Manchester City 2-2 Brighton (4-3 on penalties): Rulli keeps the Carabao Cup holders alive

Manchester City are still alive in the competition they hold, but only just. Brighton & Hove Albion were ahead twice at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night, City needed a deflected finish from a defender to level it at 2-2, and it took a penalty shootout, won 4-3 by the hosts, to settle the Carabao Cup fourth-round tie.

Brighton struck first in the 30th minute. Georginio Rutter picked out Malick Yalcouye, who put the visitors in front, and City's response came ten minutes later: Phil Foden set up Mateo Kovacic for the equaliser in the 40th minute, so the sides went in level at 1-1.

The second half began the way the first had gone. Rutter, the creator of the opener, scored one himself in the 47th minute from a Jaouen Hadjam assist, and Brighton were back in front before City had settled. It took until the 72nd minute for the hosts to get level again: Rayan Cherki delivered the ball and Vitor Reis scored, making it 2-2. Neither side found a winner in the remaining time, and the tie went to penalties.

Goal by goal

1. 30' — Malick Yalcouye (Brighton), assist Georginio Rutter: 0-1
2. 40' — Mateo Kovacic (Manchester City), assist Phil Foden: 1-1
3. 47' — Georginio Rutter (Brighton), assist Jaouen Hadjam: 1-2
4. 72' — Vitor Reis (Manchester City), assist Rayan Cherki: 2-2
5. Penalties: Manchester City win 4-3

Rulli decides it

The shootout belonged to Geronimo Rulli. The goalkeeper saved two Brighton penalties to carry City through 4-3. In a match where his side had twice trailed, it was the kind of intervention that turns a nervous night into a footnote in the bracket.

Line-ups

The numbers behind a close tie

City had more of the ball but Brighton had the better of the chances: twice as many shots on target, more than twice the corners. The gap in fouls, 20 committed by Brighton against three by City, is the most lopsided row in the table. Brighton collected three bookings, the last two for Mats Wieffer and Lewis Dunk in the closing stages of normal time, while Ayyoub Bouaddi was City's only caution.

City's cup run so far

City entered the competition in the third round, as a club with European football does, and made light work of Norwich City, winning 5-0 at home on 17 September. This was a much harder evening. The line-up for the fourth round put Foden, Kovacic and Cherki alongside Samba, Elias and Bouaddi, a blend of familiar names and less-used ones.

Brighton's road to the Etihad

Brighton arrived with a statement result already in the competition. In the third round they went to Old Trafford and beat Manchester United 3-2, so a second trip to a Manchester giant did not faze them. They led twice at the Etihad and forced City to find a way back each time.

A tie that did not end here

The two sides met again just three days later, on 31 October, in the Premier League at the Etihad, and this time Brighton did not need penalties: they won 1-0 through a Yasin Ayari strike. Taken together, the two games show a Brighton side that has City's measure this autumn, even if the Carabao Cup progression went the other way.

Kovacic and Reis

The two City goalscorers came from the back and middle of the team rather than the front line. Kovacic's strike before the interval, set up by Foden, kept City in the tie after Brighton had taken the lead. Reis, a centre-back, scored the second with Cherki the creator, a goal that came from a set of circumstances City would happily take: a defender arriving in the right place with the match slipping away.

What's next

Manchester City are into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, where they are drawn at home to Bradford City on 15 December 2026, kick-off 20:00. Bradford City reached that stage by beating Peterborough United 2-0 in their own fourth-round tie. For the holders, the night was a reminder that a cup tie at the Etihad can still go the distance.