The English Premier League season for 2025/26 has officially begun. Manchester City kicked off their championship defense with a 4-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers on the road. New addition Tijjani Reijnders had a fantastic game, scoring a goal and setting up another. He was a big part of City’s first win of the season.
Intense First Half as City Survives Scares
City had most of the ball in the first half at Wolves’ Molineux Stadium, but they had trouble getting past the hosts’ tight defense and sometimes looked like they might be attacked on the counter.
Wolves attacker Munesi made two serious chances inside the penalty area in the 26th and 30th minutes, but both were ruled out for offside. This kept City from giving up an early goal.
It was difficult to break the tie, but summer signing Reijnders, who came from AC Milan, stepped up and gave City the boost they needed.
Haaland Extends Opening-Day Streak
City finally broke through in the 34th minute. A smart through ball split the Wolves’ defense, and Rico Lewis ran into the box and passed it to Erling Haaland, who calmly tapped it home to make it 1-0.
The Norwegian striker kept up his impressive record in Premier League openers by scoring for the fourth year in a row. Opta says that only Mohamed Salah has a longer streak, having scored in six straight opening-day games.
Reijnders showed his quality again just three minutes later. After Oscar Bobb passed him the ball, he ran forward and hit a perfect diagonal shot from the edge of the box into the top corner. Portuguese goalkeeper José Sá couldn’t do much to stop it, and City went up by two goals.
Reijnders Inspires, Haaland Scores Twice
Reijnders had an effect that went beyond that. In the 61st minute, he made another sharp run down the right side before cutting back with calm. Haaland was there to smash the ball home with his left foot, completing his brace and putting City up 3-0.
Cherki Adds the Finishing Touch
Rayan Cherki, another new acquisition, took advantage of a mistake by the Wolves’ defense at the end of the game. The young Frenchman jumped on the chance and scored, giving City a clear 4-0 win.
City Go Top, New Faces Impress
With this apparent triumph, City moved ahead of Sunderland, who also has three points but a worse goal differential, into first position in the Premier League standings.
On the first day of the season, Manchester City delivered a strong statement with their overwhelming performance. Haaland’s merciless finishing and the influence of new players Reijnders and Cherki showed how deep the roster was.
This win not only gave them a great start to their championship defense, but it also made them even more determined to win their fifth straight Premier League title.
