1 Manchester United Player Whose FIFA 16 Stats Underestimate Him

Last season, playing as Manchester United in various video games was a lot of fun. While the "Gaalactico" project was not a great success on the pitch, having the digital equivalents of Angel Di Maria and Radamel Falcao made playing as United a treat.

Neither comes into the discussion for Manchester United players whom FIFA 16's statistics have undervalued, of course. Both have left for pastures new, replaced by a new group of up-and-comers and established stars.

Let's take a look at some of their statistics, courtesy of Futhead. For clarity, any reference to “FIFA” from here on out refers to the game rather than world football's troubled governing body.

Many of the numbers look fairly accurate at first glance. Bastian Schweinsteiger, Wayne Rooney and David De Gea are the Red Devils' highest-rated players. On form, that seems very generous to Rooney, who has struggled so far this season, but it is too early to suggest his ratings should take a significant ding.

There is perhaps an argument De Gea should nudge up a number or two—he sits in joint-top spot in the Premier League alongside Thibaut Courtois. Chelsea fans may disagree, but De Gea's capacity to pull off the apparently superhuman should earn him the honour of a number that makes him the league's best.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Juan Mata's rating for shooting seems a little low given how accurate he can be in front of goal—at just 75, it is lower than Schweinsteiger's and Memphis Depay's. Mata may be more adept at "finishing" than he is at "shooting," but in FIFA terms, that should be improved.

Morgan Schneiderlin can count himself unlucky to have just 76 against his passing. The Frenchman is averaging 91 per cent pass accuracy in the league this season, per WhoScored.com, so he perhaps deserves to be closer to Michael Carrick's 80 rating for passing. 

If the season so far is anything to go by, Memphis and Anthony Martial look to have their ratings the wrong way round. Memphis' 81 overall rating looks a little high, particularly his 85 for dribbling, compared with Martial's 80.

Martial looks underrated at 77 overall when compared against his electric start for United. It is no shock FIFA's ranking algorithm was caught by off guard by Martial, given the whole footballing world appears to have been taken by surprise at how easily he has adapted to life in the Premier League.

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The most underrated players in United's squad, though, are the defenders. The centre-backs do not appear to be ranked in the correct order. Marcos Rojo is given an 81, Phil Jones an 80 and Chris Smalling 79.

Given that Smalling has kept both Rojo and Jones out of the side so far this season and has attracted plenty of plaudits for his superb performances, he can count himself unlucky not to be rated more highly. Indeed, on current form, he belongs among the best-ranked centre-backs in the division—Vincent Kompany and John Terry are both rated 85.

The most underrated player in United's side, though, is probably Luke Shaw. It is an understandable oversight—the youngster struggled in his first season at United. However, the superb form he showed before he broke his leg this season was a decent reflection of how effective he had been at Southampton.

United were willing to pay £27 million for him when he was 18 because his talent was obvious—not just in terms of future potential but also in terms of immediate readiness.

Jon Super/Associated Press

At 77, he is level with Danny Rose and Jose Holebas and behind Baba Rahman, Ryan Bertrand and Alberto Moreno, as well as the division's more illustrious left-backs such as Leighton Baines and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Shaw's form means he should be in the top three in the division in terms of ranking. Few United fans would swap him for any of those rated above him, and for that reason, he is the United player most underestimated by EA Sports' team.