Premier League leaders Man City host third-placed Brighton at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday 31 October (kick-off 3pm) in gameweek 9 of the 2026-27 season.
City have played eight, won seven and have 21 points, with a goal difference of +11. Brighton have 16 points from eight games, five of them wins, and the best goal difference of the pair at +16.
Form and season numbers
City have won four of their last five in the league, the exception a 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa. The wins were 1-0 at Man Utd, 5-3 against Sunderland, 3-0 at Liverpool and 3-2 against Ipswich Town. That is 13 goals scored but seven conceded across the five games.
Brighton have also won four of their last five, beating Coventry City 5-0, Arsenal 3-0, Sunderland 2-0 and Crystal Palace 5-0. The defeat was 2-0 at Liverpool. They have scored 15 and conceded two in that run.
Across the season Brighton score more (2.88 goals a game to City's 2.5) and concede fewer (0.88 to 1.13). They have five clean sheets to City's three. City lead on points per game, 2.63 to 2.
Expected goals data via Fantasy Premier League, which measures the quality of chances created, shows the sides almost level in attack: City 2.08 per game, Brighton 2.07. City's figure for chances conceded is 1.34, Brighton's 1.46.
Players to watch
Haaland has nine goals from 6.09 expected goals in 709 minutes and is City's first-choice penalty taker, according to FPL. Cherki has four goals from 1.69 xG, while Foden has one from 2.27.
For Brighton, Groß has six assists and three goals in 700 minutes, and is listed by FPL as their first-choice penalty taker. Kostoulas has three goals from 2.35 xG, and Hinshelwood has three from 2.33 in only 127 minutes.
Team news and head-to-head
FPL lists Matheus N. as doubtful for City with an unspecified injury, 75% chance of playing, and Semenyo as out with a knee injury and no return date. For Brighton, FPL lists Kadıoğlu and Andrés as doubtful with hip problems, each a 75% chance of playing. It shows Tzimas (knee) and Ferguson (ankle) as injured with no return date.
Pascal Struijk, sent off for a straight red card, would by MFF's card count miss this game only if his ban is the three-match one for serious foul play or violent conduct. FPL also lists him as injured with a hamstring problem, expected back on 8 November.
Recent meetings have been tight. Of the last five before this season's fixtures, Brighton won two (2-1 in August 2025 and 2-1 in November 2024), City won one (4-0 in April 2024) and two were draws (1-1 in January 2026 and 2-2 in March 2025).
MFF prediction
MFF's match model predicts a 2-1 win for Man City. It gives City a 45% chance of victory, a 23% chance of a draw and Brighton a 32% chance of winning.
Add MFF as a preferred source on GoogleSee our stats first in Google's Top Stories and AI answers