MATCH REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS - BRIGHTON 1-1 MANCHESTER CITY

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In a tightly contested game, Manchester City will be satisfied with a point, as they were matched by an exceptional Brighton side.

Considering the Blues were missing key players such as Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Jack Grealish and Manuel Akanji due to injury, it was a performance that can be looked at positively, especially as on another day City could've won by a few goals.

Before they took the lead, City could have easily been two goals ahead, as star striker Erling Haaland missed two good chances, one a header from in the six yard box, the other, a one vs one that was smothered by goalkeeper Jason Steele.

Brighton could also have been ahead, had former Manchester United and Arsenal player Danny Welbeck not dwelled too long on the ball in front of goal, allowing the impressive Phil Foden to nick the ball away from him.

City eventually took the lead as Haaland, bearing down on goal, did well to keep his composure and pick out Phil Foden, who was able to fire into the empty section of the net for his 11th Premier League goal of the season.

Brighton equalised soon after, thanks to an absolutely fabulous strike from young Paraguayan - and reported City target - Julio Enciso. The 19 year old turned into space, driving at the City backline, before unleashing an unstoppable Cristiano Ronaldo-esque strike from 25 yards out, leaving Stefan Ortega-Moreno with absolutely no chance.

The Seagulls had 2 disallowed goals, in what was quite a nervy first half for Pep Guardiola's side, with just an accidental Karou Mitoma handball and a narrow offside for Welbeck preventing Brighton from going into the half time break 3-1 up.

City responded well after the break, looking to create more chances, and eventually did score, as Haaland powered a close range header into the back of the net, following good work from substitute Cole Palmer. However, the 22 year old was deemed to have fouled young defender Levi Colwill before scoring, meaning the goal was disallowed after a VAR intervention.

For me, it was the right decision to disallow the goal, as Haaland certainly did have a handful of Colwill's shirt, preventing the 20 year old from intercepting Palmer's cross. However, this rule needs to be used both ways, as I very much doubt that had it Colwill pulling Haaland's shirt, we'd have seen a penalty given to City.

Overall, City will be pleased with the performance, as they played a high intensity, high quality game throughout, against a very capable opposition. Roberto de Zerbi has his side playing in a very similar way to Guardiola's City, and this game was always likely to be the most entertaining "dead rubber" that there could be.

The one negative of the game was the sheer number of injuries, as John Stones and Phil Foden seemed to pick up knocks, leaving City with 7 of their 20 outfield players injured, with two cup finals coming up in a few weeks time.

However, on a positive note, Foden and Aymeric Laporte were both spotted training with the team as usual today, with images of Manuel Akanji, Jack Grealish and Ruben Dias at City's training ground going around social media on Thursday.

Add to that Rodri and Guardiola's comments on John Stones's injury not being anywhere near as serious as first feared, and it is just Nathan Ake struggling with injury, with plenty of cover in the Dutchman's normal position at left back.

City face Thomas Frank's Brentford in the final Premier League match of the season. This game comes 6 days before the FA Cup final, meaning City will likely rotate players who have seen a lot of game time recently.

Here are our player ratings for the 1-1 draw on the South Coast:

Ortega-Moreno - 6.5/10 - Made a few good saves to keep the score level. However, when put under intense pressure from Brighton's forwards, he looked slightly shaky with his distribution.

Walker - 7/10 - Marshalled Mitoma well at right back, who was arguably the least dangerous of Brighton's forwards.

Stones - 6.5/10 - Solid and composed at the back for City, as he prevented the ball from being played into Danny Welbeck's feet numerous times. All City fans will be hoping and praying that the 28 year old is fit for the FA Cup final next weekend.

Rodri - 7/10 - Playing in the unfamiliar position of centre back, the Spaniard looked his usual solid and composed self. If the injuries to Dias, Akanji and Ake are more serious than first thought, then the 26 year old would be a more than capable back up at the heart of City's defence.

Lewis - 7/10 - Silky in midfield, but slightly wobbly in defence, Lewis had a game of mixed fortunes. He is in the best possible place to learn defensively, however, and I am still a firm believer that he'll become a regular starter for City in his time at the club.

Gundogan - 6.5/10 - Excellent in possession, looking, for the most part, unflappable when put under intense pressure from the Brighton midfielders. However, and this was mostly down to the man to man marking system used throughout the game by both sides, there was often a gaping hole in midfield, which could perhaps have been dealt with better by City's captain.

De Bruyne - 6.5/10 - A relatively quiet game for City's talisman, however, when he did have the ball, he looked a threat. Taken off relatively early on, to preserve him for the two upcoming cup finals.

Bernardo - 6.5/10 - Had a few nice interchanges in the centre of the park with Gundogan; other than that, he had a reasonably quiet game.

Mahrez - 6/10 - Hardly had a kick all night it seems, and matches like this unfortunately seem to be becoming more frequent for the Algerian.

Haaland - 7.5/10 - Could have easily got a hattrick on another night, which is perhaps a slightly worrying feature in the Norwegian's game, as this has become a slightly recent trend. However, he was involved in the game, and did brilliantly to keep his composure and pass to Foden when 1 vs 1 with the goalkeeper, to grab his 8th Premier League assist of the season.

Foden - 8/10 - Brilliant performance from the 22 year old, who looked to get the better of Pascal Gross at right back from the off. Took his goal nicely, and could've easily got an assist, had Haaland scored his header. Thankfully, he seems ok, after his knock that forced him off on the 50 minute mark.

Substitutes:

Palmer - 6.5/10 - His general play was fairly poor after he came on the pitch, although, he did do very well for the assist for Haaland's disallowed goal.

Alvarez - 6/10 - Looked slightly off the pace replacing Kevin de Bruyne, but provided lots of running nonetheless.

Gomez - Not enough time to rank

Phillips - Not enough time to rank