Role ability: Importance and training

[Solratti]

If anyone can explain me how this actually works.

I have been training a DM as a Full back D/R. Has perfect stats for the position. He's been training for that position almost 2 years now but its still at competent at position and unconvincing at role. In tactics screen he shows as half a star while he's a 4 star player (current ability).
However, i play him as D/R and he averages 8.20+ over 20 or so games with many assists.

Same thing with a Midfielder. Training him a a BWM but role ability hasn't increased even though he produces at matches.

Both players are about 22 years and I've had them since 16-17.

So, should we pay any attention to those bars in tactics screen?

P.S. My assistant manager has JPA/JPP 20 if that has anything to do with the situation.

 

[Death Ball]

I wouldn't pay much mind. In FM14 I made an experiment, not the most rigurous or exhaustive, mind you, and the result was it didn't seem to mind playing people out of position. Players used out of position had on average the same amount of mistakes, action success (pass completion, tackles ratio, etc), space occupied compared to players natural, ratings...

The player with the most mistakes made was one played out of position, but so was the player with the least mistakes made. I think there were a few more out of position below the average than played in position. Watching matches, players out of position seemed to move to help more often towards the area in which was their natural position, but looking at the average positioning and heat map that wasn't the case. I also got the feeling that a player out of position that did exactly the same as one played in position would get a little lower rating but I couldn't confirm or deny it within the effort level I was willing to put in the experiment.

The experiment was just playing half a season (originally I intended to play the full season) with Werder Bremen playing half the squad in position and the other half out of position atttending merely to attributes.

 

[Solratti]

Thanks for the input. In my case the aforementioned players play better games (average rating, pass completion, shots and assists) on their new roles than on their natural. It's been two seasons now, the D/R even won foreign player of the year and European golden boy on his new position but none of them has gone "natural" or full ability.