Manchester City v Brighton and Hove Albion – The Opposition

Manchester City look to put the disappointment of their FA Cup semi-final defeat behind them as the entertain Brighton and Hove Albion at Etihad Stadium. The blues will be looking to regain the Premier League top spot after Liverpool battered Manchester United at Anfield on Tuesday night.

Brighton sit in mid-table and, barring a series of freak results, should be safe enough to face another Premier League campaign next season, despite winning just nine matches all season, the lowest in the top ten of the league.

Form

The seagulls go into the match on the back of securing back-to-back victories over the two north London clubs. They beat Spurs 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday, a week after beating Arsenal 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.

The match against Arsenal ended a run of seven matches without a win, with a goalless draw at home to Norwich the only point they collected during that period. It was also their first win since beating Watford 2-0 at Vicarage Road in February and only their third this year since starting 2022 with a 3-2 win at Everton.

Brighton have won more games away from home (6) than they have won at their own ground (3) and the blues will need to be wary of the threat the Seagulls pose.

Danger Men

Neal Maupay is Brighton’s top scorer with nine goals so far this season. He has played thirty-one matches and attempted forty-nine shots. He has a shot accuracy of 35%, but a goal conversion rate of just 18%. Leandro Trossard has scored six goals in thirty-one matches, giving him a goal conversion rate of 13%.

Enock Mwepu is the man danger with assists. He has provided five so far from seventeen games and has created three further chances. Alexis MacAllister and Jakub Moder have both made four goals, with the former having a higher pass accuracy with 85%.

Marc Cucurella has attempted the most passes with 1,799, completing 1,480 from thirty-two matches, giving him a pass accuracy rate of 83%.

Who’s the Boss?

Graham Potter is the man at the helm at Brighton. The former Swansea boss took the reigns at in May 2019, and has presided over 122 Seagulls matches. His team have won thirty-four and lost forty-five to date, giving him a win ratio of 28%.

Last Time Out

City ran out 4-1 winners when the two teams met at the Falmer Stadium in October. A brace from Phil Foden was added to by Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez saw off the Seagulls, with MacAllister scoring in the 81^st minute.