A game with little between the sides, rustiness abounding, looked to have been won by a second-half Matt O’Riley penalty after Sander Berge’s ill-judged challenge. Fulham were made to wait for the 95th minute for a proper chance. It was volleyed wide by an aghast Kenny Tete but it would not be the last, Rodrigo Muniz smashing in a Harry Wilson corner. When all seemed lost and Brighton looked to have held Fulham at bay, the ball was allowed to travel to the second-half sub, one of those many strikers linked with Newcastle, who chested the ball down and crashed home.
For transfer devotees, the other major news was Carlos Baleba starting in Brighton’s midfield; the expectation is he stays, give or take a steeple-high offer Tony Bloom cannot refuse. Within an aggressive midfield battle, Baleba’s quality was often apparent, sweeping up for his defence one minute, supporting forwards the next. He was certainly missed when subbed off in the second half.
While the Premier League’s upper class lavish huge sums, here were two familiar teams, just one new signing in either of two members of the squeezed middle’s starting teams; Maxim De Cuyper, the left-back another signing from Brighton’s regular Belgian trade route. Little transfer movement at Fulham where only reserve goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte was a new face. Novelty was provided by Josh King, 18, who showed high promise as much the liveliest of Fulham’s attacking players. The teenager, on the end of a hefty early challenge from Yankuba Minteh, soon showed off ball-carrying chops, the away fans calling for a penalty when Bart Verbruggen cleared him out during a breathless opening spell. Minteh did have the ball in the net, only for Baleba, his supplier, being ruled to have been beyond the byline.
