A pulsating game at the Etihad Stadium saw Manchester City and Brighton and Hove Albion both frustrated.
A 2-2 draw was arguably a fair result but each team will feel they could have won a match which could yet have significant ramifications in the race to secure Champions League football next season.
We analyse the major talking points.
City’s defensive jitters on show again
The race for the top four is never normally perfect because usually the teams involved have too many flaws for them to have any kind of consistency.
In years gone by it would be a struggling ‘Big Six’ club like Manchester United, Tottenham or Arsenal. This season City take on that mantel; they have improved recently but are still not hugely stable — had Carlos Baleba (below) scored at the end, Brighton would have been 3-2 up and looking at a victory.
City conceded their 40th goal of the season here, the first time that has happened to a Guardiola team in England. This was also the 13th time this season that City conceded at least four big chances.
That is another indication of their defensive woes and a reason to be fearful of the likes of Brighton and the other upwardly mobile teams in the race for the final Champions League places — today’s opponents, as well as Bournemouth, Fulham and Aston Villa are all pretty even and capable of beating each other, something which makes the top half of the table fascinating.
Questions over Ortega
City’s goalkeeper limbo continued on Saturday with Ederson missing out with a lower stomach complaint, something that has kept him out previously and has ruled out his participation for Brazil during the upcoming international break.
He was at fault for Nottingham Forest’s winner last weekend but his absence always felt problematic against Brighton because of his range of passing and calmness under pressure, two things that would have been especially useful against Fabian Hurzeler’s aggressive side.
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Not that Stefan Ortega made any glaring errors in this regard, it is just that Ederson — to put it very simply — can kick further, which is something that City have utilised against opponents like this.
Ortega was spared an early concession when Kaoru Mitoma was adjudged to have knocked the ball out of his hands in bundling over the line, but there were question marks over the City goalkeeper when Pervis Estupinan scored a free-kick to make the score 1-1 in the 21st minute.
The German was standing just left of centre of his goal as Estupinan came forward to strike the ball…
… but then took a step to his left just as the Brighton left-back made contact.
That left him with no chance of getting back across to his right…
… where the ball caressed the post as it went in.
Aggression makes for thrilling spectacle
This was a very intense match, with both sides’ aggression making for a pretty open spectacle.
All four goals were products of winning the ball back in midfield and attacking quickly. Only one — Omar Marmoush’s strike from the edge of the box — came from open play, after Nico Gonzalez poked a loose ball to Ilkay Gundogan, allowing the German to find Marmoush, but the others came from the set pieces that followed the fast breaks.
City’s penalty came after Savinho won the ball from Joao Pedro in the middle, after the Brighton striker had come back to help their build-up.
While Brighton got the better of Nico a couple of times, the first to win a free kick that was put away by Estupinan, and the second when Joao Pedro won a duel with the Spaniard and took it round him, before the visitors won the corner that ended with Abdukodir Khusanov’s own goal.
As much as this was a very tactical display, it was underpinned by the aggression, physicality and bravery required to press and play.
What next for Manchester City?
Sunday, March 30: Bournemouth (Away), FA Cup quarter-final, 4.30pm UK, 11.30am ET
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(Top photo: Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
