Usually, Manchester City is heavily involved in the title race, but things stand a bit differently this year. It is the middle of March and the team finds itself outside of the top 4 with a tricky fixture on the horizon against a Brighton side in good form. As the difference between the Citizens and The Seagulls is just one point, there is quite a lot at stake for both in their quest for a top 4 finish.
Manchester City Team News
Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City side have only the Premier League and FA Cup to look forward to, as they are out of any other competition. Still, within the league City’s position is unlike what we are used to in recent seasons. Gone is the dominance of the team as The Citizens went through a major crisis that started in November and is still not entirely over, judging by the results. While home form for the team has somewhat stabilized across all competitions, we can still see that 2 of Manchester City’s last 5 home fixtures ended in defeats. The tendency to be involved in high-scoring affairs is, however, somewhat there, as 2 of City’s last 5 matches from all competitions produced over 2.5 goals. The numbers are much better if we focus on home fixtures only – 4 of the last 5 games for Guardiola’s team had over 2.5 goals.
Brighton Team News
Brighton’s resurgence in recent weeks has come at the best of times as the team is just 3 points off the top 4, but the competitors that The Seagulls face are also tremendous. Still, 4 wins in their last 4 Premier League matches have helped Hürzeler’s team mount a challenge for the top spots. Some of the victories are also against direct contenders like Chelsea and Bournemouth. Brighton remains a team that is heavily featured in goal-rich games, as all 5 of their last Premier League matches have seen at least 3 goals. Hürzeler’s men also have a commendable away record in recent matches – 2 losses, 3 wins and 3 draws, with all of their 3 victories coming within their last 4 league travels. Across the aforementioned 8 Premier League away matches only 2 failed to produce over 2.5 goals.
Head-to-Head-Games
Manchester City have an advantage based on H2H statistics, as Pep Guardiola’s team has managed to snatch a victory in 3 of the last 5 meetings with Brighton. The Seagulls have won the most recent fixture and that is their only win across the last 5 H2H encounters with City. Three of those 5 matches saw over 2.5 goals scored, while 4 of the last 5 played at The Etihad produced at least 3 goals.
| Rank | Teams | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goal difference | Points | Current form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Manchester City | 29 | 14 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 48 | WLWLD |
| Rank | Teams | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goal difference | Points | Current form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 29 | 12 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 47 | WWWWD |
Manchester City – Brighton Betting Prediction
I believe we are going to see goals here, so my pick is for over 2.5 goals. As it stands, this is shaping up to be an important game in the race for top 4. Both City and Brighton are teams usually involved in high-scoring matches and the H2H between them also supports going for goals. The importance of this game on the top 4 race only adds to the reasons why going for goals is a good idea here, as we are in a stage of the season where there isn’t that much football left to be played and any missed opportunity for points can be detrimental for any team’s ambitions.
Betting Tip: Over 2.5 Goals
Bookmaker: BC.Game
Odds: 1.60
BC.Game
Place your bet on Manchester City – Brighton at BC.Game