A quiet clash turned fiery as Iliman Ndiaye’s penalty set the Amex alight.
The opening 40 minutes offered nothing more than a calm, casual Saturday watch, but a controversial handball decision against The Albion, set up a second half of time wasting, injury complaints and close calls.
Brighton came out the gates hungry and dominant, and looked to take an inevitable lead but instead couldn’t manage to register a shot on target in the first half.
An injury for Dominic Calvert-Lewin saw him substituted in the 13th minute and replaced with Beto, who forced Joel Veltman into a handball mistake, resulting in a penalty.
The penalty, given in the 42nd minute, saw Ndiaye find the back of the net.
The inexperienced Brighton midfield looked out of their depth at times, unable to create strong chances for the attacking duo of Danny Welbeck and Joao Pedro, leading to a second-half introduction of Georginio Rutter, replacing Gruda.
Rutters appearance wasn’t without merit, as he came inches away from the top left-hand corner in the 69th minute, Brighton’s closest chance all game.
Despite claiming domination and amassing a total of 16 shots to Everton’s three, Brighton simply couldn’t find a way through.
As disappointment rocked through The Amex, David Moyes and his boys put on a masterclass for the travelling fans, seeing the fixture end 1-0 to the visitors on the South Coast.
It was safe to say Brighton weren’t happy at the final whistle, as fights erupted amongst players on the pitch, with referee, Tim Robinson, heckled by home fans on his way to the tunnel.
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