Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi to be handed a major boost after the international break

Brighton’s James Milner will hope to return after the international break and face his former club Manchester City.

Milner, who made almost 150 appearances for Manchester City between 2010 and 2015, joined Brighton during the summer on a free transfer after eight successful seasons at Liverpool.

The 37-year-old missed facing his former club Liverpool just prior to the break but should be on track to recover in time to take on Pep Guardiola’s champions.

Milner has had six outings so far for Brighton but has not been seen since the the Europa League loss to AEK Athens at the American Express Stadium where he sustained a muscular injury.

He missed the Bournemouth, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Marseille clashes and despite making good progress, head coach Roberto De Zerbi was not prepared to risk his experienced campaigner in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool.

The break should give him a chance to get match fit ahead of the trip to Etihad, where sixth placed Brighton will hope to inflict further damage on City following their back to back defeats to Wolves and Arsenal.

Milner’s return would be a huge boost to De Zerbi as he adds experience and quality across a number of positions including full-back and midfield. Left back is an area of concern for Brighton as Pervis Estupinan is likely to miss the next three weeks and Tariq Lamptey – who withdrew from Ghana international duty this week – is also a doubt.

Brighton will though hope to have Adam Lallana available once more following his muscular injury. Jakub Moder (knee) continues to make progress but will likely miss out as will Julio Enciso with his long-term knee problem.