Enzo Maresca (Credits: BBC Sport)
Enzo Maresca’s honeymoon as Manchester City manager is officially over. A 1-0 home defeat to Brighton on Saturday means back-to-back Premier League defeats for the first time in 14 months — and the Italian has real problems to solve.
City lost at Aston Villa last weekend and then slumped at the Etihad, despite creating 21 shots — their most in a home league game without scoring since November 2024. The defeat ended a run of 23 straight top-flight games in which City had found the net.
Man City’s Defence in Crisis as Brighton Extend Misery
Individual errors are stacking up at the back. Marc Guehi was dropped for the Brighton game after his mistake at Villa Park, while Gianluigi Donnarumma was culpable last weekend and Matheus Nunes was the guilty party on Saturday. City have kept just one clean sheet in their last eight games in all competitions and have conceded 10 goals in nine league matches — double Arsenal’s tally.
Maresca, who called it “Donnarumma plus 10” on the teamsheet earlier this season, was philosophical: “Sometimes it happens… We need to analyse what we can do better and try to move on.” He called the Brighton result “a bit strange,” insisting the attitude and performance were right and “hopefully next time we are more lucky.”
Maresca’s £327m Midfield Puzzle Still Unsolved
The City midfield was reshaped for £327m in the summer after the departures of Bernardo Silva and Rodri, with a record £125m spent on Enzo Fernandez, £116m on Elliot Anderson and £86m on Ayyoub Bouaddi. But Maresca is still searching for the right blend, and his decision to start all three physical midfielders while benching Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden did not pay off.
“I expected a physical game,” Maresca said of the selection. “In this moment it is like this and we need just to move on.” City remain top on goal difference, but Arsenal can overtake them by beating Liverpool on Sunday. The title race has rarely looked this fragile this early.
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Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
