Manchester City opened their Champions League campaign against Porto at the Estádio do Dragão, with this update reflecting that fixture as of 18 September 2026. It lands as Enzo Maresca’s first European test since returning to the club, and it revisits what Matheus Nunes told Gabriel Clarke in an interview with Gabriel Clarke for Prime Video’s coverage of the match.
Nunes has played under both men, so his read on the Enzo Maresca Pep Guardiola relationship carries weight. His verdict is simple: the methods have barely changed, even if the man delivering them has.
Maresca brings energy and familiarity to the Etihad
Asked what the new head coach has added since arriving, Nunes kept his answer short and direct. “Energy. He’s brought a lot of energy into the team, and his ideas are very good,” he said.
Maresca already knows the club, having worked there under Guardiola before moving on. Nunes sees that history as an advantage rather than a burden. “I think it’s a top opportunity. Maresca came with a lot of enthusiasm, and he knows the standards of the club as he was here before and won everything with the club. He’s got everything he needs to succeed, and I hope this season shows it,” he said.
On the Guardiola era itself, Nunes was equally measured. “Well, the chapter has now come to an end, so we try not to think about it or pay attention to it. A lot of things have been going on at the club, we’ve had new players come in, and there’s a lot more we need to think about at the moment,” he said.
That rebuilding job now sits with the players who stayed. City have leaned on shrewd timing in the market before, from past transfer dealings at City to this summer’s incomings, and Nunes says the senior squad carries the responsibility of bedding new arrivals in. “Now we need to help the new players settle in, learn what they’re like on a daily basis and on the pitch, get some chemistry with them, which is important, and pass on the identity of the club to them. The old players and staff that have been here for a long time have that responsibility now, and the sooner we do that, the better,” he said.
Nunes also feels a shift in mood around the training ground. “Yes, definitely. There is new energy everywhere. It feels like a young energy, but it’s a very good feeling to have,” he said.
How Enzo Maresca compares tactically to Pep Guardiola
Maresca’s tactical principles are, by Nunes’ account, nearly identical to Guardiola’s. Both want control of the ball and the game, and both build everything around conceding as little as possible.
Nunes explained the process as ongoing rather than finished. “We are still learning, of course. It’s a process and it doesn’t change overnight. However, I feel like from a tactical sense, he is the same as Pep. He wants to control the game and ensure we concede as little as we can. This is the DNA of the club. It’s been like this since Pep arrived and even before, but Pep made an image of doing this over a longer period,” he said.
He went further on Maresca’s mentality, framing him as a coach built for winning rather than simply maintaining a style. “Made to win. I think he has that mentality. He wants us to control the game, score goals and not concede. That is why the club has chosen him to be the manager and represent the city and club. I think they’ve made the best choice they could have made,” he said.
Nunes also pointed to qualities beyond the tactics board. “Tactical, man management, motivation, a bit of everything. I have been noticing all of these things in his management. He has everything a manager should have and, despite still being at the beginning of his career, I feel he is ready for everything,” he said.
And when it came to describing Guardiola himself, after being offered a choice between obsessive, a genius or the greatest, Nunes needed only a few words. “All of them. If I had to choose one in particular, the greatest,” he said. It is a reminder of how high the bar sits for whoever follows him, and why the Enzo Maresca Pep Guardiola comparison keeps coming up around the Etihad.
What happens next
For now, the focus is on the pitch. City’s trip to Porto marks the start of their Champions League group fixtures under Maresca, and it gives an early look at whether those shared principles, control of the ball and a low tolerance for conceding, travel well in Europe.
Nunes’ comments give supporters a clear line on the manager’s identity heading into that test. The next real evidence will come from results, starting in Portugal.
