Manchester City are aiming to bring their run of three successive defeats to an end on Saturday when they visit Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League.
The reigning Premier League champions followed up their defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup fourth round with losses away at Bournemouth in the Premier League and Sporting CP in the Champions League. Their crushing 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Portuguese champions has alarm bells ringing on the blue half of Manchester.
Injuries have limited the effectiveness of the usually relentless Man City winning machine, with Rodri the most notable absentee at the base of midfield. Even those available have underdelivered, however, with Erling Haaland’s profligacy and defensive errors having proven costly in recent matches.
Visiting Brighton is never a straightforward task and Fabian Hurzeler’s side will push Man City to their limits at the AMEX Stadium. Despite failing to win any of their last three outings – including two defeats to Liverpool – the Seagulls have the energy, intensity and attacking firepower to punish any sloppiness in the Cityzens squad.
Here is 90min’s guide to a crunch clash on the south coast.
Brighton vs Man City H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
Brighton |
Man City |
---|---|
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton – 02/11/24 |
Sporting CP 4-1 Man City – 05/11/24 |
Brighton 2-3 Liverpool – 30/10/24 |
Bournemouth 2-1 Man City – 02/11/24 |
Brighton 2-2 Wolves – 26/10/24 |
Tottenham 2-1 Man City – 30/10/24 |
Newcastle 0-1 Brighton – 19/10/24 |
Man City 1-0 Southampton – 26/10/24 |
Brighton 3-2 Tottenham – 06/10/24 |
Man City 5-0 Sparta Prague – 23/10/24 |
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
---|---|
United Kingdom |
Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Ultra HD, Sky GO, Sky GO Extra, NOW TV |
United States |
fuboTV, nbcsports.com, NBC Sports App, UNIVERSO NOW, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, USA Network, UNIVERSO |
Canada |
fuboTV Canada, Fubo Sports Network 6 Canada |
Hurzeler provided a positive injury update ahead of the clash with Man City, claiming that star striker Joao Pedro and summer recruit Matt O’Riley have a “big chance” of being involved against the Cityzens.
Yasin Ayari is struggling with an ankle injury but could be involved at the weekend according to the Brighton boss, while Carlos Baleba, who didn’t feature in either clash with Liverpool, should be involved in some capacity.
Lewis Dunk and Yankuba Minteh are major doubts to feature against the defending champions, while the English trio of Solly March, Adam Webster and James Milner are unavailable for selection.
Brighton predicted lineup vs Man City (4-4-2): Verbruggen; Veltman, Van Hecke, Igor, Estupinan; Kadioglu, Hinshelwood, Baleba, Mitoma; Rutter, Welbeck.
Man City will be without Rodri for the rest of the season and young Oscar Bobb is still missing with a leg fracture. Elsewhere, Ruben Dias, John Stones and Jack Grealish are all expected to be absent for Saturday’s clash.
Stones has been left out of the England squad for the November international break, although Grealish has been included despite his injury fears. Dias has also been omitted from the Portugal squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League ties.
Pep Guardiola is likely to make changes from the side that were beaten 4-1 by Sporting, especially in defence. Kevin De Bruyne could also feature again after making a cameo from the bench in Lisbon midweek following a long-term layoff.
Man City predicted lineup vs Brighton (4-1-4-1): Ederson; Walker, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic; Savinho, Foden, Gundogan, Doku; Haaland.
Man City look a shadow of their typically dominant selves and confidence will have taken a hit following three disappointing defeats on the bounce. Last weekend’s loss at Bournemouth shows that intense pressure and direct transitions can hurt the Rodri-less Cityzens.
Brighton will be seeking to inflict more misery on Guardiola’s side, even if they haven’t beaten the Sky Blues since May 2021. Hurzeler’s side smothered Liverpool with their intensity in the first half of last Saturday’s defeat and they will be aiming to replicate that performance over 90 minutes in front of a home crowd.
Man City are still Man City deep down and will be characteristically brilliant in moments, but they may lose more ground in the title race on a tricky trip to the south coast.
Prediction: Brighton 2-2 Man City
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