Manchester City kept the heat on leaders Arsenal in the Premier League title race, with an emphatic win over Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday night.
Having watched the Gunners thump Chelsea and Liverpool slip up at Goodison Park, it was over to City in this crucial midweek round of fixtures. And they didn’t disappoint, with a crushing 4-0 victory over the Seagulls that was secured via a Phil Foden brace and goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Julian Alvarez.
If City were flat at the weekend, they looked revitalised with a five-day break since their Wembley victory over Chelsea.
This, in contrast, was slick, incisive and relentless in the first half from a City side determined not to give up their crown. De Bruyne and Foden kept coming in wave after wave, Rodri ensured things ticking over behind them, while Walker provided width on the right.
After a relatively quiet opening quarter of an hour - during which Brighton enjoyed some good spells on the ball - City got into their stride and found the opener via De Bruyne in the 17th minute. Foden cut inside, jinking through the Brighton ranks, before picking out Walker in the wide areas. The full-back’s cross was turned home with an excellent looping header from De Bruyne at the edge of the box; the Belgian’s 68th Premier League goal but first via his head.
It was 2-0 soon after when Foden’s free-kick flew past a helpless Jason Steele. City’s no.47 had earned the foul in a central position after he went down following the slightest of touches from Lewis Dunk, and was helped again as his strike took a huge deflection off Pascal Gross and ended up in the back of the net.
The deadline to vote for Football Writers’ Player of the Year is next week and Foden’s provided a timely reminder of his outstanding performances in 2023/24. He scored the second of the night to kill this encounter. City had overwhelmed Brighton on the ball but it was their well-choreographed pressing that saw them net a third as Bernardo Silva intercepted Valentín Barco’s ill-advised pass at the edge of the box. Foden was quickest to react and finished first time into the bottom corner.
Three goals up at the break, the second period was played at a canter from City, who made five changes. Pep Guardiola’s side did grab a fourth when Ederson’s long-range pass picked out Walker in an offensive position. After a run inside, the full-back laid it off to Alvarez for a straightforward tap-in at the back post, and a first league goal since January for the Argentinian.
Joao Pedro should have pulled one back in the latter stages when he finished off a well-rounded move by firing off target at the near post, while substitute Jeremy Doku had the last opening of the night when he forced Steele to keep the ball out with his feet.
The four-goal ensures City move into second and remain the driving seat due to that game in hand. Here’s how we rated the players at the Amex...
5. Josko Gvardiol- 6
Gave the ball away a few times in the first half, but overall it was a decent showing the ex-RB Leipzig man. Gvardiol could, on another day, have given away a penalty in the second period when he tripped Pedro in the box. But a VAR check deemed it not a sufficient enough to overturn the on-field decision of the referee.
6. Rodri-8 (off 79)
Back to his best and Rodri dictated the pace and flow of proceedings from midfield, especially in the first half. He was fortunate not to conceded a penalty at the start of the second half for a pull on Gross, though.
7. Mateo Kovacic- 8
Kept the ball moving quickly and helped with City's pace and fluidity.
8. Kevin De Bruyne- 8 (off 72)
The Belgian enjoyed the space Brighton afforded him in the middle of the park, and he provided several penetrative runs through the middle. His header was excellent, a perfectly flighted effort from the edge of the box that floated into the minute gap available.