Pep Guardiola's men had a point to prove against Brighton after 3 straight losses in all competitions and were ready to show that they are deserving Treble Winners in front of the Etihad Stadium crowd in their first home game in 3 weeks.It was a changed City squad as German goalkeeper Stefan Ortega replaced Ederson after the Brazillian needing a rest of the International break.
The fans paid tribute to the great Francis Lee after his passing earlier this week with a Tifo being raised in the stands and the former city man being put on the programme for the match.
Play began with a portion of the CIty home fans chanting 'glazers staying 10 more years' after Man Uniteds dream Qatar ownership deal falling through last weekend. James Milner's welcome back to the Etihad Stadium with his new club was greeted with boos in an attempt to put the former Liverpool man off.
Milner's day was about to get even tougher at right-back as just 5 minutes in, new City fan favourite Jeremy Doku took him on and dribbled right the way through the Albion defence and got an early shot off but put it just past the post.
The blues wasted no time in pushing for a goal as just two minutes later, Jeremy Doku beats James Milner again and plays it into the path of Julian Alvarez who was never going to miss that chance.
An early Brighton injury came after 14 minutes with former arsenal striker Danny Welbeck made way for Evan Ferguson.
City weren't slowing down as just 5 minutes later Erling Haaland cuts inside and scores an amazing outside of the box finish into the bottom right corner leaving Jason Steele no chance. The final chance of the half came courtesy of Jeremy Doku once again as he finds himself in behind from a tricky ball by Bernardo Silva but his ball is unable to reach Erling Haaland.
Man City vs Brighton, Half-Time Stats:
Possession: 64% - 36%
Total Shots: 5 - 1
Shots On Target: 3 - 1
Corners: 2 - 0
Big Chances: 1 - 0 
Accurate Passes: 333 (90%) - 176 (84%)
The second half began with Manuel Akanji being booked after an early tackle forcing him to be careful for the rest of the game. Roberto De Zerbi called youngsters Billy Gilmour and Barcelona Loanee Ansu Fati into the action from the bench in a hope to catch out the Champions with some fresh legs.Just minutes later Jack Grealish entered the frame hoping to test Pep Guardiolas resolve on playing Jeremy Doku over him.
Brighton began to pile the pressure on the City backline with Kauru Mitoma repeatedly taking on Kyle Walker and beating his man on numerous occasions, that pressure finally paid off for the seagulls as Ansu Fati catches Stefan Ortega out with a quick finish which changed the atmosphere in the Etihad to a very fearful and sour vibe.
Brighton continued to put pressure on with Evan Ferguson looking dangerous within the City penalty area and Brighton occupying a lot of the ball after their goal.
The fourth official indicated a minimum of 4 minutes to be played much to the relief of City fans in the stadium but after a Brighton injury play continued right until the 100 minute mark until the Referee blew full time for a crucial 3 points for the Champions at home.