Manchester City vs Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad on Wednesday will feature two in-form teams vying for a place in the quarter-finals.
The EFL Cup returns this week with the fourth-round ties, as teams compete for a spot in the quarter-finals. The latest stage begins on Tuesday, but an action-packed Wednesday will kick off with Manchester City vs Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad.
Manchester City secured a spot in the EFL Cup fourth round by cruising to a 5-0 win over Norwich City. However, the Citizens come into the game on the back of a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa, with Unai Emery’s team thoroughly outplaying the Citizens and handing them their first defeat in the Premier League this season. So, Enzo Maresca and his charges will be raring to return to winning ways.
The mood in the visiting camp is similar, as Brighton’s exceptional run came to a grinding halt with a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool this past weekend. The Seagulls’ EFL Cup third-round tie was more of a rollercoaster affair than a straightforward win, as they came from two goals down to beat Manchester United 3-2 and secure a spot in the fourth round.
The most recent match featuring Manchester City and Brighton at the Etihad ended in a 1-1 draw, with Kaoru Mitoma scoring the equaliser after Erling Haaland put the Citizens ahead. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Manchester City
Enzo Maresca has no new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Manchester City head coach may be bereft of the services of only one first-team player vs Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday.
Maresca is sweating over Matheus Nunes’s fitness after he missed the game against Aston Villa due to a minor issue, and he faces a late fitness test to determine his availability. Antoine Semenyo is the only major absentee, with the Ghanaian international recovering from a knee injury.
Geronimo Rulli should return between the sticks, with Manchester City lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday. The backline will feature Rico Lewis, Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis, and Rayan Ait-Nouri.
As for the midfield unit, Ayyoub Bouaddi should pair up with Mateo Kovacic in the double pivot, with Phil Foden reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Erling Haaland will lead the line for Manchester City, with Allan Elias and Jeremy Doku being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Rulli; Lewis, Khusanov, Reis, Ait-Nouri; Bouaddi, Kovacic; Allan, Foden, Doku; Haaland
Brighton & Hove Albion
Unlike his counterpart in the Manchester City dugout, Fabian Hurzeler has new issues to worry about ahead of the trip to the Etihad. The Brighton & Hove Albion manager may be without as many as ten first-team players on Wednesday.
Ferdi Kadioglu and Chema Andres are the latest absentees after sustaining hip injuries against Liverpool this past weekend. The duo accompany Zadok Yohana (unspecified), Femi Azeez (thigh), Stefanos Tzimas (knee), Kaoru Mitoma (hamstring), and Evan Ferguson (ankle). Meanwhile, Pascal Struijk (hamstring), Mats Wieffer (knee), and Yankuba Minteh (calf) are closing in on returning, though they may not be fit to start on Wednesday.
Jason Steele should feature between the sticks, with Brighton & Hove Albion lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Manchester City on Wednesday. The backline will feature Joao Costinha, Luka Vuskovic, Lewis Dunk, and Jaouen Hadjam.
As for the midfield unit, Matt O’Riley should line up alongside Malick Yalcouye in the double pivot, with Jack Hinshelwood reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Georginio Rutter will spearhead the Brighton attack, with Leon Osman and Diego Gomez being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Steele; Costinha, Vuskovic, Dunk, Hadjam; O’Riley, Yalcouye; Gomez, Hinshelwood, Osman; Rutter
Key Stats
- Brighton & Hove Albion are unbeaten in their last four games vs Manchester City, winning two games and drawing two.
- Brighton’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool ended a five-game run with a clean sheet and an unbeaten streak that spanned eight games.
- Manchester City’s 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa this past weekend was the first Premier League defeat for Enzo Maresca as their head coach.
- No Premier League team has kept more clean sheets in the 2026/27 season than Brighton & Hove Albion.
- Phil Foden is the top scorer in this fixture, with eight goals for Manchester City vs Brighton, followed by Erling Haaland on seven.
Player to Watch
Phil Foden
While Ayyoub Bouaddi, Pascal Gross, and Diego Gomez were viable candidates for this section, we have picked Phil Foden as the Player to Watch for Wednesday’s EFL Cup fourth-round clash between Manchester City and Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad.
The English international appears to be reinvigorated, and his hat-trick against AEK Athens last week was a reminder of his ability. With Foden a habitual scorer against Brighton with eight goals thus far, he will be the go-to player in the final third for Enzo Maresca.
Prediction
Manchester City 2-3 Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion have had the measure of Manchester City in recent meetings, and Wednesday’s match may be no different. The Seagulls have also produced two giant-killing performances this season, proving that the stature of their opposition does not deter them.
With both teams showing a soft underbelly, both goalkeepers will be busy in the midweek clash, and there may not be much to separate them. However, the form of Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas (off the bench) should tip the scales in the away side’s favour, and The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-2 win for Fabian Hurzeler and his charges.
