Crucially, major updates in Football Manager often coincide with real-world football events. The patches leading up to 12.0.4 (and community mods applied on top of it) incorporated the January transfer window data. This meant players like Demba Ba (who was prolific in the 2011/12 season) were at the correct clubs, and the financial landscapes of clubs like Manchester City and Real Madrid were accurate to that specific point in history.
Players selected for U19 teams are no longer incorrectly deemed "too old" when European Championship qualifiers are scheduled. Football Manager 2012 SKIDROW UPDATE 1204