Match report: Brighton 2-0 Bournemouth
Aaron Mooy pulled the strings for Brighton and rounded off a fine performance with a wonderful goal. Read on ...
Eddie Howe speaks: “No complaints,” says Bournemouth’s manager in an interview with Sky Sports. “I thought we took time to settle into the game. I thought for 10 minutes we took our time and conceded the goal. The second half was tough for us. We kept giving Brighton the ball and made life difficult for ourselves, especially when we went down to 10 men. The second half was very frustrating for us.”
Dan Burn: “I’m buzzing for Ali,” Brighton’s left-back says of his team’s opening goalscorer in an interview with Sky Sports. “He’s been grafting in training. I really wanted him to do well today and I’m delighted he scored.”
On his disallowed goal: “I was gutted,” he says. “That’s about the third time I’ve been done by VAR. It was gutting, especially as I went for the knee-slide [celebration]. I think I was offside by an armpit hair or something stupid like that, but if it’s offside it’s offside and that’s the way it is now.”
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It was an entertaining game: With the exception of a 15-minute period at the end of the first half, Brighton dominated this game. Jahanbakhsh opened the scoring for them after three minutes, while Dan Burn thought he’d doubled their lead in the second half, only to have his goal ruled out by VAR. The hawk-eyed killjoys spotted a fractional offside in the build-up.
Having had that one chalked off, Brighton continued to boss their visitors and a Goal of the Month contender from Aaron Mooy in the 79th minute put the game beyond Bournemouth, who could finish today in the relegation zone if results elsewhere don’t go their way.
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Full time: Brighton 2-0 Bournemouth
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeep! It’s a much deserved win for Brighton, who triumph courtesy of goals from Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Aaron Mooy. They move three points clear of Bournemouth into 13th place, five points clear of the drop zone.
90+3 min: Brighton’s fans sing an homage to Graham Potter, who applauds them from his technical area.
90+2 min: Neal Maupay runs on to a pass from Murray and runs at the Bournemouth defence, who keep him at bay.
90+1 min: Glenn Murray brings a smart save out of Ramsdale, at his near post. If he’d scored it wouldn’t have counted as he was well offside as he ran in behind to pick up the through ball into the penalty area.
90 min: Brighton win a corner, but Lewis Dunk is penalised for a foul as the ball is sent into the Bournemouth penalty area.
89 min: Trossard picks out Glenn Murray on the edge of the Bournemouth penalty area, but he’s crowded off the ball before he can unleash a shot. They were quiet earlier, but Brighton’s fans are in full voice now.
88 min: Bournemouth keep plugging away, but this match looks beyond them at this stage. Brighton waste a few seconds with a substitution, with the lesser spotted Glenn Murray coming on for Yves Bissouma.
86 min: Bournemouth are now down to 10 men, as Eddie Howe has withdrawn the injured Jack Stacey. Moments before those changes, Neal Maupay had brought a save out of Aaron Ramsdale with a shot from distance.
Brighton double substitution: Goalscorers Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Aaron Mooy make way for Steven Alzate and Dale Stephens.
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80 min: Brighton score their second and it’s no more than they deserve. Aaron Mooy has been man of the match for them so far and that was as good a goal as he’ll ever score. Leandro Trossard was the provider with a splendid cross, but Mooy’s finish had Alan Smith, the former Arsenal striker, purring in his role as Sky’s co-commentator. He likens the Australian’s finish to something out of Dennis Bergkamp’s greatest hits.
GOAL! Brighton 2-0 Bournemouth (Mooy 79)
Aaron Mooy scores a beauty. He takes a cross from the left on his chest in the penalty area before cutting inside Chris Mepham with a wonderful touch and curling the ball inside the far post. That was a terrific goal.
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77 min: Jack Stacey appears to have done himself a mischief and is limping, but remains on the field as Bournemouth have used all their subs.
75 min: There’s a shout for handball as the ball appears to pop off the thigh of Jack Stacey and hit his hand in his own penalty area. VAR decrees that no penalty should be given.
