Preview for Manchester City v Bournemouth

Enzo Maresca will take charge of his first home game as Manchester City boss when they host Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Maresca’s first competitive game since succeeding Pep Guardiola did not go to plan as they suffered a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Community Shield last Sunday.

That laid bare the frailties of a side shorn of the presence of World Cup Golden Ball winner, who has left for Barcelona, with City looking short in midfield as they were well beaten by the defending Premier League champions.

City are reportedly pushing to sign Ayoubb Bouaddi and Enzo Fernandez as they look to address concerns in the middle of the pitch, but they will still be expected to triumph in a game that will likely see Elliot Anderson make his home debut following his £116million move from Manchester City.

Despite the disappointment of last weekend and the issues with the squad, Maresca is relishing the opportunity to make a strong start in front of the home fans.

“Very excited to start this new chapter, this new journey,” Maresca told his pre-match press conference.

“The target is to carry on in the same way of the last 10 or 15 years. So also happy finally to play our first game at home. Excited.”

Bournemouth are also starting a new era under Marco Rose, who replaced Andoni Iraola after the Spaniard took over at Liverpool, having guided the Cherries to European football for the first time in their history.

Even with the change in the dugout, Maresca has a good idea of what to expect from the visitors.

“I watched the game, I watched the pre-season game,” Maresca added. “I also watched some games from last season, when he was at another club. You can see clearly the identity.

“A very aggressive team. They already were aggressive with Andoni [Iraola], and they still are. It’s quite clear what they do on the ball and off the ball.”

Bournemouth have never won at the Etihad, but former Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig boss Rose is approaching his first taste of the Premier League without fear.

“It’s exciting, for sure. And if we’ve never won there, maybe it’s time we did,” said Rose. “I think we are humble enough to know how difficult it is to play there and to play that quality of players.

“But on the other side, we always look for our chances, we see our chances and, even on Sunday, we will try to win the game.

“They are a top club with a top coach and a top squad. I watched three of their pre-season friendlies and didn’t expect the result from the Arsenal game.

“Manchester City had some really good pre-season games, they were really front-footed and with a high intense approach.

“With the ball, we know the quality of the players in the back four, we know the quality of the wingers and we know the quality of Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic.

“They are a top team with a top coach but I’m not here to praise Manchester City, I’m here to compete with them at the weekend.”

Team News for Manchester City v Bournemouth

City will be without Jeremy Doku because of a calf injury.

Junior Kroupi (foot), Julian Araujo (thigh) and Amine Adli (calf) are unavailable for the visitors.

Expected line-ups for Manchester City v Bournemouth

Manchester City: Donnarumma; Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Kovacic, Anderson; Foden, Cherki, Semenyo; Haaland

Bournemouth: Petrovic, Truffert, Hill, Silva, Juanlu, Cook, Tóth, Tavernier, Kluivert, Rayan, Evanilson

Recent Form & Stats for Manchester City v Bournemouth

• City have won all nine of their Premier League home games against Bournemouth by an aggregate score of 34-6. They have scored 3.8 goals per game when hosting the Cherries in the competition; their highest average against any opponent on home soil.
• Rose will be just the fifth manager to see his first Premier League game come away to Manchester City at the Etihad, with none of the previous making a winning start (D1 L3). The most recent of those did avoid defeat, however, with Chelsea earning a 1-1 draw there in January under Calum McFarlane.
• City have won their first game in 14 of the last 15 Premier League seasons, the exception a 1-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in 2021-22. That is four more wins on the opening weekend than any other side has had since 2011-12 (Liverpool and Man Utd, 10).
• Bournemouth have won their opening game in just two out of nine Premier League campaigns (D3 L4), beating Cardiff City in 2018-19 and Aston Villa in 2022-23.
• City’s only home Premier League defeats of 2025-26 came in their first (0-2 v Tottenham) and last (1-2 v Villa) games of the season at the Etihad. They have not lost successive home league games since May 2021.

Where to Watch Manchester City v Bournemouth: TV and online streams

Manchester City v Bournemouth kicks off at 2:00pm. It will be broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event and available to stream via Sky Go.

Prediction for Manchester City v Bournemouth

It may take some time for Maresca’s City to hit their stride, but they still should have just enough to get the better of Bournemouth.

Manchester City

2 – 1

Bournemouth