Phil Agius’ best bets for Brighton’s trip to the Etihad include a win for the hosts with a familiar face getting on the scoresheet.

Manchester City will have two games in hand on Premier League title rivals Arsenal and Liverpool when their match against Brighton kicks off at the Amex Stadium on Thursday.

The champions are unbeaten in their last 17 league matches, winning 12 of them, but can’t afford to slip up now with only six games left to play.

The good news for the visitors, who reached the FA Cup final by beating Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday, is that hosts Brighton are out of form and winless in their last four league games, but City’s biggest worry at the moment is fatigue and they were lucky to get away with a tired performance at Wembley.

Selections

Manchester City to win and over 2.5 goals @ 10/11
Phil Foden anytime goalscorer @ 6/5
Over 10.5 corners @ 11/10

City can overcome issues to claim three valuable points

Manchester City have won 12 of their last 14 games against Brighton and should be able to extend their strong record against the Seagulls despite their current team selection concerns.

The Premier League champions have had five days to recover from their FA Cup semi-final exertions and they did not look like themselves at Wembley in the wake of their Champions League exit against Real Madrid.

They remain in good shape to land a domestic double, though, and have shown no signs of cracking in the league, scoring an impressive 13 goals in three games against Aston Villa, Crystal Palace and Luton since their goalless draw with Arsenal.

City may again be without Erling Haaland, who missed the Chelsea match, while John Stones and Bernardo Silva could also be rested, although Jack Grealish may be available despite taking a knock at Wembley.

Brighton’s season has been petering out in recent weeks and Albion have won only two of their last 10 games in all competitions. Even more alarming is their lack of goals as since thrashing Sheffield United 5-0 in February, they have scored only five goals in their last 10 games. They were shut out in half of those matches and never managed to score more than once.

City will be out to emulate Arsenal’s efficient and relatively unchallenged 3-0 win at Brighton and can win a game featuring over 2.5 goals even if they have to do all the scoring themselves.

Foden shines against the Seagulls

Phil Foden looks likely to be a key figure in the City attack at Brighton and should be a prime candidate to get on the scoresheet given the doubts over Erling Haaland and Bernardo Silva.

Foden does not have as many miles in his legs as some of his team-mates having been an unused substitute in the games against Crystal Palace and Luton, and he should be relishing the chance to play against Brighton.

The England man put City ahead in this fixture last year and scored three goals against the Seagulls in the 2021-22 season, with two of those coming in a 4-1 win at the Amex.

Foden scored a hat-trick in the 4-1 home win over Aston Villa at the start of this month and also launched a stunning strike in the 3-3 draw against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

Corner count should be high

City’s games have been awash with corners recently and another double-figure tally looks likely at Brighton.

Their last three games have produced corner counts of 12 (Chelsea), 15 (Madrid) and 13 (Luton) and there were also 11 or more corners in their matches against Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Newcastle and Liverpool. 

Brighton’s home game against Arsenal generated 15 corners, with Albion having eight of them, and there were 12 when they went to Anfield to play Liverpool, so there is plenty of evidence to support a healthy amount of corners when they play another title contender.