Manchester City host Brighton & Hove Albion at Etihad Stadium, Manchester in Gameweek 9 on Sat 31 Oct, 15:00 GMT. Manchester City are 1st on 21 points from 7 games after Gameweek 7 (form WWWWW), Brighton & Hove Albion are 3rd on 16 (form DWWWW). The FPL deadline is Saturday 31 October 2026, 11:00 GMT, so check team news before you lock your squad.
Manchester City: team news
Manchester City have scored 19 and conceded 7 in 7 league games, and in GW7 it finished W 3–2 v Ipswich Town. At home they have 12 points from 4 games. Official FPL list, 2026-10-24: O'Reilly (back injury: 75% chance of playing); Semenyo (knee injury: Unknown return date); Matheus N. (unspecified injury: 75% chance of playing). Expected shape: 4-5-1.
Manchester City Predicted Starting XI & Lineup · 4-5-1
Official lineups confirmed 1 hour before kick-off.
Brighton & Hove Albion: form check
Brighton & Hove Albion have scored 23 and conceded 5 in 7 league games, and in GW7 it finished W 5–0 v Crystal Palace. Away from home they have 6 points from 3 games. Nothing flagged for Brighton & Hove Albion on the official FPL injury list as of 2026-10-24. Expected shape: 5-4-1.
2026/27 so far
- Manchester City: W 5–3 v Sunderland, W 3–0 at Liverpool, W 3–2 v Ipswich Town.
- Brighton & Hove Albion: W 3–0 v Arsenal, W 2–0 at Sunderland, W 5–0 v Crystal Palace.
- Table after GW7: Manchester City 1st (21 pts, GD +12), Brighton & Hove Albion 3rd (16 pts, GD +18).
Key battle
Erling Haaland against Brighton & Hove Albion's defence is the matchup to watch: Brighton & Hove Albion have conceded 5 in 7. In the other direction, Pascal Groß faces the Manchester City defence that has conceded 7 in 7. FPL rates this fixture 3/5 for Manchester City and 5/5 for Brighton & Hove Albion, where 5 is hardest.
FPL picks to watch
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City, £15.7m): averaging 8.3 points a game (58 in total), FPL projects 6.3 for this round, 77.5% owned, on penalties.
- Pascal Groß (Brighton & Hove Albion, £6.2m): averaging 8.3 points a game (58 in total), FPL projects 3.7 for this round, 46.4% owned, on penalties.
- Jérémy Doku (Manchester City, £7.5m): averaging 6.3 points a game (19 in total), FPL projects 6.0 for this round, 3.5% owned.
- Clean-sheet angle: Maxim De Cuyper (Brighton & Hove Albion, £5.3m) away from home, with Brighton & Hove Albion the side our model rates less likely to concede (1.7 expected goals against).
- Differential: Luka Vuskovic (Brighton & Hove Albion, £5.1m) is owned by just 6.2% and averages 7.3 points a game.
Score prediction
Our model, built on 2026/27 goals scored and conceded, gives Manchester City a 33% win chance, a draw 22% and Brighton & Hove Albion 45%, with 1–1 the single most likely scoreline. Expected goals: 1.7 for Manchester City, 2.0 for Brighton & Hove Albion. Brighton & Hove Albion are the lean on the numbers, but only 7 games have been played, so treat it as a guide rather than a certainty.