Rayan Ait-Nouri made his Premier League debut for Manchester City in familiar surroundings on Saturday.
The Algeria international was named in the starting XI by Pep Guardiola for the season opener at Wolves, who he left to join Manchester City in a £31m move back in June.
The man born in Montreuil impressed and helped the Citizens record a 4-0 win.
There was one department in which Rayan Ait-Nouri stood out more than most, and it has made Micah Richards eat his words immediately.
Rayan Ait-Nouri emphatically answers criticism over his defending
After making the move to the Etihad Stadium, question marks were raised over the 24-year-old and his defensive qualities.
Richards was one who criticised Ait-Nouri, telling The Rest Is Football podcast: “He can open up defences just with his skill on his own at times. He’s not the best defensively, but he’s quick enough to get back if Man City are going to get countered on.”
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Not the best defensively? The new Manchester City No.21 responded to that comment impressively at Molineux.
Squawka reveal that no player across the entire Premier League completed as many tackles as Ait-Nouri over the weekend with six, and he also managed to avoid committing a single foul.
Rayan Aït-Nouri made more tackles than any other player in the Premier League this weekend (6).
He also committed 0 fouls and wasn't dribbled past once. 👏 pic.twitter.com/yhNC0k3ItV
— Squawka (@Squawka) August 18, 2025
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Not only that, but the left-back was not dribbled past once.
Of course, Ait-Nouri and Manchester City will have tougher opponents this season than Wolves, with all due respect, but the new man clearly showed he can handle himself when it comes to defending.
Pep Guardiola could use Rayan Ait-Nouri elsewhere
If the Algerian does end up becoming a liability for Manchester City at the back, he could be fielded further forward.
Guardiola has been impressed with Ait-Nouri in a No.10 position during some training sessions this summer, where he actually played for Wolves once under Gary O’Neil against West Ham and recorded the second-best match rating of every player on the pitch.
As we know, Guardiola does tend to invert his full-backs and push them high, a tactic which has previously led to some stunning goals from Josko Gvardiol.
Therefore, it could suit Ait-Nouri well given his immense technical skills.