Brighton vs Manchester City – Saturday 12th August 2017 – 17:30 - BT Sport 1
Brighton are 9/1 with Glenn Murray at 10/1 to score first.
Brighton face Manchester City at the AMEX Stadium on Saturday evening, on the opening weekend of the 2017/18 Premier League season.
The Seagulls come into this match in good form, despite losing 3-2 to Atletico Madrid in their last pre season friendly.
Nicolas Gaitan opened the scoring for Atletico (42), just three minutes before the half time interval.
Pascal Groß equalised for the hosts (61), converting an excellent free kick to level the score at 1-1.
Fernando Torres gave Atleti the lead for the second time just six minutes later (67), with a towering header.
Steve Sidwell scored with a header of his own ten minutes later (77), to draw Brighton level for the second time.
But Lucas Hernández won the match for Atlético Madrid in the dying minutes (88), with a right footed shot to the bottom corner to make it 3-2 to Atleti.
Tough Follow Up
It will be a tough season for Chris Hughton, with the club being automatically promoted from the Championship.
They have yet to make any flagship signings but they have had a very strong squad in the Championship.
The match against Atletico proves that they can mix it with the big sides, they face a stern opening test in Manchester City.
Chris Hughton looks like he will be keeping faith in the side that have been a force in the Championship over the last two years.
Seagulls Underdogs
Brighton come into this match as underdogs, with Pep Guardiola's side overwhelming favourites for this match.
Chris Hughton's men will be looking to win this opening fixture, giving them a dream start to their Premier League campaign.
The Seagulls will be looking to register a fourth win in ten matches against Manchester City.
Title Favourites
The Sky Blues come into this match on the back of a 3-0 win against West Ham, an impressive result for Guardiola's side.
Gabriel de Jesus opened the scoring for Manchester City (8), with the young Brazillian hoping to have a huge impact this season.
Sergio Aguero (56) doubled City's advantage in the second half, with David Silva expertly assisting the Argentine.
Raheem Sterling confirmed the win and 3-0 scoreline in the 71st minute, completing a dominant performance.
Success Needed
Manchester City had an underwhelming campaign last season, with Guardiola enduring the toughest season of his managerial career.
The Spaniard has spent well, spending well over £200 million on the likes of Bernardo Silva, Danilo, Benjamin Mendy and Kyle Walker.
He has looked to sort out the clubs defensive problems, with several signings across the back four.
They were already an exceptional attacking force, if they could solve their defensive problems as well they will be hard to stop.
City Favourites
Pep Guardiola's side come into this match as favourites, they are the early front runners for the title as well.
This will be an ideal start for City, with newly promoted Brighton yet to find their feet in the Premier League.
Man City will be looking to make it five wins in ten matches against the Seagulls.
Man City are 1/3 with Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus at 3/1 to open the scoring.
Betting Tips
Tip 1 – Jesus to score first @ 3/1
Tip 2 – Manchester City to win 3-1 @ 11/1