Manchester City's run of three straight defeats under Enzo Maresca raises questions about the side

Summary

Manchester City have lost three straight games after seven straight wins to start the season, a pattern the Guardian says has been recorded only once before in top-flight English history, by Sheffield Wednesday in 1904-05. The latest defeat came at Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Enzo Maresca said the three defeats were all different but that City had more possession and more chances in each. The Guardian gives the figures: 63% possession and 15 chances to Aston Villa's eight in a 2-1 defeat two weeks earlier, 62% and 21 chances to seven in a 1-0 home defeat to Brighton, and 79% possession and 12 chances to 11 at Forest. The report says Maresca is right that City could call some results unfortunate, but that Forest were third in the expected goals table and second bottom in the actual table before the match. Maresca will use the international break to reassess, and the Guardian argues the problems may go beyond tactics.

Timeline

1. The Guardian

   9 Nov 2026, 16:30 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports that Manchester City's three straight defeats, the latest a Saturday loss to Nottingham Forest, follow seven straight wins and form a pattern recorded only once before in top-flight English history, and that City had more possession and chances in each of the three games.