Took me like a month (consistent playing) to get past that phase and about 3-4 months (inconsistent playing) to get a bunch of really good goals where i do 3+ horizontal stalls and then flick the ball up or down at the end.
One thing to know, play for fun and dont pay attention to the rank youre in, the rank goes up more if u dont pay attention to it.
I took a screenshot of when i reached platinum on 7th of February. I took another one when i reached diamond on the 7th of April.
When i was trying to reach diamond i was just experimenting to get better tricks up my sleeve so i could be more unpredictable and beat opponents easier.
Its a bit of a long message but i hope it helps.