One of my lost games was due to a red card. Quality wise I 10% stronger, had more possession, more shots, etc... but still the a.. manager said that the opponent was stronger. What?
I've had that one too, usually in conjuction with a red card for one of my players sometime during the match. He seems to comment on the Quality difference at the end of the match rather than the start...
Any formation or tactics advice given is based purely on experience with my teams...