Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola claimed his newly-crowned Premier League champions “drank all the alcohol in Manchester” ahead of a pulsating 1-1 draw at Brighton.
Guardiola was concerned his treble-chasing side may suffer a hangover in Sussex following the jubilation of the weekend’s title celebrations.
But the Spaniard was pleasantly surprised by the performance of his players during a gripping south-coast contest.
Phil Foden fired City ahead at the Amex Stadium before Julio Enciso’s stunning equaliser cemented sixth-placed Albion’s place in next season’s Europa League.
Erling Haaland was denied a late winner due to VAR spotting his shirt pull on Seagulls defender Levi Colwill.
“I was a little bit worried about how much we would drop our (level) with what we had done the last four, five, six months,” said Guardiola.
“Forty hours (ago) we drank all the alcohol in Manchester and the way they played was outstanding.
“I enjoyed it a lot, especially being champions.
“You have to come here to win the game, we know it will be tough. They are a fantastic team in all departments, that’s why they are in the Europa League, well deserved.
“And also we showed why we are the best team in England.”
Guardiola had a relatively early night after the trophy presentation which followed Sunday’s 1-0 win over Chelsea, while City’s players recovered with saunas the next day.
“At 10.30pm, I was in bed with my wife, I was exhausted,” he said.
“I watched Match of the Day and I slept like a baby but I know the players did what they have to do.
“When you win the Premier League you have to celebrate. They did it with the families, they enjoyed it a lot and the next morning was just sauna time.
“And the day after, we talked a little bit in the afternoon: ‘Guys, we have to be ready for Brighton’ and they did it.”
City, who complete a victorious top-flight campaign at Brentford on Sunday, were given a guard of honour by their hosts ahead of kick-off.
Foden opened the scoring in the 25th minute with his fifth goal in as many starts against the Seagulls before Enciso’s spectacular finish halted City’s top-flight winning streak at 12 games.
Guardiola believes the high-level contest will be vital preparation for the forthcoming FA Cup final against Manchester United, which is followed by a Champions League showdown with Inter Milan in Istanbul.
“We need these opponents to bring us in our maximum,” he said. “This is so important. Brentford will be the same.
“It’s really, really good the teams help us maintain that level because the finals you have to play in that level otherwise it will be so difficult.”
Guardiola was hopeful regarding the knocks which forced off Foden and John Stones, while confirming the absentees – Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Manuel Akanji and Jack Grealish – have injury issues.
The thrilling encounter was a fitting final home game of an unforgettable campaign for record-breaking Brighton and banished the remote chance of them slipping into the Europa Conference League on the final day at seventh-placed Aston Villa.
Seagulls head coach Roberto De Zerbi said: “I am happy because we have to respect our club, our fans but we have to show the courage, show we believe in ourselves to win against the best team in the world.
“We needed one point. We didn’t receive a gift. We deserved to make a point today.
“I am really proud because I think today has been one of the best games in this season.
“(It was) very tough but we played with an incredible quality. We deserve to play in the Europa League for our mentality.”
Dream debut: Dixon shines with goal, assist on debut for Charlton U21s in 3-2 win over Watford
Reggae Boy Kaheim Dixon was on the scoresheet in his debut for Charlton Athletic U21s in a 3-2 win over Watford at Vicarage Road on Friday.
Charlton took the lead after just two minutes through a goal from Henry Rylah before Watford got their equalizer through Mamadou Doumbia a minute later.
The 19-year-old Dixon, who joined the League One club from Arnett Gardens in August, then capitalized from a defensive mistake by Watford to put his team up 2-1.
Charlton then went two goals clear thanks to Mile Leaburn, who was assisted by Dixon.
Doumbia got his second goal of the game to finish the scoring at 3-2.
Charlton U21s now have 19 points in seven games in the Professional Development League.
The win strengthens lead atop the table to six points.
They will next take on Brentford U21s on October 1.
Alcaraz beaten on Laver Cup debut with Zverev in doubles
Carlos Alcaraz suffered defeat on his Laver Cup debut, as he was beaten in straight sets alongside Alexander Zverev in doubles by Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton.
Team Europe put up a strong fight but struggled to match Fritz and Shelton, who won 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 in one hour and 37 minutes.
Alcaraz and Zverev made a slow start to the match, losing their serve in the fourth game as the Americans went on a three-game winning streak, but they pulled it back to level the tie, only to lose the tie-break.
Team Europe looked to have found their groove in the second set but failed to convert four break points in the fourth game as Fritz and Shelton levelled the score at 2-2.
A three-game winning run at the end of the set, including one more break, was enough to get Team World over the line, pulling them back to 2-2 at the end of day one.
Francisco Cerundolo had originally given Team World the lead with a shock win over Casper Ruud before Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov's wins had put Team Europe 2-1 up.
Walter proud of 'courageous' Hull after comeback win
Tim Walter says he is proud of his "courageous" Hull City side after earning his first win in charge, beating Stoke City 3-1.
Narcis Pelach led the Potters out for the first time on Friday and saw his side take a 1-0 lead through Ben Wilmot into half-time.
However, Hull came out fighting in the second half to claim three points for the first time this season.
Kasey Palmer saw a penalty saved just after the hour mark but turned in the rebound before goals from Regan Slater and an own goal from Wilmot completed their late turnaround.
It is a win that propels the Tigers from 19th to 13th in the Championship, above Stoke, and Walter believes it has been a long time coming.
"It's hard to describe because I never had this feeling before. I've never not had a win in five games, so for me, it's a new situation," Walter told Sky Sports.
"But I also knew the whole time that we can win. Today we did it and that's the reason I'm really proud of my boys. They deserved to win.
"I'm happy because they always believed they can win and that's important.
"After conceding the goal, we were better. We were more courageous. We showed more bravery and that's the key to the result."
Pelach succeeded Steven Schumacher as Stoke's manager following his shock sacking earlier this week, having won two of the five matches under the Englishman at the start of the season.
Stoke managed 14 shots against Hull, but only two efforts on target, with both of those coming in the first 45 minutes.
Despite starting with a defeat, Pelach is looking for the positives after such a short time with the squad.
"It's a pity we couldn't win the game," Pelach told BBC Radio Stoke.
"We wanted to take the points, but I think the lads tried to put a new style of play in place.
"But in the second half, we lost control and ran out of energy. We should have pressed more, but we will try to explain this tomorrow and keep working on the defensive style.
"There is some things to work on mentally and we will do it. We will take the positives, and we will improve."
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