[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"header-nav":3,"footer-nav":29,"article-maresca-praises-mcaidoo-after-inter-milan-showdown":82,"category-counts-nav":97,"related-maresca-praises-mcaidoo-after-inter-milan-showdown":107},[4,8,11,14,17,20,23,26],{"label":5,"to":6,"exact":7},"Home","\u002F",true,{"label":9,"to":10},"World Cup","\u002Fworldcup",{"label":12,"to":13},"Standings","\u002Fstandings",{"label":15,"to":16},"Football","\u002Fcategory\u002Ffootball",{"label":18,"to":19},"Basketball","\u002Fcategory\u002Fbasketball",{"label":21,"to":22},"Tennis","\u002Fcategory\u002Ftennis",{"label":24,"to":25},"F1","\u002Fcategory\u002Ff1",{"label":27,"to":28},"Long Reads","\u002Fcategory\u002Flong-reads",{"brand":30,"columns":32,"tagline":80,"copyright":81},{"description":31},"In-depth sports journalism covering football, basketball, tennis, F1, and beyond. Daily analysis, long reads, and expert opinion.",[33,51,59],{"heading":34,"links":35},"Leagues",[36,39,42,45,48],{"label":37,"to":38},"Premier League","\u002Ftag\u002Fpremier-league",{"label":40,"to":41},"La Liga","\u002Ftag\u002Fla-liga",{"label":43,"to":44},"NBA","\u002Ftag\u002Fnba",{"label":46,"to":47},"Formula 1","\u002Ftag\u002Fformula-1",{"label":49,"to":50},"Champions League","\u002Ftag\u002Fchampions-league",{"heading":52,"links":53},"Content",[54,56,57],{"label":55,"to":16},"Analysis",{"label":27,"to":28},{"label":58,"to":16},"Data & Stats",{"heading":60,"links":61},"Company",[62,65,68,71,74,77],{"label":63,"to":64},"Terms of Service","\u002Fservice",{"label":66,"to":67},"Privacy Policy","\u002Fprivacy",{"label":69,"to":70},"Editorial Policy","\u002Feditorial",{"label":72,"to":73},"Contact Us","\u002Fcontact",{"label":75,"to":76},"About Us","\u002Fabout",{"label":78,"to":79},"Website Disclaimer","\u002Fdisclaimer","Built for the love of sport","© SportPulse. All rights reserved.",{"title":83,"slug":84,"category":85,"badge":86,"author":87,"excerpt":88,"date":89,"readTime":90,"image":91,"imageAlt":83,"tags":92,"body":95,"_path":96},"Maresca finds his ideal winger in City teenager Ryan McAidoo","maresca-praises-mcaidoo-after-inter-milan-showdown","football","Match Report","Elena Rossi","McAidoo seized his moment against Inter Milan, drawing Enzo Maresca's praise and hinting at a tactical role in City's wider plans.","2026-08-03 01:02:04","2 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F6c6e\u002Flive\u002F9659c340-8db8-11f1-b693-83c79a4907ca.jpg",[37,93,94],"Manchester City","Pre-Season","## McAidoo's Case to Maresca\n\nManchester City lost on penalties to Inter Milan in a pre-season friendly, but the standout performance came from Ryan McAidoo, **17**, a teenager who had never before been a guaranteed figure in Enzo Maresca's first-team plans. Withdrawn into the second half and given space on the flank, he made the most of it.\n\nMaresca was direct afterward, telling reporters **\"the kind of winger I love.\"** In a system built on width and inverted fullbacks, that is specific praise, not a casual compliment. Maresca has been explicit about wanting wingers who press with intensity in transitions and track back into a structured defensive shape. McAidoo's frames from the match — receiving in motion, turning quickly under pressure, making runs behind the line rather than waiting for service — showed a player already comfortable in that environment.\n\n> \"He's the kind of winger I love.\"\n> — Enzo Maresca\n\nThe performance matters because Maresca does not reward passive play. A teenager given a platform against a disciplined Inter side responded with decisions that force a manager's hand in selection conversations.\n\n## Maresca's Winger Template\n\nMaresca deploys a **4-3-3** or **4-2-3-1** in build-up, with fullbacks pushing high and wingers expected to create overloads rather than hug the touchline. The modern Maresca winger is a hybrid: someone who can cut inside onto their stronger foot, combine in tight half-spaces, and drop into a **4-4-2** or **4-5-1** without the defensive block losing shape.