Match Review: Manchester City 2-0 Brighton

Well, thank God that is over. Brighton and Hove Albion’s horror run of fixtures to start the season of facing last season’s top four in their opening seven Premier League fixtures came to an end with a 2-0 defeat away at champions Manchester City.

Five points on the board is about where any level headed Albion fan would expect us to be right now. With nine consecutive games to come against sides around us in the table, the next two months will give a much better indication of what we can expect this season from Chris Hughton and his squad.

It was a case of damage limitation at the Etihad Stadium and in that regard, it should probably be seen as a decent result. Three times in 13 months we’ve faced City now with the aggregate score standing at 7-1 to the Citizens. Pep Guardiola’s side could rack up that scoreline against plenty of teams in a single game.

Incredibly, there were some supporters in the away end who felt we should’ve gone on the attack against City. Now, if ever there was a queue of people waiting to tell Hughton to be more positive in games, we’d want to be right at the front of it. Anybody who has read our reviews of the recent games away at Southampton and home to Tottenham Hotspur will know that.

But if you think that the place to take the game to the opposition is the Etihad Stadium, then frankly you’re mad. Attacking City by committing numbers forward would be like signing your own death warrant and then committing suicide just to ensure the job is done.

Take City’s first goal as exhibit A. Anthony Knockaert gave the ball away inside the City half. Eight seconds later and the ball has gone through Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling and the champions are 1-0 up. Prior that, the Albion’s shape had been perfect and they’d frustrated the hosts to a large degree. One mistake in the final third with players pushed forward and bang, it’s a goal at the other end.

You can take City’s second goal as exhibit B while we’re at it. Jurgen Locadia’s header forward went to nobody other than John Stones halfway between the halfway line and Ederson’s goal. He finds Aguero who chests to David Silva. He passes back to Aguero who skips away from Yves Bissouma and Davy Propper as if they are ghosts. He goes straight past Dunk as if he was a mere shadow. He plays a pass to Sterling who knocks it straight back and Aguero has made it 2-0. Time from Brighton attacking to City scoring – 11 seconds.

Both of those goals were of the highest quality and a joy to watch. Sometimes, you just have to hold your hands up and say a team is better than you. Being outplayed by the likes of David Silva, Aguero and Sterling certainly beats losing at home to nine man Walsall. There’s no shame in being beaten by the champions, and the way Hughton set up was exactly what he should have done. Damage limitation.

Having said all that, the game did raise a couple of concerns – and not just about how so many Brighton fans who think we should’ve attacked City have managed to escape from secure mental units.

Let’s start with Dunk. The Albion captain hasn’t looked right since returning from injury. He was bamboozled and left for dead by Sterling just before half time with Maty Ryan making a good stop at the near post and he couldn’t get close to City at times.

The Dunk of last season would’ve been able to put in challenges and make blocks, but something seems to be missing at the moment. Has he been rushed back too soon? Perhaps, but whatever the reasoning he needs to step up and fast. There is a very good centre back called Leon Balogun sat on the bench after all.

Then there’s Locadia. He was never likely to shine on a day in which the opposition were expected to have 80% possession and Albion forays from their half were going to be as regular as an ice age. But he just isn’t very good, is he? He has admitted himself that he can’t head a ball, his performances so far suggest he can’t finish, which begs the question – what exactly can he do?

We were never likely to find out against City, but the fact that we’ve got a £14m striker in our ranks yet we’re still solely reliant on Premier League goals coming from a bloke now eligible for veterans football who was signed over a decade ago from Rochdale is a huge concern. Hopefully, the rest that Glenn Murray got by not starting this one benefits him, because we’re going to bloody need him firing all cylinders over the next three months.

Finally, there is us supporters. Yes, Brighton spent more this transfer window than they’ve ever spent, but are we expecting too much as a result? The second season in the Premier League is notorious for being harder than the first. The element of surprise that we might have had over opposition teams has gone and while everything seemed shiny and new in that first campaign with the big boys, now it feels a lot more like a war of attrition to survive.

We’ve seen fans saying we should be pushing for the top 10, but based on what? Signing an Iranian winger from a weak Dutch league and an extremely promising but very raw midfielder from a French club who had concerns about his attitude. As excited as everybody was, in the cold light of day they aren’t signings guaranteed to push the Albion to the next level. They’re gambles that may or may not pay off.

Realistically, we’re just looking to survive again this season. At the moment, it looks like there are at least three worse teams than us in the division. Cardiff City are yet to win a game, Huddersfield Town are suffering hugely with second season syndrome as well and Newcastle United are an absolute basket case of a club. When Rafa Benitez finally has enough, they’ll fall like a stone.

So, there’s no need to panic yet, Mr Mainwaring. Brighton’s season won’t be defined by what happens against City or Liverpool or Spurs. It will be defined by what we do against West Ham, Newcastle, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton and Cardiff.

They’re the Albion’s next five fixtures. Take only a handful of points from them, and then maybe it’ll be time to sound the alarm bells. But for now, we’re doing alright – and everyone should remember that.