Those who live in these parts know all about how the tide can change, but even they would struggle to comprehend the way the direction of this game tossed and turned.
This clash had a series of momentum shifts which defied astrology – especially after an opening 41 minutes in which the hosts were all at sea.
Carlos Baleba is so often the man who sets the tone for Brighton in midfield but did so for all the wrong reasons here.
Caught the wrong side of the ball following one of Nottingham Forest’s typically blistering counter-attacks, the Cameroonian midfielder bundled over Callum Hudson-Odoi in the box. It was the clearest decision referee Robert Jones will have to make all season and Chris Wood made no mistake from the spot.
At that stage, this had all the hallmarks of a long afternoon for Fabian Hurzeler’s side, the home fans growing increasingly agitated with every minute that slipped away.
Nottingham Forest No 10 Morgan Gibbs-White was sent off against Brighton on Sunday
But Forest still held on for a 2-2 draw, which saw both teams remain unbeaten this season
A penalty converted by Chris Wood put Forest 1-0 up in the 13th minute at the AMEX Stadium
But suddenly and without explanation, the red wall which Forest had used so effectively to secure their first win against Liverpool at Anfield since 1969 last week, was bulldozed over. It didn’t even require so much as the hosts to breathe on it to do so.
First, they switched off from a well-worked short corner by the hosts. With Forest defender Nikola Milenkovic keeping Danny Welbeck, the more obvious attacking threat, at arm’s length, Jack Hinshelwood spotted an opportunity. He snuck around the back and produced a thumping header past goalkeeper Matz Sels.
And then a few minutes later, the hosts turned the game on its head when the tricky Kaoru Mitoma drew a foul from Ola Aina just over 20 yards from goal.
Setting the ball beyond the far post, Welbeck curled a brilliant free-kick into the far corner. Sels didn’t move a muscle. Fellow members of the goalkeepers’ union might suggest Hinshelwood did enough in the wall to unsight him.
That wasn’t an argument Roy Keane was buying into. ‘Sels should be fined a week’s wages,’ said the Irishman while on duty for Sky Sports. ‘You cannot be beaten on that side. It’s so poor. He took a gamble.’ You would be hard-pressed to argue with that assessment.
But just as they did last weekend, Forest showed resolve in spades. A clinical passing move saw Gibbs-White play substitute Jota Silva in behind Lewis Dunk and ended with another man introduced in the second half, Ramon Sosa, apply the very simplest of finishes from close range. And for the second week running, Forest reaped the rewards of Espirito Santo’s tactical tweaks.
There was to be one final twist when Gibbs-White was shown a second yellow by Jones for a foul on substitute Joao Pedro. Jones, the same referee Forest demanded should be banned from officiating their games last season, initially indicated Gibbs-White had won the ball before seemingly changing his mind.
Jack Hinshelwood equalised for Brighton by scoring the fourth goal of his top-flight career
Danny Welbeck put Brighton 2-1 up just before the half-time break and he celebrated in style
The challenge outraged both benches and saw both managers shown red too in what was a feisty ending to a game that had started well for the visitors.
They waited patiently before picking their moment to attack, a ploy that paid off just as it had last weekend.
Gibbs-White, wearing the armband in place of Ryan Yates, stormed away down the right and crossed for Wood. Pervis Estupinan managed to thwart the first wave of danger but failed to clear the ball. Hudson-Odoi was alert to the opportunity and seized it with both hands. The winger positioned his body in the right place to draw the foul from Baleba, the clumsy Cameroonian leaving referee Jones with no other option. Wood made no mistake from the spot, sending Bart Verbruggen the wrong way.
Brighton appeared to be going nowhere until rallying four minutes from the break. With Milenkovic marking Welbeck, Hinshelwood snuck in behind to head home a thumping header.
The turnaround looked to be complete moments later when Welbeck curled his brilliant free-kick past Sels, much to Keane’s dismay.
With that goal Espirito Santo was forced to tear up his half-time teamtalk. The Forest boss made it quite clear what he thought of his team’s implosion, making a triple substation at the break.
It appeared to have made little difference early on when Welbeck was allowed to waltz his way into the Brighton box – shrugging off tame challenges from Elliot Anderson and Aina – before Sels somewhat made amends for his first-half blunder by saving brilliantly with his feet. Shortly it was Murillo who thwarted Welbeck’s advances with a last-ditch block inside his own box.
Then Espirito Santo rolled the dice again, replacing Anderson with Sosa, and just over 10 minutes later he was reaping the rewards of the switch.
Welbeck scored direct from a free-kick for the first time ever in his Premier League career
But Forest hit back thanks to a first Premier League goal by summer signing Ramon Sosa
Wood dropped into midfield and laid off Gibbs-White, who slid Silva in behind Lewis Dunk with a quite brilliant pass.
The Portuguese attacker was bearing down on goal but chose the unselfish option, squaring the ball to Sosa who scored his first goal for the club to complete the comeback.
Then came the final flashpoint. On first glance Gibbs-White looked to have won the ball, as indicated by Jones.
But after an apparent change of heart, the red card came out and remained in his hand before being shown to both Hurzeler and Espirito Santo. That somewhat killed the hopes of either side snatching a winner and with that, everyone was able to catch their breath again.
