link to a post where this is confirmed?

[noikeee]

My experience of FM over the years is to avoid inconsistent / doesn't enjoy big matches players like the plague.

However, it depends. A yellow inconsistent sign is okay, whereas a red one is... a big red flag. Also if a player is extraordinarily good in terms of attributes he'll still be worth it, he'll still be good even if he's inconsistent, just won't be extraordinary often.

[phnompenhandy]

45 minutes ago, noikeee said:

My experience of FM over the years is to avoid inconsistent / doesn't enjoy big matches players like the plague.

However, it depends. A yellow inconsistent sign is okay, whereas a red one is... a big red flag. Also if a player is extraordinarily good in terms of attributes he'll still be worth it, he'll still be good even if he's inconsistent, just won't be extraordinary often.

Well, as you say, it depends. I like to start below level 9 where I'm unlikely to ever experience a 'big game'. What's more, doing an Academy Challenge, I have to manage 15 and 16 year old kids who are almost always inconsistent. It's all part of the fun of lower league management.

[noikeee]

7 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

I like to start below level 9 where I'm unlikely to ever experience a 'big game'.

Promotion/relegation playoffs or deciders count as big games, I believe.

[phnompenhandy]

4 minutes ago, noikeee said:

Promotion/relegation playoffs or deciders count as big games, I believe.

True, but at the level the opposition is equally inconsistent, being bumbling amateurs, so it's a level playing field! I'd have to make it past the qualifying rounds of the FA Cup to meet a 'big team' and i never make it that far.

[Seb Wassell]

On 02/03/2019 at 15:33, ___tomgardner said:

What does mentoring actually affect?

 

On 02/03/2019 at 17:25, phnompenhandy said:

Determination and Professionalism mainly as well as preferred moves.

It's all the attributes that affect personality. One of the big ones you missed there is Ambition.

[noikeee]

19 minutes ago, phnompenhandy said:

True, but at the level the opposition is equally inconsistent, being bumbling amateurs, so it's a level playing field! I'd have to make it past the qualifying rounds of the FA Cup to meet a 'big team' and i never make it that far.

Seb actually explained what's a big match a couple of posts above:

On 27/02/2019 at 10:46, Seb Wassell said:

There's not really a definitive answer as it is relative and will vary from situation to situation. Examples would be: rivals, significant knock-out rounds, matches that could decide league placement, high reputation matches, etc. Of course there is then relativity within this, one team's "big match" is another's norm, an FA Cup 3rd round tie isn't big until you draw your rivals, and so on. For more specifics I would suggest asking the ME guys 

So a "big match" is relative to your team.

[baris28]

These should be well explained in the manual I think. Complicated games have hundreds pages of document with formulas.

Doesn't need to be in that detail in this game but it shouldn't be that much necessary to visit forums to try to ask&learn from DEV team.