Pep Guardiola’s side welcome the Seagulls to the Etihad in what could be City’s return to the top of the table
Manchester City could potentially claim the top spot for the weekend if they win Saturday’s game against Brighton, depending on how Liverpool fare at Stamford Bridge.
The defending Premier League champions have dropped just two points all season in their draw against Wolves and will be keen to add an extra three points to put the pressure on current table-toppers Liverpool.
Meanwhile, Brighton currently sit in 13th position and will be hoping for a win following last Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Tottenham.
| Game | Manchester City vs Brighton |
| Date | Saturday, September 29 |
| Time | 3:00pm BST / 10:00am EST |
In the United States (US), the game will be shown on NBC Sports and streamed online via the NBC Sports Live app .
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| NBC Sports | NBC Sports Live |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game is not being shown on TV or via live stream but can be listened to on BBC Radio Manchester.
| UK TV channel | Audio |
|---|---|
| N/A | BBC Radio Manchester |
| Position | Manchester City players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Ederson, Bravo, Muric, Grimshaw |
| Defenders | Stones, Otamendi, Laporte, Walker, Kompany, Mendy, Danilo |
| Midfielders | B. Silva, D. Silva, Fernandinho, Gundogan, Delph, De Bruyne, Foden, Brahim |
| Forwards | Sane, Mahrez, Aguero, Sterling, Jesus |
City remain without Kevin De Bruyne due to an extended knee injury. Claudio Bravo is also unavailable after sustaining an achilles tendon injury, while Benjamin Mendy, who has raised the ire of Guardiola recently, is also out.
Man City starting XI : Ederson; Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Zinchenko; Gundogan, Fernandinho, D. Silva, B.Silva; Sterling, Sane, Aguero.
Subs: Muric, Danilo, Kompany, Stones, Mahrez, Jesus, Foden.
| Position | Brighton players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Ryan, Steele, Button |
| Defenders | Bruno, Bong, Duffy, Dunk, Balogun, Schelotto, Montoya, Suttner, Bernardo |
| Midfielders | Stephens, Kayal, Bissouma, Knockaert, Gross, March, Propper |
| Forwards | Locadia, Andone, Jahanbakhsh, Murray, Izquierdo |
Dale Stephens and Pascal Gross are both out due to injury. Florin Andone is available for selection, but is not involved.
Brighton starting XI: Ryan; Montoya, Duffy, Dunk, Bong; Kayal; Knockaert, Propper, Bissouma, March; Locadia.
Subs: Button, Balogun. Bernardo. Bruno, Jahanbakhsh, Izquierdo, Murray.
Manchester City are firm favourites and priced at odds of winning 1/10 according to bet 365, while a draw is available at 11/1. A win for the Seagulls is up for 33/1.
Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more
Manchester City have had another strong start to the season, only dropping two points in their draw against Wolves, but a win on Saturday could mean a return to the top of the table.
Pep Guardiola was complimentary of the Seagulls’ style of play and believes that a good game against Brighton will help in City’s upcoming fixtures.
“We know what Brighton has done against United at home – Liverpool at Anfield they were so close [to getting a result]. They have been together a long time, they know what they have to do. They are really well organised,” Guardiola said ahead of Saturday’s fixture.
“It will be really tough, but we know that and we will try to have a good game. The best way to prepare for Hoffenheim and Liverpool is to play well against Brighton.”
Chris Hughton’s side lost their last game 2-1 to Tottenham and confessed that the Man City game will be a hard one.
“Along with playing Liverpool away, I would say that this is the toughest game. We did okay in the Liverpool one and might’ve got a result there, so you always have to be positive going into games like this,” Hughton told reporters.
“No-one expects us to get anything from it, so that’s normal and that pressure is taken off, but we want to do as well as we can.
“Irrespective of the different levels between the two teams and their qualities, there isn’t ever any game we go into thinking that we’re going to get beaten. You have to look at the good examples of our performances against the big teams away from home.”
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