Danny Welbeck produced the decisive goal as Brighton & Hove Albion snatched a vital 2-1 win over fellow European hopefuls AFC Bournemouth.

Substitute Welbeck scored within four minutes of his introduction, calmly finishing with his left foot to secure Brighton's third straight Premier League win and boost their hopes of a top-four finish.

It was Welbeck's 30th Premier League goal for Brighton, the joint-most for the Seagulls in the competition along with Pascal Gross.

Brighton's rapid start had earlier been rewarded when Bournemouth goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga clumsily felled Joao Pedro, who opened the scoring with a 12th-minute penalty at the Amex Stadium.

However, Justin Kluivert levelled with a stunning effort just past the hour before Brighton – despite being on the ropes – delivered their counter-attacking blow with 15 minutes remaining.

Welbeck's vital impact from the bench saw Brighton move into eighth, level on points with seventh-placed Bournemouth, who are part of the chasing pack within touching distance of the top four.

How the match unfolded

Kepa rushed out and tripped Joao Pedro after Diego Gomez's delicate through-ball, and the Brazilian striker made no mistake by stroking the penalty to his left, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.

Antoine Semenyo should have levelled just past the half-hour mark but fired straight at Bart Verbruggen, while Kaoru Mitoma's acrobatic volley struck the post at the other end following a delightful delivery from Tariq Lamptey.

A moment of individual brilliance restored parity for Bournemouth as Milos Kerkez played a simple offload to Kluivert, who cut inside from the left and whipped it into the top-right corner from a tight angle at the edge of the box.

Bournemouth almost struck a double blow soon after, but Verbruggen produced an expert stop from close range after Marcus Tavernier's effort had deflected into Dango Ouattara’s path.

Verbruggen's heroics proved pivotal late on when Georginio Rutter rolled through for Welbeck to poke a left-footed effort past Kepa, his finish kissing the inside of the post on its way in for the all-important winner.

Brilliant Brighton find a way

Fabian Hurzeler may have been concerned after a record 7-0 thumping by Nottingham Forest to start the month, though his side responded with handsome victories over Chelsea and Southampton.

Brighton smashed four goals in Saturday's rout of Ivan Juric's Saints, and came flying out of the blocks here as Rutter headed wide after Kepa made a mess of a simple cross.

Mitoma then touched narrowly off target after Gomez's smart through-ball, and Brighton's new midfielder repeated the dose with another incisive pass in behind Dean Huijsen to tee up Joao Pedro to win the penalty.

Vibrant winger Mitoma was again afforded too much room by makeshift full-back Lewis Cook, ghosting inside onto Lamptey's cross before striking Kepa's left-hand post with a well-timed volley.

Their second-half performance was far from their free-flowing style in the opening period, though Rutter found a neat pocket of space before sliding in for Welbeck's moment of glory.

Hurzeler will still have decisions to ponder at the back, with Bournemouth regularly cutting through Brighton without reward, but their resilience in the face of relentless second-half pressure will please the German head coach.

Brighton's next league task will be to back up this victory and make it four straight wins when they host Fulham, another European challenger, at the Amex on 8 March.

Iraola concern for blunt Bournemouth

Back-to-back defeats against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brighton may concern Andoni Iraola, although the Cherries were reduced to 10 men early on against Vitor Pereira's side on Saturday.

Bournemouth's defence sorely missed the suspended Illia Zabarnyi, with James Hill struggling to support Huijsen in a wave of early Brighton pressure that was rewarded by Joao Pedro's opener.

Iraola's side still created plenty of chances at the other end – Ryan Christie forced an early save on the stretch by Verbruggen before Ouattara headed Semenyo's left-wing cross harmlessly over.

Ouattara then turned creator for Semenyo, who had the freedom of the south coast down the left flank before blasting at Verbruggen when a more controlled finish may have proved decisive.

Kluivert dragged his side back into the contest with a wonderful strike after cutting inside past Lamptey – and they could have soon hit the front if not for Ouattara’s huge missed opportunity from inside the six-yard box.

Luis Sinisterra's low cross-shot was then palmed away by Verbruggen in the dying seconds, with Evanilson unable to pounce, leaving Bournemouth unable to find a way back.

For all of their attacking impetus, Iraola will be desperate for his side to find their clinical edge before next visiting Tottenham Hotspur in the competition.

Club reports

Brighton report | AFC Bournemouth report

Match officials

Referee: Michael Oliver. Assistants: Stuart Burt, James Mainwaring. Fourth official: Farai Hallam. VAR: Matt Donohue. Assistant VAR: Gary Beswick.