Manchester City will travel to the Amex Stadium to take on Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday, looking to return to the top of the table.
Manchester City are currently third in the Premier League table, but they have played two matches fewer than leaders Arsenal ahead of their visit to the Amex Stadium to take on Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, Brighton & Hove Albion are tenth in the league table, and they are coming into this game on the back of a four-match unbeaten run in the Premier League. This will be a difficult contest for them, especially against a motivated Manchester City outfit desperate to win the league title.
This is a must-win contest for Manchester City, and they cannot afford to slip up at this stage of the season. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Brighton & Hove Albion
Solly March is ruled out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury, while Jack Hinshelwood misses out with an ankle issue. Meanwhile, Pervis Estupinan misses out with a calf injury, but Kaoru Mitoma is expected to return from his back injury next week.
Evan Ferguson has an ankle injury, Tariq Lamptey has a muscle injury, James Milner is ruled out with a thigh injury, and Billy Gilmour has a knee injury. The home team have an extended injury list, and they are likely to field a weakened side here. They are likely to shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Bart Verbruggen in goal.
Joel Veltman and Igor Julio will start as the full-backs. They will look to keep things compact defensively and help out in the attack as well. Jan Paul van Hecke will start alongside Lewis Dunk at the heart of the Brighton defence against Manchester City.
Pascal Gross and Carlos Baleba will start in the double pivot in the middle of the park, and they will look to break up opposition attacks. Jakub Moder will start as the central attacking midfielder, and he will look to create goal scoring opportunities in the final third. Simon Adingra and Joao Pedro should feature on the flanks, with Danny Welbeck leading the line.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Verbruggen; Veltman, van Hecke, Dunk, Igor; Gross, Baleba; Adingra, Moder, Pedro; Welbeck
Manchester City
Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Erling Haaland we will miss out with a minor injury. Apart from that, Manchester City have a fully fit squad to choose from. They are likely to shape up in a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Ederson Moraes in goal. In the back three, Kyle Walker will start alongside Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol.
Jeremy Doku and Jack Grealish will start in the wide areas, and they will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. Rodri will start in the central midfield alongside Manuel Akanji. While the Spaniard will look to dictate the tempo of the game and provide defensive cover, Akanji will look to win the ball back and break up opposition attacks.
Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne will start as the attacking midfielders, and they will look to open up the Brighton defence with their creativity and passing ability. Julian Alvarez will lead the line for Manchester City on Thursday.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Gvardiol; Doku, Rodri, Akanji, Grealish; Silva, De Bruyne; Alvarez
Key Stats
- Manchester City have scored at least four goals in their last three matches in the Premier League.
- Manchester City have won 12 of their last 14 matches against Brighton in all competitions.
- Manchester City have won 12 of their last 15 matches in the Premier League.
- Brighton are winless in five of their last six league matches.
- Brighton & Hove Albion have kept three clean sheets in their last six league matches.
Key Player
Kevin De Bruyne
The Manchester City midfielder is our key player to watch out for. He is one of the best players in the world and Manchester City’s main source of creativity as well.
The Belgian will look to open up the Brighton defence with his vision and passing ability. In the absence of Haaland, he will have to take on more attacking responsibility and he will look to add to his goal tally as well.
Prediction
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-3 Manchester City
Manchester City are firm favourites to win here and they should be able to grind out all three points easily. The home team are out of form and they are lacking in confidence and belief. In addition to that, most of their key players are sidelined with injury problems and Manchester City should be able to pile further misery on them.
