I genuinely don’t understand how this level of fidget spinning is considered a skill gap. Every game right now is just players dancing left-stick circles in the box while defenders slide past or freeze up. It’s not about timing, spacing, or decision-making anymore — it’s just who can spin the fastest without losing the ball.
If that’s what EA defines as a “skill gap,” then defending is completely doomed. You can read the play perfectly, position yourself right, and still watch the ball glue itself to the attacker’s feet while your defender can’t react fast enough to tackle. It’s exhausting and it ruins the flow of matches.
Dribbling responsiveness and turn animations are tuned so high that even average players can abuse this and look unstoppable. Meanwhile, “bruiser” tackles still have no reach or impact, and jockey speeds just can’t keep up with these 360° spins. The balance is totally off.
There’s no satisfaction in defending anymore when all you’re doing is hoping the opponent messes up their own dribble. If this is supposed to be the “new skill gap,” then it’s the wrong direction entirely. The game needs reactive defending that rewards timing — not fidget spinning that rewards spam.
Please get this in front of the gameplay balance team. The current dribbling meta isn’t football, and it’s not skill. It’s animation abuse, plain and simple.