FM24 – How to beat Man City in Football Manager 2024

Struggling with how to beat Man City in FM24? They’re the best team in the world for a reason. In every single position, they have world class players, and with Pep’s tactics it may seem impossible to beat them and knock them off their podium, but with a few tactical tweaks, you can give yourself a much better chance.

Take a look at our FM24 review to see what we think of this year’s Football Manager. And if you’re after some of the FM24 best wonderkids, check out our guide for the top young talent in this year’s game. With that, let’s get into how to beat Man City in FM24.

How to beat Man City in FM24

Before we even discuss tactics, it has to be said that if you want to beat Man City, you’ll want the best players possible. Of course, you can get lucky and beat them with a weaker team, but unless you’re meeting them with world class players of your own, you’re always going to be on the back foot against them. Luckily, there are a few tactical changes you can make to increase your chances.

First things first, you want to press high. In your out of possession instructions, use a high Line of Engagement and a Higher or Much Higher Defensive Line, as well as telling your Defensive Line to Step Up More. 

City’s playstyle relies heavily on possession and passing, and if you drop off and let them pass, you’re simply inviting them to play how they want, and they’ll almost inevitably score. Instead, you need to press into them and try to disrupt their passing. For this, you’ll need players with great fitness to make sure they don’t get tired too quickly. 

For your In Transition instructions, stick with your gegenpress and select the Counter Press, Counter, and Distribute Quickly options. This means you’ll immediately look to get the ball back when you lose it, preventing them from setting up properly, and you’ll look to break quickly to try and score on the break.

While in possession, we would recommend focusing play down both wings, with direct passing and a higher tempo. Man City will almost certainly have a better midfield than you, and rather than contesting them, you want to bypass them completely. Playing long balls down the wing and getting crosses in will be your best bet to grab a goal on the counter.

As well as this, make sure you set up your set pieces as a tall defender in the box could very easily nick you a goal against the run of play if you’re lucky. Other than that, you’ll have to pray that your tactic is good enough to get the win.

That’s it for how to beat Man City in FM24. If you’re looking for the FM24 best Free Agents check out our list for some top players on the cheap. And if you’re wanting some ideas for a new save, our FM24 best clubs to manage has some great options.