Manchester City faces another letdown in 2-2 draw against Brighton

Manchester City, the reigning champions of the Premier League, managed to secure only a 2-2 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion at home on Saturday, a result that further jeopardizes their ambitions for European football next season.

Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush found the back of the net for Pep Guardiola's team, but Brighton equalized with a second-half own goal from City defender Abdukodir Khusanov, following an initial strike from Pervis Estupinan for the visitors.

The draw, which felt more like a defeat, left City provisionally at fifth in the Premier League standings with 48 points after 29 matches, while Brighton sits just one point behind in seventh.

"I feel personally very disappointed," City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan remarked. "After getting twice in front, and actually playing quite well, it's a bit frustrating to not get the three points."

City faced an early challenge when Kaoru Mitoma appeared to score for Brighton, but the Video Assistant Referee ruled the effort out for handball after the ball made contact with the midfielder's arm.

Haaland opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 11th minute, marking his 21st league goal of the season, as he sent goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen the wrong way after Marmoush had been fouled by Adam Webster.

In doing so, the 24-year-old Norwegian achieved a remarkable milestone, becoming the quickest player in Premier League history to reach 100 goal involvements, tallying 84 goals and 16 assists in just 94 matches. This surpassed Alan Shearer's previous record, set in 100 games.

Estupinan equalized for Brighton ten minutes later, netting his first league goal since December 2023. He caught City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega off guard with a stunning free-kick from 22 yards that curled in off the post.

City regained the lead shortly before halftime, with Marmoush finding the net in the 39th minute after Gundogan set him up for a powerful strike.

However, Khusanov inadvertently leveled the match again shortly after the break when he miscleared a corner, resulting in Brighton's equalizer. This goal marked the 40th conceded by City in the league this season, a record for the most goals conceded in a single campaign under Guardiola.

Anna Muller for TROIB News