Brighton broke the deadlock against West Ham right on the stroke of halftime after some sketchy defending from the Hammers left the Seagulls free to score.
In the 43rd minute of the tie, left centre-back Dan Burn was left completely free to charge forward, the 6ft7 ace was left completely unattended as he overlapped on the left-wing after a pass to Adam Lallana.
Burn was left free to make his way into the box before he drilled a low ball in, Neal Maupay couldn’t control the powerful delivery at first, but it spilled back to him after West Ham failed to clear the ball.
Maupay fired the ball into the back of the net from 10 yards out whilst on the turn with a truly instinctive finish.
? “Brighton get their reward, and West Ham their punishment.”
Neal Maupay’s spinning effort gives Brighton the lead at the break!
? Watch on Sky Sports PL
? Follow #WHUBHA here: https://t.co/NQSobyYhJr
? Download the @SkySports app! pic.twitter.com/EhnP6mualk— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 27, 2020
Pictures from Sky Sports and RMC Sport.
Graham Potter’s men were the much better team in the first-half so they certainly deserve the lead, though it’s been sparked from an unlikely source in Burn.