(VIDEO) Haaland failed to show up and Manchester City lost 2-1 against Wolverhampton

Manchester City had a tough challenge this Saturday at Molineux Stadium. Wolverhampton proved to be a solid team and worked hard to prevent The Citizens from playing comfortably and showing their usual virtues.

The home side netted the opener in the first minutes of the match. At 13 minutes, Portuguese winger Pedro Neto made a great individual play on the right side of the field. At full speed he dribbled Nathan Aké, entered the box and sent a cross looking for Matheus Cunha. Defender Ruben Dias intercepted the cross, but could not prevent the ball from bouncing off his body and into his own net, making it impossible for goalkeeper Ederson to react.

After this, Manchester City tried to recover and created some dangerous situations, but could not score the equaliser. This only happened 13 minutes into the second half, when Julian Alvarez netted a beautiful free kick goal with his right foot. The Argentine striker appeared to help the team, while Erling Haaland seemed absent from the field.

However, Pep Guardiola's happiness was short-lived: just 8 minutes after Alvarez's goal, the home side took the lead again thanks to Hwan Hee-Chan. The South Korean striker took a rebound inside the box and passed to Matheus Cunha. The Brazilian player returned the ball surprising goalkeeper Ederson and Hwan Hee-Chan only had to shoot softly to score The Wolves' second goal.

Now they are in trouble

Manchester City lost their first game in the 2023/24 Premier League season. And that could cost them dearly. For now they remain the only leaders of the standings with 18 points, one more than Arsenal, who beat Bournemouth. However, Liverpool will have the chance to overtake them this Saturday if they beat Tottenham in London.