Guehi and Gvardiol rescue Maresca's Man City in dramatic late comeback against Bournemouth

Marc Guehi and Josko Gvardiol struck in the final 10 minutes to hand Enzo Maresca a winning Premier League debut as Manchester City came from behind to beat Bournemouth at the Etihad. Marcus Tavernier had given the visitors the lead, and City were staring at a damaging home defeat before the late double turned the game on its head.

Maresca’s team selection raised immediate questions. Rico Lewis was deployed at right-back despite his well-documented reluctance to play there, and Guehi — a centre-back — was handed his first ever midfield appearance for the club, only his third in that position in four years. Lewis was excellent in possession, linking well with Phil Foden high up the pitch, but his absence from a defensive position was exposed when Tavernier slotted home the opener.

The defending for the goal was poor across the board, and City’s attacking play offered little reassurance. Erling Haaland missed a straightforward chance by his own high standards in the first half, and Guehi himself headed wide from two yards after being left completely unmarked from a corner shortly after the break.

The afternoon had begun with a tribute to former manager Kevin Keegan, whose memory drew warm applause around the Etihad. With Maresca facing defeat in his first competitive home game, the scale of the task of succeeding Pep Guardiola was brought sharply into focus.

The turnaround, when it came, was emphatic. Guehi rose to meet a corner to level, and Gvardiol pounced in the box to complete the comeback and send the Etihad home satisfied.

City had already agreed to pay Lille a guaranteed £81.4 million for midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, a signing that should address the positional uncertainty Maresca has been navigating in his opening weeks. The deal was not in place in time to affect this fixture, and the dropped points against Arsenal the previous week make the delay feel more costly in hindsight.

Maresca has spoken openly about wanting his City side to entertain, and this match delivered that in abundance — though not always in the way he would have intended. The hope from a City perspective will be that the squad settles quickly, with Bouaddi and further additions before the transfer window closes expected to give the Italian more straightforward options in the weeks ahead.