Manchester City Faces Porto in Champions League Opener
Manchester City step back onto the Champions League stage on Tuesday night, and Enzo Maresca is treating Porto away exactly as it sounds: a serious examination, not a ceremonial return.
The City head coach and Matheus Nunes faced the cameras on the eve of the Group Stage opener, offering injury news, tactical hints and a glimpse into the new mood around the Etihad.
O’Reilly hope, Doku concern
The first big call comes before a ball is kicked.
Nico O’Reilly and Jeremy Doku have not travelled to Portugal. Both missed training on Monday and were left out of the squad that flew to Porto, but their situations are not identical.
O’Reilly pulled out of the warm-up before City’s weekend win over Coventry. The issue is not thought to be serious, and Maresca sounded upbeat about the teenager’s chances of returning in time for Sunday’s Manchester derby against United.
Doku’s outlook is far less encouraging. Injured in the Community Shield, the Belgium international was initially only expected to miss a couple of weeks. That timetable has slipped. Maresca confirmed there has been no fresh setback and said the winger is “back”, yet he still looks set to sit out at least the first five matches of the season and is unlikely to feature at the weekend either.
Haaland the captain, Haaland the man
Erling Haaland’s status inside the dressing room continues to grow.
“He is the second captain. He is a figure,” Maresca said. “He has won everything for the club. He is a top guy and I am happy that his leadership keeps growing because he deserves it.”
The coach also pointed to a different kind of evolution. Haaland is now a father, and Maresca believes that has rounded out the striker as a person.
“He is a man now, a dad. When he arrived here, he was not that. His life completely changed because he had a son, he is a top class player, guy but now he is complete. He is a family man.”
Managing his star forward’s workload remains a live issue.
“It’s not easy for Erling, not easy for the players who play for their international team,” Maresca said. “In the moment that you see they are tired, it is right to give them a rest. It can be one game, or one week. We need 11 players 100 per cent.”
Maresca’s City: music, energy and standards
Maresca has wasted little time stamping his personality on the club.
He has brought one of his trademarks from Leicester and Chelsea into City’s routine: music during training and warm-ups.
“It is something I had at Leicester, Chelsea and I introduce it here,” he explained. “When it is playing, they are happy. They choose the music.”
Inside the camp, that change has been felt. Nunes described a different kind of buzz around the squad.
“He has brought so much energy, there feels like a new energy around,” the Portugal international said. “He is very good energy. He sets the standard.”
The Italian insists that, despite the tweaks and the new Champions League format, the core ambition is unchanged.
“It’s always special, a nice competition, we need to adapt. It is a different competition but the ambition is still the same.”
When you are City, he added, the scrutiny is automatic.
“When you are City, the expectation is higher. I like to be focused on day by day. For me, the most important thing is for me to see that we are improving.”
Porto away: “a hard place to come”
Maresca knows the scale of the assignment in Portugal.
“Very, very good team,” he said of Porto. “The team is very clear the way they play. They have a clear style so congratulations to them.”
He expects a hostile night and a match decided by details.
“We are here to do our best. The game will dictate who is favourites. It is a hard place to come, difficult place. We are going to try and do our best and try to win the game.”
Set pieces, he stressed, could be decisive.
“I know that Porto are good at set pieces. It has become part of the game. Defend in the right way and score set pieces. You need to be perfect in your game.”
The Italian’s own Champions League story gives him perspective. He was on staff during City’s Treble season and has experienced the competition with Chelsea.
“It is different competition, but we have to be ourselves.”
Nunes: right-back, midfield and a “beautiful duel”
Then came part two of the press conference. Matheus Nunes walked in, fit again and smiling.
“I’m good, I am 100 per cent,” he said. “It was my ankle, the training before Arsenal there was a tackle but now I am fine.”
Under Maresca, Nunes has already shown his versatility, slotting in at right-back as well as in midfield.
“I can play any position. I feel happy at right-back,” he said. Still, he is clear about where he sees his long-term role. “I am a midfielder and going forward to attack is something I am used to. When I play I will try to do my best. When Mister decides me to play in one position, that is where I will play.”
His job description, he believes, will remain fluid.
“It will be the same. There will be moments when I can do other positions. It depends what Mister wants for every game. I can play different positions.”
Nunes knows Porto well from his time in Portugal and expects another intense contest.
“It is going to be tough. All teams have great players. I know Pepe is a great forward, he plays very well with his two feet. It is going to be a beautiful duel.”
Asked if Porto represent City’s most complicated tie so far, he refused to single them out.
“If it is the most complicated tie, I don’t know. Arsenal was complicated, Palace was complicated. We are facing one of the best teams in Portugal. I am sure it will be a difficult one. We have to be at our best level.”
From his vantage point, Porto have shifted stylistically since his days in the league.
“From what I have seen, I think they really enjoy playing now, they much enjoy controlling the game. That is a huge difference. When I was playing here, it was transition football. It is part of their DNA to be fighters.”
Pep and Enzo: two intense minds
Nunes has worked under both Pep Guardiola and Maresca. The comparisons are inevitable, even if he is not ready to go too deep.
“I was with Pep for three seasons and Enzo just a couple of months. Maybe in a few months I can answer that question,” he said. “They are both very passionate so I see more comparisons than differences.”
On the pitch, Nunes expects City’s Champions League standards to remain sky-high.
“Every year is different. The Champions League is the most difficult tournament, especially in the knockouts. You don’t play well, you are out. In the Premier League, you can come back. We want to win every season. This year will be no different.”
New faces, same demands
City’s squad has been refreshed again, and Nunes is impressed with the calibre of the arrivals.
“It is incredible that they brought in. They were the best players at the other teams. It is just the way it is, players go and players come in. We have to help them settle. They are very happy to be here.”
He also welcomed the capture of Enzo Fernandez, speaking from the dressing-room perspective.
“We as players don’t know, we want to have the best players and Enzo is one of them. We were very happy. When a new player comes in, they did an amazing job with the transfer window.”
Inside Maresca’s system, creative players like Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden carry extra responsibility between the lines.
“There is always a game plan and when we are in our side, Rayan drops a little to manage the tempo,” Maresca explained. “When we are in the opposite side, we need him higher. He is dangerous with the last pass.”
Cherki’s positioning, he added, was crucial in the second goal against Bournemouth, and he believes Foden can operate in that same role. “We are very lucky,” he said.
City now step into a revamped Champions League format with familiar expectations and a slightly altered face. Porto away will not define their season, but it will reveal how quickly Maresca’s ideas, his energy and his leaders have settled into the demands of Europe.
On nights like this, you find out whether a new era is just beginning—or whether it still has some growing up to do.
