Maresca must continue to develop his skills; he was satisfied with Floyd Samba's debut.

Manchester City defeated Championship side Norwich City 5-0 in a key third-round match of the 2026/27 EFL Cup, thanks to a brace from Floyd Samba, along with goals from Laryan Sergei, Allan Elias, and Ryan McAdoo. In a post-match interview, Maresca expressed his delight with Floyd Samba's debut and overall performance, while also emphasizing the need to continue developing young players.

In the 29th minute, Nico Aurelli crossed from the left wing, Alan Elias chipped the ball into the box, and Floyd Samba headed it in, giving Manchester City a 1-0 lead. In the 32nd minute, Ayub Bouadi played a diagonal pass, and Rajan Sergi received the ball and fired a long-range shot into the net, extending Manchester City's lead over Norwich to 2-0.

In the 48th minute of the second half, Ait Nouri played a through ball to Alan Elias, who broke through the defense and slotted the ball home, extending Manchester City's lead to 3-0. In the 54th minute, Ait Nouri passed back to Floyd Samba, who curled a shot into the net, making it 4-0 for Manchester City.

In the 90th minute, Nico Aureli crossed the ball, and Ryan McAdoo slotted it home, securing a 5-0 victory for Manchester City. Ultimately, Manchester City defeated Norwich 5-0 at home, advancing to the next round of the English League Cup.

Manchester City manager Maresca said, "I'm pleased not only with his two goals, but also with his overall performance. He hasn't had much time playing as a number 9 before, but we've been trying to get him into that position over the past few days. When I decided to put him in the number 9, I asked him if he had ever played that position before, and he told me he had never."

“His finishing ability is outstanding, so I think this was a great game for him. He’s certainly not a typical striker, but he played very well. He’s young, energetic, strong and has great finishing ability, and he also made some good decisions and delivered some good passes to his teammates.”

Maresca said, "So I'm very satisfied, but we must emphasize again that they are all still very young, and we need to develop them step by step. We still have different competitions to go, and this season has only just begun. It's certain that the players who have played this year will have the opportunity to play in the Premier League and the Champions League in the coming seasons, because the whole season is still very long."

“I’ve said before that we still have Semenho there. It depends on the game plan. We can also play Foden and Rayan Sergiu as false nines. But Floyd Samba got his chance and performed well. Hopefully, we can give him more of those opportunities.”

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