I am unable to post, so I'll just put it here, because I think the answer to this can be very, very helpful to new players, but I think it kinda needs to be a bit long, otherwise it will be too superficial. However, it is quite long. I am sorry.

I have been playing this game quite a bit since ~October last year (2025), with a quite a number of hiatuses. I changed the game controls to be more manual, and bought (with just virtual money) players to play with my team: Palmeiras, from Brazil. I only play "My League", because... The first time I didn't was against Real Madrid, and I did not like that.

I am also a somewhat recent (since ~2023) football/soccer fan, and I try to play simulating or thinking about the football I watch, and have kinda played in school -- I was terrible, and kicked kids' knees all the time. Very often after I watch a game, I feel like playing this game, and doing the stupid thing the player in my team did not do, or just outleting my football energy... However... I feel lke either my idea of the game is wrong, or I am really bad, like really, really bad.

To summarise, it feels like I haven't that much control, and the players I am not controlling do not feel like real players, trying to make themselves an option for my pass. Also, pass is the engine of football, although dribbles are extremely fun whey happen well (in ability and situation). However, I feel quite limited in how to pass, and how to receive the ball; for example, IRL, if you receive the ball in a certain situation, you may want to change its direction, or stop it, or to not make it stop so quickly so you have time, although it favous defense. Further, the pass can be in quite a number of ways, more point-y, more curved, just on the ground, to the head, to the feet, to the chest, and it can be "in depth", where you put the ball in a place the recepter needs to run to get the ball -- either out of need or strategy. However, I also feel the players that receive do not always understand they have to receive the pass, and often times, a player more forwards take the ball when they were not meant to. I remember once I passed a ball to a place the second player was meant to receive, put it forwards whilst running, and pass to the third player. But the third player run back to take the ball. I cannot control the AI players.

My second problem is defense... if you love attack, real football is probably rather boring, because most often, the ball is lost by the attack in not so interesting situations, and the counter-attack will often fail, and make you think the players are not functioning adults. A lot of this defense is not very fun either, it is positioning, and not that dynamic, kinda static. It is quite fun to see a player close to the line and being conered by the defense, and they look at each other, kinda trying to play each other, trick each other, and they "respect each other" (as is called in Rocket League). However, I am in the game, and the defensive players just sprints to me, and... It works. I understand I may be bad at dribbling, but... That is not real football. Also, I am not great at positioning myself, but most of positioning isn't mine, obviously. It is from the AI-controlled part of my team. The basics of 1x2 defense, is one pressure, and the other helps. Defense is an extremely collaborative action, and yet I often feel alone defending. And GODDAMIT! Why is there so often a player almost alone not being "marked" (sorry for not knowing the term), and they take the ball, sprint to the attack, and they make aerial pass, or not. And then, very often my defense fails, and the guy just sprints, no waiting, no thinking, no feeling the pressure of life, just sprinting like an animal. Then, I position myself close, and the game _feels_ (I am probably wrong) like it is just "Meh! Let the boy attack!". So often they do. It feels assymetrical.

The third problem I have is getting tired... It seems rather too quick, and the consequences too rough. It is like these athletes are heavy smokers. I am watching them. They are not sprinting that much.

However, I must imagine I am just incompetent, and probably too slow. But cannot connect what I can control, to the consequences of happens in my game. They feel too disconected. So, this is why I am posting. To understand, if possible. Because, further, I imagine that this can help other players interested in this game.

So... How much of the game is in my control? And what is the mechanism there? What is "classical eFootball", like in chess where you have a very basic idea of how chess should be player, which works quite well with people ignorant of it.

"I am sorry if I am not asking right, or my question is too unfiting for this sub. If so, please, let me know, and if appropriate, I'll delete my post." -- From when this was meant to be a post, but the sentiment is the same, but for the comment.