MANCHESTER CITY BRIGHTON PEP’S CROCK & R Wins and injuries piling up for City as Laporte goes to hospital
MANCHESTER CITY ruthlessly maintained their unbeaten start to the season – but Pep Guardiola’s problems are mounting.
Sergio Aguero fired a brilliant double, taking his tally to 100 goals in 134 games since Guardiola took charge after Kevin De Bruyne put the champions ahead after just 69 seconds.
And Bernardo Silva completed the scoring with his first touch after coming on as a substitute.
But City lost defender Aymeric Laporte with an agonising knee injury and the Frenchman joins a casualty list that already includes long-term cruciate ligament victim Leroy Sane and another centre-back, John Stones.
Laporte (right) was carried off in some distress after making a clumsy 33rd-minute challenge on Seagulls defender Adam Webster.
The £57million man was described as the best left-sided centre-back in the Europe by Guardiola and was hoping to win his first international cap this week after ending his threeyear exile from Didier Deschamp’s squad.
City resisted the temptation to go into the transfer market this summer following the departure of Vincent Kompany because they felt £ 85m Harry Maguire was too expensive.
The hosts ended the game with midfield lynchpin Fernandinho ■ Manchester City have won 17 of their last 18 Premier League games (W17 D1 L0) since losing 2-1 to Newcastle United in January.
■ Brighton remain winless in every away making hi s first appearance of the season alongside
Nicolas Otamendi in central defence.
Guardiola said:
“Laporte has gone to hospital and it doesn’t look good.
“We don’t know how bad it is, but it doesn’t feel good.
“We will see if he is out and for how long. I think he will be out for a while.
“Fernandinho i s a holding midfielder, but he has all the attributes to play in defence.
“With the problems we have he is going to have to help us, but he’s fast, league match they’ve played aga City, drawing two and losing eigh ■ Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero scored 99 Premier League goals a he’s intelligent, he’s strong, good in the air and can see what is happening in front of him.” Brighton boss Graham Potter, meanwhile, is trying to revamp his team’s playing style after taking over at the Amex in the summer.
But despite weaving some neat passing patterns, they were unable to really lay a glove on the hosts. Guardiola was glowing about the way the visitors went about their business.
And Potter said: “The result isn’t something we enjoy but the performance was one of real courage. We had a setback very early but they