Brighton Stuns Man City 2-1, Crushing Haaland's Historic Milestone Moment
Strikes from bench players James Milner and Brajan Gruda delivered a remarkable 2–1 turnaround triumph for Brighton and Hove Albion over Manchester City at the Amex Stadium on Sunday evening.
Erling Haaland, celebrating his 100th Premier League match, dominated the opening period along the south coast. The Norwegian striker was uncharacteristically profligate as he wasted three clear-cut chances within the first thirty minutes, though his inevitable goal materialized before halftime.
Omar Marmoush nudged the ball to City's leading scorer inside the box, who calmly finished past the stranded Bart Verbruggen from short distance. His 88th Premier League goal extended his lead over Alan Shearer by nine strikes for most goals within a player's first hundred league appearances.
City owed their interval advantage to James Trafford, with the summer signing making a superb stop to deny Kaoru Mitoma ahead of Haaland's breakthrough. Though rarely troubled throughout the first period, the 22-year-old's sharp reactions prevented the Seagulls from taking an early advantage and offered vital confidence following his difficult outing against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
Four changes at the sixty-minute mark revitalized the hosts following a lackluster opening half, and Brighton quickly found their leveler. Matheus Nunes was adjudged guilty of deliberate handball within the box, allowing former City player Milner to expertly place his penalty into the corner.
Yankuba Minteh, who had tested Trafford's hands before the equalizer, nearly sealed Brighton's comeback as his effort sailed narrowly past the upright, while City struggled to regain control during the final stages amid the home side's revival.
However, the Citizens failed to generate any rhythm in the closing moments and faced relentless Brighton attacks, with Gruda maintaining his nerve to bypass Trafford and score the decisive goal as Guardiola's team suffered their second consecutive loss.
Man City Player Ratings vs. Brighton (4-1-4-1)
*Ratings provided by FotMob*
Player | Rating (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
GK: James Trafford | 7.8 |
RB: Matheus Nunes | 6.7 |
CB: John Stones | 6.8 |
CB: Abdukodir Khusanov | 6.9 |
LB: Rayan Aït-Nouri | 6.7 |
DM: Rodri | 7.2 |
RM: Oscar Bobb | 6.6 |
CM: Bernardo Silva | 6.1 |
CM: Tijjani Reijnders | 7.1 |
LM: Omar Marmoush | 7.7 |
ST: Erling Haaland | 7.7 |
SUB: Nico O'Reilly (72' for Silva) | 6.5 |
SUB: Jérémy Doku (72' for Marmoush) | 6.4 |
SUB: Rico Lewis (85' for Nunes) | N/A |
SUB: Rúben Dias (85' for Khusanov) | N/A |
Subs not used: Ederson (GK), Manuel Akanji, Nathan Aké, İlkay Gündoğan, Nico González.
Man City Player of the Match: Erling Haaland
Overall Player of the Match: Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton)
Brighton (4-3-3): Bart Verbruggen; Joël Veltman, Jan Paul van Hecke, Lewis Dunk, Maxim De Cuyper; Carlos Baleba, Diego Gómez, Jack Hinshelwood; Yankuba Minteh, Danny Welbeck, Kaoru Mitoma.
Subs: Jason Steele (GK), Diego Coppola, Ferdi Kadıoğlu, Olivier Boscagli, James Milner, Georginio Rutter, Matt O'Riley, Yasin Ayari, Brajan Gruda.