Wolverhampton Wanderers 0-4 Manchester City Player Ratings : Erling Haaland rated 8.5/10 as City make a Ferocious Start in their Premier League opener

Wolves faced off against the giants, Man City, for the sixth match of the 2025/26 Premier League season at the Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton, on the 16th of August 2025. Both teams entered the pitch with determination to give their best and start the tournament on a higher note, and after a thrilling encounter, City emerged victorious 0-2.

City initiated the proceedings, and they started the game holding possession and attacking from the wings, with the likes of Doku. Later, the game was dominated in the midfield, with the visitors occasionally making some attempts at goal. In the 19th minute, Haaland got a golden opportunity to break the deadlock in an open goal, which he unfortunately skied off. Around a quarter of an hour later, Reijnders made a beautiful run from the midfield and passed the ball to Lewis, who in turn chipped the ball into the penalty box straight to Haaland, who did not disappoint this time as he found the back of the net. Just minutes later, Reijnders marked his name in the scoresheet by scoring from a relatively tight angle from the right to double the delight for City, and at half-time it was 0-2 in favour of City.

In the second half, City scored twice more with the likes of Haaland, who buried in an effort past Sa in the bottom left corner, and Cherki the former Lyon, who registered his name on debut by taking a bullet shot from 18 yards to the bottom corner to make it 0-4 for City.

Here are the Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Manchester City Player Ratings

Wolverhampton Wanderers Player Ratings

Here are the Wolverhampton Wanderers Player Ratings

Goalkeper

Jose Sa - 5.2/10

The keeper was just a spectator when City scored both goals in the first half, as it came out of defensive errors. In the second half, though the keeper displayed some vigour, he was unable to stop the opponents from scoring.

Defenders

Matt Doherty - 5.5/10

Doherty was possibly one of the only players who had a decent performance in the defensive third in the first half. Even though Doku had the better of him in the initial minutes, the defender later did well to resist the winger. However, in the second half, City made the player struggle.

Emmanuel Agbadou - 5/10

Agbadou looked promising in the initial minutes, but as minutes passed by, the centre back was seen struggling to defend collectively as he left spaces in the backline, which was properly punished by the City attackers. Was terrible and failed to mark the opponents, which backfired.

Toti Gomes - 5.5/10

The Wolves captain struggled in the defensive third as the combined power of Haaland, Bobb, Reijnders, Lewis, and Gonzales was too much for him to handle single-handedly in the defence.

Midfielders

Ki-Jana Hover - 6.2/10

Was average in the first half. Displayed intent in the second half as he drove forward on the right flank and delivered some crosses into the 12-yard area. Was relatively displaing a better performance in comparison to his teammates.

Joao Gomes - 6.5/10

Gomes, to an extent, played a good role in denying City from dribbling past him and entering his half of play by making some good interceptions and tackles. Offensively, the player was unable to contribute much.

Andre - 6.5/10

Andre was the best player for Wolves as he displayed a commendable performance for his side. Had a passing accuracy of 97%, won 5 out of the 9 duels involved in, made interceptions and clearances and had a great performance individually.

David Moller Wolfe - 6/10

Wolfe had a rather average opening match for his side as he was seen struggling during multiple instances in the game. Did not have much impact and was subbed off in the second half.

Forward

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde - 6/10

Broke some counterattacks, which, though they looked promising initially, disappointed in the final third. His inability to score meant that he was subbed off early in the second half.

Jorgen Strand Larsen - 6/10

Worked so hard to fashion some attacks in the attacking third, but to his dismay, none of them created trouble for the opponents due to the lack of support.

Marshall Munetsi - 6.3/10

Made some accelerated runs and provided some good crosses inside the box, but none of his teammates were present there to tap in the ball.

Substitutes

Hugo Bueno - 6/10

Fer Lopez - 6.2/10

Jhon Arias - 6/10

Rodrigo Gomes - 6/10

Hee-Chan Hwang - NA

Manager

Victor Pereira - 5/10

The manager could have made better decisions ahead of the match to make the defence much stronger before facing City, who have some of the finest offensive players. When his team was trailing, the gaffer was unable to regroup them and had to be on the losing side.

Manchester City Player Ratings

Here are the Manchester City Player Ratings

Goalkeper

James Trafford - 6.5/10

Apart from some routine saves and catches, Trafford did not have much to do throughout the match as he was rarely tested by the opponents in the goal.

Defenders

Rico Lewis - 7.5/10

Rico Lewis barely had anything to do in the defence, and ventured to the middle third and deep into the final third and assisted the opener. Provided some accurate long balls and had a 91% passing accuracy. Won all the duels involved in and had a spectacular performance.

John Stones - 7/10

Stones had a satisfying evening making his presence felt in the attack and the defence, where he was unparalleled. Made a good number of sprints, provided some long balls and had an overall great day at the office.

Ruben Dias - 7/10

Dias stood solid in the defence and was alert enough to make clearances and blocks whenever the opponents posed potential threats for his side.

Rayan Ait-Nouri - 7/10

The fullback made some aggressive challenges and tackles to deny the wingers from progressing forward into the attacking third. Ait-Nouri also came forward to provide some deep crosses to help the team offensively.

Midfielders

Nico Gonzalez - 7.5/10

Nico Gonzalez had a central role in the midfield, where he displayed an impressive performance, dispossessing the opponents and winning almost all the duels involved.

Tijjani Reijnders - 8/10

Reijnders was fabulous in the midfield with his creative play. Made some stunning dribbles and provided some key passes to the final third. Laid the foundation for the match opener in the 34th minute. Just minutes later, he found the back of the net, doubling the advantage for his side. In the second half, he was cheeky and cleverly assisted the third goal.

Oscar Bobb - 7.5/10

Bobb fueled the attacking initiatives of City right from the first quarter of the match. Defeated the opponent defenders with his poetry-like moves inside the 18-yard box, and even assisted the second goal of the match, and had a key contribution in City's third goal.

Bernardo Silva - 7.2/10

Silva was a pivotal figure for City on the left wing. Linked up with Doku and created some combination plays. Delivered some teasing crosses inside the box, piling pressure upon the opponents. He was seen everywhere on the pitch and excelled in all the stats involved.

Jeremy Doku - 6.5/10

Tormented the Wolves' defence and covered almost every blade of grass on the left, providing crosses consistently inside the six-yard box. Later, he was resisted to an extent by Doherty and was relatively having less impact.

Forward

Erlin Haaland - 8.5/10

Haaland was not having his best hour on the pitch during the initial minutes, as he failed to create any serious challenges to the opponents. But, as the game progressed, he came back to his usual form and broke the deadlock for his side. In the second half, he yet again scored with ease.

Substitutes

Matheus Nunes - /10

Nico O'Reilly - /10

Omar Marmoush - /10

Rayan Cherki - 7/10

Came in as a substitute and scored the fourth goal for City on debut.

Khusanov - NA

Manager

Pep Guardiola - 7.5/10

Guardiola couldn't have asked for a much better performance from his team on the opener. His team displayed proper teamwork and was able to coordinate well and get the entire three points. Made timely substitutions and experimented with the players and was top-notch in every decisions.

Sportsdunia's Player of the Match is Erling Haaland