Enzo Maresca opened his Premier League era with Manchester City in dramatic fashion, as his side turned a deficit against Bournemouth into a late 2-1 victory at the Etihad Stadium, while Aston Villa endured a disastrous start, collapsing to a 4-0 defeat against Brighton.
City appeared destined for an early setback after Marcus Tavernier put Bournemouth ahead in the 26th minute, capitalizing on an Evanilson pass, as the visitors preserved their lead into the final stages amid the hosts’ inability to convert their dominance into goals.
However, Marc Guéhi brought Maresca’s side back into the match in the 84th minute when he rose to head home a Rayan Cherki cross from a corner kick. The French playmaker then provided a second crucial assist for Joško Gvardiol in the first minute of stoppage time, awarded following a VAR review, to secure City’s first three points of the season.
The victory holds special significance for Maresca following a difficult start and a Community Shield defeat against Arsenal, coming also in the club’s first league match since the end of the Pep Guardiola era. Although the performance was unconvincing for long spells, City’s ability to pull off a late comeback granted the Italian manager an ideal start result-wise.
On the other hand, summer reinforcements failed to save Aston Villa from a shocking start against Brighton; Unai Emery’s side signed Johann Manzambi, João Gomes, and Alejandro Garnacho, before adding goalkeeper Zion Suzuki and fullback Matteo Ruggeri, only to find themselves behind by four goals within just 31 minutes.
Brighton opened the scoring through a Victor Lindelöf own goal in the 8th minute, with Maxim De Cuyper adding a second in the 18th minute, before Jack Hinshelwood netted back-to-back goals in the 30th and 31st minutes. Brighton thus became the fastest team to take a 4-0 lead on an opening Premier League matchday across the past 20 seasons.
Villa’s woes deepened when João Gomes received a straight red card in the 40th minute, becoming the first player sent off in the first half of his Premier League debut for a new club since QPR’s Samba Diakité against Fulham in February 2012. Villa also became only the second team in Premier League history to concede four goals, score an own goal, and suffer a red card all within the same first half.
Manchester City travel to face Crystal Palace in their next match on Friday, August 28, in another test for Maresca’s project, while Aston Villa face an even tougher challenge when they host champions Arsenal on Monday, August 31, without the suspended João Gomes.
