Guardiola will fancy his chances at Brighton. — AFP
CHAMPIONS Manchester City are licking their wounds following two successive defeats – against Bournemouth in the Premier League last weekend and Ruben Amorim’s Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League in midweek.
Brighton will be the next to test the Citizens’ resolve, and one gets the feeling that the latter could face some serious backlash in the wake of those losses.
The one against Amorim, who takes over at Old Trafford on Monday morning, had City’s face rubbed into it relentlessly by the red half of Manchester.
Of course, City will come good; there should be no doubt about that, and Manchester United should be reminded that the blue half of the city still have a lot going for them.
But one can sympathise with Man United.
The once mighty Red Devils have fallen so far behind not only City but the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa too, that they hang on to any branch they can find just to stay in the conversation.
City will want to right their ship in the encounter at Brighton, and they may well achieve this.
Pep Guardiola’s squad is top-quality, and it is unlikely they can be kept down for long.
Brighton are eighth in the Premier League standings but only two points off the Champions League fourth spot. That’s just how good they have been again this season.
They did lose to pace-setters Liverpool last time out and drew in the game before that with struggling Wolverhampton Wanderers.
But another fine result today and they could find themselves back in the top four, with a ring of Champions League to it – depending how some of the other results go, of course.
Fabian Hurzeler, the German at the helm of the club who took over from Roberto De Zerbi in June, has been lauded for the work he has done at Falmer Stadium.
He’ll be hoping to continue that good form with a good result against Guardiola’s visitors.
Winger Yankuba Minteh has been a go-to player for Hurzeler, and the crafty manager might also look to Mats Wieffer, captain Lewis Dunk and Joao Pedro for inspiration.
Hurzeler and his Seagulls certainly have the pedigree to pull it off against the champions, but it won’t be easy.
A win for the visitors, though, would not surprise many.
