Sussex

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Manchester City have never lost a home league match against Brighton (W12 D2), winning the past 10 in a row. It is the most they have faced an opponent at home without defeat in their league history (14).

Brighton are enjoying the longest ongoing winning run in the Premier League (four games). It is the Seagulls' longest sequence of league victories since April 2017 in the Championship (five) and their t-longest in the top flight (also five from April-May 1981).

Tyrese King
BBC Sport journalist

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game at Manchester City (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Hurzeler said Lewis Dunk is still not available due to injury but is "getting closer" to returning. There is hope Dunk can recover after the international break in time for the FA Cup quarter-final against Nottingham Forest.

• Matt O'Riley still "has a little bit of a problem with his knee" so will not feature but Hurzeler hopes he will be able to return after the international break.

• Meanwhile, Tariq Lamptey will be an "option" after serving his suspension.

• On thriving in the race for the Champions League places: "Honestly, I love pressure. So, I always find a way to deal with it. I never feel pressure from the owner or from outside [influences] because I put it on myself. In the end, but the biggest pressure I put on myself because I'm the most demanding person.

• On how his ambitions align with the club's: "I want the best for the club, which is success. We do this by our daily behaviour, pushing our limits every day and getting the best out of the group. And then we will see where we end in our season."

• As a result, he is confident his team can be successful: "I have the biggest belief inside of myself that this team can achieve something because we have a great togetherness in the group. We have players with individual potential, and that helps give belief to the whole club."

• On last year's champions City and their downturn in form this season: "They're still one of the best teams in the world and Pep [Guardiola] is still one of the best managers in the world. For me, it's very important to go there with a big portion of humbleness but also with a big belief in ourselves that we can beat every team in the league as we have proved this season. That's what we will try to prove tomorrow."

• On Brighton's chances of getting a first win at Etihad Stadium: "It's not about chasing any records. It's chasing our own behaviour, chasing our own limits. That's what we have to do tomorrow as well against City."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Alex Brotherton
BBC Sport journalist

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Brighton manager Dario Vidosic is not concerned despite his side's failure to win any of their last seven Women's Super League games.

A strong start to the season means the Seagulls are still fifth in the table, but they have claimed just three of the last 21 points available with their last victory coming in November.

"You learn a lot about the squad and myself, about things we can do differently, on and off the pitch," Vidosic said before Brighton's WSL game against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

"It's easy when you win, the sun seems brighter, but we need these periods to learn what needs fixing. Hopefully we'll come out a better team and myself a better coach."

Brighton were unfortunate not to beat WSL leaders Chelsea earlier this month, with Lauren James scoring from an offside position to level the game at 2-2. Brighton also felt they should have been awarded a penalty when they led 2-1.

While Vidosic would have liked video assistant referee (VAR) to have been in use that day, he sympathised with the officials.

"Everyone wants to be perfect, myself, every single player, and I guarantee the referees are the same. But we all make mistakes and that's part of the game.

"It went against us against Chelsea but they were tough calls. It's easy once you see the replay, an official only has one set of eyes. I think eventually we'll see it [VAR] in the women's game."

Here are the other key lines from Vidosic before Sunday's game at Brisbane Road (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

• Bruna Vilamala remains sidelined with a thigh injury but is "near" to returning.

• Jorelyn Carabali's knee injury is not ACL-related so she should return a "couple of weeks" after Vilamala.

• Vidosic on poor away form: "We didn't deal with tough trips and long trips after the winter break. We need to learn from that."

• On the form of Marisa Olislagers: "She's a highly technical player, very intelligent as well. I have to compliment her for when she wasn't in the squad, the way she trained and conducted herself."

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We asked for you to tell us in one sentence why Brighton will qualify for the Champions League.

Here are some of your comments:

Ian: Brighton have the momentum and there are no immovable objects in our way.

Brian: I think 20 points should be enough, which is six wins, two draws and two defeats.

Hugh: Owner, chief executive, managerial staff and squad well aligned = Champions League football is a high probability!

Peter: The team play as a cohesive unit, believing in their potential to win against any opposition and backed up by an exemplar management structure that other clubs would be proud of.

Max: They have belief in themselves and are not afraid of any club.

Trevor: Togetherness.

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Former Brighton defender Adam Virgo says the club should look to recruit a set-piece specialist in the summer transfer window.

Speaking on BBC Radio Sussex's Albion Unlimited podcast, Virgo said: "[Set-pieces] are a massive part of the game, and there was a periods when Lewis Dunk was getting a decent return of goals from set plays.

"It's all about that delivery, If you're not beating the near post, or you're over-hitting it, then you're not going to score as many goals. The one player who has always been there with a wand of a foot is Pascal Gross. That is now missing.

"I couldn't really tell you who our free-kick taker is. With all the stats that Brighton tend to work with, maybe they should go and find someone in that area that works for set plays. The height is there in Danny [Welbeck] and both centre-halves."

Listen to the full episode here

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Brighton owner Tony Bloom has bought a 19.1% stake in Australian A-League club Melbourne Victory.

The deal allows the Seagulls chairman to increase his ownership over time.

Bloom is already an investor in Belgian Pro League club Union Saint-Gilloise and has an involvement with Scottish Premiership club Hearts.

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After Brighton lost 7-0 to Nottingham Forest, Fabian Hurzeler said he picked a formation that was too attacking. He created something which just did not work in the moment.

There are not seven goals between those teams and sometimes you get freak results. Hurzeler knew it was not a game to overreact to, but to learn lessons from. The lesson to learn was not in of mentality but in of setup.

Since then, he has set his team up in a way that compliments each individual player more and compliments the style he wants them to play, which is defensively solid with a significant threat in attack and to be truly balanced.

Some of the goals and individual moments they have had in their impressive run since have been great, but the key is square pegs in square holes and finding the right combinations.

The sign of a good football club is how they react when adverse things start to happen. The key was their reaction after the 7-0 loss and they showed great determination to get the first win and then the second and so on.

Then, before you know it, there is the belief they will win every single game. When they step out onto the field they know they are set up correctly, the manager knows and trusts his players to do the job required.

Now they fear nobody because they have the belief they can win against anyone, which is priceless in football. That means they can go toe-to-toe with any style and most players are playing really well.

Belief can get you going a yard quicker, jumping a few centimetres higher and get you striking that ball a little more often towards goal.

That belief exists now in the players, the fans, and the manager on the sideline.

Nedum Onuoha was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

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