Rulli Saves Two Penalty Kicks as City Defeat Brighton in 4-3 Shoot-Out
Manchester City advanced to the League Cup quarter-finals on October 28, 2026, defeating Brighton & Hove Albion 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out following a 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium. The victory sends the League Cup holders into the last eight to host third-tier Bradford City, keeping the club on track in domestic cup competition despite manager Enzo Maresca admitting his squad had not practiced spot-kicks once this season.
Reserve Goalkeeper Rulli Saves Two Kicks After Nine Squad Changes
Argentinian reserve goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli stopped penalty efforts from Brighton’s Yasin Ayari and Lewis Dunk to secure the shoot-out victory. City had twice trailed during regulation time, with Mateo Kovacic canceling out Malick Yalcouye’s opening goal before Georginio Rutter restored Brighton’s lead after the break. Vitor Reis then diverted a Rayan Cherki free-kick into the net to force penalties, where Phil Foden, Enzo Fernandez, Jeremy Doku, and Cherki all converted after Kovacic missed his attempt. Maresca made nine changes to his starting lineup for the tie, resting regular starters including Erling Haaland, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Ruben Dias, Elliot Anderson, and Josko Gvardiol.
The result allowed Manchester City to recover immediately from their first Premier League defeat of the season, a weekend loss at Aston Villa that ended their 100 percent start to the top-flight campaign.
