Pep Guardiola, Manchester City’s head coach, acknowledged after his team’s 3-1 victory over West Ham on September 16 that he did not anticipate Jeremy Doku to have such an immediate and significant impact on the team’s playing style.

“Man City signed a 5-year contract with Doku and determined to be patient,” Guardiola remarked after the match. “Man City signed a 5-year contract with Doku.””If I’m being really honest, I didn’t anticipate Doku playing as well as he did today. Doku played higher tonight compared to when he played lower and closer to Kyle Walker in the game against Fulham. Obviously, Doku has a long way to go before he masters this material. And we will continue to assist him in every way.”

On the evening of September 16, Doku was selected as the Best Player of the match that took place at London Stadium.Before being replaced by Sergio Gomez in the 90th minute, the Belgian winger had a total of 64 touches on the ball, completed 83% of his passes (including three critical passes), crossed the ball four times, successfully dribbled the ball three times, and scored twice.

Doku made a block on the free kick in the 36th minute, which allowed West Ham to launch a counterattack that resulted in Ward-Prowse scoring the game’s first goal with a header from close range.But it was the 21-year-old player who scored atonement at the beginning of the second half, with a slant from the left wing to the centre, “twisting” Vladimir Coufal’s ribs and then cutting the inside of his right thigh to bury the ball in the far corner, scoring his first goal in the shirt to bury the ball in the far corner. This was his first goal in the shirt. The city of Manchester.

 

Doku also made a breakthrough on the left wing during the first half of the game and crossed the ball with ease; however, Erling Haaland cushioned the goal somewhat, and the West Ham midfielder was able to clear the ball before it passed the goal line.

Before being promoted to the Anderlecht first squad in 2018, Doku competed for the youth teams of KVC Olympic Deurne, Tubantia Borgerhout, Beerschot, and Anderlecht. During the years 2020-2023, he wore the Rennes jersey and was instrumental in the club’s success by scoring 12 goals in 92 matches.Doku has also scored twice for Belgium in his 16 appearances so far.

Doku was signed by Manchester City at the conclusion of the summer market in 2023 for a total amount of 65 million US dollars and a five-year contract.At that time, Guardiola had returned to Barcelona to rest after having back surgery. As a result, he was not present for the victories over Sheffield 2-1 and Fulham 5-1, which included Doku’s first game.

Guardiola noticed that Doku played tentatively and timidly in the first match of the season against Fulham. As a result, Guardiola encouraged Doku to demonstrate his abilities and make the most of his strengths in one-on-one situations against West Ham.The coach of the Spanish team lauded his players after a successful match, praising them for their high level of energy and determination, as well as the excellence of their moves.

Yesterday, after Doku had scored to make the score 1-1, Bernardo Silva and Haaland scored respectively to make the score 3-1, which helped Manchester City maintain their position at the top of the Premier League with 15 points in total.When Manchester City defeated a formidable foe despite missing many key players (Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones, Mateo Kovacic, and Jack Grealish) due to injuries, manager Pep Guardiola felt a sense of accomplishment.

While all was going on, Doku had this to say: “Guardiola said I was a bit shy in the last match, but not today, and I agree. Today, I demonstrated more of my skill, and achieving the goal was a vital time for me, as well as for my family. I get a kick out of head-to-head battles like the one I had with Coufal, and Guardiola is well aware of my strengths in such kinds of contests. I really hope that we can win a lot of matches, and that I can score a lot of goals.

The next two matches for Manchester City will both take place at their home stadium, Etihad Stadium. On September 20, Manchester City will host Red Star Belgrad in the group stage of the Champions League. Three days later, on September 23, they will play Nottingham Forest in the sixth round of the Premier League.