Nottingham Forest 3-1 Man City: Alarming early goal stat revealed as Enzo Maresca's side fall behind Arsenal and Mikel Arteta

Manchester City have conceded in the opening 11 minutes in each of their last three Premier League games.

The Citizens were beaten 3-1 by Nottingham Forest on Saturday, with the loss leaving the club six points behind league-leaders Arsenal.

City's task was made difficult after conceding in the sixth minute, when Josko Gvardiol lost possession in his own half and allowed Jair Cunha to score.

Enzo Maresca's side have also lost each of their last three top-flight matches, suffering defeats against Forest, Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion.

The Citizens also conceded early goals against Villa (sixth minute) and against Brighton (11th minute), and it will be difficult to challenge Arsenal unless they can stop going behind in the opening stages of matches.

Manchester City have conceded in the opening 11 minutes of three consecutive games in the Premier League: 6' v Aston Villa ❌ 11' v Brighton ❌ 6' v Nottingham Forest ❌ https://t.co/m5bL7cfO5G
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 7, 2026

Title race: Is the guilty verdict impacting Manchester City and Enzo Maresca?

When teams consistently concede in the opening stages of matches, it suggests that there could be a mentality issue at play.

After the Citizens won three of their first four games following confirmation that they had been found guilty by an independent panel in September for breaching the Premier League's financial rules on an industrial scale, Maresca was able to swat aside suggestions that his team would be impacted negatively.

City have since lost three times and won twice, though one of those victories was an EFL Cup triumph against Brighton on penalties.

Maresca's side have also conceded at least two goals in six of the nine games since the October international break ended, and there are clearly severe issues for the head coach to address.

Can Man City catch Arsenal to win the Premier League?

The good news for City is that Arsenal face a difficult fixture schedule in the Premier League after the November international break, with the Gunners set to play Newcastle United, the Citizens, Brentford, Tottenham Hotspur, Bournemouth and Manchester United.

Maresca's side arguably boast an easy next six games in the league, with the club set to face Fulham, Arsenal, Leeds United, Brentford, Chelsea and Hull City.

It remains to be seen if City can rediscover form, and if they fail to stop conceding early, then they could soon find themselves in a battle for top four.