The club won't look back on 2024/25 with any fondness whatsoever after a disastrous campaign. However, the hard reset doesn't appear to have made too much difference so far.
An opening day win at bottom-of-the-table Wolverhampton Wanderers showcased just how brilliant the Cityzens are going forward, whilst the losses against Tottenham Hotspur and at Brighton and Hove Albion have wiped away any initial positivity.
Deja vu for Pep and Man City
What is perhaps more troubling for Guardiola is that City were leading at the AMEX Stadium through Erling Haaland's expertly taken finish, but were unable to build on their advantage.
For the first time since November 9th, 2024 - against Brighton - City lost a game when leading at half-time, whilst the Seagulls won after trailing at half-time in the English top-flight for the first time since May 25th, 2025 against Tottenham Hotspur.
At least Pep couldn't fault the effort of some of his players with Rodri attempting 100 passes (from 108 touches) in the game and Haaland taking seven shots - both season highs and significantly more than anyone else on the pitch.
The Norwegian was making his 100th appearance in the Premier League, the 1,201st player to do so, but he was already out on his own in terms of goals - 88 and counting - in that time, whilst the Spaniard's first start since September 2024 vs Arsenal saw him lose his own personal unbeaten record which came in his previous 49 starts in the competition (W39 D10).
Man City's early dominance clear for all to see
With 65.1% possession over the course of the opening 15 minutes, City's dominance was abundantly clear, and Haaland's three shots at goal before the half hour were further evidence of this.
On 34, the rampaging centre-forward was quicker to a loose ball than anyone else and lofted the ball over the oncoming Bart Verbruggen to give City a deserved lead - his sixth in six games against the Seagulls.
Ominously for Fabian Hurzeler's side, the visitors hadn't lost any of their previous 15 matches when taking the lead.
Given that the hosts had only had an 18th-minute shot on target to cheer from Kaoru Mitoma - the fewest in a home league match since November 2019 vs Leicester - there was nothing to suggest the pattern of the game would change to any great degree after the break.
Milner - the second-oldest swinger in town
67.2% possession over the opening 15 minutes of the second half evidenced exactly that, though what was noticeable as the game developed was just how often City's midfielders were starting to give up possession.
Between Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Omar Marmoush and Tijjani Reijnders, the ball was given away an astonishing 45 times by the end of the game.
Hurzeler sent on 39-year-old experienced campaigner and former City ace, James Milner, as one of four subs on the hour.
Within six minutes of his introduction, the second youngest Premier League scorer stepped up to take a penalty and, by scoring it, also became the second oldest to get a goal in the English top-flight.
It was his first since 2019 and meant he also now holds the record for the longest gap between first and last Premier League goals - 22 years and 248 days - since he scored his maiden one for Leeds United at Sunderland on Boxing Day back in December 2002, when he was only 16 years and 356 days old
Another fun side note is that Milner had already made his Premier League debut in November 2002 before 11 players in Sunday's match day squads were even born.
Brighton took the game to City in the second half
The hosts were well on top in the latter stages of the game, with Yankuba Minteh particularly impressive in and around the City penalty box and Diego Gomez recording the most pressures overall (84) and in the opposition half (54).
Though the visitors were able to repel any Brighton attacks with relative ease, the likes of Reijnders and Haaland were unable to make any sort of inroads at the opposite end, and indeed, the Norwegian's goal was City's last shot on target in the game.
Brighton had nine shots in total in the second half alone, not including Milner's penalty, before Brajan Gruda provided the pièce de résistance in the 89th minute.
With City's back line all at sea, Mitoma drove forward and released Gruda - who still had work to do - before sitting down James Trafford and Rayan Ait-Nouri and slotting home the winner into an empty net.
Gruda's fifth goal involvement in his last eight Premier League appearances (2 goals, 3 assists) came despite starting just two of those matches.
Two more off-target shots from Reijnders and Haaland in injury-time were as good as it got for City, and Guardiola needs to read his players the riot act with the Manchester derby the first game back following the international break.
