Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki scored debut goals as Manchester got their season off in style by thrashing Wolves 4-0 at Molineux. Erling Haaland scored a brace for the third time in four seasons on the opening day and scored in the first match for the fourth consecutive season opener.
With a display of attacking dominance, patient build-up play and defensive capabilities that were missing for much of the last campaign, City got the perfect start in the Black Country as Wolves had no reply to a team that is still in transition.
The Blues have come under the spotlight over the summer after their Club World Cup campaign ended earlier than expected, adding to the misery of last season, where the Blues ended up without a trophy for the first time since the 2016/17 season.
And questions were asked about how Kevin de Bruyne’s absence in the City midfield would affect the dynamics in the middle of the park that brought so much attacking joy and goals that contributed to four consecutive Premier League titles.
That question was answered by an outstanding display by Reijnders, who not only scored on his debut, but was instrumental in two others as City finally began life in the Premier League without the Belgian talisman
The Dutchman’s clipped pass for Rico Lewis, who set up Haaland for the first goal, and a good finish after being set up by Oscar Bobb just three minutes later, set the tone for the match and give the Blues a new hero to worship.
Reijnders was one of three new signings making their City debuts, with Rayan Ait-Nouri starting against his former club and goalkeeper James Trafford replacing Ederson, who was reported to be sick with gastroenteritis.
City started on the attack straight from the kick-off, but the organised Wolves defence repelled most of the early attacks. Whilst the Blues enjoyed the majority of the early possession, there were still plenty of misplaced passes and broken down attacks that would make the neutral think that the new look City will need time to gel.
The Blues were getting some joy on the wings but couldn’t get the final ball into the area and when they did, the final touch just couldn’t be applied.
Wolves, meanwhile, were beginning to work their way into the match and began to put a bit of pressure on the Blues and the home side had a goal disallowed as Marshall Munetsi’s header beat James Trafford. But City had held the line well and when the ball was played, the striker was about three yards offside. The Zimbabwe star was having a torrid time with the flag, constantly caught offside and was a little reminiscent of Gabriel Jesus a few years ago.
That disallowed goal gave Wolves and their supporters a lift and further attacks ended with Trafford needing to make one save and dive at the feet of the onrushing attack. But, if that gave Wolves hope of an opening day upset, they were sadly mistaken.
Reijnders’ charge forward allowed Lewis to make space for the pass and the Dutchman found him perfectly. Lewis’s cross between the defender and goalkeeper was perfect and all Haaland had to do was tap home at the far post to give City the lead.
Three minutes later, City extended their lead as Reijnders marked his debut with a goal. Oscar Bobb picked up a stray ball in his own half and charged forward, before finding the Dutch star with an accurate pass. Reijnders hit a first-time pass across the keeper and into the goal to make it 2-0 and City once again towards an opening day away win.
2-0 at half-time was the least they deserved, but the Blues had to weather a little Wolves storm before sealing the victory, with Trafford having to tip over a Wolves chance at the start of the second half.
But City came through the test and all-but sealed the three points in the 61st minute and it was Reijnders once again at the heart of it. The midfielder played the ball out to Bobb on the right, before collecting the pass back, then having the awareness to lay the ball off for Haaland, who finished first time in the far corner.
Trafford was called upon another couple of times but, in fairness, there seemed to be no real danger from the Wolves attack and it was only a matter of time before the Blues grabbed a fourth. And it was another debutant Cherki who got it.
Replacing Haaland in the 73rd minute, Cherki took just eight minutes to get on the scoresheet. Some nice play by the midfielder saw him collect the ball on the edge of the area and fire past Jose Sa to give the Blues a convincing win.
It will no doubt be argued that City faced a side who lost two key players this summer, and no doubt will face tougher challenges in the coming weeks and months. But, with the new signings looking good, and with stars like Rodri and Phil Foden to return from injury, there’s every chance that the blip of last season will soon become a distant memory.
Final Score: Wolves 0-4 Manchester City