Brighton & Hove Albion beat Sunderland 2-0 at the Stadium of Light, holding their lead after Pascal Struijk was sent off before substitute Jaouen Hadjam added a stoppage-time second. Brighton’s review of the match said Maxim De Cuyper had opened the scoring from a Pascal Gross pass, and the result took Fabian Hürzeler’s side to 13 points from six Premier League games while retaining third place.
The victory was Brighton’s fourth in their opening six league fixtures, according to the club’s round-up of national media coverage. It followed the side’s 3-0 win over Arsenal before the international break, although this performance required a different sort of resilience after Struijk’s 57th-minute dismissal.
Gross creates the opening before Brighton lose a man
Brighton’s account said Sunderland had been relieved to reach half-time with the score still 0-0. Struijk had headed against the post deep into first-half stoppage time with Robin Roefs beaten, but the visitors did not find the breakthrough until later.
The club’s review said Gross then threaded a pass through the Sunderland defence for De Cuyper, who finished low between Roefs and the post. The goal was De Cuyper’s fourth of the campaign, according to the report, and it put Brighton ahead after an opening period in which the hosts had kept the game level.
The contest changed sharply in the 57th minute. Brighton’s account said Struijk pushed Wilson Isidor as the Sunderland player accelerated towards the penalty area. After a VAR check and a review at the pitch-side monitor, referee Bramall ruled that the defender had denied a clear goalscoring opportunity and showed him a red card.
That left Brighton to negotiate more than half an hour, including added time, with 10 players. The sequence matters when assessing the result: Brighton established their advantage at full strength, then had to defend it for the remainder of the match after the dismissal rather than simply protect a draw.
Hadjam supplies the late finish
Sunderland had possession after the red card, but Brighton’s report said Bart Verbruggen’s only real save was from a Granit Xhaka free-kick from around 30 yards. The home side therefore did not turn their territorial pressure into an equaliser.
Brighton instead secured the points in stoppage time. The club’s media review said Hadjam, who had entered as a substitute in the 88th minute, scored after Gross headed Roefs’ free-kick on and Georginio Rutter set up the Algerian full-back. Hadjam’s finish made the final score 2-0.
The late goal gave Brighton a two-goal margin, but the more revealing feature was their ability to maintain defensive discipline after the sending-off. The reports cited by Brighton described Hürzeler’s side as resolute and comfortable for long spells despite their numerical disadvantage.
What the result changes for Brighton
Brighton’s 13-point total is supported by a simple reading of their opening record: four wins from six matches accounts for 12 points, with the remaining point coming from a draw. The club’s review said only two teams were above them after the Sunderland result, leaving Brighton in third place.
Gross was central to the latest win. The report said the 35-year-old provided the pass for De Cuyper’s opener and began the move that ended with Hadjam’s late goal. It also said he had registered seven direct goal involvements across his previous five Premier League appearances. That run gives added context to his influence at Sunderland: his contribution was not limited to one decisive pass, but formed part of a productive recent spell.
Brighton’s result should not be treated as proof of a final league outcome this early in the season. However, the evidence from Sunderland does show why their early points total has been sustained: they were able to create the opening goal through Gross, withstand a prolonged numerical disadvantage, and still add a second through a substitute late in the game.