Brighton & Hove 1 Liverpool 1 – VAR helps Brighton draw level with reigning champions Updated for April 2024

Updated: 13 September

English Premier League match report: Brighton & Hove 1 Liverpool 1 – Saturday, 28 November, 2020

Brighton & Hove 1 Liverpool 1 – Amex stadium

A controversial penalty awarded in stoppage time helped bottom-half side Brighton & Hove hold champions Liverpool to a 1-1 draw on Saturday at the Amex stadium.

Quite expectedly Jurgen Klopp's Reds started in dominant fashion but it were the Seagulls who got the first chance when Aaron Connolly latched onto a Neil Maupay long pass but his curling shot went just wide.

The 19th minute saw Connolly being brought down inside the box by Neco Williams and a penalty being awarded to Brighton. Maupay who took the ensuing spot kick shot wide as Liverpool survived another early scare.

Roberto Firmino's touch over the top a little latter found Mohammad Salah through on goal with the Egyptian forward pushing the ball past the onrushing Brighton goalkeeper Mat Ryan. But VAR ruled the effort offside as Salah happened to be inches ahead of Brighton defender Ben White before he took the shot.

The ex-Wolves forward expertly evaded two challengers on the edge of the area before slotting the ball in the bottom left corner for the visitors' opener in the 60th minute and getting his eighth goal from as many games. The new rule allowing five substitutions were met with frustration as Connolly and Salah were substituted on either side.

But subsequent injuries to Liverpool's Adam Lallana and then James Milner seemed to justify the changes. Graham Potter's Seagulls responded strongly after being a goal down and nearly equalized when Solly March's dangerous cross was almost turned in to the net by Robertson.

Sadio Mane looked to have put the game to rest with a header late on but VAR declared it offside. The Reds were made to pay in stoppage time when an innocuous kick from Robertson on Danny Welbeck inside the box that went unnoticed at first but a VAR intervention ruled it an infringement and a penalty ensued much to the annoyance of Klopp on the sidelines.

Pascal Gross slotted in the resultant spot-kick to rescue a point for the hosts in the 93rd minute of play.

The defending champions are a point behind Tottenham who went to the top after their drawn affair with Chelsea  on Sunday  while Brighton remained on 16th.

Brighton starting XI:

Ryan (goal), Veltman, White, Dunk, Webster, Gross, Bissouma, March, Connolly, Welbeck, Maupay

Subs: Trossard, Lallana, Jahanbakhsh

Liverpool starting XI:

Alisson (goal), Neco Williams, Fabinho, Phillips, Robertson, Milner, Wijnaldum, Minamino, Jota, Salah, Firmino

Subs: Henderson, Mane, Jones

Man of the match: Diogo Jota

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