Premier League: Manchester City thrash Brighton to keep pressure on Arsenal

Phil Foden struck twice as Manchester City stepped up their bid for a fourth Premier League crown in a row with a ruthless 4-0 victory at Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday. A day after Liverpool's title challenge suffered a huge blow with a 2-0 defeat at Everton, City kept up the pressure on leaders Arsenal with a dominant display that left them one point behind the London club with a game in hand.

«The statement is three points,» City manager Pep Guardiola told Sky Sports. «There are five games left, we know the margins are so tight. We have to win every one. Each game we are closer.» He added that it remains very much a three-team race. «What happened to Liverpool, two defeats in a row, it can happen to Arsenal, it can happen to us,» Guardiola said. «What is important is that still we are there. There is a lot of games to play.»

Kevin De Bruyne's superb diving header put City, missing top scorer Erling Haaland due to injury, ahead in the 17th minute. «It doesn't happen too much, does it? I think the only way I could reach it was jumping to the ball, and it goes in like a little lob, but it's obviously not something I'm really good at,» De Bruyne said after netting his first headed goal in the Premier League.

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DEFENSIVE ERRORS

Foden scored his first with a deflected free kick and Brighton defensive errors allowed Bernardo Silva to win the ball and set up the England midfielder to sweep a shot into the bottom corner before halftime. «With Kev's first goal and a bit lucky with my second goal, it settled us a little bit and we grew into the game, in the first half was frightening with the way we attacked,» Foden