Brighton & Hove Albion moved a step closer to Premier League safety with a comfortable 3-0 win Newcastle at the Amex Stadium, to heap more pressure on Geordies boss Steve Bruce.
The result means Brighton move six points clear of Fulham in the drop zone. It is now six games without a win for Newcastle United who remain in 17th place, two points from the last relegation spot and in desperate need of some points on the board.
After a tepid start to the match Brighton ramped up the pressure on their relegation rivals, and scored the first goal of the game on the stroke of half-time when Leandro Trossard – continuing his fine form in front of goal after last weeks effort against Southampton – picked up the ball outside the box and unleashed an unstoppable drive in the bottom corner to give the host a deserved lead.
Newcastle were second best throughout and rarely threatened a comeback – indeed they failed to have a shot on target – though Brighton had the woodwork to thank when Ryan Fraser was inches away from an equaliser firing against the post shortly after the break.
With Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin out through injury, they rarely threatened Brighton’s goal and their injury worries worsened when Isaac Hayden suffered an horrific knee injury after Yves Bissouma fell on his knee just before half-time.
Danny Welbeck doubled Brighton’s lead soon after, belting the ball into the bottom corner outside the box after cutting in from the left flank.
Embed from Getty ImagesNewcastle were again made to pay for some slack defending when a simple cross from the right-hand side from Pascal Gross found Neal Maupay who performed a clever volley to put Brighton three up on the night, his first goal in ten Premier League games.
It is now back-to-back wins for Brighton after their victory over Southampton at St Mary’s last weekend as they moved a step further towards Premier League
While 18th-placed Fulham missed the chance to move above Steve Bruce’s side with a 2-1 defeat by Leeds on Friday, Newcastle remain in serious trouble with just two points separating them from the relegation places – albeit with a game in hand on the Cottagers.
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