Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has admitted he's still figuring out his preferred starting lineup while considering the possibility of deploying center-back Marc Guehi in a midfield role this campaign.
City kicked off their Premier League season with a thrilling comeback win against AFC Bournemouth on Sunday, with Guehi nodding home a late equalizer before Josko Gvardiol struck a stoppage-time winner.
Maresca chose to deploy Guehi alongside Elliot Anderson in central midfield, with Nico O'Reilly operating in a more attacking position. Rico Lewis was selected at right back, with Phil Foden positioned ahead of him in a pairing that had a tough time defensively, leading to Matheus Nunes being introduced after halftime.
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The unexpected lineup, which also saw no starting spot for Rayan Cherki - with the Frenchman entering for the final quarter and delivering two assists, featured just two alterations from the team that began the Community Shield but multiple players occupying different roles.
And, with six first-team players having only resumed training 10 days earlier and transfers both in and out anticipated before the window closes, Maresca recognizes his City squad remains a work in progress, via the Manchester Evening News.
"Day by day I can see more clear but at the moment I don't have yet an ideal 11 players," he said.
Regarding the choice to deploy Guehi in midfield, Maresca said: "It's just in this moment it is important to find solutions. I know Marc from [Crystal] Palace and I always thought he could be a good midfielder.
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"We tried him the first two days of the week after Arsenal as a central defender stepping in, and in the last two days we tried him as a proper midfielder and overall I think it was a good performance from him and the good thing is he now also gives us a solution for the future."
When pressed on whether Guehi could develop into a permanent midfield option, Maresca commented: "It is a solution, I don't know if we will do it for the next game. We need different solutions so when you visualize and it is good, so in the future when you need you know when he is going to play there you know he is going to be good.
"It is not linked to if we buy players or don't buy players. We planned to win the game and the idea was to have more physicality in the middle. I think Elliot, him, and Nico O'Reilly, they are physical, and Marc was good."
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