Manchester City 0-1 Brighton: Yasin Ayari Topples the Leaders as City Suffer Second Straight Defeat

Brighton gained revenge at the Etihad Stadium for their midweek elimination by Manchester City in the 4th round of the League Cup. The visitors beat the Premier League leaders 1-0 thanks to an early goal from Yasin Ayari.

Brighton made a fast start and found the net with their first structured attack. Ayari pounced on a Matheus Nunes error and beat Gianluigi Donnarumma from close range to put his side ahead.

City, beaten for the second league game in a row, stepped up the pressure in search of an equaliser but failed to take the chances that fell to Iliman Ndiaye. Goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, outstanding when he denied Jérémy Doku late on, was one of the men who earned Brighton 3 precious points.

Brighton's winner came in the 11th minute from a quickly taken Lewis Dunk free kick. When Nunes failed to clear Diego Gómez's cross, Maxim De Cuyper knocked the ball down into Ayari's path. Ayari's neat finish into the bottom right-hand corner was the young player's third league goal of the season.

Ndiaye was unable to beat Verbruggen with City's only shot on target of the first half, and he also missed the target with a header. At the other end, Donnarumma denied Gómez from a tight angle, while Dunk blocked Erling Haaland's clearest opportunity just before the break.

Brighton passed up the chance to double their lead right at the start of the second half. Ayari picked out the unmarked De Cuyper, but the Belgian's first-time shot flew over the bar.

City then turned up the pressure, and Verbruggen tipped Ndiaye's fierce strike onto the post with his fingertips. Nunes was later through one-on-one with the goalkeeper from a clever Rayan Cherki through ball, but his effort was kept out by Verbruggen's strong hand.

Ndiaye fired wide from a tight angle once more, while for Brighton, Jack Hinshelwood, found by Georginio Rutter's pass, sent the ball into the side netting with a chance to put the game beyond doubt. In stoppage time, Verbruggen kept out Doku's close-range effort to seal the win for his side.

Brighton's resolute defence gives the hosts no way through

After their League Cup defeat on penalties, Fabian Hürzeler's side had spoken of "revenge", and with this victory they achieved their aim.

Beaten 2-1 by Aston Villa last week, City suffered a second successive league defeat and this time failed even to score.