Charalampos Kostoulas produced a moment of magic deep into stoppage time as Brighton & Hove Albion snatched a 1-1 draw against Bournemouth at the Amex Stadium, extending their strong Premier League home run to just two defeats in 19 matches stretching back to last season, Softfootball reports.
Fresh from a morale-boosting FA Cup third-round victory away at Manchester United last week, Brighton started with confidence and intent. Early chances followed, with Jack Hinshelwood forcing a deflection wide before Brajan Gruda tested Đorđe Petrović with a fierce effort from range in an open and lively opening spell.
Bournemouth gradually settled and began to ask questions of their own, despite this being their first league outing since the departure of star forward Antoine Semenyo, who completed a £65m move to Manchester City earlier in the winter window. The Cherries were rewarded just after the half-hour when VAR ruled that Bart Verbruggen had clipped Amine Adli in the box. Marcus Tavernier stepped up and calmly rolled the penalty into the corner to hand the visitors the lead.
The contest remained finely balanced heading into the break, with Hinshelwood denied from close range and Evanilson striking the post after impressive work down the flank. Brighton emerged strongly after half-time, staying true to a trend that has seen the majority of their league goals arrive after the interval. Kaoru Mitoma went close early on, curling narrowly wide as the hosts turned up the pressure.
Clear chances were hard to come by as Bournemouth defended resolutely, but Brighton’s persistence never wavered. Substitute Yankuba Minteh added urgency off the bench, forcing another sharp save from Petrović as the clock ticked down.
Just when it looked like Bournemouth would hold on, Brighton found their breakthrough. In stoppage time, Jan Paul van Hecke’s clever knock-down dropped invitingly for Kostoulas, who showed remarkable composure and athleticism to execute a stunning overhead kick beyond the helpless goalkeeper.
After the game ended, Brighton shared via its official X handle, the official match report graphics stating that the game ended in a 1-1 draw. They posted:
The late leveller sparked celebrations around the Amex and ensured Brighton stretched their unbeaten run in all competitions to five matches. For Bournemouth, it was a solid showing in a new era without Semenyo, but they were left frustrated after being denied all three points by a moment of brilliance right at the death.
