Burnley boss Sean Dyche says Wout Weghorst has been a “breath of fresh air” after the Dutch striker scored his first goal for the club in their win at Brighton.
Weghorst opened the scoring before Josh Brownhill added a second and Aaron Lennon made sure of the victory just over 20 minutes from time.
Dyche praised the Netherlands international’s attitude and said he wasn’t concerned by the wait for him to get off the mark after arriving from Wolfsburg in January.
“Wout has come in and done fantastic for us, but others were looking a threat,” Dyche told BBC Sport.
“I’ve seen him in training, I’d be amazed if he doesn’t score more goals. He has been a breath of fresh air. Defensively, he works for the team. He is a top pro.
“We created chances. That’s been the difference all season. There hasn’t been much wrong with our defensive shape or the way we’ve worked as a side. The energy of the performances have been good and we looked a real threat today.”
Brighton dominated possession but managed only one shot on target and struggled at the back, where they were missing the suspended Lewis Dunk and injured Adam Webster.
A fast start almost saw Burnley take the lead when Connor Roberts spotted Robert Sanchez off his line and curled an effort that came back off the bar.
Their purpose and energy were rewarded soon afterwards, when Weghorst fired home from Roberts’ low right-hand cross, giving Sanchez no chance.
It took until 10 minutes before half-time for Brighton to manage an effort on goal, and Shane Duffy’s strike was held easily by Nick Pope. Adam Lallana headed wide from Tariq Lamptey’s cross moments later.
Weghorst turned provider with the break looming, laying on for Brownhill, whose tame effort was deflected in off Joel Veltman.
The frustration continued for the hosts after the break, with Neal Maupay shooting wide from another Lamptey cross.
Soon after, Lennon made it 3-0 after combining with Jay Rodriguez, who came on for the injured Maxwel Cornet, before firing into the top corner to round off a brilliant day for the Clarets.
Dyche’s men are five points behind 17th-placed Newcastle but have two games in hand. Brighton are ninth.
Weghorst shines for Clarets
Weghorst has made a really positive start to life at Burnley, and he was the difference on the south coast.
Against a weakened Brighton backline without their first choice centre-backs, he made a nuisance of himself all afternoon. But everything started with a fine finish for his goal.
His lay-off for Brownhill showed his technical ability as well as his physical presence, and there is now a real chance that a difficult season at Turf Moor may be about to turn.
Injury to his strike partner Cornet was a blow, but he has offered real hope.
Weghorst admitted it was a “dream” to finally open his account in English football.
“It is something you dream about as a kid, to score in the Premier League,” he told BBC Sport. “You want to be important and to help the team. It is a special moment.”
Seagulls porous and toothless
Dunk and Webster were badly missed, but Brighton fell into old habits at the other end. They had 69% of the ball but failed to make it count, with Maupay cutting a frustrated figure up front.
Keeping Lamptey relatively quiet on his return to Brighton’s starting XI was huge for Burnley, but there was a general lack of intensity in Graham Potter’s side’s play from the start. They let Burnley take the early initiative and ultimately paid for it.
Player of the match
WeghorstWout Weghorst
Brighton & Hove Albion
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Squad number2Player nameLampteyAverage rating
4.89
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Squad number24Player nameDuffyAverage rating
4.70
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Squad number20Player nameMarch
Average rating4.63
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Squad number10Player nameMac Allister
Average rating4.63
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Squad number18Player nameWelbeck
Average rating4.56
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Squad number14Player nameLallana
Average rating4.51
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Squad number1Player nameSánchez
Average rating4.48
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Squad number15Player nameModer
Average rating4.45
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Squad number3Player nameCucurella
Average rating4.42
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Squad number9Player nameMaupay
Average rating4.41
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Squad number8Player nameBissouma
Average rating4.33
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Squad number34Player nameVeltman
Average rating4.11
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Squad number11Player nameTrossard
Average rating4.10
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Squad number58Player nameFerguson
Average rating4.02
Burnley
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Squad number9Player nameWeghorst
Average rating8.62
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Squad number8Player nameBrownhill
Average rating7.66
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Squad number14Player nameRoberts
Average rating7.55
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Squad number1Player namePope
Average rating7.54
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Squad number17Player nameLennon
Average rating7.49
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Squad number20Player nameCornet
Average rating7.43
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Squad number19Player nameRodriguez
Average rating7.42
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Squad number6Player nameMee
Average rating7.35
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Squad number22Player nameCollins
Average rating7.30
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Squad number11Player nameMcNeil
Average rating7.21
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Squad number23Player namePieters
Average rating7.15
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Squad number4Player nameCork
Average rating7.10
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Squad number10Player nameBarnes
Average rating6.94
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Squad number2Player nameLowton
Average rating6.89
Line-ups
Brighton
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Sánchez
- 2Lamptey
- 24DuffyBooked at 84mins
- 34Veltman
- 3Cucurella
- 15ModerSubstituted forMarchat 55′minutes
- 14LallanaSubstituted forTrossardat 55′minutes
- 8Bissouma
- 10Mac Allister
- 9Maupay
- 18WelbeckSubstituted forFergusonat 68′minutes
Substitutes
- 11Trossard
- 13Groß
- 17Alzate
- 20March
- 23Steele
- 25Caicedo
- 28Roberts
- 42Leonard
- 58Ferguson
Burnley
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Pope
- 14RobertsBooked at 59mins
- 22Collins
- 6Mee
- 23Pieters
- 17LennonBooked at 61minsSubstituted forLowtonat 90+2′minutes
- 4CorkBooked at 25mins
- 8BrownhillBooked at 87mins
- 11McNeil
- 20CornetSubstituted forRodriguezat 55′minutes
- 9WeghorstSubstituted forBarnesat 88′minutes
Substitutes
- 2Lowton
- 10Barnes
- 13Hennessey
- 16Stephens
- 19Rodriguez
- 26Bardsley
- 28Long
- 37Thomas
- 50Waller
- Referee:
- Kevin Friend
Match Stats
Live Text
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Match ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 0, Burnley 3.
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Second Half ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 0, Burnley 3.
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Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion).
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Nick Pope (Burnley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Substitution, Burnley. Matthew Lowton replaces Aaron Lennon.
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Corner, Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Connor Roberts.
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Attempt blocked. Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Alexis Mac Allister with a cross.
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Substitution, Burnley. Ashley Barnes replaces Wout Weghorst.
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Josh Brownhill (Burnley) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Leandro Trossard (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Foul by Josh Brownhill (Burnley).
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Shane Duffy (Brighton and Hove Albion) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Foul by Shane Duffy (Brighton and Hove Albion).
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Wout Weghorst (Burnley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Attempt missed. Leandro Trossard (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Solly March.
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Offside, Burnley. Josh Brownhill tries a through ball, but Wout Weghorst is caught offside.
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Attempt blocked. Josh Brownhill (Burnley) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Wout Weghorst.
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Attempt missed. Jay Rodriguez (Burnley) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Nick Pope.
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Attempt missed. Marc Cucurella (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the right.
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Attempt blocked. Marc Cucurella (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Yves Bissouma.
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