Brighton & Hove Albion missed the chance to move into seventh place in the Premier League as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Brentford, who edged further away from the bottom three.
The Seagulls enjoyed more possession and created the better opportunities at the Gtech Community Stadium, but their European hopes were dented as the hosts held on for a share of the spoils.
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Ivan Toney went closest to scoring for Brentford, who are now without a win in eight Premier League matches.
Thomas Frank’s side, who move six points clear of the relegation zone, remain in 15th place while Brighton stay ninth, just two points behind West Ham United in seventh.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
38 | +14 | 63 |
| 7 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
38 | +23 | 60 |
| 8 |
Man Utd
MUN
|
38 | -1 | 60 |
| 9 |
West Ham
WHU
|
38 | -14 | 52 |
How the match unfolded
Toney scored both goals when the sides met here last season, but he squandered a great chance to break the deadlock after 32 minutes.
Latching onto Yoane Wissa’s neat pass, the Brentford skipper cleverly cut inside Jan Paul van Hecke, but sent a tame shot straight into Bart Verbruggen’s arms.
Mark Flekken was called into action at the other end soon after as he held onto efforts from the returning Joao Pedro and Facundo Buonanotte, while Adam Lallana fired wide from distance.
Both sides turned to the bench after the break in a bid to find the spark required in a cagey contest. Brighton introduced the in-form Danny Welbeck while Bryan Mbeumo – recently back from injury – entered for Brentford.
After Igor Julio shot wide from long-range, Welbeck went close to grabbing that elusive opening goal in stoppage time, but he fired wide after a strong individual run as both sides were forced to settle for a point apiece in London.
Welbeck's attempt was Brighton's 24th shot on goal without scoring – their most in a single Premier League away match without netting.
This was Brentford's first clean sheet after conceding in 10 successive outings across all competitions, however the Bees are without a victory at the Gtech in five matches, their longest streak since also going through five winless matches during their maiden Premier League season.
Brentford will hope their next home match, which comes against struggling Sheffield United on 13 April, can get them fully back on track in front of their own supporters.
For Roberto De Zerbi’s Seagulls, Wednesday night's draw halted a four-match losing streak on the road, but Brighton have now won just one of their last 10 Premier League away matches. That lone success came courtesy of their 5-0 rout of bottom side Sheff Utd.
Trips to the capital have not been productive for Brighton this season and they are now without a win in all seven of their away matches in the capital.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 |
Everton
EVE
|
38 | -11 | 40 |
| 16 |
Brentford
BRE
|
38 | -9 | 39 |
| 17 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
38 | -18 | 32 |
| 18 |
Luton
LUT
|
38 | -33 | 26 |
| 19 |
Burnley
BUR
|
38 | -37 | 24 |
| 20 |
Sheffield Utd
SHU
|
38 | -69 | 16 |
Club reports
Brentford report | Brighton report
Next Premier League fixtures
Key facts
Brentford have won only 28 points from their first 31 Premier League matches this season, their worst points tally at this stage of a top-flight campaign since 1946/47 (also 28 points, assuming 3 points/win), which is the last time they were relegated from the top tier.
Brighton had 24 shots in this match without scoring – just the third time they have done so home and away in the competition.
Pascal Gross created seven chances and completed 118 passes for Brighton. It was the second time this season that he’s had 5+ chances created and 100+ passes in a Premier League match (also v Sheff Utd), with Cesc Fabregas in 2016/17 the last player to do that more than once in a single campaign (also twice).
Brighton made four changes to their line-up for this match, which means they have made 114 starting XI changes in the Premier League this season – the most of any side. In fact, it is more than the Seagulls made in any of their previous six campaigns in the competition.