Lots of brilliant points here.
FIFA, I don't know, I just can't get any variation/enjoyment/unpredictability with it, regardless of what the sliders are, and I've tried everything. A nice game? Yes. But the game itself is so obviously linear that it seems merely moving your team from grid to grid until you can find that glitch move to score the same goal over and over. For the CPU; blatant cheating. FIFA is soulless therefore.
PES? Where do we start? For a start the player movements and positioning and the way that players press or not press hunt in packs sometimes and then let there be space makes it a game that is hard to exploit. You feel more reactive in a PES game as if the game is seemlessly unfolding. PES' problems stem from really shitty animations, inconsistent passing which can be infuriating, and on the consoles, top drawer cheating from the CPU with some glaring cheat moves.
PES still is the game with soul, but both games to be honest are miles away from simulated territory. Midfield battles are at a premium in both titles. In PES for example, I just want the CPU to have human frailties at the higher levels, I want passes to go astray and I don't want to be hunted down like cyborgs with precision. I want to play Superstar level, with zero assists, but knowing that both I and the CPU are on equal footing. It really would be a clash of the titans then.
The problem with going up to Superstar level for example, is that it is practically impossible for the game to be played with zero assists and still have the kind of lightening creativity that is needed. SO you are forced to play with assists on and then the game starts playing like a hundred mile and hour fest. You then slow the gameplay down, but then everything slows down; the ball is like a balloon, the players unresponsive and passing drags. I don't know, perhaps I am asking for something unattainable with a game anymore!