BRIGHTON, Aug 12: Manchester City took 70 minutes to break through Brighton's resistance before one of English soccer's most expensive lineups beat the Premier League newcomers 2-0 on Saturday.

Brighton was successfully repelling City's potent strike force until a costly lapse. Brighton midfielder Dale Stephens dithered around the halfway before being dispossessed by Kevin de Bruyne. David Silva then slotted the ball through for Sergio Aguero to apply the finish past goalkeeper Maty Ryan with 20 minutes to go.

The south-coast side fell further behind in the 75th minute when Lewis Dunk, under pressure from Gabriel Jesus, headed Fernandinho's cross into his own net in Brighton's first game in the top-flight in 34 years.

It was a loss to City in May 1983 that sent Brighton tumbling out of the old first division. The south coast side plummeted into the fourth tier and came close to dropping out of the professional leagues two decades ago before the ascent to the world's richest league began.

 
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