Brighton Back on Track as Mats Wieffer Brace Pushes Burnley Deeper Into Trouble

Mats Wieffer capped off a remarkable personal night as his second goal in stoppage time sealed a 2-1 victory for Brighton over a struggling Burnley side that remains firmly on course for relegation.

The result extended Brighton's turnaround under Fabian Hurzeler to five wins from their last six matches, leaving them tantalizingly close to the European places, just two points behind sixth-placed Chelsea. For Burnley manager Scott Parker, the defeat leaves his side in an almost irretrievable position, 12 points from safety with only six games remaining.

The match will be remembered for the VAR drama that punctuated the evening. Burnley twice thought they had found the net through Jaidon Anthony and Bashir Humphreys, only for the technology to intervene both times. Assistant Constantine Hatzidakis flagged Humphreys offside during a goal-bound strike, and video replays backed his call. The delays frustrated a home crowd already nursing a sense of inevitability.

Brighton manager Hurzeler, serving a touchline ban and watching from the stands, saw his side weather an early Burnley storm. Anthony had the hosts ahead early on, turning the ball in from close range only to see his effort ruled out by the assistant's offside flag. The winger went close again from a well-worked corner, his flick at the front post blocked.

Burnley's early promise completely evaporated by halftime, and the home supporters made their feelings clear with a chorus of boos directed at Parker. The Clarets were fortunate not to trail by two at the break.

Brighton made the breakthrough through Pascal Gross, who found space on the left flank and delivered a precise cross that picked out Wieffer unmarked in the middle. The midfielder swept the ball into the corner for his first goal of the season, sending the away fans into raptures.

Humphreys thought he had redeemed himself after his offside ruling, thrashing the ball into the roof of the net after Bart Verbruggen palmed a James Ward-Prowse free-kick straight to him. But another offside call, this time spotting the right-back's kneecap ahead of the play, chalked the goal off.

The decisive moment arrived in the 89th minute. Brighton, not clinical enough to kill the match off earlier, got another chance when Wieffer appeared on the edge of the area to collect a loose ball. He kept his composure and found the corner, doubling his tally for the club and sparking a mass exodus from the home end.

Burnley have now failed to win at home in six months and have managed only one legal goal in their last five matches at Turf Moor. With the way things are going, it is hard to see how they avoid the drop.

We want to achieve something, we want to make the next step as a team, as a club, Hurzeler said. We have big confidence but the most important thing is earning the right to compete with the top teams by staying humble, working hard, and bringing consistency into our performances.