Manchester City’s Win Over Bournemouth a ‘Work in Progress’

Manchester City’s new manager Enzo Maresca has described his team’s performance in their first game as a ‘work in progress’ despite a late goal giving them a win over Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium.

The Italian manager, who returned to the club he previously managed from 2020 to 2021, praised his team’s spirit but acknowledged that they still have work to do to improve their performance.

‘I’m looking for solutions,’ Maresca said in a post-match interview. ‘When you win games, it helps.’

The match saw a thrilling comeback from Manchester City, who were trailing 1-0 at halftime thanks to a goal from Marcus Tavernier. However, Marc Guéhi’s equalizer in the 85th minute and Josko Gvardiol’s winner in the 91st minute secured a 2-1 win for the hosts.

Maresca acknowledged that his team still has a long way to go, citing the fact that they conceded their first shot on goal as a major concern.

‘It’s how you react to those moments that matters,’ he said. ‘We’ve still got players who are in pre-season, and it’s a huge difference in terms of physicality.’

The manager also praised his decision to field Guéhi in an unfamiliar midfield role, which he believed gave his team a solution for the future.

‘I know Marc from Crystal Palace, and I always thought he could play as a midfielder because he is very good,’ Maresca said. ‘So we tried it for a few days, and I think he was quite good.’

Bournemouth’s manager Marco Rose was also pleased with his team’s performance, despite ultimately losing the game.

‘We’re competitors, we came here to win for the first time,’ Rose said. ‘We were in a good way to do so, but we did many good things. We have a lot of things to improve.’

The German manager also acknowledged that his team needed to defend better, particularly from set pieces.

‘We need to defend the corner better, and the second goal was just too passive,’ Rose said. ‘We always try to push up – we want to defend higher. Here you need to find the right triggers and it’s hard to press.’

Key Quotes:

• Enzo Maresca: ‘I’m looking for solutions. When you win games, it helps.’
• Marc Rose: ‘We’re competitors, we came here to win for the first time. We were in a good way to do so, but we did many good things.’