Brighton continued their strong start to the Women’s Super League season under their new head coach, Dario Vidosic, as they won a six-goal thriller against Aston Villa, who had Paula Tomás controversially sent off in the decisive moment of an evenly fought match.
With the contest level at 2-2 after Rachel Daly had scored twice for Villa, either side of close-range finishes from Nikita Parris and Pauline Bremer for the home side, Brighton were awarded a late penalty. Tomás was adjudged to have blocked Kiko Seike’s run in the box and Villa reacted with shock and dismay when the Spain left-back was shown a straight red card.
Quick Guide
How do I sign up for sport breaking news alerts?
Show
- Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for ‘The Guardian’.
- If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
- In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications.
- Turn on sport notifications.
After Villa’s protests, Fran Kirby confidently stepped up to slot in low from the penalty spot, giving Brighton six points from a possible nine so far this season.
Brighton then had Poppy Pattinson sent off for a second yellow card in stoppage time, before the substitute Michelle Agyemang made it 4-2 with a clinical low finish.
The result leaves Robert de Pauw without a league victory from his first three WSL matches as Villa’s head coach but he will have been encouraged by his side’s creative play and attractive attacking football, off the back of a narrow opening loss away at Chelsea, the champions, and a 2-2 draw with Tottenham.
after newsletter promotion
More to follow