Manchester City's new 100m pounds ($138.7m) signing Jack Grealish sparkled briefly on his debut but faded along with his team mates as the Premier League champions began the new season with a 1-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur Sunday.
Midfielder Grealish, a British-record signing, made a lively start and almost earned a penalty with one jinking run ended on the edge of the area by Tottenham youngster Oliver Skipp.
But it turned into a frustrating afternoon for the former Aston Villa playmaker and he marked his debut not with a goal or an assist but a yellow card.
Grealish was not the only City player to struggle as few of Pep Guardiola's side were in top gear against a Tottenham team who grew into the game and deserved the win sealed by Son Heung-min's 55th-minute counter-attack goal.
Even with an array of attacking threats on the pitch and 340m pounds worth of talent sat on the bench, City were listless and lacking a cutting edge.
If anything the display will make the signing of Tottenham's absent striker Harry Kane even more pressing for the City hierarchy - whatever the cost now that Sergio Aguero is no longer an option for Guardiola.
Guardiola would not get drawn into the Kane debate, but praised new boy Grealish.
City became only the third champions in the Premier League era to lose their first game of the new campaign and some of their players looked off the pace while Kevin de Bruyne was left on the bench until late on.
City have now lost all four games they have played at Tottenham's new stadium without scoring, including three in the Premier League.
