FIFA ratings can cause massive debates within friend groups, or even between professionals themselves. Some believe players should be rated just that little bit higher than the game has them listed as. But there are also occasions where we all think someone is a bit too highly rated in the game in comparison to their real life ability.
Also read: Top rated player of each FIFA edition
Here we will run through five players that could do with being brought down a notch in the game.
#5 Yaya Toure – 84
There is no doubt Yaya Toure in his day was a quality player. A Rolls Royce of a midfielder if ever there was one. Sometimes his work rate could leave a lot to be desired but he made up for it with an amazing eye for a pass and a knack for finding the back of the net more often than some top level strikers could dream of doing, just look at his 24 goals in 2013/14 as proof.
But recent times have been less kind to Yaya. The arrival of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City saw him in a state of exile after a spat with his agent and he was even left out of Manchester City’s Champions League squad in the first half of the season.
He’s since returned to the squad and has put in some decent performances but probably not enough to justify his 84 rating when you consider that players like N’Golo Kante (83) Moussa Dembele (82) and Ander Herrera (83) are all rated lower than the 33-year-old former Ivorian international.
#4 Sebastian Giovinco – 83
The Turin-born forward has been tearing up MLS since he arrived from Juventus in 2015. 46 goals in 76 appearances is a great return for any player at any level. But his rating of 83 is a tad generous for someone plying his trade in the MLS.
The standard of the league has increased over the years and playing there doesn’t make you a bad player. But there’s no denying the fact that it’s a lesser challenge than that of say the La Liga or the Premiership.
His rating puts him higher than Liverpool star Sadio Mane (82), Serie A sensation Andrea Belotti (82), and born-again forward Radamel Falcao (82). More annoying is that because he plays for a 3-star rated team you’re most likely going to come up against him if you pick a similar rated club online. Good luck defending against him with mid-60s rated defenders.
#3 Vincent Kompany – 85
Another Manchester City man to make the list is the heroic captain that lifted the Premier League trophy in City colours for the first time in 44 years. Vincent Kompany was an excellent defender in his day and probably could still be. His problem is staying fit long enough to show that.
The Belgian-born stopper has made only five appearances this season and was in and out of the squad the season before through injury too. While being injury prone doesn’t make you a bad player it certainly isn’t useful to have someone spend more time on the treatment table than the football pitch.
Coming in at 85, his rating puts him ahead of Chelsea’s David Luiz (84), fellow Belgian international Jan Vertonghen (83) and Arsenal’s summer signing Shkodran Mustafi (84). Fingers crossed his recent return from injury is his last one and he can get back to showing why FIFA have given him that rating, but for the time being it’s nothing less than generous.
#2 Wesley Sneijder – 83
Feels like Wesley Sneijder has been around for a while. His Inter Milan days were probably the peak of his career, picking up a Champions League winners medal and playing in a World Cup final for the Netherlands in 2010. But then one day in 2013 he packed his bags and moved to Turkey to play for Galatasaray, all before he even hit 30.
He’s since done fairly well for himself while playing for the Turkish giants, 42 goals in 163 games is a decent return for a midfielder but a majority of those came in his first two full seasons.
Since then he’s only managed seven goals in 61 games. This makes his rating of 83 too high, especially when other players in his position contributing more at a higher level sit underneath him. Spurs wonderkid Dele Alli is below him at 82, while PSG’s Julian Draxler is the same rating as him. Much like the MLS, the Turkish league has increased in quality and is a tough league. But it’s probably not on the same scale as some of the bigger leagues.
Fantastic player on his day but perhaps time hasn’t been as kind to Sneijder as FIFA has.
#1 James Rodriguez – 87
Despite moving to Monaco for massive money in 2013, it was the 2014 World Cup in Brazil that saw James Rodriguez announce himself to world football as one of the big names. Some of his performances were world class and his goal against Uruguay was one of the best in the tournament.
Deservedly he earned his move to Real Madrid for which was approximated to be around €80 million. Life as a Galactico started so well for James, as he scored 17 times in his debut season. But for some reason, since Zinedine Zidane has taken over the hot seat at the Bernabeu he’s been constantly linked with moves away from the club.
James has completed the 5th lowest amount of minutes this season out of the first team squad (752). A bit of that is put down to injuries, missing nine games this season in total through them. But it’s not the main reason for his lack of time on the pitch.
This is why his 87 rating is very generous to the Colombian sensation. If he was playing regularly it could be justified but the fact of it is he isn’t. His rating puts him higher than Thomas Muller (86) and Angel Di Maria (86). He’s even behind 84-rated Isco in the pecking order.
