Manchester City began their Premier League title defence with a victory, defeating Chelsea 2-0 in Enzo Maresca’s debut as head coach.
Goals from Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic secured the win, with Haaland scoring his 91st goal in his 100th appearance for the club.
Kovacic added a second goal on his return to Stamford Bridge, giving Pep Guardiola’s team a strong start in their bid for a fifth consecutive English top-flight title.
Despite missing four of their Euro 2024 finalists — Rodri, Kyle Walker, John Stones, and Phil Foden — Guardiola’s side still made a statement by defeating one of the few teams they failed to overcome in the league last season.
Maresca faces the challenge of forming a cohesive unit from Chelsea’s large squad, which includes 43 players and more than 50 on the books, including those out on loan.
The effects of those difficult choices were clear even before the game started.
Raheem Sterling’s team released a statement saying he was upset about being left out of the squad.
Ben Chilwell was also dropped, and Conor Gallagher and Romelu Lukaku didn’t even get squad numbers.
None of the nine players Chelsea signed this summer were in Maresca’s starting lineup.
Surprisingly, Enzo Fernandez was made captain, even though he was recently involved in a controversy over a social media post after Argentina’s Copa America win last month.
In contrast, City displayed their usual continuity and consistent excellence.
Haaland, one of the few City stars who didn’t participate in any summer international tournaments, made an impact just 18 minutes into the match.
Jeremy Doku’s low cross was deflected by Bernardo Silva into Haaland’s path, and the Norwegian calmly chipped the ball over Robert Sanchez.
Kevin De Bruyne came close with a curling shot that just missed, and Sanchez made a great save to tip over Doku’s deflected effort.
Despite this, Chelsea finished the first half strongly and nearly equalized. Ederson fumbled Cole Palmer’s weak shot, but Nicolas Jackson’s unnecessary offside position saved City from conceding the rebound.
At half-time, Guardiola had to bring on Phil Foden earlier than planned due to an injury to the lively Savinho, who was making his Premier League debut.
The lack of pre-season preparation showed, as the match was played at a slower pace than usual for a major Premier League game.
Chelsea pressed hard for an equalizer but left themselves vulnerable to City’s counterattacks.
Sanchez made a great save to deny Haaland a second goal, and De Bruyne narrowly missed the target again when left unmarked.
However, Sanchez was at fault for the goal that sealed Chelsea’s defeat.
Mateo Kovacic was allowed to surge through the midfield unchallenged and scored by aiming for the top corner, with Sanchez only managing a weak attempt to stop it.
