(Premier League 2022/2023): Highlights Brighton - Southampton

Today's opponents, Brighton, could clinch their best ever season in English football by beating Southampton today. Long ball forward, that's from Duncan, it was almost perfect. McAllister made the late run, and then Mitomla reacts before Ward-Prowse gets it on his right foot! Wide! McCarthy was diving, he was almost stranded, but Mitomla couldn't turn it inside the post. He just wanted it more, didn't he, and reacted quicker. We get a big replay down to our left here, Joe, but he certainly beat Ward-Prowse to it, a little shimmy into the box, and probably from a central position should have scored, or at least made McCarthy safe, but he's put it wide. Now Alcaraz gets the ball and he just can't control it, but he gets it back as the Brighton player falls, and there's a break on here, Walcott racing towards the penalty area, one to his left, one to his right, Alcaraz to his right! And he's put it wide. And he puts his hands on his face, and puts his shirt over his face to hide his embarrassment. That was a massive opportunity for Southampton. In the 17th minute here, suddenly a loose play by Dunk set Saints on their way, and Alcaraz, having passed the ball to Walcott, did exactly the right thing, he got the perfect ball back, and he spooned the shot right-footed off the instep. And it's a goal kick to Brighton, and that chance has gone, and how many will Saints get? And Walker-Peters plays it down the left, the Saints fans are O-laying at nil-nil. They're loving this possession, and Walker-Peters, maybe the Russell Martins got in the dressing room, oh, there's a slip, this is a problem, Ding-Tomer McCarthy, oh, my goodness me! Oh, my goodness me, I'm smiling. The ball is in the hands of Alex McCarthy, Saints playing it around at the back, he's got caught, all Mitoma's got to do, he could be on a hat-trick by now, he's chipped it past McCarthy, and he does, and he chips it onto the post, but it bounces back into McCarthy's arms after a loose ball gave it to Mitoma, he's six yards out, he's dinked it over McCarthy, hit the post, and McCarthy said, I love that rebound, thank you very much. Now it might be met by Caicedo, gets it to McAllister, can turn and look up, 25 yards out. Ferguson inside the box, no, low shot! And it goes under and through Alex McCarthy, and Evan Ferguson, the 18-year-old, has blasted Brighton into the lead. It's gonna go down as a goalkeeping mistake from McCarthy, but he absolutely lashed it from inside the box, like an arrow straight under McCarthy, who couldn't squeeze it out as he fell on it, and it went under him and through into the net. It's Brighton 1-0, Evan Ferguson, the 18-year-old Irish sensation, has his fifth Premier League goal of the season. BBC Radio said that's the voice of former Sir Hampton. Forward? Do you like being called a forward? I don't want to call you a utility player, do you like forward more than anything? Attacking midfielder? Doesn't matter. Sir Hampton and Norway, as Walcott goes through into the box, it's a great play from him, and he tried on the run from an angle to hit it with the outside of his right foot and bend it inside the far post, but couldn't get the control on the shot that he wanted, and in the end it went well, well wide, but Sir Hampton have been spiky. I like the way they've tried to come back from going a goal down, but if he'd had a left foot, he should have hit it with that. We have opportunities, Adam, we have had a couple of good opportunities. Yeah, now they're giving the ball away again, and this time Lavier falls over, doesn't get a free kick, Matomas down the left, that's a great ball, Eden Ferguson, three-nil, eight yards out, Saints players surround referee Paul Tierney, they're not happy, they thought there was a foul earlier in the move, Paul Tierney's put his hand to his ear, he's heard something, maybe VAR's going to check something, whether it's an offside or whether it was how Lavier didn't get the ball, but Matoma, who could have scored, finally has played his part in a goal. The ball from Matoma, as Lavier fell over, I don't think Matoma did anything wrong looking at it, and then he's crossed with the outside of his right foot, it's an absolute joy. That's not the Lavier we've seen this season, he's looking at his shoes, head down. Oh, that's a lovely touch from Ribo, that's what he's good at. Walcott driving towards the Brighton penalty area, suddenly Saints are breaking, Walcott pulls it back across the six-yard