Unplayable Squad Battles

I am raising the following points in good faith because I genuinely enjoy the game and want to better understand some gameplay patterns I have been experiencing in Squad Battles.

For context, I have played this mode for many years and regularly finish Elite 1, sometimes even within the Top 100, so I am very familiar with how the mode normally feels.

Recently, however, I have been experiencing matches where the gameplay behaves very differently from one match to the next. I am not suggesting anything specific is happening behind the scenes — I am simply describing patterns that feel inconsistent with the player attributes, playstyles, and tactics selected.

Player Positioning and Tactical Instructions

My attackers are set to Advanced Attacker – Attack, which does not include a wide positioning instruction. However, in many matches my strikers frequently drift very wide during attacks. This often leaves a large gap in the centre, but exploiting that space becomes extremely difficult because AI midfielders close down the ball very quickly. As a result, the only available passes are often to the two strikers who are now positioned wide and already closely marked by defenders.

Please also note that a human player cannot realistically double-cover both strikers at the same time. However, in these situations the AI appears to be doing exactly that — both of my strikers are covered simultaneously by 2 defenders each. On top of this, the passing behavior in these moments also seems to be off.

Stamina Behavior

Another issue concerns stamina usage. Many of my players have 95+ stamina, with Relentless or Relentless+ playstyles, and I am careful with sprinting and pressing. I avoid excessive sprinting and do not run constant pressure tactics. In the matches in question I even avoided using pressing entirely to check whether stamina would still deplete regardless.

Despite this, my players appear heavily fatigued after roughly 30 minutes of gameplay, with stamina levels dropping to around 60%. What makes this confusing is that the opposing AI often appears to be using constant sprinting and pressing, yet their stamina levels remain relatively high throughout the match. This creates situations where my team becomes noticeably slower and less responsive very early in the game, while the opposing team continues to play at full intensity. From a gameplay perspective, this feels inconsistent with the stamina attributes and playstyles involved.

Passing Behavior and PlayStyles

Most of my players also have Tiki-Taka playstyles, with some having Tiki-Taka+.

However, during certain matches it becomes extremely difficult to complete even three consecutive passes, despite using short, controlled passing combinations. Passes often feel unusually slow or inaccurate and do not behave as expected for players with these play-styles and ratings. The distance between my players is to large as well since I am using short passing tactic.

Very often in these matches the passes seem to go against the logic of the playstyle itself, which makes it difficult to understand how player attributes and playstyles are being applied during these matches.

Tackling and Defensive Interactions

In these same matches, tackling also feels unusually difficult. Many tackles appear to result in missed attempts or immediate rebounds back to the AI opponent, making it very challenging to regain possession.

This contributes to the feeling that certain matches play very differently compared to others.

Final Thoughts

I want to be clear that my main concern is gameplay consistency, not results.

In terms of rewards or leaderboard placement, it does not make much difference to me — I will most likely still finish Elite 1 regardless. What matters more is the quality and enjoyment of the matches themselves. I fully understand that not every match should feel the same, and I do not expect to win every game. However, when so many matches become extremely difficult to play due to the behaviors described above, it can make the mode feel far less enjoyable (I am being very polite here)

My intention with this post is simply to ask that the behaviors described above are investigated and addressed. In the end, most players receive similar rewards regardless of placement, so the main value of the mode should be the enjoyment of the gameplay itself. And I can confirm that this mode is zero fun because of it, and winning despite these problems does not feel rewarding — it feels more like mental scars that no one wants to bear. 

Lately I find myself hesitating before starting matches because I am unsure whether I will experience one of these situations again. If the mode continues to feel this way, I can honestly see myself stepping away from Squad Battles altogether, which would be disappointing because it has been one of the modes I have enjoyed over the years. Now it is becoming increasingly annoying.

I hope the points above can at least be looked into so that the mode can remain enjoyable and consistent for players.

I would appreciate any insight from moderators, developers, or other players who may have experienced something similar.

Thank you for taking the time to read.