Romelu Lukaku isn’t impressed with his FIFA 21 stats

Belgium and Inter Milan footballer Romelu Lukaku has accused EA of using player ratings in FIFA 21 as part of a publicity stunt. As the FIFA 21 ratings surfaced last week, the former Manchester United striker had some complaints about his assigned score for the latest entry in the series.

This year, Lukaku’s rating is 85 out of 100, making him the 65th best player in the game, at least on paper. That’s not bad, but it is a little peculiar - the player has had an excellent year at Inter Milan, scoring 34 goals in his first season, causing many of his individual stats to rise. His pace, shooting, passing, dribbling, and defence ratings have all gone up, but his overall score remains exactly the same as it was last year.

That’s upset Lukaku, who took to Twitter last week to claim that “FIFA just mess with the ratings so we players start complaining about the game and give them more publicity.” He then seems to suggest that he knows he’s better than his assigned score, stating “I ain’t with this sh*t. I know what I do.”

PR conspiracy theory aside, Lukaku isn’t the only player to have concerns over his ratings this year. Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang saw his overall rating decline, prompting an emoji-filled response on Twitter, and the practice isn’t limited to football players - in recent years, NFL and NBA players have also taken to social media to complain about their scores in the Madden and 2K series.

For a closer look at the rest of the top 100, check out the complete FIFA 21 ratings ahead of the game's release on October 6.