Magic Mitoma and Wembley dreams: Brighton 2-1 Liverpool photos
For the second time in 15 days comes a set of photos showing Brighton beating Liverpool at the Amex, on this occasion in the FA Cup as the holders were eliminated from the competition via a 2-1 defeat.
Prior to that sensational 3-0 win over Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday 14th January, you had to go back to 1961 to find the last time an Albion side won against the Reds at home.
It is a sign of how good Brighton have become under Roberto De Zerbi that they can now beat Liverpool twice in a little over a fortnight, and for neither result to be considered that much of a shock.
A frenetic opening 10 minutes set the tone for a rip-roaring cup tie. Lewis Dunk and Trent Alexander-Arnold made important blocks off the line at either end before Harvey Elliott gave the visitors the lead on the half hour mark.
Dunk deflected a Tariq Lamptey piledriver past Alisson for the equaliser five minutes prior to the break to leave the game delicately poised going into the second half.
What followed was a magnificent Albion display. Liverpool began to realise they could not live with the football being played by De Zerbi’s team and so resorted to kicking, elbowing and in the case of Fabinho on Evan Ferguson, raking their studs down the Achilles of Brighton players.
It looked like those rough tactics might have been enough to secure a replay back at Anfield until Kaoru Mitoma conjured up a 92nd minute piece of magic to win it for the Albion.
The Japanese bullet train sliced the ball over the head of Joe Gomez at the back post with one foot before crashing a volley past Alisson with the other to send the noise levels inside the Amex through the roof.
A VAR check for offside suddenly quietened the stadium but a few tense minutes later, the Albion fans exploded again when Stockley Park could find no reason to disallow the goal despite trying very hard.
And they say the FA Cup has lost its magic…
If you have any photos you would like included in our Brighton 2-1 Liverpool gallery, please e-mail them to wearebrighton@hotmail.co.uk or tweet them to us @wearebrighton
