Manchester City’s coach, Pep Guardiola, after his team’s 3:1 win over Brighton, points out that he knew the game would be difficult and uncertain until the last minute.
It doesn’t happen that often that a Manchester City team has less than 50 percent possession, but that was the case today. Brighton, Roberto de Zerbi’s not-so-naive side, played very well at the Etihad, despite losing 3:1.
“They decided not to play zone defense but to play man-to-man. Fortunately, we had enough patience and knowledge to score the third goal and settle the game 15 minutes before the end, “said Guardiola.
We struggled a lot. The Brighton team was certainly, at this moment, the most difficult possible opponent for us, after the defeat in the last round at Anfield Road. We knew that the match would be difficult and uncertain until the end. We had to be tough and aggressive. De Bruyne scored a great goal to make it 3:3, but even though it was 15 minutes to the end, we couldn’t relax and allow Brighton to close in on us again. I’m proud of the whole team. It was a very difficult three points, “Pep Guardiola finished.”
With this victory, Manchester City came within a point of Arsenal, who are visiting Southampton tomorrow. In the next round, Pep Guardiola’s men visit Leicester at the King Power Stadium, while Brighton will welcome Chelsea, led by their current manager, Graham Potter.
