Brighton & Hove Albion missed out on UEFA Conference League qualification, despite Jack Hinshelwood's double inspiring a 4-1 comeback win at Tottenham Hotspur on the final day.
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Spurs supporters put on a show to welcome home the UEFA Europa League champions, and they soon had further reason to celebrate when Dominic Solanke opened the scoring with a 17th-minute penalty after Mats Wieffer's foul on Mathys Tel.
However, Hinshelwood – who scored Brighton's winner last time out against Liverpool – restored parity six minutes into the second half before reacting fastest again with an inventive finish to send Brighton ahead in the 64th minute.
A late penalty by Matt O'Riley and Diego Gomez's thumping finish wrapped up an impressive turnaround as Fabian Hurzeler's side sealed eighth place – but Chelsea's 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest meant Brighton could not sneak into the Conference League.
Spurs, meanwhile, ended a drab domestic campaign in disappointing fashion, but will still be playing Champions League football next season, despite their 17th-placed finish in the Premier League.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 |
Brighton
BHA
|
38 | +7 | 61 |
| 9 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
38 | +12 | 56 |
How the match unfolded
The celebratory home atmosphere went up another notch when Wieffer's clumsy lunge on Tel allowed Solanke to outwit Bart Verbruggen by firing his penalty down the middle.
Verbruggen excellently thwarted Tel's low strike after Pedro Porro teed up the forward as part of a rapid break, and that would prove a key moment as Brighton came flying out the blocks in the second half.
Adam Webster's attempted header from a Brajan Gruda corner fortuitously fell for Hinselhwood to slam past Guglielmo Vicario, before Brennan Johnson went close at the other end in response.
Carlos Baleba then struck a post with a low effort before Gruda's right-sided corner cannoned off numerous players and fell kindly for Hinshelwood to smartly backheel over the line.
Substitute O'Riley fired his penalty low into the bottom-right corner after Yves Bissouma – facing his former club – fouled Diego Gomez, whose stunning long-range finish into the top-right corner capped a fine turnaround that was only dampened by Chelsea’s victory at Nottingham Forest.
Questions remain for Postecoglou
Despite Spurs’ delight at winning the Europa League on Wednesday, courtesy of Johnson's goal against Manchester United, there remains much debate around the performance of Ange Postecoglou’s squad this season.
The Australian head coach will hope to still be in his post when Spurs embark on their UEFA Champions League quest next campaign, but this performance again showed why Postecoglou's tenure has at times come under significant scrutiny.
Tel impressed throughout with his quick feet, and a delightful corner delivery almost teed up Micky van de Ven, before the Spurs loanee fooled Wieffer for the penalty decision after bursting forward with possession from deep.
French forward Tel should have capped a fine first-half display with a goal, but he fired his left-footed effort at a sprawling Verbruggen as Spurs passed up a gilt-edged chance to double their lead.
The same theme continued from Tel as his surging drive created space for Johnson to divert wide, but even his attacking excitement could not mask Spurs' defensive issues at the other end.
Those problems at the back remain the primary reason Spurs endured a woeful Premier League campaign, and another heavy loss leaves Postecoglou with questions to answer as a mixed season comes to an end with Spurs having conceded 65 top-flight goals.
Brilliant Brighton narrowly miss out on Europe
Brighton's impressive 3-2 comeback against champions Liverpool left eighth place – and the potential for Conference League football next season – in their hands heading into Sunday.
They appeared to carry that winning impetus into this match by starting strong, with Yankuba Minteh's header freeing Simon Adingra to drag wide before Wieffer blazed over an ambitious half-volley.
Wieffer's adrenaline may still have been running high when his needless trip on Tel saw Solanke break the deadlock from the spot, while Hinshelwood could only direct a tame header at Vicario, with Brighton's best chance before half-time.
While they started strongly, the visitors were even better after the break. Hinshelwood left Vicario with no chance shortly after the interval, though Brighton's celebrations were slightly muted as news filtered through of Levi Colwill's goal for Chelsea at Forest.
Half-time substitute Gomez and Minteh then both stung the palms of Vicario, before Hinshelwood pounced again after Baleba was denied by the foot of Spurs's woodwork.
As the match progressed, Spurs had no answer to Brighton’s running, energy and quality. Gomez's lung-bursting overlap won the penalty for O'Riley to convert, before the midfielder grabbed a goal of his own with an eye-catching curler past the helpless Vicario.
Hurzeler will take comfort from an eighth-place finish and a highly impressive run of form to wrap up the season, and he will be optimistic of putting in a similar challenge for Europe again next season.
Club reports
Spurs report | Brighton report
PL clubs' summer 2025 pre-season friendly fixtures
Key facts
Spurs have lost 26 games in all competitions this season, their most in a single campaign in the club’s history.
Only in 2022/23 have Brighton finished with more points (62) and in a higher position (6th) in a top-flight campaign than in 2024/25 (61 points and eighth place finish), while only four sides won more points in the Premier League in 2025 than their 34.
Tottenham’s seven changes to their starting XI today means they’ve made 121 in total in the Premier League this season, their most in a single campaign in the competition, with their previous most being 116 in 2018/19.
