Brighton vs Manchester City: Roberto De Zerbi makes multiple surprise calls as teenager makes debut

The 19-year-old defender from Argentina was signed in the January transfer window from Boca Juniors. Roberto De Zerbi has limited him to substitute appearances, including a 2-1 defeat at Liverpool.

He was not in the squad for the following game against Brentford and De Zerbi revealed post-match that he was ‘working alone’ to improve his physical condition – alongside Ansu Fati.

In other news for Brighton, Jason Steele is back in goal following Bart Verbruggen’s six-game streak starting for the Seagulls. The Dutchman made an error in the 1-1 draw against Burnley in the last game.

De Zerbi also revealed in his pre-match press conference that Evan Ferguson and Pervis Estupinan are out for the season. It’s perhaps a surprise to see African Cup winner Simon Adringa on the bench, along with Buonanotte too.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Roberto de Zerbi also said: "We have to play well and we have to make points because we are fighting to reach another season in Europe. It is not finished yet for us."Pep Guardiola is the best coach and it is very tough playing against City and Pep. We are proud and we know what we need to do play [against them]."It is a very tough season, very tough part of the season. From January to now it has been difficult to choose the first XI and the first XI I put on the pitch I think has enough to fight for us, for our fans and for our club."

The team news is as follows. The starting lineup will see Jason Steele (GK), Lewis Dunk, Joao Pedro, Pascal Gross, Adam Lallana, Jakub Moder, Danny Welbeck, Valentin Barco, Baleba, Van Hecke and Joel Veltman feature.

The subs for Brighton include Verbruggen, Igor Julio, Adam Webster, Julio Enciso, Adingra, Ansu Fati, Facundo Buonanotte, Offiah and O’Mahony.

For Manchester City, the starting lineup includes Ederson (GK), Gvardiol, Ake, Walker, Akanji, Rodri, Foden, Kovacic, De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, and Alvarez.

The bench for Man City features Ortega, Ruben Dias, John Stones, Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku, Sergio Gomez, Matheus Nunes, Oscar Bobb and Rico Lewis.