Manchester City vs Brighton LIVE Football Score 18 May 2021

Brighton & Hove Albion take on champions Manchester City in the Premier League on Tuesday, with the Citizens looking to build momentum ahead of their Champions League final clash against Chelsea towards the end of May. Brighton, meanwhile, have already secured their safety for a fourth successive season, so they are simply aiming to finish as high in the table as they possibly can.

Having finished 15th twice and 17th once in their three full seasons in the Premier League, Graham Potter’s side require a shock win against Man City on Tuesday to still be able to secure a record-high finish in England’s top flight. Had the Seagulls held onto their 1-0 lead against West Ham United on Saturday, that would not have been the case, but Said Benrahma’s late equaliser meant Brighton remain in 17th place in the table heading into Tuesday’s fixture.

Danny Welbeck looked to have scored an 84th-minute winner during a cagey encounter at the Amex Stadium, with the England striker racing in behind and coolly dinking the ball over the onrushing Lukasz Fabianski. However, Benrahma showed Hammers’ fans what he is capable of by picking up the ball outside of the area and delightfully bending the ball around Robert Sanchez to score his first ever Premier League goal, and salvage a point for his side in the process.

Man City, meanwhile, were involved in a hugely entertaining 4-3 victory away to Newcastle United on Friday. Pep Guardiola made several changes for the trip to the North East, with Scott Carson handed a surprise first ever start for the club in goal ahead of the 35-year-old’s playing contract expiring at the end of the season.

A makeshift central defensive pair of Nathan Ake and Eric Garcia struggled to contain Steve Bruce’s side, particularly in transition and from set-pieces, with Emil Krafth heading the hosts into the lead as a result. Joao Cancelo and Ferran Torres quickly flipped the match on its head before Ake’s clumsy tackle allowed Joelinton to level the proceedings from the penalty spot in first half injury time, with Joe Willock restoring Newcastle’s lead at the second attempt after the break having initially missed his penalty before converting the rebound after Carson’s excellent sprawling save.

However, having received limited minutes during his first season in England, Torres showed his undoubted ability by subsequently bagging a hat-trick and securing a record 12th consecutive away win for Man City in the Premier League, illustrating their tremendous character and quality under Guardiola ahead of their trip to the south coast on Tuesday.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Brighton have lost all seven of their Premier League meetings with Manchester City by an aggregate score of 21-2. The Seagulls have led for a total of just 83 seconds across those games.
• Manchester City’s most recent league defeat against Brighton was in April 1989 in the second tier, while their last top-flight loss against the Seagulls came in October 1981.

Brighton & Hove Albion

• Brighton have dropped 25 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, more than any other side.
• Their only victory in their final home league game in the past six seasons came against Manchester United in 2017-18.
• Since beating Crystal Palace in December 2018, the Seagulls have taken just two points from 27 in Premier League games on a Tuesday and have failed to score in each of the last four.
• They have taken only one point out of a possible 21 in their Premier League fixtures this season against teams currently in the top four of the table (a 0-0 draw against Chelsea on 20 April).

Manchester City

• Manchester City’s 12 successive away league victories and 23-match unbeaten run away from home in all competitions are both records by a team in England’s top four divisions.
• The 12 away league wins they have achieved since 19 December is more than any other Premier League side has managed away from home all season.
• Since losing against Chelsea in June 2020, Manchester City have taken 37 points from 39 available in midweek Premier League games.
• They haven’t lost their final away league game of the season since they were beaten by Tottenham at White Hart Lane in 2008-09 (W9, D2).