It’s the most wonderful time of the year for soccer and video game fans alike.

FIFA 19 is set to hit stores on Friday afternoon. As the pre-eminent soccer video game on the market (sorry PES), the in-game ratings of every player given by EA Sports are always a huge talking point around this time of year. They usually get it right. But sometimes, they get it oh so very wrong.

The Chicago Fire are no different. Some of the players ratings are questionable at best and horrendous at worst. As a FIFA fanatic who’s been playing the game since 2004, I felt I had a valuable perspective to offer here. I’ve taken a look at the ratings for every Fire player and assessed how fair and accurate EA have been.

The Good

EA did well in terms of accurately rating the key men on the Fire roster.

Bastian Schweinsteiger leads the way with a rating of 80, making him tied for 6th highest rating in MLS. Like the real life version, FIFA 19 Basti is well-rounded, with pace the only stat under 74.

The player with the biggest upgrade from last year’s game is Aleksandar Katai, who is now a 75-rated “gold” player, a result of his superb 2018 campaign.

Nemanja Nikolic and Dax McCarty both come in at 74, which is typical for elite MLS players in their positions.

The Bad

It’s with the rest of the squad where EA’s ignorance really begins to show.

Johan Kappelhof is considered to be one of the better centerbacks in all of MLS, a fact proven by his All-Star Team selection last year. It doesn’t seem like EA sports have taken notice, however, giving him a lowly rating of 71.

His Dutch compatriot, Michael de Leeuw, has also been disrespected. The Lion has dropped down to a rating of 67 in this year’s edition of the game. His performances in recent weeks have shown just how crucial he is to this Fire team, but it seems like FIFA has failed to realize just how good MDL is.

The youth of the Fire, who have all shined at different parts of the season, have been given woefully low ratings as well. Raheem Edwards, Brandt Bronico, Mo Adams, and Djordje Mihailovic are all rated 64 or lower, making them bronze cards in the game’s Ultimate Team mode.

The Ugly

The Men In Red have two players rated in the 50’s, with neither coming close to being deserved.

Stefan Cleveland has been fighting for the starting spot in goal with Richard Sanchez, with many fans seeing them as close to equal at this point. However, EA doesn’t see it the same way. Cleveland was handed a rating of 58, a full five overall points below Sanchez.

Oddly enough, Patrick McLain, who worked himself into the Starting Keeper conversation before an injury put him on the shelf, is only 60 rated.

However, the biggest travesty has to be Drew Conner, who received a rating of 59. It’s not been an ideal season for him, as head coach Veljko Paunovic hasn’t given him many chances in the team (for whatever reason), but a <60 rating is still beyond harsh. Conner still has a future at the club, and has done brilliantly in glimpses throughout his time. The fact that EA rate him the same as some of the worst players in the league is simply laughable.

What do you think about FIFA 19 ratings for Fire players? Anyone you thought rated too low? Too high? Let us know in the comments!