Enzo Maresca admitted he did not expect Man City to win their opening seven Premier League games after Saturday’s 3-2 victory over Ipswich Town.
Phil Foden opened the scoring before Erling Haaland struck twice at the Etihad Stadium, with City surviving a late scare following Zian Flemming’s penalty.
The victory made Maresca the first manager in Premier League history to win his opening seven matches in charge of a club.
“For sure I didn’t expect to win seven out of seven,” Maresca said after the game. “The main reason is I’m not thinking about the next five, I think about the next one.”
Maresca was particularly encouraged by City’s overall performance, saying his side had controlled the game, created chances and worked well without the ball.
Maresca praises Foden and Haaland
Foden’s return was another major positive, with his opener his first Premier League goal since December.
“For me he’s one of the best Premier League players,” Maresca said. “I’m very happy for his goal, and hopefully it can be just the beginning of many goals and good performances.”
Maresca also described Haaland as a “leader” after the Norwegian continued his prolific start with another two goals. There was encouraging news over the striker’s fitness after he appeared to pick up a knock.
Maresca said Haaland, Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes had all told him they were OK, while Nico O’Reilly continues to manage a back problem.
Antoine Semenyo remains the greater concern, with City waiting to discover the extent of his problem.
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