Brighton & Hove Albion missed the chance to edge even closer to the Champions League places as they fell to a 1-0 defeat against fellow high-flyers Fulham at the AMEX Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe home side dominated the vast majority of the match but were left scratching their heads as The Cottagers snatched all three points in the 88th minute.
Albion certainly went closer to an opening goal in the first-half with attempts from Solly March, Evan Ferguson and Joel Veltman all testing Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno. Roberto De Zerbi’s side did not slow down in the second half either. Both March and Facundo Buonanotte had the ball in the net for the Seagulls but were denied by the linesman for being offside in the build-up.
The deadlock was finally broken with just a couple minutes of regular time remaining. Substitute Manor Solomon raced onto a delicately poised through ball before finishing coolly past Robert Sanchez to give the away side a late lead.
De Zerbi’s side looked to respond quickly, creating several chances to set up a nervy finish, however it was too little too late for Brighton. The loss is Albion’s first since New Year’s Eve when table-topping Arsenal visited the South Coast.
The result means that Fulham climb three points above the Seagulls and into sixth place, although Brighton do have two games in hand.
Albion welcome West Ham United to the AMEX Stadium for their next piece of Premier League action whilst Fulham host Wolverhampton Wanderers at Craven Cottage.
