Skip to main content

An abnormally short preseason and a lengthy list of injury and coronavirus-related absentees didn’t stop Manchester City getting off to a fast start in the English Premier League on Monday.

City scored in the first half through Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden before weathering a fightback from Wolverhampton in a 3-1 win at Molineux.

With Liverpool – its biggest rival for the title – already on two wins from two matches, City was under pressure to avoid an early slip-up after starting the season late owing to its involvement in the latter stages of the Champions League in August.

It was just 37 days since that humbling loss to Lyon in the Champions League quarter-finals, and in that time, three players – Aymeric Laporte, Riyad Mahrez and most recently Ilkay Gundogan – contracted the coronavirus.

Only Mahrez was available against Wolves, and he never made it off the substitutes' bench.

City’s players, though, quickly slipped into their groove and won the game through their impressive first-half display against an opponent who did the home-and-away double over them last season.

De Bruyne converted a penalty in the 20th minute after he was brought down by Romain Saiss just inside the area and was then the architect of the second goal by slipping in Raheem Sterling, who cut the ball back for Foden to score in the 33rd.

Raul Jimenez pulled a goal back for Wolves with a header in the 78th, but Gabriel Jesus made the game safe with a deflected third for City in the fifth minute of injury time.

Aston Villa opened its campaign beating 10-man Sheffield United 1-0, and had goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez – a signing from Arsenal last week – to thank after he tipped aside a 36th-minute penalty by John Lundstram. Ezri Konsa got the winner in the 63rd.

Follow related authors and topics

Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following.

Interact with The Globe