\n\nMcAidoo's body language and movement in the Inter fixture suggested a natural fit. Those are the same traits Maresca has identified before as essential, traits he has required across his time at Parma, Chelsea, and now Manchester City.\n\n## Squad Context\n\nCity's summer has focused on squad balance as much as addition. The club has invested in wide areas, with Benoit Badiashile signed for defensive reinforcement and ongoing interest in attackers who solve specific problems in the final third. McAidoo's emergence adds a homegrown option to a department where Maresca has set clear standards.\n\nThe penalty defeat to Inter Milan is a result that won't appear in any tactical review beyond the warm-up period. The observation is simpler: a teenager was given a game and responded in a way that shifts his standing in Maresca's thinking.\n\n## The Test Ahead\n\nThe Premier League season opens with fixtures that will test every manager's assessment of squad depth. Maresca now has at least one wide player who has impressed in a competitive environment. The question is whether McAidoo can replicate that against opposition that does not afford the same margins for error. City's early schedule will answer that.","\u002Farticles\u002Fmaresca-praises-mcaidoo-after-inter-milan-showdown",[98,99,100,101,85,102,103,104,105,106],"analysis","basketball","cricket","f1","general","golf","mma","long-reads","tennis",[108,120,132],{"id":109,"stem":109,"path":110,"title":111,"category":85,"badge":55,"badgeType":112,"author":87,"authorRole":113,"authorInitials":114,"date":115,"readTime":116,"image":117,"imageAlt":111,"tags":118,"excerpt":119},"kane-tactical-reinvention-world-cup-shearer-analysis","\u002Farticles\u002Fkane-tactical-reinvention-world-cup-shearer-analysis","The Reinvention of Harry Kane: From Qatar Ghost to Clinical Finisher","category","SportPulse Contributor","ER","2026-06-28 07:33:51","7 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002Fa69c\u002Flive\u002Fa4d23930-6cbf-11f1-95c0-035571ba4bec.jpg","World Cup, Premier League, Bayern Munich, Bundesliga, England","Alan Shearer breaks down how Kane's tactical evolution since Qatar 2022 has made him a fundamentally different striker.",{"id":121,"stem":121,"path":122,"title":123,"category":85,"badge":86,"badgeType":124,"author":125,"authorRole":113,"authorInitials":126,"date":127,"readTime":128,"image":129,"imageAlt":123,"tags":130,"excerpt":131},"york-knights-make-super-league-history-hull-fc-away-crisis-deepens","\u002Farticles\u002Fyork-knights-make-super-league-history-hull-fc-away-crisis-deepens","York Knights Make Super League History as Hull FC Away Crisis Deepens","tag","Marcus Wright","MW","2026-07-10 00:09:34","5 min read","\u002Fimages\u002Farticles\u002Fyork-knights-make-super-league-history-hull-fc-away-crisis-deepens.webp","Super League, Rugby League","York secure three straight Super League wins for the first time ever while Hull FC travel woes hit crisis point.",{"id":133,"stem":133,"path":134,"title":135,"category":85,"badge":55,"badgeType":112,"author":125,"authorRole":113,"authorInitials":126,"date":136,"readTime":128,"image":137,"imageAlt":135,"tags":138,"excerpt":139},"england-hoarding-warning-henderson-injury","\u002Farticles\u002Fengland-hoarding-warning-henderson-injury","England Warn Players Against Hoardings After Henderson Mishap","2026-07-07 18:01:59","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F2bfc\u002Flive\u002F1da570c0-7a2b-11f1-bee8-53ce494e1abc.jpg","International Football, England National Team","Gareth Southgate orders players to stop jumping advertising boards following Jordan Henderson’s freak injury."]