THE OLD YVES HO!
YVES BISSOUMA scored a stunning long-range strike to crush Covid-hit Blackpool’s hopes of another giantkilling – and silence his own manager!
His 25-yard thunderbolt helped ensure Brighton did not join West Brom on their League One visitors’ list of top-flight scalps.
And Brighton boss Graham Potter afterwards revealed he was growing agitated with Bissouma (below) before his thumping opener in the 27th minute.
Potter said: “We were getting a bit frustrated with
Yves because he had a couple of shots before his goal which he scuffed along the floor.
“He keeps telling me he has that quality and ability to strike from distance, so I cannot really moan any more when he takes a shot on can I?
“We could have won by more but it was a professional, controlled performance.” Brighton’s Swiss striker Andi Zeqiri should have doubled their lead nine minutes before half-time when he nodded tamely wide from Joel Veltman’s teasing delivery.
The Seagulls were made to pay for their wastefulness when Gary Madine equalised with virtually the last kick off the half, a six-yard strike for his eighth goal of the season. Brighton retook the lead in the 58th minute when Alexis Mac Allister’s shot from the edge of the penalty area struck Steven Alzate on the back to send the ball spinning beyond keeper Chris Maxwell. Substitute Neal Maupay should have put the game beyond Blackpool after being picked out unmarked inside the penalty area by Leandro Trossard but shot straight at Maxwell. The penalty shootout hero of Blackpool’s third-round win over the Baggies also made a smart save to keep out Holland midfielder Davy Propper’s close-range header.
Blackpool’s preparation for the game was affected by a Covid-19 outbreak that left them without a number of key players.
Manager Neil Critchley said: “I could not be prouder of my players’ efforts. We were always in the game but were not quite good enough to create that opportunity at the end to take us into extra time.”
BRIGHTON: Walton 6; Webster 7, Dunk 7, Burn 6; Veltman 6, Bissouma 7; Propper
6, Alzate 7 (March (61st) 6); Mac Allister 7 (Trossard (61st) 7), Tau 5 (Maupay (61st) 5), Zeqiri 6 (Gross 76th)
BLACKPOOL: Maxwell 6; Ekpiteta 6, Thorniley
6 (KaiKai 77th), Husband 6; Gabriel 6, Williams
6, Virtue 5 (Lubala 77th), Robson 6, Garbutt
7; Madine 7 (Sarkic 77th) Yates 6 (Simms
(66th) 6)
Yves Bissouma D England