Lauren Hemp does well to control the ball just outside the box and turns into space.

She has a go from the edge of the area, but her shot is easily dealt with by Megan Walsh in Brighton's goal.

Manchester City have another succession of corners. They, however, come to nothing.

Laura Coombs manages to dig out a shot from the second of the set-pieces, but it's harmless.

Brighton have really woken up now.

Danielle Carter has a sight of goal but thumps her effort over the bar. Another warning shot from the hosts.

A big chance for Brighton is flagged for offside.

Aileen Whelan does well to knock the ball down and with Manchester City's defence scrambling, the flag goes up to save them the hassle.

Georgia Stanway hammers a low ball across goal for Manchester City, but there is no-one there to meet it.

In the end Maya Le Tissier does well to clear just in front of the goalline. She needed to be on point there as the ball could have gone anywhere, including the back of the net.

Brighton have been starved off the ball so far. They have been allowed just 26% possession.

Lucy Bronze giving an early glimpse of her wand of a right foot for Manchester City.

Space opens up for her to swing in a cross and it skips just beyond the reach of Lauren Hemp and Ellen White.

History says that Brighton are up against it today.

The Seagulls have lost four of their five WSL matches against them and drawn once.

There have been some heavy defeats in there as well, conceding a total of 21 goals in those losses. They have scored just once in reply.

It's been a strong start from Manchester City. They haven't allowed Brighton a sniff of possession.

And Man City have a second corner.

This one is an outswinger from Alex Greenwood. Lauren Hemp gets her head to it and tests goalkeeper Megan Walsh. An important save, that.

Manchester City have an early corner. It is sent in low from the left and is cleared at the front post.

There is a bit of snow on the sideline. Looks like the ground staff have had a busy morning clearing the pitch.

And off we go.

Both sides are on the pitch. Not long now until the first WSL game of 2022 kicks off.

Manchester City boss Gareth Taylor said they need to be at their best and praised Brighton's "forward-thinking" ambitions.

"They have been slightly inconsistent in their results but they have established themselves as a team that has been forward-thinking on and off the pitch to make the push to that next level," he added.

"You can admire what they are doing and the project they have going on. It's happening more and more in the game now which is good. Players and clubs are really looking to step up to get themselves to that next level in the WSL."

Image source, Getty Images

Manager Hope Powell said Brighton are "under no illusions" as to how tough this game against Manchester City will be.

"They are still a quality side with a depleted squad," said Powell.

"Every player they put out is a high-calibre international so we're under no illusions of what's going to be presented to us even though they haven't done as well. It's going to be tough but we knew that anyway."

There is a lot of focus on City being two points adrift of Brighton, but the Seagulls themselves are just three points adrift of Manchester United in fourth. This will be a crucial game for them if they are stay in touch with the top three.

Brighton boss Hope Powell makes three changes to the side beaten by Manchester United in their last WSL game before the winter break, with Inessa Kaagman, Danielle Carter and Kayleigh Green coming into the starting XI.

Sweden internationals Emma Kullberg and Julia Zigiotti Olme are named in the bench after joining the WSL club on 1 January.

Lucy Bronze starts for Manchester City today is what is her her first appearance of the season. It is a long-awaited return by the England defender, who underwent knee surgery after representing Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics.

In another huge boost to Gareth Taylor's side, Steph Houghton is named on the bench after a four-month lay-off with an ankle problem.

While half of 2022's first weekend of WSL fixtures after the winter break have failed to get off the ground, there is still some big games to look forward to.

Fifth placed Brighton welcome a Man City side that are looking to put their early season woes behind them. A win for City would take them above the Seagulls.

WSL leaders Arsenal travel to bottom side Birmingham City at 14:00 GMT, while Reading welcome second-from-bottom Leicester City at the same time.

Image source, Getty Images

Along with West Ham's home game against Manchester United being postponed today, Everton's trip to Aston Villa was also called off yesterday because of a Covid-19 outbreak in the visitors' squad.

It was the third WSL game to be called off this weekend, after Chelsea's London derby with Tottenham going the same way on Friday.

BBC Red Button

Let's not delay, you can tune in to the build-up for the first of today's games right now.

The match is available on BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer and right here on the website. Just scroll to the top of the page and hit the play button to watch the match alongside the text commentary.