Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler refused to take the credit for his match-winning substitution after Danny Welbeck made an instant impact to earn a “lucky” 2-1 Premier League victory over fellow European hopefuls Bournemouth.
With both sides dreaming of qualifying for continental football next season, the momentum was against Albion when Justin Kluivert’s spectacular equaliser cancelled out Joao Pedro’s early penalty.
But just three minutes after replacing Pedro, substitute Welbeck coolly rolled home a decisive 75th-minute finish to move the Seagulls to eighth position, level on 43 points with Bournemouth, who dropped to seventh.
“He’s a cool man,” Hurzeler said of Welbeck’s composure.
“The public and media always judge strikers by scoring. For sure it’s important we have strikers who can score but we know the quality from Danny Welbeck.
“Credit to the player because I didn’t score. If you have Danny Welbeck, you think every second when to bring him on, so it’s not a credit to me.”
Brighton’s victory was a third in a row in the top flight following emphatic successes against Chelsea and rock-bottom Southampton.
“We deserved to lead and then in the second half, we suffered,” said Hurzeler.
“I think the (equalising) goal came a little bit out of nowhere, it was an amazing goal and afterwards we had to stick together.
“The momentum changed a little bit. Bournemouth had the feeling that they are a little bit on top of us.
“It was a difficult situation for us but we managed it quite good and then in the end we were a lucky winner.”
Pedro converted from the spot in the 12th minute after going to ground under a challenge from Bournemouth goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga following a through ball from full Premier League debutant Diego Gomez.
Cherries manager Andoni Iraola felt Pedro tried to “buy the penalty” and thought his side were unfortunate to lose on the back of an improved second-half display in an entertaining south-coast showdown.
“It’s difficult (to accept the result) because we played well,” said Iraola. “We played as good, if not better than Brighton.
“Probably when we analyse the game, we will have more corners, more shots, more crosses, more time in their half but when you lose, you have to make these things count.
“They’ve been better in the two boxes; this is what counts in football. It’s been a good game of football from good teams but when you lose, this is the least important thing.
“For the penalty, I think the forward is very smart. He forgets about going to score a goal and he tries to buy the penalty.
“Normally when you do this, they call the penalty so I’m not complaining. But he buys the penalty.”
Ange Postecoglou insisted his controversial cupped ear celebration to Tottenham fans in a 1-0 loss at Chelsea had been misinterpreted on another bad night for the Australian.Spurs slipped to a 16th defeat in the Premier League this season thanks to a 50th-minute header by Enzo Fernandez, but it only told half the story of a typically frenzied London derby.VAR was required to rule out a fine strike...
Chelsea climbed back into the Premier League’s top four as Enzo Fernandez’s header early in the second half earned a 1-0 derby win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.Enzo Maresca’s side were under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had ceased to excite home fans, but they largely had the better of a disappointing Spurs team that failed to tak...
David Moyes believes James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid a red card for his reckless challenge on Alexis Mac Allister as Everton were beaten 1-0 by Liverpool on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal, which Moyes claimed should have been ruled out for offside, gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were...
Jack Grealish dedicated his goal to his late brother after scoring in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Leicester on Wednesday.The England international hit his first Premier League goal for 16 months, on his first start in the competition since last December, as City moved back into fourth with a comfortable success at the Etihad Stadium.It came on the 25th anniversary of...
David Moyes bemoaned an “offside” goal that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton – but admitted James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid an early red card on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were left unhappy with decisions from referee Sam Barr...
Eddie Howe hailed Sandro Tonali’s shooting power after seeing him cap a fine display with a stunning winner to edge Newcastle into the race for Champions League qualification.The 24-year-old Italy international brought an incident-packed encounter to a fitting conclusion with a 74th-minute piledriver which beat goalkeeper Mark Flekken from an improbable angle to hand the Magpies a precious 2...
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery believes Marcus Rashford is “progressively getting better” in all aspects of his game following his first Premier League goal for the club.The on-loan Manchester United forward set Villa on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over fellow European hopefuls Brighton with a 51st-minute finish at the Amex Stadium.Rashford’s milestone strike came three days ...
Southampton boss Ivan Juric vowed to keep fighting as relegation moved sharply into focus after Crystal Palace denied them only a third Premier League win of the season.Substitute Matheus Franca’s stoppage-time header, to secure a 1-1 draw for the Eagles, means Saints will be down at the weekend if they lose at Tottenham and Wolves beat Ipswich.If relegation is confirmed on Sunday, Southampt...
Derby boss John Eustace insists his side are reaping the rewards for the hard work they have put in since he was appointed as manager after the Rams earned a 2-0 win over Preston to climb out of the Sky Bet Championship relegation zone.Derby came out firing after a lacklustre opening period and Craig Forsyth coolly slotted the hosts in front with his fourth goal of the season.The Rams doubled thei...
Notts County manager Stuart Maynard hailed a “massive” three points as his side comfortably saw off MK Dons at Meadow Lane to maintain their promotion challenge.Two stunning strikes from David McGoldrick and Will Jarvis from the edge of the box, either side of Nick Tsaroulla’s close-range effort, earned County a convincing 3-0 win.“I think every three points is massive now,...
- 1 Hot WAG flaunts 'astonishing' washboard abs in bikini
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 7 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 8 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 9 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis
- 10 Chelsea prepare €70m for Barcelona defender