Pascal Gross stated that Brighton and Hove Albion are not contenders for the Premier League title, even after climbing to second place in the standings following a 2-0 victory against 10-man Brentford.
Brighton Defeats Brentford to Claim Second Place
The home side opened the scoring in the 15th minute when Diego Gomez unleashed a brilliant half-volley into the top-left corner after Brentford failed to clear a cross into the area.
Brentford suffered a major setback when striker Igor Thiago received a red card following a VAR review. Referee Michael Oliver upgraded an initial yellow card to a red after reviewing pitchside monitor footage of Thiago striking Chema Andres in the face during an off-the-ball incident.
Brighton extended their advantage before the interval when Pascal Gross converted from the penalty spot. The penalty was awarded after Keane Lewis-Potter pulled down Luka Vuskovic during a corner kick.
The win allowed Brighton to surpass Manchester City in the standings and claim second position, though Gross rejected any notion of challenging league leaders Arsenal.
“We are not in a title race. But we have started the season really well. It’s the beginning of the season,” Gross told Sky Sports.
“You see the Premier League, the margins, you look at the results – we are not getting carried away yet.”
“Every game we have to suffer a lot. Sometimes it is momentum. But we are really pleased to head into the international break like this,” Gross added.
Bournemouth Extends Winning Streak
In another fixture, Bournemouth climbed to seventh place in the table by securing their eighth successive victory across all competitions with a 2-1 triumph over Ipswich Town.
Evanilson opened the scoring for Bournemouth in the fifth minute capitalising on a serious mistake by Ipswich goalkeeper Christian Walton, who was caught in possession and allowed the Brazilian forward to tap the ball into an unguarded net.
Bournemouth doubled their lead shortly after the start of the second half when a shot from Ryan Christie took a decisive deflection off Ipswich defender Leif Davis.
Ipswich managed to reduce the deficit through a penalty converted by Jack Clarke, but the visitors were unable to find an equalising goal before the final whistle.
