Brighton & Hove Albion secured a 2-0 victory at the Stadium of Light, maintaining their strong form from before the international break despite playing more than half an hour with 10 men. Maxim de Cuyper and Jaouen Hadjam scored the goals that kept the Seagulls third in the table, two points behind joint leaders Manchester City and Arsenal.
Pascal Groß provided the assist for the opener in the 53rd minute, sliding a precise pass out to the left for de Cuyper, who finished low past Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs. It was the Belgian’s fourth goal for Brighton since joining from Club Brugge last summer.
Just four minutes later the match nearly swung the other way. Sunderland’s Wilson Isidor went to ground under a challenge from Pascal Struijk as he chased a through-ball, with the Brighton defender the last man. Referee Thomas Bramall and his assistant initially saw no foul, but VAR official Neil Davies recommended a review. After studying several replays, Bramall issued a straight red card to Struijk, to the clear disbelief of the visitors.
Brighton held firm against the numerical disadvantage. In stoppage time they broke on the counter and left-back Hadjam finished across Roefs for his first goal for the club, sealing the points. Struijk had earlier gone close himself, producing the final action of a goalless first half.
The result underlined Brighton’s ability to control games even when short-handed, while Sunderland were left to reflect on another afternoon in which defensive errors proved costly against a side sitting near the top of the table. The Seagulls’ resilience after the red card ensured they left Wearside with all three points and their place among the early-season frontrunners intact.
No comments:
Post a Comment