Rulli Saves Two Penalties; Maresca Backs Donnarumma — SkimNews
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- Rulli saved the last two penalties, from Yasin Ayari and Lewis Dunk, after a 2-2 draw with Brighton to send holders Manchester City into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, also fingertipping a second-half save onto Georginio Rutter.
- Maresca said Rulli's display raised no pressure on Donnarumma's No. 1 spot: "No, absolutely not from my point of view... Rulli knows exactly his role... Saturday it will be Gigio plus 10."
- Donnarumma was given three days off alongside Haaland, Dias, Elliot Anderson and Gvardiol to "recover the energy", and Maresca acknowledged he has been "making some mistakes" after being at fault for Aston Villa's second goal.
- Rulli joined Manchester City from Marseille for a modest £1.7m to replace James Trafford after the England international moved to Leeds for £45m, and will be back on the bench for the weekend Premier League game against Brighton.
- Manchester City drew 2-2 with Brighton after trailing twice through goals by Malick Yalcouye and Georginio Rutter, with Mateo Kovavic and Vitor Reis levelling despite nine changes from Maresca, whose only defeats as manager are to Villa, Paris St-Germain and Arsenal in the Community Shield.
- Bradford await in the Carabao Cup quarter-final after Arsenal and Chelsea were knocked out, with Maresca calling the chance to go all the way again "Absolutely" big and insisting the ambition stays the same despite a new project, new players and a new manager.
Why it matters: Rulli has turned a £1.7m reserve role into a proven shootout stopper, giving City cover after James Trafford's £45m exit to Leeds. Maresca's hierarchy stays intact for Saturday's league trip to Brighton, while City's League Cup run continues to Bradford in the quarter-finals.
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