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Manchester City have broken a Premier League record after beating Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
A first-half brace from goal machine Erling Braut Haaland put the Citizens in control at the break, and although Leandro Trossard pulled one back for the Seagulls early in the second half, a 25-yard wonder strike from Kevin De Bruyne helped the Citizens return to winning ways following last weekend’s loss against Liverpool.
Pep Guardiola’s side headed into Saturday’s clash with Brighton after winning each of their previous nine Premier League home fixtures, scoring a remarkable 40 goals and netting at least three in each match.
The Citizens’ began this run with a 3-0 win against Brighton in April last season, and their latest success over the Seagulls has seen them become the first team in Premier League history to win 10 successive home matches and score three or more goals in each game.
Guardiola’s men remain second in the Premier League table but they have moved to within one point of leaders Arsenal, who travel to St Mary’s to face Southampton on Sunday.
It took 22 minutes for City to open the scoring when Haaland ran on to a long-range pass from Ederson before outmuscling Brighton’s Adam Webster and rounding goalkeeper Robert Sanchez to roll the ball into the back of the net.
Haaland’s opener saw him become the first City player to score in seven consecutive home matches since club legend Sergio Aguero in the 2017-18 season.
VAR then intervened two minutes before half time to award the Citizens a penalty after Bernardo Silva was fouled by Lewis Dunk. Haaland stepped up and smashed the ball beyond Sanchez to double the host’s lead and net his 17th Premier League goal of the season.
Indeed, Haaland second goal meant that Guardiola has now overseen 600 Premier League goals as Man City manager since joining the club in 2016; only Sir Alex Ferguson with Manchester United and Arsene Wenger with Arsenal have overseen at least 600 goals as a manager in the English top flight.
City’s two-goal lead was reduced eight minutes after the interval when Trossard unleashed a powerful right-footed strike from just outside the penalty area, providing the visitors with hope of a comeback.
However, the reigning champions restored their two-goal cushion and sealed the victory in the 75th minute courtesy of a brilliant bending strike into the top-right corner from De Bruyne.
Speaking after the game, Guardiola labelled Brighton as one of City’s “toughest” opponents so far this season, telling Match of the Day: “They decided to play a game man to man on the pitch and we were lucky to have the quality for the third goal.
“We struggled a bit, it’s one of the toughest games you could face at the moment but the three points after the defeat at Anfield.
“With the ball they have incredible quality and the two guys in the middle – they are a really good team.
“In those moments we have to be resilient and knew the game would be tough until the end. Kevin [De Bruyne] scored a magnificent goal but we would fight to the end to avoid the draw or defeat sometimes it is important to understand the game we have to play.”
City will now turn their attention to next Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Borussia Dortmund, and a win over their German counterparts would see them secure top spot in Group G.