City begins title defence with Burnley defeat away 0:3.
Five summer recruits, including former City goalkeeper James Trafford, make their debut for the Clarets side.
City coach Josep Guardiola keeps his newcomers Josko Guardiola and Mateo Kovacic in the reserves. Nathan Ake and Kevin de Bruyne finally solve their health problems and come into the starting line-up. João Cancelo is not included in the squad.
The first goal of the 2023/2024 season has to wait just over three minutes. De Bruyne crosses from the right flank, Rodri takes a header and Erling Haaland shoots from the edge of the box – 0:1.
City look much more powerful and nearly double the score in the 17th minute. Rodri takes a header from the centre of the box after de Bruyne’s cross, but Trafford saves his team.
A minute later, Ederson makes a save, albeit a much easier one, as he deflects Zeki Amdouni’s shot from the left edge of the penalty area.
Already midway through the first half, Guardiola is forced to make his first substitution, bringing on Kovacic in place of the injured de Bruyne.
The loss of de Bruyne does not prevent the visitors from scoring their second goal on 36 minutes. Julian Alvarez receives the ball in the penalty area from the flank, rolling to the s, and Erling strikes a touch with a rebound off the crossbar – 0:2.
After the second conceded goal, Burnley are noticeably subdued and don’t give City any problems in the rest of the first half. After the break, Cityzens continue to tear apart the defence. Haaland and Rodri are particularly industrious. Just the latter makes the score huge in the 75th minute, catching the rebound inside the goalkeeper’s box – 0:3.
The end of the match is serene for the visitors. The home side are encouraged by their fans, but they have no real chances to break the score. Already in extra time Anass Zarouri overshadows his Premier League debut, receiving a straight red card for rough play against Kyle Walker.
City and Burnley prove to be rivals from different weight classes. City are coming off a super-convincing win, while Haaland, as he did a year ago, immediately silences his critics after an unimpressive FA Super Cup match.