Brighton defeated Tottenham 3-2 in the Premier League
Brighton & Hove Albion came from two goals down to shock Tottenham Hotspur at the Amex Stadium. A second-half goal blitz by Yankuba Minteh, Georginio Rutter and Danny Welbeck gave the hosts a sensational win over Spurs, who led 2-0 at half time courtesy of Brennan Johnson and James Maddison.
The Lilywhites have seen a five-match winning run in all competitions come to an end, while the defeat to the Seagulls was their second in the Premier League having been beaten by Newcastle United last month. The international break beckons with Ange Postecoglou needing to find what exactly went wrong for his side.
With a fortnight between now and Tottenham’s next fixture in the Premier League, against West Ham at home, here is a look at the three talking points from their loss at Brighton.
1. Tottenham beaten in familiar circumstances
Tottenham Hotspur failed to hold onto a two-goal cushion and in spite of dominating the first half. Brighton & Hove Albion were not exactly all over them but did enough in an oddly 20-minute spell to clinch all three points and maintain their unbeaten run at home this season.
It was a familiar story for Spurs as they failed to show much efficiency in the offensive third, barring the chances they created which led to their goals. There also looked like a lack of urgency from the visitors when they were chasing the game after Danny Welbeck’s strike.
In the attack, it would be unfair to point fingers at a singular name as the entire team looked a bit off colour against Brighton. Postecoglou will also have to find more dynamism as Spurs’ gameplay was quite predictable, especially in the second period.
2. Credit goes to a spirited Brighton display
Brighton & Hove Albion have been one of the Premier League’s giant killers in recent seasons and have already defeated one big club this season – Manchester United. Were it not for Cole Palmer’s brilliant last weekend, they may have even gotten something out of their trip to Chelsea.
Against Tottenham, Fabian Hurzeler’s side showed their immense willpower to turn the result around in the second half, in which they were particularly effectively. They had four big chances and an xG of 1.82, a majority of which came in the latter period of the match.
The south coast side is now stationed at sixth in the Premier League having been beaten just once in seven fixtures. It will be exciting to see how the rest of their season goes, particularly when they have a fully fit side, which was not the case against Tottenham on Sunday.
3. Johnson’s good scoring run continues
Brennan Johnson scored for a sixth straight match in all competitions with Dominic Solanke being credited with the assist. The 23-year-old has affixed his spot in the team’s starting eleven, it is fair to say, and has been oozing with confidence over the last few weeks.
Ange Postecoglou deserves a lot of credit for sticking with him in spite of a dry start to the season. The Welshman has all that it takes to be among Tottenham’s most crucial players and proved it by opening the scoring in spite of the team losing.
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It will be interesting to see if he can maintain his momentum for Spurs once the international break comes to an end, given that all of his goals have come in the last month or so.