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The recent struggles of English Premier League champions Manchester City continued with a 2-1 loss to Brighton on Saturday, marking their fourth consecutive defeat across competitions and allowing Liverpool to open a five-point lead at the top of the league with a 2-0 win over Aston Villa.
Manchester City, who hadn’t experienced defeat in the league for nearly a year before last week’s shock loss to Bournemouth, have since exited the League Cup at the hands of Tottenham and suffered a 4-1 Champions League blowout against Sporting Lisbon. This marks Pep Guardiola’s first-ever streak of four losses in his managerial career.
City had looked on track for a comeback, with Erling Haaland’s 15th goal of the season giving them an early lead. However, Brighton rallied in the second half, with substitutes Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley turning the game around. O’Riley, making his Premier League debut after recovering from an ankle injury, scored the winner seven minutes from time.
Liverpool capitalized on City’s struggles, with Darwin Nunez netting his third goal of the season and Mohamed Salah adding a second, securing Liverpool’s ninth league victory in 11 games. With new manager Arne Slot revitalizing the squad, Liverpool are showing strong title potential.
Elsewhere, Wolves finally ended their 13-game winless run with a 2-0 victory over Southampton, pushing their opponents to the bottom of the table. Fulham defeated Crystal Palace 2-0, while Brentford staged a thrilling 3-2 comeback against Bournemouth. West Ham and Everton, however, left their fans disappointed after a goalless draw.
