Manchester City host Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the Premier League as the reigning champions seek to claim their first home win of the season.

Pep Guardiola's men kicked off their home domestic campaign with a thrilling 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur which saw the home side, just like in the Champions League back in April, score an injury-time winner only for VAR to overturn the decision.

Brighton, on the other hand, head into this game knowing that victory would constitute nothing short of a miracle, with City losing at home on just one occasion last season.

Here, Sports Mole looks at how the Citizens could line up for Saturday's showdown.

Out: Leroy Sane (knee), Gabriel Jesus (thigh), Benjamin Mendy (knee)
Doubtful: John Stones (thigh)

> Click here for City's full injury and suspension list ahead of this match.

Ederson produced a costly positional mistake to afford Spurs an equaliser earlier this month, but Guardiola's faith in the Brazilian - especially his passing - renders him an indispensable presence at the back.

With John Stones a doubt for this game, Guardiola is likely to remain with the trusted defensive pairing of Nicolas Otamendi and Aymeric Laporte, who have started City's last two league games and will play an important role in setting the tempo against Brighton's low block by moving the ball through the lines quickly.

Out wide, youngster Oleksandr Zinchenko has made the left-back position his own in the absence of Mendy, producing disciplined displays cutting in from the left to interact with the midfield. On the right, Kyle Walker could be rested for new signing Joao Cancelo, who was bought in order to put pressure on the Englishman.

Fernandinho is an almost constant presence in the City lineup but his qualities are not exactly suited to this game, which will be played almost exclusively in Brighton's half, meaning the more attack-minded Ilkay Gundogan will occupy the base of midfield.

The front five largely writes itself, with David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne virtually irreplaceable in attacking midfield - both were excellent during the win over AFC Bournemouth at the weekend.

Moreover, Sergio Aguero, who netted a brace last time out, looks set to be accompanied by the dizzying technical quality of Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva on either side as Guardiola's men target a convincing home victory in response to falling short against Spurs.