Brighton boss Graham Potter says Sunday’s victory over Southampton has given the Seagulls “renewed belief” they can retain their Premier League status.
Leandro Trossard’s emphatic finish settled an entertaining south-coast contest, Danny Welbeck’s deft touch freeing the Belgium winger to stride into the box and lash home.
The victory halted a three-game losing streak for Potter’s Seagulls, who climb a place to 16th above Newcastle, three points clear of 18th-placed Fulham and with a game in hand.
“We’ve had to suffer recently but we got the reward for the performance,” said Potter, whose side have lost 17 points from winning positions this season. These three points give us confidence and renewed belief. It’s a fantastic reward for the players and will help them keep going.
“We have belief in ourselves and believe that if we keep performing like we have been we can get results. It’s nice to have that reinforced.”
The Seagulls had taken an early lead through skipper Lewis Dunk’s powerful header from a corner before Che Adams’ close-range volley ensured the Saints headed in level at the break. Adams came closest to a second equaliser for Southampton, still without injured leading scorer Danny Ings, but he was brilliantly denied by the outstretched leg of Brighton keeper Robert Sanchez.
A 10th defeat in 12 league games keeps Southampton in 14th, very much in the relegation mix, although they still have a seven-point cushion over Fulham.
Three successive defeats in a five-game winless run had dragged Brighton back into relegation trouble after back-to-back victories over Tottenham and Liverpool had seemed to move them clear. Two of those defeats — by West Brom and Crystal Palace — came in games the Seagulls dominated, recording an aggregate shot count of 29-8 in a microcosm of a season in which they should surely be several places higher.
