Brighton & Hove Albion vs Manchester City

Brighton & Hove Albion will be keen to throw a spanner in Manchester City’s Premier League title pursuit when the two sides lock horns at the Amex Stadium. 

Brighton’s form has plunged into disarray since a 1-0 home win against relegation-fighting Nottingham Forest in early March, with the Seagulls alternating between drawing and losing across their last four Premier Leauge outings (D2, L2). Unfathomably for Roberto De Zerbi, his men have immensely struggled in the front third, failing to score more than once in seven consecutive league games since a 5-0 demolition of rock-bottom Sheffield United in mid-February. That’s, in fact, just one of the two instances in 2024 to have seen Brighton score 2+ goals in Premier League action. Improving on those disappointing figures against Manchester City seems virtually impossible, not least because the East Sussex underachievers have netted under 1.5 goals in their last five top-flight encounters against the perennial champions (D1, L4). 

On the other hand, Manchester City had the weekend off in the Premier League to accommodate their FA Cup semi-final tie against Chelsea, which they won 1-0 to bounce back from a gut-wrenching Champions League exit at the hands of Real Madrid. Arsenal and Liverpool took advantage of City’s absence to move to the top, with the former going four points up at the table’s summit. But with two matches in hand, the Citizens still hold their hopes of an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title in their hands. Pep Guardiola’s men have been relentless in league action, putting together an eye-catching 17-game unbeaten streak (W13, D4), bookended by a 5-1 demolition of Luton on home turf. Equally impressive in midweek fixtures, they’ve only failed to win two of their last 19 midweek league contests (W17, D1, L1), including a 1-1 draw against Brighton in this corresponding match-up in 2022/23.