Man City's fourth straight loss shows the reality that they're not close to where they need to be. PLUS: Real Madrid suffer another critical injury. Here's the first batch of Monday Musings.

Over the past few weeks, injuries have defined the past matches for Manchester City. Pep Guardiola’s side has been ravaged by injury. The champions had six players missing for their 2-1 defeat to Brighton.

"The international break is so important for City - just that little bit of breathing space to regain a little bit of composure and get lads back who are on the cusp of being fit. For instance, they had Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake on the bench. I'm sure they can't have been anywhere near fully fit, otherwise they would have started the game.

Manchester City lost their fourth game in a row for the first time since Spanish manager Pep Guardiola was appointed in the summer 2016. The English giants lost 2-1 against Brighton despite scoring the opening goal via Erling Haaland,