Tottenham’s players managed a two-goal lead in the seventh round of the Premier League when they fell 2-3 at Brighton. The Seagulls flew into the second half in style and managed to turn the score around thanks to three goals in the space of 18 minutes. The decisive hit was scored by Danny Welbeck, for whom it was already the fourth goal in the ongoing year of the top English competition.
Fabian Hürzeler was heavily criticized for the way his side conceded four goals against Chelsea in their last league game. However, the start of the match by the defensive ranks of the Seagulls was not ideal again. Timo Werner raced down the left wing and then sent a sharp ball into the box, where the sliding Brennan Johnson narrowly missed it. Moments later, however, Johnson timed his run to perfection when he opened the scoring with a precise finish after a pass from Dominic Solanke. The Welshman made it a sixth game in a row, the last time Harry Kane did it for Spurs in 2019.
The Seagulls then conceded again when they made a mistake in transition, leading to James Maddison’s successful finish. Brighton had a chance to pull back the Roosters’ lead, but Welbeck’s header fell just wide of the post. At the end of the half, Johnson could finally break Brighton’s resistance, but he shot over from a sharp angle.
After a major period of dominance in the first half, Spurs’ absolute collapse came within 21 minutes of the second half. Yankuba Minteh was the first to mature on their defensive line with a finish from close range. Kaoru Mitoma then encouraged Georginio Rutter to score from the ground, who leveled the game in the 58th minute.
Spurs were ripe for the towel, which the Seagulls took advantage of to turn the score around fantastically. With all his might, Rutter slid to keep the ball in play and set up a unique opportunity for Welbeck to head the ball into the net. The visitors had more than 20 minutes left to salvage a result, but Bart Verbruggen snuffed out all subsequent chances, including Destiny Udogie’s greatest.
Brighton ended a run of four Premier League games without a win and moved up to sixth in the league table, two points above ninth-placed Tottenham.
