Brighton beat Crystal Palace 5-0 on Sunday, 18 October, in the seventh round of the Premier League season. The win was their sixth in a row in all competitions, according to 20minutes, and it moved them up to second on 16 points from seven games. Arsenal, on 15 points, play at Nottingham Forest later the same afternoon, and a win for them would push Brighton down to third. Brighton have scored 23 league goals this season and have taken more shots from distance than most of the league.
Jaydee Canvot headed a Pascal Gross free kick into his own net in the fourth minute, giving Brighton the lead. Three minutes later Diego Gomez, a 23-year-old Paraguayan midfielder, struck from 51 metres after Olivier Boscagli won the ball off Adam Wharton and released him. Opta put the distance at 51 metres. Walter Benitez had strayed off his line, sprinted back and dived, but the shot dipped just under the crossbar. Yasin Ayari made it 3-0 after 10 minutes, running onto a backheel from Charalampos Kostoulas and finishing past Benitez.
Charalampos Kostoulas made it 4-0 four minutes into the second half, shooting in after Ayari's effort deflected into his path. Jean-Philippe Mateta, back from a hamstring injury, hit the crossbar as a substitute for Palace, and Jefferson Lerma headed against the post. Jack Hinshelwood completed the scoring in the 84th minute with a close-range finish after Benitez parried a Luka Vuskovic header. Pierre Sage fielded the teenager Honest Ahanor and 20-year-old Jaydee Canvot in defence, a decision the Guardian said backfired badly.
The 5-0 scoreline was Brighton's biggest win over Palace since 1956, when both clubs were in Division Three South. It was also their first win over Palace under head coach Fabian Hurzeler at the fifth attempt, and their eighth clean sheet in all competitions in 2026-27. Gomez scored his first Premier League goal of the season, having scored four in a 6-0 Carabao Cup win over Barnsley last season. He joined Brighton from Inter Miami in 2025 for £11million ($14.8m). Rooney's effort was shortlisted for the Premier League goal of the season, so Gomez could be in contention when the award is decided in May.
The Guardian reported that there have been disagreements behind the scenes at Palace since Sage replaced Oliver Glasner in the summer. Brighton supporters chanted during the second half that Palace chairman Steve Parish would be sacked. The Guardian noted that two earlier Palace managers, Patrick Vieira and Roy Hodgson, were dismissed not long after losing to Brighton. Hurzeler, 33, was on the receiving end of a similar chant from Palace fans in February after their smash-and-grab win on the south coast.
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Brighton beat Crystal Palace 5-0 on Sunday, 18 October, with Diego Gomez's strike from 51 metres the standout moment. It was the longest Premier League goal since Wayne Rooney's effort for Everton in November 2017.
AI text based on reports by The New York Times, 20minutes, RTE.ie and other publishers. Published .