Manchester City vs Brighton Review
Pep Guardiola experienced a third consecutive draw for only the third time in his managerial career as Manchester City played out a 1-1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion, who missed the chance to secure their first-ever victory at the Etihad Stadium. Within the first two minutes, Pascal Groß slipped past debutant defender Max Alleyne to connect with Diego Gómez’s cross, but Gianluigi Donnarumma managed to dive and save the header. After that, the home team dominated possession, but Brighton quickly launched a counterattack through Ferdi Kadıoğlu, only for Donnarumma to make another crucial save.
City aimed to recover from a shaky start and began creating their own opportunities, but Pep Guardiola’s high and inexperienced defense was once again exposed. This time, Georginio Rutter was sent sprinting forward, but Abdukodir Khusanov managed to catch up and snatch the ball away at the last second. That moment sparked City into action in the attacking third, and they took advantage of Brighton’s missed chances just before halftime. Jérémy Doku charged into the box and was brought down by Gómez’s trailing leg, resulting in a penalty that Erling Haaland converted, scoring his first goal in four matches.
Apart from Bernardo Silva hitting the post, the home team didn’t look very convincing after the break, which allowed Brighton to earn a well-deserved equalizer. Receiving the ball from Yasin Ayari on the left side of the box, Kaoru Mitoma cut inside and gently curled the ball into the far bottom corner. The final moments were dominated by City, with Kadıoğlu perfectly positioned to clear Haaland’s header off the line, and shortly after, Haaland missed a chance to capitalize on a defensive error by placing his shot too close to goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.
Rayan Cherki came close as City grew desperate in the closing moments, but no winner emerged. After not losing points from a winning position at home since March 2025, the Sky Blues have now dropped points in back-to-back games. Their sluggish start to 2026 might allow Arsenal to extend their lead to eight points after matchday 21. This marks only the fourth time in 16 visits to this stadium that Brighton have avoided defeat, and it’s the first time they have remained unbeaten against City in consecutive seasons.
