Reserve goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli saved two Brighton & Hove Albion penalties to send Carabao Cup holders Manchester City into the quarterfinals of the competition following a 2–2 draw after 90 minutes.

It was no surprise that an encounter between the Premier League’s two leading scorers returned multiple goals at both ends of the pitch, even if Erling Haaland wasn’t sniffing around Jason Steele’s goal on the night.

Enzo Maresca and Fabian Hürzeler opted for widespread midweek changes ahead of their Premier League tussle on the same field in three days, perhaps not wanting to show their hand.

Still, an entertaining back-and-forth contest played out, with Man City twice asked to come from behind. Brighton’s man-to-man pressing proved troublesome in spells, and a high turnover led to the visitors’ opening goal, converted by Malick Yalcouyé from close range.

Mateo Kovačić’s strike from distance ensured the hosts weren’t behind for long, but they were caught cold at the start of the second half by Georginio Rütter and were fortuitous to restore parity for a second time. Vitor Reis deflected Rayan Cherki’s free-kick cruelly beyond Steele to set up a thrilling finale, but an absence of late drama meant the cup tie went to penalties.

And although Steele denied Kovačić from 12 yards, Rulli saved back-to-back from Yasin Ayari and Lewis Dunk to send City into the last eight.

One Thing We Can’t Ignore

If you’re no tactical whizz and unfamiliar with the term ‘half-space’, just think of the vertical inside channels. It was a phrase popularized in Germany, and the zone was particularly important in Wednesday’s match.

The modern-day manager encourages players to penetrate this space as much as possible. In theory, this zone escapes the congestion of the center, but remains close enough to goal for surging attackers to do damage, either as a creator or finisher.

Jürgen Klopp once said it’s “really not easy to defend that position,” so teams often must make a concerted effort to protect this part of the pitch, forcing coaches to innovate regarding how they can manipulate a defensive structure to ensure these zones remain unoccupied.

However, Fabian Hürzeler didn’t need to reinvent the wheel to unlock City’s changed defense and find themselves in these spaces. It was a key avenue of exploitation all night. Rotations helped, as did stretching the pitch horizontally. There were times when City’s backline didn’t correctly shift across, or their midfielders/wingers failed to track runners from deep.

Brighton’s opening two goals were sourced from half-space runs that went unchecked until it was too late. It’ll be a key coaching point for Maresca ahead of Saturday’s rematch.

Man City Player Ratings vs. Brighton (4-2-3-1)

GK: Gerónimo Rulli—7.4: There were a couple of concessions, but Rulli did make an outstanding save from Rütter at 2–1 to keep Man City in the cup tie. Ended as the hero.

RB: Rico Lewis—6.6: Lewis’ clever movements in the build-up were a key man-to-man beater for City early on in the game, yet he departed proceedings in the second half feeling as if he hadn’t built on his impressive showing in the Champions League last week.

CB: Vitor Reis—7.7: Credited with the second goal, even if he didn’t know a whole lot about it. Reis looks the part, composed in possession and a lean physical presence.

CB: Marc Guéhi—6.9: There were at least no major mishaps from Man City’s captain on the night.

LB: Nico O’Reilly—7.0: Hasn’t quite found his best form this season, and was more of the same from O’Reilly here. Feels like he’s far less impactful in possession, even if he wriggled out of a tight spot brilliantly once or twice.

CM: Ayyoub Bouaddi—6.9: It wasn’t the cleanest 45 minutes for Bouaddi despite a couple of imperious driving runs. Withdrawn at halftime after picking up a booking.

CM: Mateo Kovačić—7.9: Kovačić turned the clock back and helped the hosts bypass Brighton’s fierce press at times, also scoring his first goal for the club since April 2025 with a pinpoint finish from range.

RW: Phil Foden—7.9: Primarily operated from the right, but was able to interchange and shift infield. Some of Foden’s combination play was gorgeously precise, and it was his driving run that led to City’s second goal.

AM: Rayan Cherki—8.2: Tried his utmost to play the role of protagonist. The return was a mixed bag. Produced moments that made you purr ... and others that triggered an eye roll.

LW: Allan—7.0: The summer arrival struggled to have any influence on proceedings. Couldn’t fault his work ethic without the ball, though.

ST: Floyd Samba—6.1: The young forward didn’t have much of a sniff in the first half, but he physically looks like he can cope at this level.

SUB: Ryan McAidoo (46’ for Samba)—6.3: Brighton sought to exploit the youngster’s lapses out of possession.

SUB: Rayan Aït-Nouri (46’ for Bouaddi)—6.5: The Algerian had 45 minutes to impress Maresca, but didn’t exactly make the most of the opportunity.

SUB: Jérémy Doku (61’ for Allan)—7.2: The typical difference-maker was largely kept in check. Sprung into life very late on.

SUB: Abdukodir Khusanov (76’ for Lewis)—6.2: Guilty of a lazy defensive moment to concede a corner. Recovery pace helped quell one Brighton attack.

SUB: Enzo Fernández (87’ for O’Reilly)—N/A

Subs not used: Marcus Bettinelli (GK), Iliman Ndiaye, Kaden Braithwaite, Dexter Oliver.

What the Ratings Tell Us

• While Maresca has so far been encouraged by what he’s seen of summer signing Allan, the Brazilian struggled to build on what the Man City manager said had been a “good” start to his career at Etihad Stadium. The former Palmeiras starlet has been used on both wings by Maresca, and operated exclusively down the left here. Despite the manager’s apparent contentment and the player’s admirable defensive effort, there’s been little evidence to suggest Allan is ready to contribute more frequently for this City team. He only has 10 Premier League minutes to his name for a reason.
• You suspect that it’s unlikely Maresca would ever trust using Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki in tandem for major domestic and continental encounters, but the soccer world could do with a little more of it. They can dovetail lovely in tandem, seemingly always functioning on the same wavelength.

The Numbers That Explain Man City’s Shootout Victory

• The Cityzens were mightily fortunate to take the game to penalties, given that they tallied 1.19 less xG than their visitors and created just one big chance inside 90 minutes.
• There was an odd discrepancy with the foul count. Brighton recorded 20 fouls in the match, 17 more than Maresca’s side, who were penalized just three times.
• Man City created just 0.29 xG from open play.
• The hosts have now won 11 of their previous 17 penalty shootouts, dating back to 1997. They’ve also won three of their last four.