EPL: Man City Vs Bournemouth – Cherries’ Unbeaten Run Snapped At The Etihad

Gvardiol 91st-minute winner gives Maresca winning start

Bournemouth’s 18-game unbeaten run ends in late defeat at Man City. Maresca off to winning start as Man City come from behind to beat Bournemouth.

Gvardiol snatches late win for Maresca’s Man City...

Josko Gvardiol’s 91st-minute strike gave new Man City boss Enzo Maresca a winning start in the Premier League. City beat Bournemouth 2-1 at the Etihad for their 10th straight league win over the Cherries.

Looking to bounce back from a 3-0 Community Shield loss to Arsenal, City started on the front foot. Phil Foden flicked to Rico Lewis early on, but Djordje Petrovic denied him from close range.

City kept pressing. Nico O’Reilly made a driving run and pulled it back, but Erling Haaland couldn’t turn it in at the far post.  

Bournemouth took the lead against the run of play. Rayan forced a near-post save from Donnarumma first, then slipped in Evanilson. The Brazilian’s first-time cross was tapped in by Marcus Tavernier.

City had most of the ball but created little. Apart from a Haaland header well saved, they didn’t seriously threaten before half-time.

Bournemouth looked more dangerous instead. Tavernier curled just wide, then Kluivert’s low effort was pushed away by Donnarumma.  

Bournemouth came into the game with a poor opener record, winning just 2 of their last 9 PL curtain-raisers. They rode their luck early in the second half when Marc Guehi missed a free header from six yards.

Maresca looked to his bench for a spark. Haaland was busy testing Petrovic, but the striker couldn’t get a clean strike on any of his chances.

City got their reward late on. Guehi made up for his earlier miss by rising unmarked to bullet a header home with six minutes to go.  

That set up a tense finish, and Gvardiol had the final say. The defender stayed onside after a VAR check and poked home in stoppage time to win it.

Despite Bournemouth’s strong showing, Scott Parker’s side left empty-handed. No new manager has now won at the Etihad in their first PL game, that record stands at D1 L4.

Late goals from Marc Guehi and Josko Gvardiol earn Enzo Maresca his first win as @ManCity manager 🩵 pic.twitter.com/hXNfSBmWhm

— Premier League (@premierleague) August 23, 2026

The late winner snapped Bournemouth’s 18-game unbeaten league run. For City it wasn’t pretty, but Maresca will take a winning start in the league.

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