Whilst Manchester City currently sit in second place, just three points adrift of the leaders Arsenal, Pep Guardiola's side has clearly dropped below its lofty standards throughout the first half of the 2022/23 campaign.
Man City have been almost faultless over the past few Premier League seasons and it just seems like something is missing this year.
EA has acknowledged City's dip in form, with the latest FIFA 23 squad update hitting the blue side of Manchester harder than any other club.
Four first-team players have been downgraded in the latest update, including their midfield maestro and talesman, Kevin De Bruyne.
Kevin De Bruyne
The Belgian central midfielder hasn't been hit too hard by the latest update, though, with EA choosing to downgrade just a single in-game attribute of KDB's.
De Bruyne's world-class technical ability has not been touched, and rightly so. It's the 31-year-old's athleticism which seems to be declining gradually with age and now this is beginning to be reflected in the game.
EA has made the following changes to Kevin De Bruyne's in-game stats.
- Acceleration 76 -> 75
Bernardo Silva
Like his midfield partner Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva has only been downgraded in one area in the latest FIFA 23 update.
And like KDB, it's the Portugal international's acceleration which has been altered this time around.
EA has decided to hand the 28-year-old a minus four in acceleration. Now, whilst this may seem harsh, Silva's acceleration was bizarrely 84 before the latest update, which is definitely too high for somebody who is not blessed with pace.
EA has made the following changes to Bernardo Silva's in-game stats.
- Acceleration 84 -> 81
Kyle Walker
EA has really gone after the Manchester City players' physicality and perhaps this is due to the slight dip in intensity in the team this season.
Yet another player who has had his acceleration downgraded is England right-back, Kyle Walker.
Not only has Walker had his acceleration nerfed but EA has also removed the 'Speedster' Trait from his in-game attributes.
This seems slightly harsh as whilst Walker may have slowed down slightly over the course of the past year, he is still one of the quickest around.
EA has made the following changes to Kyle Walker's in-game stats.
- Acceleration 87 -> 85
Ruben Dias
Portuguese centre-half Ruben Dias is the fourth and final City player to be downgraded.
The 25-year-old has struggled with injuries and game time recently which is most likely the reason why EA has downgraded his stamina.
A downgrade of four points does look a bit drastic, though.
EA has made the following changes to Ruben Dias' in-game stats.
- Stamina 81 -> 77