74 min: Yves Bissouma scurries down the right side of the Bournemouth penalty area and wins his team a corner. Aaron Mooy’s delivery is headed clear.
73 min: Bournemouth substitution: Lewis Cook replaces Josh King.
72 min: In the Bournemouth goal, Aaron Ramsdale hacks clear under pressure from Neal Maupay at the end of another promising Brighton attack.
The former editor of the Racing Post speaks ...
Another goal ruled out because the scorer’s armpit may have been 1mm offside. It’s outrageous that the Premier League is allowing the game to be vandalised like this. I know so many people who say they are falling out of love with football because of VAR. It cannot continue.
— Bruce Millington (@brucemillington) December 28, 2019
68 min: Philip Billing is booked for some indiscretion or other, as Bournemouth remain under the cosh. They were dominating the game in the final 15 minutes of the first half, but it’s Brighton who have been on top since the interval.
65 min: Bournemouth substitutions from a couple of minutes ago: Ryan Fraser and Callum Wilson on for Harry Wilson and Junior Stanislas.
65 min: Moments previously, Aaron Mooy had gone close with a rasper that flashed wide of the post.
64 min: Yves Bissouma charges through the middle before unleashing a shot from the edge of the penalty area. It’s a decent effort, which thumps the foot of the upright. Good stuff from Brighton.
62 min: While I’d need to see a replay, I would hazard a guess that about seven or eight different players touched the ball after Aaron Mooy took that free-kick and before Dan Burn fired it past Aaron Ramsdale.
VAR! Brighton's second goal is disallowed
The ridiculousness of VAR is showcased once again, as it turns out one of Brighton’s players was fractionally offside as Aaron Mooy sent in his free-kick. We’re talking a toenail, here. It remains Brighton 1-0 Bournemouth.
VAR CHECK! It seems that one of Brighton’s players may have been a millimetre offside as Mooy sent in his free-kick. VAR are checking it!
GOAL! Brighton 2-0 Bournemouth (Burn 58)
Brighton double their lead. It wasn’t pretty, but after a bout of head tennis and pinball in the Bournemouth boxin the wake of an Aaron Mooy free-kick, Dan Burn swivels and shoots into the bottom left-hand corner.
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54 min: Dominic Solanke goes to ground in the Brighton penalty area after finding himself with the ball at his feet on the edge of the six-yard box only to be tackled by Lewis Dunk. A Brighton counter-attack is followed by one from Bournemouth and when play eventually breaks down it is - correctly, it seems - decided not to give Solanke a penalty for Dunk’s earlier challenge.
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51 min: It’s been a scrappy opening to the second half, with both teams struggling to dominate. Neal Maupay wins a free-kick for Brighton after some dogged persistence. Aaron Mooy swings the ball into the penalty area and Bournemouth can only half clear. The ball finds it’s way to Dunk on the right flank, but his cross is claimed confidently in the Corridor of Uncertainty by Aaron Ramsdale.
47 min: Brighton get forward with Leandro Trossard on the ball on the inside left channel. He passes to Dan Burn, who jinks this way and that, trying to cut inside but is dispossessed by Harry Wilson, who he subsequently fouls with an arm across the face in a fit of frustration. There’s a VAR check to see if it merits a red card, but the officials monitoring the screens say none should be forthcoming.
46 min: Philip Billing wins the ball in midfield and leaves it for Ryan Gosling after running into his teammate. Play switches from the right side of the pitch to the left, where Martin Montoya wins the ball back for the hosts.
Second half: Brighton 1-0 Bournemouth
46 min: Play resumes at the Amex Stadium, with Bournemouth getting proceedings under way. There are no changes in personnel on either side.
Half-time: Brighton 1-0 Bournemouth
Peep! Scored in the third minute, Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s first goal for Brighton separates the sides as they go in for the interval. Brighton roared out of the traps and notched an early lead, but as happens so often with them, failed to further capitalise on their dominance. After a poor first half-hour, Bournemouth have upped their game but have squandered several decent chances. It’s nicely poised at the Amex Stadium.
