Josko Gvardiol says new-look Man City will need time to hit top gear

Josko Gvardiol felt the points mattered more than the performance after firing Manchester City to a last-gasp win in their Premier League opener.

Gvardiol struck in stoppage time to complete a late turnaround as City beat Bournemouth 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Having fallen behind to Marcus Tavernier’s 26th-minute opener, City had been at risk of defeat in Enzo Maresca’s first home match in charge until Marc Guehi equalised six minutes from time.

Gvardiol acknowledges there is plenty of room for improvement but expects it will take City a little time to find their rhythm.

The Croatia defender said: “It’s normal, first game. I think we are still not at our best so we need some time, we need to work on our fitness as well, to get into the rhythm.

“And we still need to use these long weeks to get better, to get in shape, because once we start playing every three days, you know how difficult it is.

“It’s still the beginning of the season, first game. At the end of the day we need to be happy with three points.”

It has been a summer of significant change at City, with not only manager Pep Guardiola leaving but senior players including Rodri, Bernardo Silva and John Stones moving on.

With further signings set to follow the £116million arrival of Elliot Anderson, Gvardiol admits it is hard to gauge how long it will take for things to click.

He said: “The sooner the better, but it’s difficult to tell.

“What I think is we need everyone. Everyone needs to be at their best, especially now some players have gone.

“It’s not going to be easy, but our mentality, we’re going to push, we’re going to fight for it and everyone needs to be ready.

“Everyone needs to sometimes step up and take the responsibility and fight for this