Enzo Maresca has heard the noise. He just doesn't think his players have.

Ahead of Wednesday's Carabao Cup fourth-round tie with Brighton, the City manager was asked about the reception his side might face on the road in the wake of the independent commission's guilty verdict on 114 of 115 charges against the club. His answer leaned on evidence rather than rhetoric.

I think we played Liverpool away, we played Aston Villa away - and the players showed they don't care about the noise in terms of they play the game, they focus on the game and they're doing the right things.

The Liverpool reference holds up. City won 3-0 there after the September international break, with Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki finding the net. Villa Park was a different story last week: a 2-1 defeat, Nicolas Jackson scoring twice, Haaland's header not enough.

That result made it two losses in four games. The other was a 4-2 home reverse to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League earlier this month. For a side that opened the campaign with seven straight league wins under Maresca, it has been a jarring month.

City still lead the Premier League after eight matches. Arsenal, 2-0 winners over Everton on Saturday, are level on points and sit second on goal difference. The table offers no room for another slip.

Rotation and Recovery

Maresca gave Haaland, Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol, Marc Guehi and Gianluigi Donnarumma three days off after Villa to recover their energy. Whether that rest extends to Wednesday is another matter.

Matheus Nunes missed the Villa match entirely. Nico O'Reilly and Mateo Kovacic were named among the unused substitutes. Geronimo Rulli is expected to start in goal against Brighton in the cup, while 19-year-old Morocco international Ayyoub Bouaddi is expected to start.

At Villa Park, Guehi's loose touch led to Jackson's opener, and Donnarumma allowed the striker's second effort to slip beneath him. Small margins, but the kind that decide games.

The Wider Picture

The club declared their innocence and lodged a comprehensive appeal at 7pm on 1 October. The sanctions phase has yet to begin, and sources suggest full resolution may not arrive until 2028 or 2029. Tottenham and Manchester United are among the clubs reported to be preparing civil claims worth around £800 million.

For now, the football continues. Brighton arrive at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night for the Carabao Cup, then again on Saturday in the Premier League. Fabian Hürzeler's side will have their own ideas about disrupting the quiet Maresca insists his players have found.