Tijjani Reijnders and Man City’s new signings instantly prove Jamie Redknapp’s pre-match Wolves prediction wrong  

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Tijjani Reijnders put in a man-of-the-match display in Manchester City’s opening Premier League game against Wolves.

The midfielder was instrumental in everything good that Pep Guardiola’s side did, playing a vital role in Erling Haaland’s first goal of the afternoon, before doubling City’s lead with a smart finish and then setting up the Norwegian for his second of the afternoon after half-time.

It was the perfect start to life in England for Reijnders, who Man City signed from AC Milan at the start of June.

It was also a performance that Jamie Redknapp did not predict pre-match.

Man City signings prove Jamie Redknapp’s ‘time to settle’ claim wrong

Speaking on Sky Sports’ match coverage immediately before kick off, Redknapp was asked whether he thought Manchester City would compete with Liverpool and Arsenal for the Premier League title this season.

In response, the former England international said: “They’re going to be in the mix, obviously, especially once they get Rodri back, because he’s so important.

“But I think right now, if I were assessing the squads, I think Liverpool and Arsenal are in better shape than they are.”

It was here that Redknapp made a prediction about Guardiola’s new signings, stating: “Lots of new players coming in, it will take them a bit of time to settle, to blend.”

The former Liverpool and Tottenham midfielder then concluded that City “will be right in the mix [for the title]. But do I think they’ll win it? No.”

While it is fair to argue that Liverpool and Arsenal will be stronger than City this term, Redknapp’s prediction about the club’s new signings needing time to settle was proven instantly wrong based on the performance against Wolves.

Reijnders led the way in this respect, but Rayan Ait-Nouri also enjoyed a clean sheet on his Premier League debut as he returned to his former club, while Rayan Cherki came off the bench to score on his top-flight debut.

Moreover, Man City fans praised James Trafford on social media for his commanding and assured performance.

All told, then, it hasn’t seemed to take Manchester City’s new signings long to settle at all.

The Club World Cup could have helped Man City’s new signings to settle

Of course, part of the reason why City’s new signings may have hit the ground running is because this isn’t the first time they have played for the club.

While perhaps perceived as a hindrance at the time, especially after Man City were surprisingly knocked out by Al-Hilal, the Club World Cup could have helped in this regard.

Having three group games followed by one knockout game to learn and understand Guardiola’s system and the strengths and weaknesses of their teammates would have helped City’s new signings hit the ground running against Wolves.

It also means that after proving Redknapp wrong once already, they could do so again by being top of the tree come May.