Premier League 2025-26, Manchester City thrash Wolves 4-0: Key stats
What's the story
Manchester City kicked off their Premier League campaign with a resounding 4-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux Stadium. The match saw new signings Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki making an immediate impact, with Reijnders both scoring and assisting, while Cherki too finding the back of the net. The win sends a strong message to City's title rivals and marks a confident start to the season for Pep Guardiola's side.
Debut impact
Reijnders shines in City's dominant 1st-half display
Reijnders, who joined City from AC Milan for £46.3 million this summer, was instrumental in the team's first goal. He provided a brilliant pass to Rico Lewis, who set up Erling Haaland for an easy finish in the 34th minute. The Dutch midfielder then scored his own goal with a stunning strike into the far corner of the net just moments later.
Goal spree
Cherki's goal caps off a brilliant debut for the winger
Haaland scored his second goal of the match in the second half, with Reijnders providing another assist. The new signing's crisp pass set up a perfect finish by Haaland, extending City's lead further. Cherki, who joined from Lyon for £34 million this summer, capped off the scoring with a low shot into the bottom corner from just outside the box.
Title ambitions
City's title defense starts with a bang
The dominant display against Wolves shows that City are ready to reclaim their status as Premier League champions after a disappointing 2024/25 season. The return of Phil Foden and Rodri will only strengthen the squad further. The next match against Tottenham at home will be a better indicator of how Guardiola's revamped team is shaping up for this season's title race.
Match dynamics
Wolves left reeling by City's attacking display
Wolves, on the other hand, will hope this isn't a sign of things to come after their poor start. They missed Matheus Cunha's attacking threat after his sale to Manchester United. Despite some promising moments like Marshall Munetsi's disallowed goal and Jorgen Strand Larsen's near miss early in the second half, they were unable to break through City's solid defense led by debutant goalkeeper James Trafford.
Haaland
Haaland nets for the 4th successive season on Matchday 1
In 98 Premier League games, Haaland has 87 goals under his belt. Overall, he has 126 goals in 147 matches across competitions for Guardiola's side. As per Opta, Haaland has scored in each of his four Matchday 1 appearances in the Premier League. Only, Liverpool's Mohamed Salah (6 successive seasons between 2017-18 and 2022-23), has enjoyed a longer run in the competition's history.
Details
A look at the match stats and points table
Wolves had nine shots with three of them on target. On the other hand, City managed 4 shots on target from 15 attempts. City owned 30 touches in the opposition box with Wolves managing 17. City had 59% ball possession and a 90% pass accuracy. In terms of the points table, City are atop. They are above Sunderland, Tottenham and Liverpool. These four teams have claimed wins in matchweek 1 so far.
Reijnders
Reijnders joins Aguero on this list for Man City
As per Squawka, Reijnders is just the second player to both score and assist on their Premier League debut for Manchester City after Sergio Agüero vs Swansea City in 2011. Notably, the former AC Milan player completed 52/57 passes and had 6 touches in the opposition box. He won 4 duels and clocked three shots. He scored one goal and made an assist.
Opta stats
Contrasting records for the two teams
Man City have won 14 of their last 15 games in the Premier League on Matchday 1. They have scored 41 goals in this period. Wolves have lost 10 of their last 11 meetings against Man City. Wolves have lost on Matchday 1 for the 5th successive season in the competition.