45 min: The silence is broken with roars of encouragement as Mooy charges forward again, before playing the ball to Jahanbakhsh on his right. A promising attack breaks down quickly, but Brighton win themselves a throw-in.
44 min: The shouts of the players on the pitch are clearly audible, as Brighton fans, whose team are winning, sit in almost total silence. Best league in the world, eh?
40 min: Jack Stacey tries to cross towards the far post from the right side of the six-yard box, attempting to pick out Josh King. He ships a shove in the back and overhits his delivery, but doesn’t win the penalty he perhaps deserved.
More to the point, he should have shot himself from an angle that wasn’t particularly tight, but was perhaps aware of his limitations as a right-back who hasn’t scored too often in his career.
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38 min: Much better from Bournemouth, who have gradually found their way into this game after a shaky start and are beginning to dominate. Junior Stanislas is teed up on the edge of the box and pulls the trigger, but fails to make clean contact with the ball and his weak shot into the ground is easily blocked.
36 min: Josh King is played in behind the Brighton defence down the inside left. He attempts to pull the ball back into the penalty area for Solanke or Wilson, but Lewis Dunk sticks out a leg and intercepts.
34 min: With Josh King on the ball, Bournemouth find themselves with a three-on-three as they gallop up the field on the counter after a mistake by Shane Duffy. King plays the ball to Harry Wilson, whose shot on goal is brilliantly blocked by Dan Burn.
31 min: Nervy defending from Sergio Rico and Aaron Ramsdale results in Aaron Mooy winning another corner for Brighton. He sends it deep, trying to pick out Lewis Dunk, but his delivery is a mite too high for the central defender to make anything more than glancing contact with the ball.
30 min: Good defending from Mepham, who cuts out an attempted cross from Aaron Mooy after neat build-up play from Lewis Dunk. Nothing comes from the ensuing corner, which concludes with Dunk firing high over the cross-bar.
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28 min: Despite watching their team lead and dominate, the fans in the Amex Stadium seem rather subdued. The combined result of the biting cold and assorted Christmas excesses, perhaps.
27 min: continuing to boss midfield, Mooy plays the ball out wide to Jahanbakhsh on the right touchline as Brighton go forward again. His cross is cleared, but Brighton take possession again and continue to press forward.
25 min: A Bournemouth corner is arrowed towards Chris Mepham, who fails to win a clean header. Josh King tries to pick up the scraps and send another cross into the box, but Brighton deal with him and clear their lines.
24 min: Nothing comes of the free-kick and a subsequent Rico cross from the left fails to pick out Josh King, its intended target. Bournemouth are looking a mite out of sorts today.
23 min: Jahanbakhsh is lucky to avoid a booking for a similarly clumsy lunge on Dan Gosling. Free-kick for Bournemouth, wide on the left, a long way out.
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22 min: Bournemouth skipper Steve Cook is penalised and booked for an unseemly lunge on Neal Maupay.
21 min: With one senior goal to his name in 57 appearances, Dominic Solanke tries to dribble his way past a defender into the Brighton penalty area, but is dispossessed.
20 min: Making his first start of the season after enduring a world of hamstring hell, Junior Stanislas gets on the ball and tries to create something on the fringes of the Brighton box, but runs down a blind alley and dribbles the ball out of play for a goal kick.
19 min: Mooy sends in an outswinger, which Lewis Dunk can only head straight up in the air. Ramsdale gathers confidently.
17 min: Mooy gets on the ball again with options to his right and left. Brighton surge forward again and win another corner as they continue to assert their authority.
16 min: Mooy sends the ball towards the far post and Aaron Ramsdale is indecisive in coming off his line to claim it. Bournemouth clear, albeit unconvincingly.
14 min: After a frenetic start, things have calmed down a bit, but Jahanbakhsh wins a free-kick wide on the right after a tangle of legs with Diego Rico. Aaron Mooy stands over it and will cross it into the Bournemouth penalty area.
12 min: Yves Bissouma wellies the ball downfield to clear his lines and Bournemouth take possession. Chris Mepham, Dan Gosling and Jack Stacey exchange passes as they try to move up the pitch.
