We deserved the result - De Zerbi on Man City draw.

Brighton & Hove Albion needed all but a point to make sure of their Europa League spot, and they pushed Manchester City to the limit to earn it with an exciting 1-1 draw at the Amex on Wednesday evening.

Julio Enciso scored a stunning equalizer from long range in the 38th minute to cancel Phil Foden's earlier strike, earning Brighton a well deserved result.

Brighton boss, Roberto De Zerbi, says City didn't do them any favors, they deserved their point, in what he says was one of the best games of the season.

"We didn’t receive a gift of the one point, we deserved the result. I am really proud, because I think this one of the best games of the season. It was very tough, but we played with incredible quality and courage," De Zerbi said after the match as quoted by brightonandhovealbion.com.

"The improvement of the players has been fantastic and for me it’s very satisfying. We had to respect ourselves, the club and our fans and show the courage and that we believe in ourselves to win against the best team in the world. I think we did that."

When he took over the reigns at Brighton, De Zerbi says qualifying for Europe was not in his mind.

Learning about his players and the English Premier League was his main focus.

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But with just a game left in their season, Brighton have achieved the seemingly impossible under the Italian, qualifying for Europe for the first time in their history, while playing some brilliant football.

 "At the beginning I didn’t put my focus on the target of the Europa League. I had to analyse the players, learn about the Premier League and to understand the new country," he added.

"But step by step I started to think about our potential and in February it was clear in my head that we could fight for a big target."

Brighton, they destroy the other opponents - Guardiola.

       Image: Fabrizio Romano Facebook

Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw by Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday evening at the Falmer Stadium.

Phil Foden put the English Premier League champions ahead in the 25th minute, before Julio Enciso equalized for Brighton with a stunner in the 38th minute.

In a game where the only stat that went City's way is ball possession, which they had 61% of, Brighton, who showed City absolutely no respect, dominated the other aspects; with 20 goal attempts to City's 13, and seven shots on target, while City had four.

Man City boss, Pep Guardiola, says Brighton destroys the other opponents with the type of football they play, and he is happy with how his side responded to their threat, by not dropping the momentum they have been keeping in the past few weeks.

"Brighton, they destroy the other opponents they have been playing. They did it in certain moments, especially the last 10 or 15 minutes, we struggled but we did really well," Guardiola told Sky Sports after the game.

"We cannot drop momentum. I didn't see it, against Chelsea I didn't see it today. During the week we have to rest, recover mentally. It's been demanding for the past six months playing Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and chasing Arsenal. The training now is just relaxed."

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Guardiola says the game was exceptional, especially considering the fact that they played 48 hours after drinking all the alcohol in Manchester.

"Exceptional game. Congratulations to Brighton for their deserved qualification to the Europa League.

"The game we played, 48 hours after we drank all the alcohol in Manchester, 48 hours later we behaved and we showed why we were the champions against that team.

"We showed what we have done with and without the ball. I didn't see one drop in our intensity and idea. They had chances, we had chances, we scored a goal, they scored a goal.

"Both teams want the ball, both teams want to press. The keepers are fundamental in this game. The quality they have, they are an exceptional team."

Guardiola wants City to keep going.

If Brighton & Hove Albion, as well as Brentford, think they are going to meet a Manchester City side with its foot of the pedal after wrapping up the English Premier League title last weekend, they better think again.

Man City boss, Pep Guardiola insists that he wants his charges to maintain their tone leading up to the to cup finals awaiting them.

Man City will face Manchester United in the FA Cup final on 03 June, before clashing against Inter Milan for the UEFA Champions League title on the 10th of June.

"It would be better to maintain our tone," Guardiola said as quoted by amp.mancity.com.

"I’m not talking about win or lose, I want to see that our tone is there.

"We cannot play like we have won [the Premier League]. Against these two teams, if we aren’t ready we will suffer a lot. And after it would be a problem.

"But if we maintain the tone and they beat us, they beat us – it can happen."

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Guardiola expects Brighton and Brentford to raise their game against the EPL champions.

"It is understandable because they play against Manchester City, the winners in the last years of the Premier League and they want to show how good they are, that’s normal."

"The target of the Premier League is done. But we cannot drop much otherwise it will be more difficult."

City will face Brighton tonight (Wednesday 24 May) at the Falmer Stadium at 21:00.

A win or draw for City will stretch their unbeaten run in the EPL to 16 matches. 

We can’t lose our DNA - De Zerbi.

After leading Brighton & Hove Albion to Europe for the first time in their history, manager, Roberto De Zerbi says he will not change the team's style of play.

Brighton plays a style of cutting edge possession football which borders on arrogance in its application.

While some managers would be tempted to play it more safe in continental competition, De Zerbi, it seems, is not one of them.

De Zerbi says his intention is to compete equally in four competitions, and in anticipation of losing some of his good players, he will need some reinforcements.

Brighton have already secured Joao Pedro from Watford.

