League Cup, Round of 16Manchester CityMCI 28/10/2026 19:30 BrightonBRI Venue Etihad StadiumWhere to Watch Manchester City v Brighton: TV and online streamsManchester City versus Brighton kicks off at7:30pm GMT on Wednesday, October 28at the Etihad Stadium.The match is live onSky Sportsin the UK. You can also stream it on the Sky Go app.Supporters overseas should check theirlocal EFL Cup TV rights holders.Preview for Manchester City v BrightonManchester Citys domestic dominance is over, and Enzo Maresca responded by sending five of his biggest names on holiday. The EFL Cup holders host Brighton at the Etihad on Wednesday night in the first of back-to-back meetings with the Seagulls, and Maresca will look to rest several of his star men.Citys perfect Premier League record ended at Villa Park on Saturday. Aston Villa won 2-1, and Maresca was frustrated that his side failed to take their chances and were punished for it. It was Citys second defeat in four games in all competitions, following the 4-2 home loss to PSG in the Champions League.Maresca has been open about his approach for this tie. After Villa, we gave five players three days off. Erling [Haaland], Elliot [Anderson], Gigi [Donnarumma], Ruben [Dias] and Josko [Gvardiol]. Go away on holiday. Three days off, go, come back, he said.The quintet are now back but unlikely to face Brighton.City are still expected to take this competition seriously. They beat Norwich 5-0 in the third round, and as holders, Maresca will want to pick up silverware at the first opportunity.Mresca said of Brighton: They are very brave in terms of aggression and when they have the ball, they attack with so many players and are creating many chances, scoring many goals. So yeah, we need to pay attention defensively and we need to do the right things offensively.Brighton have hit a sticky patch. After a brilliant start to the season, Fabian Hrzelers side have gone two games without a win, drawing 0-0 at Jablonec in the Conference League and then losing 2-0 at Liverpool on Sunday.They have already shown their quality in this competition, though. Brighton came from 2-0 down to beat Manchester United 3-2 in the third round.Brighton have also had the better of City in recent meetings. City have failed to win any of their last four matches against the Seagulls.Team News for Manchester City v BrightonGernimo Rulli will start in goal for City, making his second appearance for the club after his debut against Norwich. Maresca said: Hes good. Before I arrive here I had a conversation with him, he knows exactly his role. Day-by-day he is helping a lot. When he played some minutes he was good and tomorrow he will play again.Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov formed an effective centre-back partnership against Norwich and could start together again. Rico Lewis is set to play at right-back, with Nico OReilly on the left.Matheus Nunes has been given the all-clear to return, but Antoine Semenyo remains out with a knee injury.Phil Foden has been in excellent form and is expected to start in attacking midfield, while young striker Ryan McAidoo could be handed a chance up front in Haalands absence.For Brighton, Hrzeler is expected to make changes ahead of the Premier League meeting with City at the weekend. Kaoru Mitoma, Evan Ferguson, Stefanos Tzimas and Femi Azeez remain out, while Yankuba Minteh and Mats Wieffer are close to returning.Expected line-ups for Manchester City v BrightonManchester City: Rulli; Lewis, Reis, Khusanov, OReilly; Kovai, Bouaddi; Allan, Foden, Doku; McAidooBrighton: Steele; Costinha, Vuskovic, Dunk, Hadjam; Gross, Yalcouye; Gomez, Hinshelwood, Osman; RutterRecent Form & Stats for Manchester City v BrightonManchester City have conceded nine times across their last four matches in all competitionsCity have won the EFL Cup nine times, just one fewer than LiverpoolCity are without a win in four meetings with Brighton (D2 L2)City have suffered EFL Cup elimination before round five in three of the last five seasonsBrightons trip to the Etihad is the third of five successive away matches across a 16-day periodThe Seagulls have never beaten Man City away from home in 17 previous attempts (D3 L14) Recent Results : Manchester City Premier League Aston Villa AST L 2 1 2026-10-24 Manchester City MCI UEFA Champions League Manchester City MCI W 5 1 2026-10-20 AEK Athens FC AEK Premier League Manchester City MCI W 3 2 2026-10-17 Ipswich IPS UEFA Champions League Manchester City MCI L 2 4 2026-10-14 Paris Saint Germain PSG Premier League Liverpool LIV W 0 3 2026-10-11 Manchester City MCI Recent Results : Brighton Premier League Liverpool LIV L 2 0 2026-10-25 Brighton BRI UEFA Europa Conference League FK Jablonec JAB D 0 0 2026-10-22 Brighton BRI Premier League Brighton BRI W 5 0 2026-10-18 Crystal Palace CRY UEFA Europa Conference League Brighton BRI W 4 0 2026-10-15 Kauno algiris SPY Premier League Sunderland SUN W 0 2 2026-10-10 Brighton BRI Prediction for Manchester City v BrightonBeating Brighton is never straightforward but Citys squad depth undoubtedly gives them the edge in this one. Match PredictionManchester City 2 0 Brighton Topics Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Manchester City F.C. If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read Liverpool v Brighton as it happened live: Updates, goals and stats Jon Fisher 25th October, 2026 Liverpool 2-0 Brighton: Hosts impress in statement win Tom Rostance 25th October, 2026 Man City Champions League fixtures, results, squad and standings Ben Miller 25th October, 2026 Brighton Conference League fixtures, results, squad and schedule 2026/27 Ben Miller 25th October, 2026 Wirtz on ankle injury and Liverpool win: Things werent so good Ben Miller 25th October, 2026 Liverpool 2-0 Brighton Wirtz and Isak put Reds ahead early on Tom Rostance 25th October, 2026
