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Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said Flynn Downes should not have been on the pitch when he scored Southampton’s equalising goal.
Kaoru Mitoma gave Brighton the lead with a header but the hosts were pegged back in the second-half by the Saints – who also had a winner controversially disallowed.
However, Hurzeler feels his team were also hard done by in the game.
In his post-match press conference, the 31-year-old showed his frustration with the fact that Downes was not sent off for an accumulation of fouls – when he already had been booked.
Memories of Carlos Baleba’s dubious sending off last weekend at Bournemouth didn’t help matters.
“That's exactly what I said in the half-time already and then he makes another foul,” Hurzeler said.
"There's no explanation for that and that's something that changes the game. It changed the game in Bournemouth, in the other direction today it could change the game in our direction.
"But you have to be very careful what you say here in England because also my yellow card is something that I can't understand and I have to adapt to this here.”
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said Flynn Downes should not have been on the pitch when he scored Southampton’s equalising goal. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said Flynn Downes should not have been on the pitch when he scored Southampton’s equalising goal. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said Flynn Downes should not have been on the pitch when he scored Southampton’s equalising goal. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
The result temporarily moved Brighton up to second in the league but other results mean they now sit fifth.
Hurzeler said he did not feel the ‘best emotions’ after the match but he stressed ‘that's part of football’.
He added: “Disappointment and negative experiences are part of the process. We didn't deserve more today so we have to keep improving, keep pushing and try to be better next game.”
Asked what wasn’t quite right, Hurzeler said: “I think the second half, being more consistent in our performance during the 90 minutes, being more ruthless with the chances we had.
"I think, in the first half, we had enough chances to win the game and we didn't use them. Then we were not clear enough, not stable enough to defend, to not concede a goal. These were the main points.”
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