11 min: Brighton continue to dominate, with Aaron Mooy pulling the strings in midfield. Neal Maupay fires another one over the bar after being put through by his Australian teammate.
9 min: That goal is likely to do wonders for Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s confidence. It was a fine, assured strike from a player who has had a torrid time of it since moving to Brighton from AZ Alkmaar in 2018.
8 min: It’s end to end stuff as Neal Maupay squanders a decent chance by firing high over the bar for Brighton.
7 min: Mat Ryan dives low to his left to save well from Josh King, who had got in behind the Brighton defence, but signalled his intention to shoot low and diagonally towards the far corner. It’s been an extremely lively start.
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5 min: Alireza Jahanbakhsh scores his first goal for Brighton at the 27th time of asking and he could scarcely be more pleased. Lewis Dunk took the ball out of defence and played it to Aaron Mooy, who charged forward. He played the ball into Neal Maupay in the bpenalty area, who held it up before pulling back towards Jahanbakhsh, who beat Aaron Ramsdale with a low drive into the corner from about 12 yards.
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GOAL! Brighton 1-0 Bourtnemouth (Jahanbakhsh 3)
Brighton lead! Alireza Jahanbakhsh opens the scoring for the hosts on his first start of the season.
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2 min: Davy Propper gallops through midfield and plays the ball wide to Alireza Jahanbakhsh, who wins a corner for Brighton. Aaron Mooy swings the ball into the mixer, from where Bournemouth embark on a counter-attack. Nothing comes of it.
Brighton v Bournemouth is go ...
1 min: It’s a bracing day on the south coast as Brighton get the ball rolling. Their players wear blue and white striped shirts, blue shorts and white socks. Bournemouth’s wear red and black striped shirts, black shorts and black socks.
Not long now: The teams line up in the tunnel of the well appointed Amex Stadium and are led out by Lewis Dunk and Steve Cook. Pul Tierney picks the match ball off the Premier League approved plinth and we’re just a few handshakes and a coin-toss away from kick-off.
Those teams: Lewis Dunk has clambered out of his sick bed and is one of seven changes made by Graham Potter. Martin Montoya, Yves Bissouma, Davy Propper, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Neal Maupay and Leandro Trossard also come in to the side.
Bournemout boss Eddie Howe has also shaken things up in the quick turnaround between festive fixtures, with Diego Rico, Junior Stanislas, Philip Billing, Harry Wilson and Dominic Solanke all coming into his side.
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Brighton v Bournemouth line-ups
Brighton: Ryan, Montoya, Dunk, Duffy, Burn, Propper, Bissouma, Mooy, Jahanbakhsh, Maupay, Trossard.
Subs: Stephens, Gross, Webster, Murray, Button, Bernardo, Alzate.
Bournemouth: Ramsdale, Stacey, Steve Cook, Mepham, Rico, Stanislas, Gosling, Billing, Harry Wilson, King, Solanke.
Subs: Boruc, Surman, Lerma, Callum Wilson, Lewis Cook, Fraser, Simpson.
Referee: Paul Tierney (Lancashire)
Early team news ...
Solly March and Jose Izquierdo are both sidelined with injury for Brighton, while Lewis Dunk missed their match against Tottenham with illness.
Bournemouth’s current list of the lame and halt is considerably longer, and Eddie Howe has had to plan for this game without Nathan Ake, Adam Smith, Arnaut Danjuma, Charlie Daniels, Lloyd Kelly and David Brooks. Simon Francis could return today after sitting out his side’s game against Arsenal with bad bruising.
Premier League: Brighton v Bournemouth
The games continue to come thick and fast and today’s festive action kicks off at the Amex Stadium, where Brighton host fellow seaside outfit Bournemouth. Brighton were perhaps a little unlucky to lose against Tottenham on Boxing Day, while Bournemouth shared the points with Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.
Locked together in 15th and 16th place, the two sides are level on points and goal difference, but with Brighton having the edge by dint of having scored two goals more. With both sides looking nervously over their shoulders, we’ll find out what, if anything, gives between from 12.30pm (GMT). In the meantime, stay tuned for team news and build-up.
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