“There’s been a lot of talk” – Marc Guehi reacts to five-star Manchester City debut against Wolves | OneFootball

Marc Guehi was full of praise for his Manchester City teammates after managing a shutout on his full debut for the club in a 2-0 win over Wolves on Saturday afternoon.

The 25-year-old completed a £20 million transfer to the Etihad Stadium from Crystal Palace on Monday and after missing City’s 3-1 UEFA Champions League loss to Bodo/Glimt in Norway on Tuesday, the England international was thrown into the deep end against Wolves.

Parterning Abdukodir Khusanov in central defence, Guehi was rock solid as he commanded the defence to a much-needed clean sheet as Pep Guardiola’s side claimed their first Premier League win of 2026 in the wake of back-to-back losses to Manchester United and Bodo/Glimt.

Guardiola made five changes to his starting XI against Wolves as the likes of Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and Max Alleyne dropped to the bench, with Omar Marmoush opening the scoring in brilliant fashion six minutes in on his first Manchester City start in over a month after returning from the Africa Cup of Nations.

City are missing Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol due to injury after the pair were hauled off in a 1-1 draw with Chelsea at the start of the month. John Stones is also yet to be deemed match-fit after sustaining a leg injury in early December 2025.

Guehi has provided great assurance and stability at the heart of defence at a moment of near desperation for Manchester City, who will be hopeful of a favour from cross-town rivals Manchester United when they visit Premier League leaders Arsenal on Sunday.

Speaking to the club’s official channels after his Manchester City debut, the former Crystal Palace skipper said: “It’s good, it’s good. I don’t want to get too ahead of myself, but I’m thankful for the opportunity, thankful to be at the football club. And it’s not bad, it’s good.”

Guehi impressed with his ability on the ball, distribution and sense of calm when defending in his own box, though the highlight of his debut came late on when the £20 million signing collectively helped keep Wolves at bay among a flurry of flying Manchester City tackles in their box.

“It’s just the mentality of the team since I’ve walked in; you can feel that intensity and willingness to win,” the defender added. “It’s just an emotion that the whole team is feeling at the moment. It’s important to put those blocks in, get those goals, however we can, to win.”

There remain huge doubts over Manchester City’s prospects in the title race after a sluggish start to 2026, which has seen the Blues win just thrice in their last eight games in all competitions.

Guehi said: “I think there’s been a lot of talk within the squad to do as much as we can to up performances, show the best of ourselves. We want to be hard on ourselves, want to improve, in all areas, so hopefully we can do that in future.”

On making his Manchester City debut in front of a jubilant Etihad Stadium, Guehi added: “It’s fantastic; fantastic fans, they’re great, the atmosphere was fantastic, the stadium is beautiful. It’s fantastic!”

The fixture schedule is not easing up anytime soon for Guardiola and co, with Guehi set to retain his starting place in a monumental UEFA Champions League group-stage clash against Ilkay Gundogan and Galatasaray next week.