Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Wolverhampton Wanderers - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - October 26, 2024 Brighton & Hove Albion's Yasin Ayari looks dejected after the match Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs
BRIGHTON, England (Reuters) -Wolverhampton Wanderers' Matheus Cunha struck a superb stoppage-time equaliser to snatch a 2-2 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday as they came back from two goals down to grab a point that lifts them off the bottom of the Premier League table.
Though the late recovery from Wolves was brilliant, Brighton only had themselves to blame for not putting their chances away and allowing the visitors to get back into the game, especially after they went two goals in front late on.
The Seagulls dominated the first half, but it took until the 45th minute for them to break the deadlock with a slick finish from Danny Welbeck after visiting keeper Jose Sa gave the ball away cheaply, allowing Brighton to counter.
Until that point, the home side had struggled to get shots on target and it was to come back to haunt them as Wolves gradually upped the tempo in the second half.
Norwegian striker Joergen Strand Larsen wasted a few decent chances for Wolves, and the game looked over for the visitors when Brighton substitute Ferguson turned and shot into the bottom-left corner in the 86th minute.
Instead, Wolves were thrown a lifeline when Rayan Ait-Nouri lashed home a loose ball after a corner two minutes later to set up a grandstand finish.
Searching for a third goal, Brighton somehow butchered a four-on-one situation and allowed Wolves to break up the other end where Cunha advanced and rattled the ball into the net in the third minute of stoppage time for a most unlikely draw.
The point - only the second of the season for Wolves - lifts them to 19th spot on two points, one ahead of Southampton and one behind Crystal Palace, while Brighton are fifth on 16.
"I'm delighted for the players and the fans really, because everyone, the players have given so much, and I know it can not always look that way because results can cloud things, but they've given an awful lot, and if you keep doing that, it can't continue to go against you," Wolves coach Gary O'Neil said.
"We were too passive, we weren't mature or professional enough today," Brighton coach Fabian Hurzeler told Sky Sports before ruing how his side handled their four-on-one break.
"That's football and football is sometimes brutal, and today we experienced it in a bad way," he said.
(Reporting by Philip O'Connor; Editing by Ken Ferris)
