How Brighton won at the Stadium of Light
The first half at the Stadium of Light, in front of 47,196, finished goalless. Both teams lined up in a 4-2-3-1. Sunderland lost Thomas Meunier to injury after 34 minutes, with Malick Fofana coming on in his place, and two minutes later Olivier Boscagli became the only player booked in the match, for a foul.
Brighton went ahead eight minutes into the second half. Pascal Gross found Maxim De Cuyper in the center of the penalty area and he finished low with his left foot into the bottom left corner past Robin Roefs, 1-0 to Brighton on 53 minutes.
The second goal came in the third minute of stoppage time. Brighton broke quickly, Georginio Rutter played in Jaouen Hadjam on the left side of the box, and Hadjam shot across Roefs into the bottom right corner with his left foot. Both had come on two minutes from the end of normal time, Hadjam for Diego Gómez and Rutter for Yasin Ayari.
Turning points: the Struijk red card and the substitutions
Four minutes after the opening goal, Pascal Struijk was sent off. According to beIN SPORTS, the Brighton defender was shown the red card for a last-man foul on Wilson Isidor after a VAR review. That left Brighton with ten men from the 57th minute to the final whistle.
Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler sent on Lewis Dunk for Charalambos Kostoulas three minutes later. On 68 minutes Costinha replaced the booked Boscagli and Malick Yalcouyé replaced the goalscorer De Cuyper. For Sunderland, Dayann Methalie and Jocelin Ta Bi came on for Reinildo Mandava and Nilson Angulo on 73 minutes, and Juan Angulo replaced Enzo Le Fée on 81.
Sunderland had most of the ball, 62.3 percent of it, and attempted 27 crosses to Brighton's 13, but put only three of their 12 shots on target, and seven more were blocked. Bart Verbruggen made three saves. Brighton made 43 clearances, against 18 by Sunderland, and Sunderland were caught offside five times.
I feel it was a deserved win and I have to praise my players.
Fabian Hurzeler, Brighton head coach, quoted by beIN SPORTS
We created a few chances, but we lacked quality in the final third.
Regis Le Bris, Sunderland head coach, quoted by beIN SPORTS
Sunderland vs Brighton: match stats
| Sunderland | Brighton | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 62.3% | 37.7% |
| Shots | 12 | 13 |
| Shots on target | 3 | 4 |
| Corners | 7 | 5 |
| Fouls | 8 | 12 |
| Offsides | 5 | 0 |
| Passes | 495 | 305 |
| Accurate passes | 385 | 206 |
| Crosses | 27 | 13 |
| Yellow cards | 0 | 1 |
| Red cards | 0 | 1 |
| Saves | 2 | 3 |
Brighton had 13 shots to Sunderland's 12 despite 37.7 percent of possession and 305 passes against 495. Four of their shots were on target and two went in. beIN SPORTS noted it was Brighton's third Premier League win in a row and that Sunderland had lost two home league games in a row without scoring for the first time since April and May 2017.
What it means for both clubs
Brighton were third before matchweek 6 with 10 points and are still third, now on 13 from six games: four wins, one draw and one defeat, with a goal difference of +13, the best in the league. They are five points behind Manchester City, who have won all six, two behind second-placed Arsenal and three clear of fourth-placed Brentford, who have 10 points like Everton and Chelsea.
Sunderland started the matchweek 14th with four points and drop to 16th, still on four after a fourth defeat in six games, with a goal difference of -6. They are one point above the relegation zone. AFC Bournemouth, 17th, Tottenham Hotspur, 18th, and Coventry City, 19th, all have three points, and Fulham are bottom with two. Matchweek 6 is not finished: Coventry play Newcastle United on Monday 12 October, and a win would take them above Sunderland. The current standings are in the Premier League table, and our count of how many points it takes to stay up puts four points from six games in context.
What's next for Sunderland and Brighton
- Sunderland: away to AFC Bournemouth, Sunday 18 October 2026, 14:00 BST. Bournemouth are one place and one point below them.
- Brighton & Hove Albion: at home to Crystal Palace, Sunday 18 October 2026, 14:00 BST. Palace are 12th with seven points.
All the matchweek 7 kickoff times are on the Premier League fixtures page, and the Premier League simulator lets you play out the rest of the season from the current table. Elsewhere on Saturday, second-placed Arsenal played Leeds United: read our Arsenal v Leeds report.
How this report was built: goals, cards, substitutions, lineups and match statistics come from ESPN's match data, with each event's team taken from ESPN's team record. The table before and after matchweek 6 is our own, computed from ESPN full-time results, three points for a win; Coventry City v Newcastle United, on 12 October, had not been played when it was compiled. The quotes, the detail of the VAR review and the form figures come from beIN SPORTS.