Football Review | Tottenham Hotspur 2 - 2 Brighton & Hove Albion

Late drama sees Tottenham miss out on two more vital points

Tottenham’s hopes of securing Premier League survival suffered a damaging setback as Georginio Rutter struck a 95th-minute equaliser for Brighton

Author | Greg S

Stadium | Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Spurs had seemed poised to end a dismal winless run in the league, which stretched to 15 matches, and climb out of the bottom three when Xavi Simons curled in with 13 minutes remaining.

Instead, Roberto De Zerbi’s side remain a point adrift of safety with five games left. Their position could deteriorate further, with relegation rivals Nottingham Forest and West Ham United still to play, while Leeds United have already edged clear of immediate danger.

Rutter’s intervention came five minutes into eight minutes added, his finish silencing the home crowd and intensifying fears of relegation.

The former Brighton manager De Zerbi had earlier celebrated on the touchline after Pedro Porro headed in Simons’ cross to ease the tension inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

A closer analysis of what happened

Before the match, there was a fabulous atmosphere once again as the home side’s fans really tried to inspire their players.

Porro’s opener arrived during Brighton’s strongest spell of the first half, when Micky van de Ven diverted the ball against his own post and Antonin Kinsky denied Danny Welbeck from close range.

Spurs were unable to carry that advantage into the interval, however, after Kaoru Mitoma, introduced in the 20th minute following an early injury to Diego Gomez, produced a superb volley into the top corner in first-half stoppage time.

Simons’ finely taken effort, following sharp work from substitute Lucas Bergvall to win possession high up the pitch, appeared to have secured De Zerbi a first home victory in charge, one that would have lifted Spurs to 16th.

Yet their attempt to avoid a first top-flight relegation since 1977 remains finely poised after Rutter’s late intervention ensured Brighton stay firmly in contention for a European place.