Securing their biggest away win of the season, Manchester City are now 30 games unbeaten across all competitions and 18 in the Premier League with their last defeat at Villa Park in December.
Kevin De Bruyne’s first headed goal in 254 Premier League games alongside a brace from Phil Foden and one from Julian Alvarez put Man City within a single point of Arsenal in top spot.
The defending champions still have a game in hand over the North London club and thus have the title within their own control.
Brighton on the other hand, have now won just six of their last 27 league matches since September, with only Burnley, Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United having won fewer games in that time.
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Story of the Match
Pep Guardiola made four changes to his Manchester City side that beat Chelsea in the FA Cup Semi-Final on the weekend.
Mateo Kovacic replaced Jack Grealish in the forward line as Josko Gvardiol came in for John Stones at the back and Ederson returned in goal, moving Stefan Ortega to the bench.
Roberto De Zerbi made three changes to his Brighton side that drew against Burnley 12 days prior.
For the 18th time this season, the Italian rotated between his keepers as Bart Verbruggen replaced Jason Steele.
At left-back, Argentine Valentin Barco came in for fellow South American Pervis Estupinan while the experienced Adam Lallana replaced Simon Adingra in the forward line.
The opening quarter of an hour was fairly subdued as both sides tried to gain control of the game until the first big chance fell to the reigning champions.
A Phil Foden free-kick was swung in behind the Brighton defensive line and reached the back post where an outstretched leg from Nathan Ake poked it just over the crossbar.
It was not long, though, until the treble holders made a breakthrough thanks to their captain Kevin De Bruyne as Foden played in Kyle Walker down the channel.
The ensuing cross was passed towards the penalty spot, where a diving header from the Belgian midfielder was powered into the top right corner leaving the Brighton 'keeper with no chance.
Brighton nearly struck back immediately when Lewis Dunk found himself unmarked in the box from a corner and headed hard into the ground.
However, his attempt lacked accuracy as it nestled straight into the hands of Ederson.
Foden was once again in the thick of the action as he stood over another free-kick, this time from a central position on the edge of the box.
His shot took a heavy deflection off Pascal Gross beside the defensive wall, as the ball rolled past a wrong-footed Steele and into the net.
Just minutes later, the home side sank further as a high press from Man City forced a turnover inside the box from a Brighton side that was intent on playing out from the back.
A misplaced pass fell to the feet of the form man as Foden gently passed the ball into the bottom corner of the net and doubled his goal tally on the half-hour mark.
A first-half masterclass from Man City gave the title holders a three-goal lead going into the break.
Having dominated possession and control of the game, the visitors left Brighton with an uphill task if they were to get anything out of the match.
In a desperate attempt to turn things around, De Zerbi made a double substitution following the break when Odeluga Offiah came on for Joel Veltman and Simon Adingra replaced Lallana.
Brighton came out the blocks quickly in the second half, but a brief penalty shout was the closest they got inside the first ten minutes.
Rodri seemed to have taken down Gross inside the box, but the officials had decided the contact wasn’t sufficient to penalise the Spanish midfielder.
However, Man City soon squashed any hopes of a comeback from the home side when Ederson played an incredible ball from his own box down the right wing and into Kyle Walker.
The English defender then tried to poke it past the onrushing Steele, but the 'keeper reached the ball first and pushed it straight into the feet of Julian Alvarez, who slotted into an empty net.
Another penalty claim followed for Brighton as a mazy run from Joao Pedro led him to the edge of the six-yard box, where he was met by Gvardiol.
The Croatian defender appeared to have pushed the Brighton forward, but once again the referee decided that the contact was not enough to give a spot-kick.
A Guardiola triple change in the 80th minute only further clarified the control his side had over the game.
It was the first time in over six months that the Spanish manager had made all five available substitutions in a Premier League match.
Brighton’s biggest chance on the night came just five minutes from the end when Igor was played in on the overlap down the left-hand side.
He then cut back a pass and picked out Pedro who was in a great position facing the goal, but his first-time shot went just wide of the near post.
Man City had one last chance to score their fifth when Alvarez played in Jeremy Doku, but the Belgian winger hit his shot straight at Steele in the Brighton goal.
That was all for the night, though, as the reigning champions left the Amex Stadium within touching distance of yet another league title.
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Player of the Match: Phil Foden
During the game, the Englishman passed a landmark 50 Premier League goals and was also at the heart of most of Man City’s attacks.
He also became the third player under Guardiola to reach the fifty-goal mark in the league before the age of 24, with the other two being Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi.
His 16 goals and 7 assists this season have been a big factor in his side’s attempt at winning a fourth Premier League title in a row.