Holders Manchester City avoided an upset in the Carabao Cup last 16 by defeating Brighton 4-3 in a penalty shootout after normal time ended in a 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium. Brighton twice took the lead through Malick Yalcouye and Georginio Rutter, but Mateo Kovacic and Vitor Reis responded to send the match straight to penalties.
First Half Action and Goals
Brighton started the match with high pressure, forcing the hosts into several mistakes while Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden threatened for City. Referee Andy Madley waved away penalty appeals in the 24th minute after Rico Lewis went down following a challenge from Yalcouye, with replays indicating the midfielder made no contact with the ball.
Brighton capitalised six minutes later when Jack Hinshelwood cut the ball back for Rutter, whose shot deflected off Yalcouye past goalkeeper Rulli to open the scoring. City equalised just before the interval when Kovacic collected a pass from Foden following another unsuccessful penalty appeal and clinically fired into the bottom corner.
Second Half Comeback
Brighton regained the lead immediately after the interval when possession reached Hadjam, who cut the ball back for Rutter to slot past the goalkeeper. Rutter continued to trouble the hosts, forcing a fingertip save from Rulli and hitting the side-netting after rounding the goalkeeper, while Hinshelwood also missed a promising opportunity.
City introduced Jeremy Doku to inject energy into their attack, and the equaliser arrived in the 72nd minute when Cherki’s free-kick deflected in off defender Reis. Maxim De Cuyper had a lobbed effort disallowed for Brighton, and Mads Wieffer hit the woodwork from a corner in the closing stages as both teams prepared for a shootout.
Penalty Shootout and Next Fixtures
Both teams converted their first three penalties before Kovacic had his spot-kick saved low to the left by Steele. Rulli immediately kept City in the contest by stopping Ayari’s penalty, and after Cherki scored, Rulli denied Lewis Dunk to secure the victory and send City into the quarter-finals.
Manchester City’s upcoming schedule features a Premier League match against Brighton on October 31, 2026, followed by a UEFA Champions League fixture against RB Leipzig on November 4, 2026, and a league trip to Nottingham Forest on November 7, 2026. Brighton will next face Getafe in the UEFA Europa Conference League on November 5, 2026, before returning to Premier League action against Brentford on November 7, 2026.
