Hits and misses: Maresca's Man City experiment gets lucky

Sky Sports football writers analyse Sunday's action as Liverpool rescue a late draw at Newcastle and Man City score a stoppage-time winner to beat Bournemouth; Brighton also stun Aston Villa with four first-half goals in thumping win

Enzo Maresca described his first Premier League win as Manchester City boss "the perfect day", but also conceded that his side remain a "work in progress" after beating Bournemouth. That was evident for all to see as Marc Guehi hauled up surprisingly in midfield and Rico Lewis was staged at right-back.

Neither will be expected to continue the campaign in those positions. But City are worryingly short of options. Their performance bearing all the hallmarks of the unfinished article Maresca referenced.

Man City will not challenge Arsenal or any side at the top in this condition, with so many of their best stars obviously undercooked. Erling Haaland and Phil Foden were both muted. Elliot Anderson lost more duels than he won. Guehi is just not a central midfielder.

But if City can continue to win games while Maresca figures things out, there is reason for optimism. All of those players will get sharper. Guehi will return to being a defender. And help will arrive from elsewhere, with Ayyoub Bouaddi's signing on the horizon. City know they have work to do before the transfer window shuts.

What felt like an afternoon destined to end in disappointment and frustration morphed into one of success for Maresca. The Italian can take credit for the changes he made in the second half to ensure his Etihad bow ended all smiles. He won't be so lucky every week. Laura Hunter

One of the strangest things about his emotional reunion with Newcastle was how little impact he had.

Just under 12 months since that acrimonious departure, the balance of the transfer already feels remarkably different. Liverpool may still have the long-term prize, but on the evidence of this 2-2 draw, Newcastle have got the better of the deal so far.

The Isak who used to glide around this stadium with an effortless swagger was missing.

There are some mitigating circumstances. Injuries have interrupted his rhythm since moving to Liverpool and, when a forward's body isn't right, sharpness and confidence can disappear quickly. This was never going to be an easy afternoon either, with the St James' Park crowd making their feelings known.

But even allowing for all of that, this did not look like the Isak Newcastle supporters remember.

There is plenty of time for Isak to change that story yet whether the 'old Isak' will ever resurface is a debatable question. Lewis Jones

Yoane Wissa was signed by Newcastle to be the finisher, not the conductor of the orchestra.

However, against Liverpool the Newcastle forward operated predominantly as a No 10 and, for long periods, ran the show.