area, good defending from Veltman who tucked in, because there was a man behind him who would have loved to have got in and scored off the back of that. And in the end, Saints get a corner from it, and that's their best play of the game, possibly. Here comes the corner, Saints were 2-0 down last season, can they get one back? Flick to the back post and in! And Southampton do have a goal! And it might be Lianco celebrating, it might have been an own goal, which is why the celebrations are muted, but Saints, who were 2-0 down last season and got back to 2-2, this season have suddenly got back to 2-1, completely out of the blue in the 58th minute. Brighton 2-0, Southampton 1-0. Now, here's McAllister again, he's allowed to turn his face, he's got between the lines once more. He's got Matoma to his left, into the box, pulls it back across the penalty area, Bergson wants to get the shot away, he's on a hat-trick. Shot is blocked, though, it's always going to be ambitious. Elianussi gets the ball, Coutinho says play on, home fans moaning they wanted a free kick for a foul. And Lavia suddenly plays it well, then it's given away by Alcaraz. Lavia rescues the situation, feeds Ward-Prouse, he's looking at Walcott to his right, it's a great ball, Walcott's in behind, there's the pinion, and Walcott's tapped it past! And Southampton have it, the goal! As scores, brilliant, brilliant counter-attack, if he's onside, Brighton 2, Saints 2. Oh, what a good turnover for it. I've got to say, Theo, Alcaraz had a good game, we picked the ball up on our own half, it's almost on our 18-yard box. It's close. It's going to be close when it's offside, I think VAR is going to have a look at it. Good run by Theo Walcott, and he runs forward into Ward-Prouse, who plays a beautiful ball to Theo Walcott, who's using his pace and chips the keeper elegantly. Ginevra, by the way. At the same time, Welbeck will come on, players to care as much as them, Joe. Yeah, and they have now in the last couple of minutes. Since the goal. And there's Brie, the latest one to go in the book. Easiest decision of the day for Portini. Matoma tried to hurdle him, and Brie was basically, thou shalt not pass. Here comes the free kick for Brighton, they'd love to get a third to calm things down. Pascal Grose drills it into the penalty, back post, brilliant save by Alex McCarthy. Oh, that was class. The big man got down to his right and somehow got a very strong arm on the ball when it was on the ground, because it was drilled in and the header was a bullet. Here comes the out-swinging corner from the left, Restopinian towards the back post, bodies going down. Saints players falling like the first fence at the Grand National. Suddenly it's out on the right-hand side, and Grose shoots! And that one has gone in. Out of nowhere. And Pascal Grose, it's not his first goal against Saints, but he's made this one hard now for Southampton to keep their unbeaten record up against Brighton here in the Premier League. Because he snuck that inside McCarthy's near post, having just seen him make a world-class save to his right. He's done him with his eyes, and he's drilled it from just inside the penalty area to restore Brighton's two-goal lead. Brighton 3, Southampton 1. Here comes Tino Liberomento, and he's on for James Brie. So, what a moment for the young 20-year-old. And we all keep our fingers crossed that Tino Liberomento can enjoy getting back onto the pitch, and his knee holds up for the next 15, 20 minutes. Now Brighton again into the penalty area, Saints can't stop them progressing, but Welbeck held up a bit. Cross from Closedo, good header away by Liberomento. Volley from the canister! Goes just over the bar. It was almost perfect from the World Cup winner, he caught that beautifully. And it's just drifted over the crossbar. As he smashed it past Alex McCarthy. 3-1 to Brighton, they have it on half-way. We've got one more game to go, this time next week. We won't have kicked off this time next week, but we will be on air. Half-past four kick-off, as it's picked up by Dennis Under. He fancies it, and he strikes it wide from 20 yards. And McCarthy can watch it calmly go past. As the German unleashed a right-footed shot, and taken up a little bit of space. It was a little bit lucky, because it came to him off Stuart Armstrong. Clock ticking against Southampton's away season in the Premier League. 20 seconds to go, and that's it in fact. 14, he says, that's it. Brighton have beaten Southampton 3-1, home and away this season.