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Manchester City coach Enzo Maresca has expressed disappointment over his team’s inability to convert their scoring opportunities into goals.
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Bart Verbruggen produced an impressive performance, making seven saves to frustrate City’s attack and prevent 1.74 expected goals, recording the second-highest number of saves in a Premier League match this season.
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Manchester City’s defeat to Brighton marked their second consecutive Premier League loss, having previously suffered a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa.
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Yasin Ayari’s 11th-minute strike secured all three points for Brighton, extending their unbeaten run against Manchester City to five consecutive Premier League meetings.
October 31, (THEWILL) – Man City coach, Enzo Maresca, has blamed the lack of firepower for their 1-0 defeat to Brighton in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Yasin Ayari scored the only goal with a close-range finish in the 11th minute to condemn Man City to their second consecutive defeat.
The Cityzens recorded 25 attempts on goal, but failed to score at home for the first time in 24 matches.
The likes of Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Ilman Ndiaye failed to shine as Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen impressed with seven saves.
Maresca was not pleased with his team’s lack of threat upfront, while urging the team to move on from the defeat.
He said: “It’s a strange feeling. We created enough to win the game. But at this moment, it is like this.
“We are not scoring goals. Hopefully we can be luckier in the future.
“We spent most of the game on their side, especially in the second half, in their box and sometimes you need to be a bit more clinical inside the box.
“I thought the reaction was good. We were in control, especially in the second half but again, at this moment, it’s like this and we need to just improve and move on.
“It’s right to analyse game by game and in the last two games I think we deserved something more than two defeats.”
Maresca also called on the players to address the defensive lapses in subsequent matches.
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He added: “This is just nine games. We are there. We were not thinking of winning all the games at all; it’s normal and that’s why we need to understand what we can do better and try to win games.
“In the last two or three games it’s happened many times [defensive lapses] but we need to analyse how to do better and move on.
“In this moment, we are second in terms of goals scored in the Premier League so that means we are scoring.
“[But] we are conceding silly goals and we can avoid that. Hopefully we can avoid that in the next game.”
Bart Verbruggen made seven saves against Manchester City, the second-most in a Premier League game this season, preventing 1.74 goals.
Manchester City have lost back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since August 2025.
Meanwhile, Brighton coach, Fabian Hurzeler praises his team’s performance in the encounter.
He said: “It means a lot for the team and for the club. I said before the game it’s about belief, it’s about having the confidence to come here and win this game, and I think my players suffered but they stuck together.
“It was not the easiest game and, of course, in some moments we also had luck, but in the end we always had this conviction that we could win this game.
“I’m really happy and I’m really proud of the players.
“Of course, in certain moments we had to suffer. We didn’t have that many ball possession phases like we wanted to have, but I think it’s also credit to City that they pressed quite intensely.
Brighton are now Unbeaten in their last five matches against Man City in the Premier League.
The Seagulls will face Getafe in the Europa League on Thursday.
