Man City 2-1 Bournemouth: Five Things We Learned from Maresca’s First Premier League Game

Enzo Maresca did not have an easy ride into his first Manchester City Premier League game. His side went in seven days after a 3-0 Community Shield hammering by Arsenal, with Pep Guardiola’s decade-long shadow looming over every decision he made. He started Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal, Marc Guehi in central midfield, and Rico Lewis at right-back, an XI that is somewhat hard to explain.

Bournemouth, under new manager Marco Rose, had won their last 18 Premier League games unbeaten under Andoni Iraola and had never beaten City at the Etihad in ten attempts.

For 83 minutes it looked like that run would end. Then Rayan Cherki, on from the bench, delivered a corner for Guehi to head home, and three minutes later crossed for Josko Gvardiol to steer in the winner. City survived, but the match left many questions and a few reasons for optimism.

Sportsbuzzfeed.com brings you the five things it told us.

1. Maresca’s squad selection will take time to understand

Starting Guehi in central midfield and Lewis at right-back looked baffling early on. But this is deliberate. Maresca built his Leicester and Chelsea sides around positional fluidity, using technical defenders in midfield to create numerical advantages in the press. Guehi, who City signed from Crystal Palace this summer, is comfortable receiving the ball under pressure and driving forward. Lewis is one of the best inverted full-backs in the league. Neither selection was a mistake.

The issue was that the system broke down when Bournemouth played simple long balls forward, bypassing the press entirely, which is how Tavernier scored. The 46-year-old Italian has a clear tactical vision. Matching it to the speed of Premier League opposition is the next step.

2. Haaland’s performance raised a real concern

Erling Haaland made his 200th appearance for City and produced his worst display in recent memory. He spurned two gilt-edged chances before halftime, including one on 13 minutes that he had seemingly all the time in the world to convert, and finished with five shots without scoring. City generated 0.49 xG in the first half largely through his efforts, and he looked increasingly frustrated as the second half wore on.

Haaland’s hair was cut short for the season. The goals were not as sharp. That is one game, and Haaland will score plenty this season. But for a side that has just lost Guardiola’s system, a Haaland who is not clinical is a problem.

3. Cherki announced himself as exactly the player City signed him to be

Rayan Cherki came on for Nico O’Reilly in the 63rd minute and changed the game in 27 minutes. He assisted both goals, his corner delivery for Guehi was whipped in with genuine pace, and his second assist for Gvardiol came from a turn-and-pass in the penalty area that required both vision and composure. Only Bruno Fernandes, with 22 across all competitions since the start of last season, has more assists than Cherki’s 17 across the same period among all Premier League players.

Cherki would surely be starting next time. On this evidence, that is the correct call. The Frenchman arrived from Lyon last season as one of the most talented young players in Europe, and he proved today that the billing was not wrong.

4. City’s defensive structure under Maresca is not yet settled

Both Bournemouth goals, including Tavernier’s opener, came from: a long ball forward that the City defence did not handle. Sky Sports analyst Andy Hinchcliffe called the defensive setup on the goal “absolutely terrible”, and the Gvardiol nearly gave away a counter from his own stray pass on 14 minutes. Khusanov, the Uzbekistan international who joined City from Lens last season, and Ruben Dias were not convincingly dominant.

Donnarumma was rarely tested but showed composure when needed. Guardiola’s City defended as a unit, with their press designed to prevent balls reaching dangerous areas. Maresca’s version of that press broke down repeatedly against Bournemouth’s direct play. The back four will need games together before it becomes reliable.

5. The post-Guardiola transition is real

Guardiola left City having won 20 trophies in ten years, including six Premier League titles, and his final season ended with a domestic cup double. Maresca resigned from Chelsea in December 2025 to take this job, despite the controversy it caused. He knows City inside out, having coached their development squad in 2020-21 and served as Guardiola’s  assistant during the treble-winning 2022-23 season. That familiarity helped him come from behind and find a winning goal from an unlikely source in added time.

What it did not help was the 83 minutes before Cherki’s corner, in which City looked slow, disjointed, and uncertain of their shape. The fact that Maresca salvaged it, with two goals in the final seven minutes, using substitutes who changed the game, is the most positive thing to take from the afternoon. That City won 14 of their last 15 opening-day games before today is a record. Maresca now has his first Premier League win, and Guardiola’s successor is up and running.