"In this moment it's a matter of finding a solution," Enzo Maresca said after Manchester City's meeting with Bournemouth in Manchester City vs Bournemouth. He had Marc Guéhi in midfield for the first time, and he said the idea had been worked on in training before it reached the match.

Maresca’s midfield experiment

Maresca said he had visualised the switch, tried it in the first two days after the Arsenal game, then used the last two days to rehearse Guéhi as a proper midfielder. That is a notable call, because Guéhi has been used as a defender in his recent five-match log, not as someone stepping into the middle of the pitch.

The manager was also clear that he did not see it as a one-off stunt. "Now the good thing is now he gives us solutions for the future," he said. Guéhi backed that up with his own reaction, saying: "I enjoyed it today." He added that the support from team-mates made it easier to settle into the role.

The numbers around him do not point to an obvious attacking midfielder waiting to happen. Guéhi’s recent five-match average rating is 6.3, which makes the positive view of his performance more about the role change than any existing reputation in that area.

The late goals and the wider match

Manchester City still needed the game to swing late. Guéhi headed the equaliser on 84 minutes, and Joško Gvardiol scored the winner in injury time. Rayan Cherki provided both assists, which gave the comeback its edge.

The result did not come from a clean tactical plan alone. Elliot Anderson was one of the players Maresca said had arrived late, and he was substituted after a second-half scare. Maresca said it was cramp, not a serious injury. Anderson’s recent five-match average rating is 7, while Gvardiol’s is 6.6, so both were involved in a game that needed concentration as much as invention.

Maresca also said four or five players were still effectively in pre-season because they arrived only 10 days ago, with Guéhi and Anderson among them. That leaves Manchester City with a midfield group that is still being worked through in real time, and this was one of the first public signs of how the coach may use it.

Bournemouth’s next Premier League match is away to Everton on August 29 at Vitality Stadium.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →