City make 10 changes – Haaland, Bouaddi and Nunes all start
Enzo Maresca has made 10 changes from our midweek win over Brighton.
Ayyoub Bouaddi is the only player to retain his place from our Carabao Cup win over the Seagulls as the boss starts with a largely fresh XI.
Matheus Nunes makes a welcome return after missing several games with injury.
Teams
CITY: Donnarumma, Nunes, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol, Bouaddi, Anderson, Fernández, Ndiaye, Doku, Haaland
SUBS: Rulli, Guéhi, Kovačić, Cherki, Reis, O’Reilly, Allan, Foden, Lewis
BRIGHTON: To follow…
Tactics
Though the personnel is much-changed, the style of play is likely to be the same as Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clash between the two teams.
Brighton were a constant threat down the flanks in that game, and their fast-paced passing and movement off the ball will once again be a threat in this game.
Gianluigi Donnarumma returns in goal in what will be a 4-3-3 formation.
Nunes resumes at right-back, with Abdukodir Khusanov and Ruben Dias in central defence and Josko Gvardiol at left-back.
In midfield, Bouaddi and Elliot Anderson are likely to protect the back four with Enzo Fernandez playing in a more advanced No.10 role.
Our front three will be Iliman Ndiaye and Jeremy Doku on either flank and Erling Haaland through the middle.
City looking to bounce back
Though our penalty shoot-out win over Brighton was enjoyable and most welcome in midweek, the Premier League will always take precedence for the Blues.
The 2-1 loss away to Aston Villa was disappointing given the opportunities we created, so getting back to winning ways this afternoon and consolidating top spot in the table.
Today we face a Brighton side who have started the season in superb fashion, scoring goals and conceding few.
Just as Wednesday’s game was, this will be a tough 90 minutes against a very good side who will be a threat from start to finish.
IntensiTy match
One thing the Seagulls do – and do very well – is press high and with aggression.
Almost to a man, their players were snapping at our heels each and every time we were in possession, perhaps being more than a little fortunate not to have been penalised more than they were for some of the challenges.
Maresca will want his players to match that aggression, move the ball quickly and try not to invite too much pressure when playing from the back.
The Blues will have a largely rested starting XI given the wholesale changes in midweek, but the Seagulls will also have several players returning with fresh legs.
It will be lively, open and you’d imagine there will be goals in what is likely to be rollercoaster-paced game.
Stats & facts
City won 12 of their last first 14 Premier League matches against Brighton (D1 L1) but they are winless in four since then (D2 L2).
Brighton have never won in 16 away league games against City (D4 L12), though have avoided defeat in their last two. It’s the most Brighton have played away without winning against an opponent and the most Man City have faced an opponent at home without losing.
City have won their last 10 league matches on Halloween and have 15 wins overall on October 31st, the most of any team in Football League history.
City lost their first Premier League game of the season last time out against Aston Villa. They last lost consecutively back in August 2025, the second game of which was against Brighton.
Brighton have scored more goals than any other side in the Premier League this season (23), though failed to score for the first time this campaign last time out at Liverpool (0-2).
City (16.7) and Brighton (16.2) are the two highest ranked teams for expected goals so far in the Premier League this season, as well as being the highest goal-scorers (Brighton 23, Man City 20).
City have scored in each of their last 24 Premier League games, last having a longer run between December 2018 and September 2019 (29). Meanwhile, the only teams to stop City from scoring in their last 94 home league games are Arsenal, Spurs (twice) and Liverpool.
Only Bournemouth (5) have made fewer starting XI changes than Brighton (7) in the Premier League this season, while the Seagulls also have the second youngest average starting age this term (25y 214d) behind Newcastle (25y 192d).
City’s Erling Haaland has scored seven goals in seven Premier League appearances against Brighton, scoring in the last four without winning any (D2 L2). He’s one of three players to do so in Premier League history along with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink against Man Utd (Nov 1998 – Feb 2001) and Charlie Austin against Arsenal (Dec 2014 – April 2018), neither of whom did five in a row.
Brighton’s Pascal Gross has created more chances than any other player in the Premier League this season (23), with no player registering more assists than the German so far (4).
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