Brighton 0 Man City 4
Roberto De Zerbi’s side hosted Man City on the south coast with the visitors looking for a win to put the pressure on league leaders Arsenal. Due to their FA Cup exploits, Pep Guardiola’s side have two games in hand over The Gunners, but it is points on the board that matter most now.
The visitors were looking to put the pressure on from the off and Foden was looking in sharp form. He played the ball out wide to Walker, who clipped a cross into the box from the byline, for De Bruyne to head into the top corner to open the scoring.
Brighton looked most dangerous from set pieces. When a corner was whipped into the box, Dunk had a free header but it was all too easy for Ederson in the City goal. It would have concerned Guardiola how the hosts’ best header of the ball was left unmarked however.
Man City have a knack of hitting form at the right time of the season in past campaigns. They continued to press The Seagulls and won a free kick in a dangerous area, just outside the box. Foden struck it, the ball deflected off Gross and wrong-footed Steele, as City doubled their lead.
Credit: @ManCity
It is now officially a two-horse race for the Premier League title and Man City know they need to keep the pressure on Arsenal. Nothing but victory in this game would do and Guardiola’s side were playing with real attacking intent.
As we see all too often in the modern game, sides try to play out from their own goal kicks, despite whether they have the abilities to do so. Brighton did just this and the ball was gifted to Foden who struck it into the far corner to put this game to bed deep in the first half.
The Man City youngster has been in incredible form this season and is surely making a claim for a place in England’s starting XI at the Euros. That is under normal circumstances of course, the mind of Gareth Southgate seems to differ somewhat.
He has very bizarre favourites like Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips, despite having some of the best attacking talent in Europe right now. Surely, he has to alter his formations to accommodate the likes of Foden to give the Three Lions the best chance of succeeding in the tournament.
With just under half an hour remaining, Walker came bursting forward but Steele managed to block his attempt. The loose ball fell to Alvarez, who slotted home to make this a comprehensive victory for the defending champions. This result was a real statement.
On a rare Brighton attack, Joao Pedro twisted and turned as he weaved his way into the box. He was bundled over and looking at the referee to award a penalty. The official was not interested and it was of no surprise to any at the Amex Stadium to see VAR agree with their on-field mates.
Credit: @ManCity
Man City took all three points and move to within one point of The Gunners. Pep Guardiola’s side still have a game in hand and Arsenal have a tricky fixture on the weekend as they travel to local rivals Tottenham for a London derby.
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