EA Logic

I appreciate the frustration but alot of this sounds like you're having trouble with manual defending (same as me).  What I've come to conclude is all they did was put any AI player is like playing squad battles on Beginner.  You literally could hand them the ball and they won't take it.  Unless YOU are controlling that player.

There are alot of things that need tweaked -  but I genuinely am enjoying manually defending.  What I am not enjoying is when I win a tackle and its a loose ball that NOONE on my team will move for the ball - yet the attackers are all magnetized to it.  This is the problem with just making all the AI Beginner. . .

To me, these things will help the manual defending be a bit more fair and balanced:

• Defending Team: if a tackle produces a loose ball, your AI controlled players will aggressively try to get to it first.  If your opponent recovers it first, they go back to being less aggressive.  If they win it, you control that player in attack now.
• Defending Team:  if an attacker runs directly into your AI player, I'm talking literally into them. . not near them, your defender should atleast deflect the ball or something.  I don't want defenders now having amazing tackling if you get anywhere near them; but when you literally run through their line - they SHOULD - win the ball for you. 
• Attacking Team:  left stick dribbling, aka fidget spinning, needs to become less "agile" the more a player does it.  Meaning, you can't just switch directions over and over and over and wait for the person to make a mistake.  A couple times is fine, but as you keep doing it within a time it should become less responsive.  

These are just a few things off the top of my head.  Right now, its frustrating at times but I'm enjoying a more manual game.  Even though I get absolutely destroyed quite often; I usually accept the other player has just adjusted to the game better than I have at this point.  

Passing - my gosh something is wrong, but you know what I've done?  Switched to Manual Ground passes and Manual Through Balls.  First couple games my % was in the 70s; but now i'm low to mid 80s so I still have some improvement.  Where I struggle the most is the power.  I feel like from midfield, my through balls are pin point and I'm hitting the lanes; but if I"m in the attacking third and do a through ball the power seems to be a different calculation based on how long I hold it.  I'll through ball into the stands. . its annoying; but I'm trying to figure it out.  

Passing is NOT like it was last year; and I think this might have been an over balance to manual defending.  But, like I mentioned. . I switched passing to manual a bit too and am really enjoying it.  Some of the through balls I've gotten are soooo good.  You don't need incisive if you're controlling it. . .incisive helps the AI look to that "better" pass, but if you're full manual - you have the control.