BRIGHTON, England (Reuters) -Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was left to rue a second-half collapse by his side after a bright opening hour as they succumbed to a 2-1 Premier League defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday.
City led in the first half through an Erling Haaland goal on his 100th Premier League appearance and looked in control for 60 minutes until a James Milner penalty brought the hosts level.
As Brighton's intensity increased, City failed to cope with their movement and conceded again late on to Brajan Gruda's fine individual goal.
"We concede the goal and after that, it (the momentum) shifted," Guardiola told Sky Sports. "Until then it was really, really good, we had chances and the team looked aggressive and dynamic.
"We made a good hour and then after the last half an hour, we were not good. We forgot to pass the ball, just played long balls and we were not good enough. It is what it is."
Guardiola fielded midfielder Rodri for a full 90 minutes but admitted the changes he had made to his squad last season and this have led to a period of adaption for the players.
"We have a really good squad and of course we changed many things from the past to now, which is normal," the Spaniard said. "We need the new players to adapt and we need the older ones to help them to cope.
"Rodri played a really good performance and he is a top character. I’m happy he played 90 minutes."
City have suffered back-to-back losses after defeat at Tottenham Hotspur in their previous league game, but Guardiola said he was not thinking of the title race yet.
"The season has just started. There is a long, long season ahead of us. We will see what happens," he said.
City are next at home to local rivals Manchester United after the international break and then travel to Arsenal.
(Reporting by Nick Said; Editing by Ken Ferris)
