Manchester City: Raheem Sterling worth £108m, Bernardo Silva at £104m and Ederson at £196m

It’s that time of year again, and the latest version of Football Manager comes out and as usual, with a lot of anticipation.

The beta version of Football Manager 2022 was released in late October, and the full game came out on 9 November.

A general rule/tradition for the game is while getting used to tactics, new features and just how to generally operate it, players tend to use the team they support, or a club with the best players and considerable resources.

These saves rarely last more than two or three seasons and is purely work experience before you dive into a proper challenge.

A lot of players may take the reigns of Manchester City for decades, and try to become the outright best manager of all time.

Here’s your guide to playing as Manchester City in Football Manager 2022...

First off, players will be met with the expectations for the season ahead, and the club vision for the next few seasons.

Ongoing expectations: Sign youth to develop for profit, maintain the club’s status as the most reputable in England, and work within the wage budget.

End of current season: The board are fairly lenient for the first season and the requirement is just top four, while reaching the final of the FA Cup and the semi-finals of the Champions League.

2022/2023 season: Win the Champions League

2023/2024 season: Continue to qualify for the Champions League, and that is also the objective for the next few seasons.

Players will then be presented with what the Manchester City hierarchy believe is the best squad.

The best XI, as recommended to you, is a 4-3-3 with a defensive-midfielder, and includes: Ederson; Cancelo, Dias, Laporte, Zinchenko; Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva; Sterling, Jesus, Grealish.

A big talking point in real life was Pep Guardiola’s decision to not replace City legend Sergio Aguero, and with £100 million to spend in your first season, players will have the option of bringing in a top goalscorer, or strengthening elsewhere.

Key Players:

Kevin De Bruyne - the Belgian is the best playmaker in the league. However, he starts the game at 30, so players will need to either train Phil Foden to replace the midfielder or bring in a ready-made replacement.

Ruben Dias - Dias is a world-class centre-back and that’s shown on the game. At just 24 he can be at the heart of defence for the guts of a decade.

Jack Grealish - City’s new £100 million man has had a great pace, passing and crossing boost since the last game, and now can be the ultimate winger. Described on the game as an “elite attacking midfielder” he can occupy a number of positions and is only two years off entering his prime years.

Values - the recommended XI:

Ederson (£196 million); Cancelo (£68 million), Dias (£136 million), Laporte (£101 million), Zinechenko (£25 million); Fernandinho (£6.6 million, Kevin De Bruyne (£215 million), Bernardo Silva (£104 million); Raheem Sterling (£108 million), Gabriel Jesus (£61 million), Jack Grealish (£148 million).

With this team, and possible changes such as Rodri for Fernandinho, and bringing in Phil Foden somewhere, can you do one better than Pep Guardiola and lead Manchester City to Champions League glory?