The wait for a goal goes on – 35 days and counting – but all that matters for now is that Brighton have stopped the rot. Chris Hughton had called on his players to show resilience and togetherness between now and the end of the season and both were in evidence when Brighton picked up a precious point to halt a run of five successive defeats and edge a step clearer of the relegation zone.
Defensive from the first minute to the last, Brighton got exactly what they came for. It made for a desperately poor spectacle – “How do you watch this every week?” and “Boring” chanted the exasperated Wolves supporters – yet no one in Brighton colours was complaining.
The travelling fans, who were bathed in sunshine, greeted the final whistle with huge cheers. Brighton are now three points clear of Cardiff, who are 18th in the table, with four games to play – three of which are against Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester City. Wolves, in short, was a game that Brighton could not afford to lose and they played with that mindset throughout.
They rode their luck at times, no more so than when Diogo Jota’s glancing header came back off the inside of the far upright in the second half. Leander Dendoncker, who had been on the pitch for a couple of minutes, pounced on the loose ball, only a couple of yards out, but Mat Ryan, the Brighton goalkeeper, smothered the substitute’s shot.
Jota had earlier hit the bar and Ryan had a few other saves to make, but Wolves never worked Ryan enough despite dominating possession. Only five of their 22 shots were on target and there were times when the home team needed to show more conviction in front of goal and move the ball quicker.
As for Brighton, that Rui Patrício, the Wolves goalkeeper, never had a save to make says it all. A 4-3-3 on paper was a 4-5-1 on the pitch, with Ryan touching the ball more times than any other Brighton player in the opening half an hour.
With 10 players generally behind the ball, Brighton were disciplined, organised and compact and Wolves never had enough about them to find a way through.
Hughton, who had endured a tough week with Brighton losing back-to-back home matches against Bournemouth and Cardiff, admitted that his overriding emotion at the end was one of relief.
Asked whether he would be happy to hear opposition fans chant “boring” in the final four matches, he replied: “At this moment it’s about effort, determination and organisation. All that’s important in these four games is about getting over the line.”
Hughton, who lost Davy Pröpper to a hamstring injury after only 10 minutes, added: “It feels like a really good point for us because of the position we’re in and I’m just hoping that we can take value from the manner of the result.
“The only reason why we were able to get a result was because of what the players put in. We’re lacking a little bit of confidence in front of goal, so that’s probably the next bit. But we were on the back of two very disappointing results and the reaction shows that we’re not such a bad team.”
From Wolves’ point of view it was a day of frustration. Jota, who has been so impressive of late, dragged a shot narrowly wide in the first half and clipped the top of the bar shortly before the interval. When Dale Stephens shot from more than 40 yards with almost the last kick of the first half it was met with ironic cheers by the Brighton supporters. It was their first attempt on goal.
Wolves kept probing in the second half but apart from that double chance for Jota and Dendoncker, after which Hughton wiped his brow on the touchline, Brighton stood firm.
“Brighton defended well because their main objective was not to concede,” said Nuno Espírito Santo, the Wolves manager. “But it’s up to us and we should do better in some situations.”
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