Manchester City’s 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers was routine, but there was plenty to talk about beyond the unremarkable scoreline.
Erling Haaland (£15.1 million) and Phil Foden (£8.6 million) were reduced to one-pointers from the bench, Marc Guehi (£5.2m) got a debut, and Antoine Semenyo (£7.7m) has scored three goals in four starts since arriving in the North West.
Here are our first Gameweek 23 Scout Notes.
PEP THROWS THE GLOVE TO HAALAND + THE FOOT
Foden’s benching broke his 19-match Premier League starting streak. Haaland was an ever-present starter in 2025-26 until Saturday.
The relegations did not come entirely out of the blue. Pep Guardiola had described Haaland as ‘exhausted’ less than a fortnight ago, while under-par Foden has been eliminated early on in the last few games. The assumption was that with Omar Marmoush (£8.3m) back from Africa, Haaland could be rested against the likes of Bodo/Glimt, Galatasaray and/or Salford City between now and mid-February. Perhaps even the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final, as City are already 2-0 up in that one.
But the breathing space did not come at the Arctic Circle, but arrived on Saturday.
The question is: is that so? just now a breather?
Guardiola hinted at Foden and Haaland’s playing time after the win over Wolves. But he also seemed to be singing from another hymn sheet: the lack of offensive returns.
“People up front, it’s a matter of numbers: assists, goals, assists, goals, assists, goals.” – Pep Guardiola when asked about Omar Marmoush’s performance during Match of the Day
“Antoine’s numbers since he came here, look how many goals have been scored and one disallowed at Newcastle. It’s a matter of numbers. Really good.” – Pep Guardiola about Antoine Semenyo, to Match of the Day
“We can’t do what we want to do this season and the future of this club, without Erling and Phil at their best. They play a lot, a lot, a lot. Then Antoine came with incredible energy, and you know, the numbers. Attackers, it’s a matter of numbers, numbers. Since he got here, Antoine has been incredible. So score a good goal… it seems easy, but the control is perfect, gave the ball to the net. Creates another chance with the excellent pass for Marc [Guehi] and got another chance with the crossbar. So people in advance: it is a matter of numbers, but we urgently need the best from Erling and Phil.” – Pep Guardiola, during his post-match press conference
CHERKI/REIJNDERS, NOT MARMOUSH, UP TOP
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t Marmoush who replaced Haaland up front.
Instead, the Egyptian and Semenyo positioned themselves as narrow wingers. Rayan Cherki (£6.7 million) started out as a false nine, but at times the responsibility fell through Tijjani Reijnders (£5.2 million). At times it looked like a 4-4-2 with both at the top:
It worked extremely well, with first Marmoush and then Semenyo scoring from central positions. Marmoush stuck in a peach of a Matheus Nunes (£5.5m) cross, while Semenyo took a lovely touch from one Bernardo Silva (£6.2 million) pass and stroked the ball past Jose Sa (£4.2 million).
Both ‘wingers’ also hit the woodwork, with Semenyo denied early on by Sa.
“He is of course a special player, not old, not young, but there is still room for improvement. He has a sense of goal, his dynamic energy and his runs are really good. I see him more as a striker, not as a real winger, but he is a transitional man.” – Pep Guardiola on Omar Marmoush
Was this the “change of dynamics” that Guardiola promised on Friday – or just a kick in the ass for Foden/Haaland? The match ended with those two on the pitch in a more recognizable form, with co-sub Jeremy Doku (£6.4m) and Semenyo flanks the Norwegian.
Whatever format we see in Gameweek 24, Semenyo looks the best bet for minutes. He once again lasted the full match, as he did in the Manchester derby and the EFL Cup semi-final, and of course he won’t feature for Galatasaray on Wednesday.
GUARDIOLA GUIDES ABOUT GUEHI
Someone else who cannot play in Europe, at least until the knockout rounds, is Marc Guehi.
He went straight into the Premier League XI on Saturday and played like he had been there for a while. With a cool, calm head at the back (much needed after recent results), he also showed his distribution and set up Semenyo’s early chance with a long pass.
He almost added to his six attacking returns with an early header from a corner, although we’ll probably have to get used to a drop in DefCon points; this was his joint lowest contribution in total (five) from 2025/26 to date.
Guardiola was enthusiastic about Guehi after the match.
“You immediately realize how good he is in terms of mentality, his age, his calmness. I have the feeling that he lives 24 hours a day for his profession.” – Pep Guardiola on Marc Guehi, to Sky
“The transfer is a very, very good price and he is the perfect age, 25, 26 years old, so it is an incredible asset for Man City for the next many, many years. He is a man you can rely on. Do you see it… believe me, two training sessions. How he moves, how he talks, how he sees what is happening around him, how he reads the situations. Yes, really good.” – Pep Guardiola on Marc Guehi
While performances dictate everything, it’s hard to watch him not become a key player in the rearguard in the near future.
Nunes was excellent in his return Nico O’Reilly (£5.1m) got the nod for the left-back. O’Reilly’s owners probably wouldn’t mind continuing this system, with the full-back width needed.
WOLVES REFUSE TO ROLL
Wolves were absent from the races in the first half, with Rob Edwards taking some of the blame after full-time.
“I hope it won’t be perceived as a negative change that Tolu is taking out of the team. The reason for this was simply that we wanted to take the ball more and get behind them in a different way.” – Rob Edwards on why he dropped Tolu Arokodare and was effectively left without a striker in the first half
But undeniable progress has been made in recent weeks. Even avoiding a capitulation here was an indication of that.
Wolves matched their hosts for shots (11-11), also keeping City under 1.0 xG.
Budget ahead Matheus Manen (£4.5m) was lively in the second half, occasionally hampering City’s defense with his dribbling. He also scored four shots. It’s not always the right decision for him, but he is generally always positive about his intentions.
Yerson Mosquera (£4.3m) is bizarrely the best player of Gameweek 23 so far in the Premier League. He registered five tries, went close with a couple of set-play tries and bombed into the box late on.
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