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• Brighton 0-4 Manchester City: Foden at the double as champions leapfrog Liverpool

  Phil Foden scored twice as Manchester City leapfrogged Liverpool and kept the Premier League title race in their own hands by thrashing Brighton 4-0.

  Foden moved onto 16 league goals for the season with a first-half brace at the Amex Stadium, seeing a free-kick deflect past a wrongfooted Jason Steele before stroking home after some reckless play from the Seagulls.

  De Bruyne had earlier given City the lead with what was his 68th Premier League goal but the first with his head, as Pep Guardiola's men made light of Erling Haaland's injury-enforced absence.

  Julian Alvarez added a fourth as City pulled two points clear of Liverpool and within one of Arsenal with a game in hand, knowing five further wins will guarantee they retain their crown.  

  Brighton, meanwhile, stay in the bottom half with 44 points, having been surpassed by Bournemouth on Wednesday.

  Nathan Ake could not keep his shot down when presented with the first half-chance after a low-key start, but City went ahead with a brilliant goal after 17 minutes.

  Foden slipped Kyle Walker in on the right flank, and De Bruyne watched the full-back's cross all the way before sending a wonderful diving header into the top-right corner.

  There was more fortune about City's second, which arrived just nine minutes later as Foden's free-kick deflected in off Pascal Gross amid Brighton complaints about how Foden won the set-piece.

  Brighton only had themselves to blame when Foden got his second after 34 minutes, though. Valentin Barco conceded possession cheaply on the edge of his area, and Foden swept the loose ball into the bottom-left corner.

  Ederson denied Joao Pedro as Brighton improved in the second half, but City had further daylight just after the hour mark, Walker breaking in behind and beating Steele to a loose ball, with Alvarez on hand to turn home.

  Brighton were enraged when Josko Gvardiol avoided conceding a penalty for a clumsy challenge on Pedro, who skewed wide late on as City – who went close to a fifth through Jeremy Doku late on and face struggling Nottingham Forest next – claimed a statement win.

  Foden's star still rising

  Foden has emerged as the favourite to be crowned Premier League Player of the Season, and he has gone up a gear in the run-in, also scoring a hat-trick on his last league appearance when City thrashed Aston Villa 4-1 earlier this month.

  He was in imperious form again on Thursday, even if Brighton's fans were not happy with the way he went down for the free-kick that ultimately resulted in his first goal.

  That strike was Foden's 50th in the Premier League, making him just the third player to score 50 top-flight goals under Guardiola while aged 23 or younger, after Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland.

  It is no wonder Brighton's fans are sick of the sight of the England man; he has eight goals in his last eight Premier League appearances against the Seagulls, more than he has scored against any other club in the competition.

  Seagulls' wings clipped

  Hampered by injuries to the likes of Pervis Estupinan, Kaoru Mitoma and Evan Ferguson, Brighton have seen their European hopes falter in recent weeks and now appear to be limping to the finishing line.

  Roberto De Zerbi's team are winless in their last five Premier League games (two draws, three defeats) and sit six points adrift of the top seven with matches against Bournemouth, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Chelsea and Manchester United to come.

  Brighton have even seen their supply of goals dry up, scoring just four times in eight league matches since thrashing Sheffield United 5-0 in February. 

• Foden matches Messi and Haaland feat with 50th league goal under Guardiola

  Phil Foden equalled the feats of Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland when he scored his 50th league goal as Manchester City stormed into a 3-0 lead against Brighton.

  Foden scored twice in the first half at the Amex Stadium on Thursday, setting Pep Guardiola's team on the way to a potentially pivotal win in the Premier League title race.

  The England international's first, which came after Kevin De Bruyne's excellent diving header, came as his free-kick deflected in off the unfortunate Pascal Gross.

  It was that goal that marked Foden's 50th in league football, with all of those coming under Guardiola.

  That makes Foden just the third player to score 50 league goals under Guardiola while aged 23 or younger, after City team-mate Haaland and Barcelona great Messi.

  Foden netted his 51st Premier League goal soon after, drilling in after City capitalised on some slack Brighton play.

• Bellingham alone won't win Euros for England - Desailly

  England cannot rely on Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham alone to win them the Euro 2024 crown, according to France great Marcel Desailly.

  Bellingham has enjoyed a sensational debut campaign at Madrid that has seen him score 21 goals in all competitions and assist eight more.

  Despite still being aged just 20, the youngster will already have the weight of a nation on his shoulders in the European Championship finals.

  Desailly is a big fan of Bellingham, but he suggests Gareth Southgate may have to consider tweaking formation if England are to succeed.

  "Too much quality can kill the quality," Desailly told Stats Perform. "This is your problem, you see? 

  "All the players have to be able to perform at the same time and help each other. The Dutch have had this kind of problem in the past.

  "The Dutch always have high levels of expertise, but every time it was difficult for them to all unite together at the same time and perform.

  "The talent is there for England, even though Fabio Capello has said their defence is a bit weak, which I agree with.

  "But too much quality kills the quality. Let's see how the coach is able to adjust the side and make certain choices.

  "He may have to remove some of the players into a different tactical system to protect the team for the performances needed."

  Bellingham's latest goal came in added time to earn Real Madrid a 3-2 win over Barcelona in a thrilling Clasico clash last weekend.

  He is already being mentioned as a frontrunner to win this year's Ballon d'Or, which could depend on how England perform in the Euros.

  The ex-Borussia Dortmund ace is also being likened to one of the all-time greats in Zinedine Zidane, but Desailly says there is a long way to go.

  "In the game against Barcelona, he wasn't outstanding yet he was still key for his team," the World Cup 98 and Euro 2000 winner said.

  "Carlo Ancelotti took Vinicius Junior off because he knew what Bellingham could give him in that position. 

  "He also has the legs to defend and score the killer goal, or use his cleverness for the collective of the team.

  "He's a good player. But trying to compare him to Zidane? It is difficult for us to accept he could be at that level.

  "There are differences between them, but the potential of the talents is quite similar."