We dropped - Guardiola breaks silence on how unbelievable Tijjani Reijnders-inspired Man City punished Wolves

Pep Guardiola has opened up on Manchester City’s stunning 4-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in their 2025/26 Premier League opener, singling out new signings led by Tijjani Reijnders for their performance. 

The Dutch midfielder played a decisive role in a ruthless City display at Molineux, helping dismantle Wolves with clinical precision.

Reijnders and fellow debutant Rayan Cherki both found the net as City launched their campaign with authority. 

Erling Haaland continued his flawless Premier League goalscoring record by netting twice, including a well-timed tap-in in the 34th minute and a second strike just after the hour mark. 

Reijnders set up Haaland’s second goal with a fine assist and opened his own City account with a confident first-time finish shortly after Haaland’s opener.

Substitute Cherki wrapped up the emphatic win, capping off a dominant performance that left Wolves, who paid a touching tribute to former player Diogo Jota before kickoff, with no answer.

Speaking to the Premier League after the game, the legendary coach praised the attitude of his team and how they punished their hosts in the second half.

“First half good, second not. The attitude was good but in the second half we punished them in transition but they were better. It’s good to improve, though,” Guardiola reflected.

“All of them [new signings] have been unbelievable. In the second half, we dropped too much but maybe that’s normal at the beginning of the season.”

City threatened early on; Haaland missed a golden chance in the 20th minute when he mistimed a jump to nod Bernardo Silva's cross over an open goal. Wolves had a brief moment of hope when Marshall Munetsi’s header was ruled offside in the 26th minute.

City broke the deadlock in the 34th minute: after a clever chipped pass from Reijnders, Rico Lewis delivered a low cross which Haaland expertly finished. 

The lead was quickly doubled when Reijnders capitalised on a sloppy pass from Emmanuel Agbadou and drilled a brilliant strike into the bottom-right corner.

Wolves showed more fight after the break, with Jorgen Strand Larsen missing two good chances. However, Haaland extinguished their hopes in the 61st minute, capping a slick one-two play with Reijnders and Oscar Bobb by side-footing beyond goalkeeper Jose Sa.

A brief Wolves revival came with Jhon Arias’ introduction, but James Trafford was on hand to deny Strand Larsen again. Cherki then finished the scoring in the 81st minute with a precise strike from the edge of the area.

Manchester City’s opening day performance, inspired by the composure and creativity of Tijjani Reijnders, sent a clear message: this is a team set to dominate once more.