Brighton & Hove Albion climbed to seventh in the Premier League table after a dominant 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at the American Express Stadium, a result that further underlined their strong home form.
The Seagulls made a lightning-fast start, with Jack Hinshelwood breaking the deadlock after just 36 seconds.
The midfielder powered a header into the net from Maxim De Cuyper’s pinpoint delivery from the left, marking his fourth league goal of the campaign.
Wolves’ defensive problems quickly worsened. Lewis Dunk doubled the lead soon after, reacting quickest inside the box to convert another dangerous De Cuyper set-piece, this time a curling corner that was not properly dealt with.
Brighton & Hove Albion head coach Fabian Hürzeler’s side remained firmly in control and could have extended their advantage further before the 15-minute mark, when Kaoru Mitoma struck the side-netting after carving out a promising opening.
The home team continued to dictate the tempo throughout the first half, with Wolves struggling badly in possession and failing to register a single shot before the break.
Danny Welbeck was denied by an alert save from Daniel Bentley, as Brighton pushed for a third.
Wolves head coach Rob Edwards saw his team show slight improvement after the restart, and they almost reduced the deficit in the 53rd minute when Yerson Mosquera’s close-range header crashed against the crossbar following a delivery from Mateus Mané.
Brighton were then forced into a setback when Mitoma limped off just before the hour mark with what looked like a hamstring issue, disrupting their attacking rhythm.
Despite the interruption, the Seagulls remained comfortable and eventually sealed the victory late on. Substitute Yankuba Minteh made it 3-0 in the 86th minute, smashing home after Wolves failed to clear their lines.
The result extends Brighton’s run to three consecutive home wins in the league, strengthening their push up the table ahead of a trip to Leeds United next weekend.
Wolves, meanwhile, stay bottom of the standings and continue to search for their first away league win of the season.
