Inter beat Manchester City on penalties as Maresca suffers defeat in first match in charge

Enzo Maresca’s first match as Manchester City manager ended in defeat on Saturday as the Premier League champions lost 3-1 on penalties to Inter Milan after a 1-1 draw in the Asahi Super Dry Trophy at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong.

Played before a crowd of 42,286, the pre-season friendly provided an early glimpse of Maresca’s new-look City side as they began preparations for the 2026/27 campaign.

City made the brighter start and took the lead in the 14th minute when summer signing Antoine Semenyo burst down the left flank before delivering a low cross for young striker Divin Mubama, who tapped home from close range.

Inter responded just six minutes later. Federico Dimarco’s delivery into the penalty area was only partially cleared by the City defence, allowing Benjamin Pavard to fire past goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and restore parity.

Both managers made several substitutions after the break as they rotated their squads and built match fitness during the opening fixture of their Asian tours.

Manchester City came closest to finding a winner in the second half. Defender Vitor Reis struck the crossbar, while teenage midfielder Ryan McAidoo saw a powerful effort crash against the post with 10 minutes remaining.

With the scores level after 90 minutes, the match went straight to a penalty shootout.

Inter held their nerve from the spot, converting three of their penalties to secure a 3-1 victory, while City struggled. Rayan Aït-Nouri, Abdukodir Khusanov and Nico González all failed to convert, with Claudio Echeverri scoring the club’s only successful penalty. Matteo Lavelli netted the decisive spot-kick to hand the Italian champions the trophy.

Despite the defeat, Maresca said he was encouraged by several aspects of his team’s performance, stressing that pre-season is primarily about improving fitness and implementing his tactical ideas.

“There were many positive things, especially getting minutes into the legs, which at this stage of pre-season is the most important element,” the City manager said.

“In two weeks we have our first official match, so preparing the players physically and tactically is key. I am happy with the performance, and we will continue to improve.”

Manchester City will continue their pre-season tour in South Korea, where they are scheduled to face a K League All-Stars XI before taking on Atlético Madrid as preparations continue for the new campaign.