Pep Guardiola has praised Manchester City's intensity in Wednesday's 1-1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion despite admitting that his players "drank all the alcohol" while celebrating their Premier League title success last Sunday.
The Citizens travelled to the Amex Stadium less than three days after beating Chelsea 1-0 at the Etihad Stadium and lifting the Premier League trophy before celebrating into the night in Manchester.
Phil Foden put treble-chasing Man City ahead on the 25-minute mark before a sensational long-range strike from Julio Enciso deservedly restored parity for Brighton seven minutes before half time.
Erling Braut Haaland thought that he had headed City into the lead 12 minutes from time, but the goal was chalked off by VAR after the Norwegian was caught pulling the shirt of Levi Colwill before finding the net.
A point sees Man City's 12-game winning streak come to an end, while Brighton have now secured a top-six finish for the first time in their history and have guaranteed their place in next season's Europa League.
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Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Guardiola said: "Exceptional game. Congratulations to Brighton for their deserved qualification to the Europa League.
"The game we played, 48 hours after we drank all the alcohol in Manchester, 48 hours later we behaved and we showed why we were the champions against that team.
"We showed what we have done with and without the ball. I didn't see one drop in our intensity and idea. They had chances, we had chances, we scored a goal, they scored a goal.
"Both teams want the ball, both teams want to press. The keepers are fundamental in this game. The quality they have, they are an exceptional team."
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Asked whether the contest against Brighton was a good test for his City players, Guardiola added: "It was absolutely, this time Brighton, they destroy the other opponents they have been playing. They did it in certain moments, especially the last 10 or 15 minutes, we struggled but we did really well.
"We cannot drop momentum. I didn't see it, against Chelsea I didn't see it today. During the week we have to rest, recover mentally. It's been demanding for the past six months playing Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and chasing Arsenal. The training now is just relaxed."
Both Foden and John Stones came off in the second half with minor injury concerns, but Guardiola has confirmed that the English duo "feel comfortable" and insists the decision to substitute both players was precautionary as they "have to be careful" ahead of two huge finals next month.
Man City, who have extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 25 matches, comfortably sit eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table and will travel to Brentford for their final top-flight game of the season on Sunday.
Guardiola and co will then shift their focus to the FA Cup final against rivals Manchester United on June 3 before locking horns with Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul a week later.
Oliver Thomas
