The picture that Enzo Maresca is trying to paint stood out in the second half against Inter Milan

As Manchester City ramp up their preparations for the 2026-27 season in Asia, it remains to be seen what changes Enzo Maresca will implement that differ from Pep Guardiola. The principles of possession football will remain at City despite Maresca replacing Guardiola in the dugout. What was worth keeping an eye out during Manchester City's first preseason friendly against Inter Milan was whether any of Enzo Maresca's tactical adjustments could be seen. Come the final whistle of Manchester City's 1-1 draw with Inter Milan and subsequent penalty shootout defeat, the answer was clear. Yes, the tactical tweaks by Maresca were evident, especially in the second half at the Kai Tak Stadium.

There were both positives and areas to improve in the first half from Manchester City against Inter Milan.

Manchester City made a bright start in the first half against Inter Milan. Antoine Semenyo was wreaked havoc on the left wing. It was Semenyo who created Manchester City's first goal when he surged down the left to the byline to play the ball back for Divin Mubama to open the scoring in the 14th minute.

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While City took the early lead, Inter Milan did look dangerous on the break at the Kai Tak Stadium. Enzo Maresca's side employed a high four-man press which did disrupt Inter's buildup play. However, when Inter did play through the press they did have space to drive at Manchester City's defence. Tijjani Reijnders and Mateo Kovacic were tasked with playing in midfield to shield City's backline. It isn't a role that either player is particularly suited to which was impossible to ignore. Speaking after the match, Maresca said: "We struggled a bit in the first-half and we know the reason why, but we were much better in the second-half. We will get better and better."

You do wonder if Maresca's comments were about how Manchester City's midfield was bypassed in the opening half-hour of yesterday's match.

Also, Rico Lewis and Stephen Mfuni were caught out by Inter Milan's overlapping wing-backs and by the flighted ball from midfield to either flank. Enzo Maresca wants one, or both, of his full-backs to invert into midfield and this was exploited by Inter Milan in the opening 45 minutes.

There were positives and areas of improvement to come from the first half for Manchester City. The second half however, was where Enzo Maresca's tactical adjustments really stood out.

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In the second half the painting that Enzo Maresca is attempting to paint caught the eye.

Enzo Maresca made five substitutions at halftime of yesterday's friendly. Vitor Reis, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Max Alleyne, Nico Gonzalez and Ryan McAidoo came on. They replaced Josko Gvardiol, Tijjani Reijnders, Stephen Mfuni, Mateo Kovacic and Divin Mubama. Inter Milan also made a plethora of substitutions at halftime. After an early scare to open the second half where Gianluigi Donnarumma made a desperate save, Manchester City dominated the second half. Maresca's substitutions and tactical ideas rose to the fore throughout the second half.

Manchester City dropped Inter Milan with their possession play throughout the second half. There was a real intent, pace and intensity to City's passing play. Rico Lewis moved into midfield with Nico Gonzalez, and immediately City's midfield was stronger. Enzo Maresca's side's positioning was fluid as evidenced by the positions that Rayan Ait-Nouri got into. Vitor Reis even dropped into midfield when City had possession.

The first impression was that Maresca wants his team to be fluid and interchangeable positionally when in possession. Also, in the final third and in possession City kept the ball moving quickly. Maresca has the players in his squad to play this way. Yesterday's match was the first glimpse of this idea. When Manchester City have a full strength squad it will interesting to see how these tactical tweaks play out. The signs in the second half yesterday were extremely positive. They are food for thought for what lies ahead during the 2026-27 season.

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Final thoughts.

There were also other takeaways to emerge from Manchester City's first friendly of their preseason. Gianluigi Donnarumma played a prominent role in Manchester City's build-up play from the back. The Italian keeper wasn't a liability and can fulfil this role. The back three of Max Alleyne, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov were also solid in terms of their positoning to guard against any Inter Milan counters. This was good to see and was another tactical tweak from Maresca given how the game changed from the first half to the second.

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