Michael Oliver holds his hands up after his error
Michael Oliver holds his hands up after his error
Fabian Hurzeler claimed it was “unbelievable” that Michael Oliver failed to stop play after the FIFA official admitted a “mistake” before Crystal Palace's first goal.
Oliver prevented Carlos Baleba tackling Michael Eze in the first half before two consecutive Eagles corners. Trevor Chalobah lashed home the opening goal from the second - and man-of-the-match Ismaila Sarr then bagged a brace. German Hurzeler admitted: "In the end we deserved to lose and we have to analyse it and try to improve.”
But the Brighton boss, whose team have now failed to win in four games, reckoned the result would have been different if Albion had not conceded the first goal.
"When the ref says after the game it's his mistake then I don't understand why he doesn't stop the game,” Hurzeler said. “That's a decision that's unbelievable. I asked him. He said it's my mistake.
"I think we are good in the high press, we would win the ball if he wouldn't stand there so it had an impact on the game. Not to interrupt the game is something I really don't understand and there is no explanation for that.”
Play should only be stopped if the ball hits the official. Brighton have beaten Manchester United, Man City and Spurs at home this season but have failed to win any of the five games they have played against teams in the bottom five
“We are still trying to figure it out and work hard on these things,” Hurzeler added. “But in general, the most important thing is not to concede a goal and in all these games, we concede goals and concede goals too easily and I think we have to work on it. We weren't patient enough today and conceded the second goal and weren't able to come back.
“We didn't score in the phases when we had plenty of chances and that is why it is a bad experience. It's not a perfect moment. There are some days in football that are just bad. It is very disappointing but we should see this as a lesson for us.”
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