Softfootball understands that Manchester City were forced to settle for a third straight draw as Brighton & Hove Albion earned a 1–1 result at the Etihad Stadium, following a 1-1 draw against Chelsea and a 0-0 draw against Sunderland.
After the game, Manchester City shared a post about the result via their official X account.
They posted:
It ends level.
It was a frustrating night for the citizens and a quietly historic one for Brighton, who once again avoided defeat on ground that has so often punished them.
Still reeling from a damaging draw with Chelsea, where stoppage-time drama cost them two points and injuries sidelined Rúben Dias and Joško Gvardiol, City looked uneasy from the first whistle.
Brighton nearly capitalised instantly. Pascal Grob drifted cleverly away from debutant Max Alleyne to meet Diego Gómez’s early cross, but Gianluigi Donnarumma reacted sharply.
City monopolised possession after that, yet Brighton’s counter-attacking threat continued to bite. Ferdi Kadıoğlu burst forward soon after, forcing another smart save from Donnarumma, while Georginio Rutter later raced clear before Abdukodir Khusanov produced a last-ditch recovery tackle.
That moment woke City up, just before the break, Jérémy Doku’s direct run into the box ended with Gómez clipping his heels, and Erling Haaland calmly converted the penalty. It was the Norwegian’s first goal in four games, and it seemed like it might steady the ship.
It didn’t, aside from Bernardo Silva rattling the post, City struggled to impose themselves after the restart. Brighton grew bolder, and their equaliser felt deserved.
Kaoru Mitoma, assisted by Yasin Ayari, cut inside from the left and guided a lovely finish into the far corner. Moments later, Brighton nearly went ahead, only for Gómez to miscue with the goal gaping.
The final stages were chaotic. Kadıoğlu cleared Haaland’s header off the line, and the striker later scuffed another chance straight at Bart Verbruggen after a defensive slip. Rayan Cherki even tried his luck as City pushed in desperation, but the breakthrough never came.
For City, it’s a worrying trend. Having not dropped points from a winning home position since March 2025, they’ve now done it twice in a row. Brighton, meanwhile, leave Manchester with another small slice of history, unbeaten against City in consecutive seasons for the first time ever.