"We don’t need to too many players but my idea is to compete in four competitions – hopefully the Europa League, Premier League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup," said De Zerbi as quoted by brightonandhovealbion.com.

"It will be tougher for sure, and I think we might lose some big players who deserve to go for other targets in other teams. But we will bring in other big players and arrive ready to compete in four competitions. We will play to win, to show our quality and our style in every competition and we can’t lose our DNA. In Europe if we play against big teams we won’t forget our style."

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It is Brighton chairman, Tony Bloom that De Zerbi is happy for.

"Tony Bloom is the first fan of Brighton and I know Tony and the club don’t want to lose this level; You have to work harder when you are winning than when you are losing. It’s not good if Brighton lose this level in these next two years.

"Now is the crucial period for the club, not for Roberto and the players but for the club. We have to keep this level, to build a squad to improve our level."

Man City vs Brighton, a football romantic's dream.

English Premier League champions, Manchester City, will travel to Falmer Stadium to face Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday 24 May, with the kick-off at 21:00.

City have dominated this fixture, having won four out of their last five meetings.

But this will be a different game altogether, with both teams on cloud nine.

City go into the encounter already wearing their EPL champions crown, while Brighton are also in a celebratory mood having secured their dream Europa League spot.

Now, picture these two ball playing sides, both in a party mood, coming face-to-face, with nothing to lose, the stage is set, we can expect them to dance without fear nor care, as if the world is not watching.

Nothing but a superb football should be on display, in true Pep Guardiola and Roberto De Zerbi style.

Brighton boss, De Zerbi has pushed the boundaries a bit with the style of play he has implemented at the club, just like his counterpart, Pep Guardiola did with City, with much success.

To think that Brighton have managed to qualify for Europe, playing the way they do, which is considered to be a risky approach, is just exceptional.

The saying, 'the bigger the risk, the bigger the reward' is epitomized by teams like City and Brighton, but it is even more admirable when it is done by a team like Brighton, and successfully so, without the quality in personnel that City possesses.

Brighton play football without fear, cutting edge stuff at times, averaging 61% ball possession per match in the EPL this season, very close to Man City's 65% possession average.

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On Wednesday evening, quality might be the only difference between the two sides, with City having it in abundance.

But De Zerbi's men will play, they will definitely give it a good go, making the game worth watching.

They can even go a step further, and possibly end City's 12 match winning streak in the EPL.

Arsenal hands City EPL title after 3-0 loss to Brighton.

  image: Fabrizio Romano Facebook

Arsenal have all but handed the English Premier League title to Manchester City on a silver platter after losing to Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday afternoon at the Emirates Stadium.

Following The Gunners defeat, Man City are now four points ahead at the top, with a game in hand, and need just three points to clinch the title.

In only their second home defeat of the season, Arsenal were uncharacteristically poor against Brighton, failing to get any rhythm going in their play.

Instead, it was Brighton who enjoyed most of the ball, averaging 59% possession.

In terms of creating goal scoring opportunities, as scrappy as their play was, Arsenal did manage to fashion 14 goal attempts, but only two of their shots were on target, a stat that tells a story of their bad day at the office.

Brighton had six shots on target, with three of them converted to goals by Julio Enciso 51', Deniz Undav 86', and Pervis Estupinan 90+6.

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For Arsenal, who were in touching distance of the EPL title not so long ago, it is now a case of so near, and yet so far.

Losing the title at the death after such a magnificent season is heartbreaking, but comes with valuable lessons for Mikel Arteta and his men.

As for Brighton, a spot in Europe is still very much a possibility.

Arteta marinades Brighton with sweet praises.

Arsenal will host Brighton & Hove Albion tomorrow [Sunday 14 May] in a crucial English Premier League encounter at the Emirates Stadium, with the kick-off at 17:30.

Arsenal are a point behind Manchester City, with 81 points after 35 matches, to City's 82 after 34 games.

With their hopes of winning the EPL title still very much alive, Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, has showered Brighton with praises ahead of Sunday's showdown. A way of sweetening his meal before munching on it maybe?

Arteta says Brighton are a complete side that is a joy to watch.

"They are a really complete side. The way they are playing under Roberto and the coaching staff is remarkable, it’s just a joy to watch them play. He’s brought a different idea to the league and that’s a different challenge for managers as well," said Arteta on Arsenal's website.

"This is what you want. We want to be the best league in the world and we need the best managers and the best players. What he’s done with the team, after all the foundations that Graham Potter left at the club, is incredible. It’s going to be a very tough match.

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The two sides have met twice this season, with Brighton winning the first encounter 3-1, before Arsenal had their revenge with a 4-2 victory.

"We've beat them as well, so they were two very different games. When you look at the line-up [for the League Cup match], there were 10 changes. They were very similar games in certain moments with different outcomes, but extremely tricky with the way they play and handle certain things they do. It’s the same for them with the way we play."