I think it's pretty reasonable that players lose a star when they are promoted. Think of reality - Players in the Championship teams [UK] who may be stars in that division, will not have anywhere near the same impact once promoted to the Premiership. There is a sizable gulf in class. They have to earn the right to be 'stars' in the upper leagues. Why should your lower league stars remain as powerful once promoted?

And as for tokens, many people manage to get through many seasons without spending a cent. Just manage better ...

I've bought some tokens, because I wanted to ... nobody forced me.