Manchester City repel pressure from Liverpool with crucial victory against stubborn Brighton

The tension inside the Etihad Stadium was palpable when Manchester City were struggling to break down a resilient Brighton & Hove Albion side.

The Cityzens laboured for much of the first half and went into the break without finding a breakthrough against the Seagulls. Against a side that has beaten Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur in back-to-back games, Pep Guardiola’s side were always going to need something special to break them down.

That moment of magic came eight minutes into the second half when Riyad Mahrez beat Robert Sanchez with a smart finish. The Algerian then turned provider in the 65th minute, setting up Phil Foden to double City’s lead. Bernardo Silva completed the rout with a beautiful curling effort in the 82nd minute as the Cityzens ran out 3-0 winners on the night.

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Manchester City return to league summit

In many ways, the result of Wednesday’s game seemed to flatter Manchester City, as they struggled for large swathes against their inspired visitors. However, the most important thing is that they eventually got the job done, which enabled them to retake their place atop the Premier League table.

Pep Guardiola’s side dropped to second place after Liverpool’s emphatic victory against Manchester United a day earlier, so the Cityzens needed this kind of response.

With just one point separating the top two teams in the Premier League, the only way the Cityzens can retain the title will be to win the rest of their matches. They demonstrated their ability to do just that by finding a way against a stubborn Brighton team on Wednesday.

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Cityzens repel Liverpool pressure

Liverpool’s form – the Reds have lost just one game in 2022 and tasted defeat just twice in the Premier League all season – placed Manchester City under pressure ahead of their Brighton game.

Knowing that anything less than victory would see them lose their position at the top, one could sense the nervousness in the Cityzens’ play in the early stages of the game.

However, they managed to navigate their way after a tense start and deserved to win against Brighton despite their early struggles.

"We are not stupid. If we draw, drop just two points, Liverpool will be champions,” Guardiola said at the end of the game, as quoted by BBC Sport.

He continued:

"If we win all our games, we will be champions. The players know it. We know the tough games we have, and we must try to perform like today and win them all. If we do that, we will celebrate, if not we will congratulate Liverpool."

Manchester City needed a bit of bravery to repel the pressure from Liverpool. They’ll need more of the same in the final six league games of the season.