Manchester City 3-1 Brighton and Hove Albion: Erling Haaland double gets champions back on track

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An Erling Haaland brace and a brilliant effort from Kevin De Bruyne helped Manchester City bounce back from last week’s loss to Liverpool.

Erling Haaland got back on the goal trail as his first-half double helped Manchester City to a 3-1 win over Brighton and Hove Albion at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

The Norwegian was quiet as City fell to their first defeat of the Premier League season at Liverpool last Sunday but bounced back convincingly to put the Seagulls to the sword.

Haaland collected an assist from Ederson when he first tapped into an empty net, then slotted home a penalty shortly before half-time to double the lead.

Leandro Trossard dragged Brighton back into contention after the break but Pep Guardiola’s champions weathered the storm before Kevin De Bruyne secured the points with his signature long-range strike.

City toiled as Brighton kept things tight in the opening 20 minutes, but the hosts benefited from a more direct approach as Haaland latched on to Ederson’s ball before shrugging off Aaron Webster to score the opener.

Lewis Dunk denied De Bruyne with a last-ditch block following a tussle with Jack Grealish 10 minutes later, but the Brighton defender was at fault as Haaland put City ahead.

After a lengthy VAR review ruled that Dunk tripped Bernardo Silva in a crowded penalty area, Haaland fired a free-kick into the bottom right corner, giving Roberto Sanchez no chance.

However, Brighton needed just eight minutes to half arrears after the break as Trossard cut in from the left before beating Ederson at his near post from 18 yards, assisted by Solly March.

Trossard then forced Ederson into a reflex save as Brighton continued to push, but their efforts were in vain as De Bruyne picked out the top left corner with 15 minutes remaining when he was teed up by Silva.

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