Second-half turnaround leads to defeat at Brighton

Brighton & Hove Albion staged a second-half fightback to beat us 3-2 in our last match before the international break on Sunday afternoon.

In total command after a dominant first-half performance in which James Maddison added to Brennan Johnson's sixth goal in as many games, we fell flat after the interval and the hosts had turned it around by the midway point of the second half through goals from Yankuba Minteh, Georginio Rutter and Danny Welbeck.

Destiny Udogie's low right-footed effort was saved down to his right by Seagulls goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen in our best chance of that period late in the game, but in truth it proved a half too far for us after a gruelling period of fixtures as our five-match winning run slumped to a disappointing end.

Lining up with the same team that won 3-0 at Manchester United last weekend, we were straight on the front foot at the American Express Stadium, Timo Werner's low cross just too far in front of Johnson who would have slid in with just 16 seconds gone. Dejan Kulusevski's shot deflected over, Maddison was denied by a sliding Adam Webster challenge and we then had a goal disallowed on 22 minutes - Werner's header was knocked onto Maddison and crept over the line, but a VAR check confirmed the assistant referee's decision that Pedro Porro was offside when he raced forward in the build-up and the effort was chalked off.

Two minutes later, though, we were ahead and it was Johnson again, the forward confidently dispatching Dominic Solanke's pass into the bottom corner at the first time of asking after Maddison had won possession in midfield to become the first Spurs player since Harry Kane in January, 2019, to score in six consecutive games in all competitions.

Brighton weren't without their chances - Kaoru Mitoma's effort from the left wing was pushed away by Guglielmo Vicario while Welbeck failed to connect with a dangerous low ball across the box around the half-hour mark. We looked dangerous every time we went forward, though, and on 37 minutes, Solanke released Werner down the left side and he played it short to Maddison, whose shot from the edge of the box squirmed through the gloves of Verbruggen and into the net for 2-0. After Welbeck steered a header wide, we could have had a third when Johnson got in down the right side but his effort fizzed over the bar.

We were brimming with confidence going into the break but the second half was a totally different story as we struggled to play our usual passing game while conceding some cheap goals to allow the hosts back into the game. A cross from the left wasn't dealt with, allowing Minteh to drill inside the back post for 2-1 on 48 minutes, Vicario then made two saves on his line in quick succession before Rutter skipped past a couple of challenges in our box and fired home the equaliser on 58 minutes. Kulusevski got back to block a shot from Mitoma before the unmarked Welbeck completed the turnaround on 66 minutes, guiding a downward header into the net from the middle of the box after Rutter had done well to squirm a cross beyond the covering Rodrigo Bentancur down near the byline on the right side.

Neither side really threatened after that - Werner and Maddison had efforts that were never going to trouble Verbruggen while a loose ball fell to Udogie and he fashioned a low shot on his right foot which the keeper saved with six minutes remaining - and so it was Brighton who were left to celebrate coming back from 2-0 down to win a Premier League game for the first time ever.

Match data

Goals: Brighton - Minteh 48, Rutter 58, Welbeck 66; Spurs - Johnson 24, Maddison 37.

Yellow cards: Brighton - Julio 34, Verbruggen 80; Spurs - Udogie 67, Kulusevski 69.

Referee: David Coote.

Venue: American Express Stadium, Brighton.

Weather: Rain, moderate breeze, 16 degrees.

Attendance: 31,487.