Brighton 1-4 Manchester City: 5 Talking Points

#3 Aguero and Laporte with important goals at crucial time

Aguero equalised a minute after Murray had headed Brighton in-front

Ultimately, there's a reason why Brighton have found themselves in relegation trouble for the majority of this campaign - they have been both inconsistent and poor when it mattered most.

This season, safety aside, has been a forgettable one for Chris Hughton's men, but given results around them in the table, they approached this game with quiet confidence they could spoil City's big day, something both Burnley and Leicester came narrowly close to doing recently.

With that in mind, getting off to a good start like they did is always going to help the cause when playing against a top side at home. Murray's goal was far from pretty and essentially a goalkeeping mistake as Ederson attempted to punch, missing completely, but they weren't going to complain.

When you're leading in a game like this, you shouldn't be squandering leads as easily as they did. Aguero's goal was a good finish but poor because their players switched off, something you cannot afford to do for even a second against a team of City's quality.

Laporte's goal meanwhile, was a gift-wrapped present! He's excellent in the air, as we've seen on multiple occasions before. The fact he ran goalwards the way he did, with goalscorer Murray and Lewis Dunk seemingly sleeping on their marking duties, is embarrassing from the hosts' perspective. What's the point of being in the box to begin with, if you're not going to pick up a player and mark them? Or at least cover a space in the area?

Aguero has netted 30 goals and created 10 more across all competitions this term and although he didn't earn a share of the Golden Boot, his presence has been more than just his goal tally.

The same must be said of Laporte too, who not only earned a Team of the Year berth for his expert defending but has also proven a set-piece threat and menacing in the air. Everyone has stepped up when called upon under Guardiola though. Club captain Vincent Kompany has been dependable, just like his French counterpart, when called upon.

Those were important goals for City but damning from Brighton's perspective as again they conceded preventable goals. If they truly have aspirations to improve, progression will not arrive with displays like these - their failure to make the Amex a fortress and conceding sloppy goals mean they remain vulnerable to relegation battles.

It's tough to be critical as it's an end of season fixture, not least against the league's best side. That shouldn't be a good enough excuse though, given how raring to go players looked before kick-off and in the early going. After their encouraging 1-1 result away at Arsenal last weekend, one simply cannot afford to follow it up with a defensive display like this one.