Tottenham vs Brighton: Christian Eriksen winner sees Spurs retain grip on top-four
Relive all the action from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
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Christian Eriksen's 88th minute goal finally broke Brighton and Hove Albion's brave resistance to give Tottenham Hotspur a precious 1-0 victory in their quest for a top-four finish in the Premier League on Tuesday.
Until the Danish playmaker's low shot from just outside the penalty area whizzed across the lush turf and past Mat Ryan, it seemed Brighton had withstood a second-half siege and would escape with a priceless point in their relegation battle.
Chris Hughton's side erected a green wall in front of Tottenham for more or less the entire game, leaving the home fans groaning in frustration -- none more so than when Toby Alderweireld's shot with 20 minutes remaining hit the inside of the post and rolled across the face of goal.
In his desperation, Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino even sent on outcast Dutch striker Vincent Janssen in the 80th minute for his first action of the season.
But in the end it was Eriksen who punctured Brighton's armour from Tottenham's 29th goal attempt -- 21 of which were from outside the penalty area.
It secured a fourth win from four matches in all competitions for Tottenham inside their magnificent new stadium and more importantly it lifted them three points above fourth-placed Chelsea with three games to go and four ahead of Arsenal who have played one game less. Tottenham are six clear of Manchester United.
Relive all the action below.
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Welcome to The Independent's live coverage of Tottenham vs Brighton in a crucial game at both ends of the Premier League table.
It seems that none of the four teams in contention want to clinch those coveted Champions League spots!
Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham all failed to win at the weekend, which gives Spurs the chance to open up a three-point lead, from Chelsea in fourth, tonight.
Team news coming up!
TEAM NEWS
The big news for Tottenham is that Hugo Lloris is back in the starting XI, after sitting out Saturday's defeat at Manchester City. Fernando Llorente is also in from the start.
Here's Tottenham's squad in full:
TEAM NEWS
Meanwhile for Brighton, it's changes aplenty for Chris Hughton's side - six, in fact, from the team who earned an invaluable point at Molineux on Saturday.
Here's Brighton's line-up:
The other game in the Premier League this evening sees Watford host Southampton at Vicarage Road.
Here is Watford's team:
It's been an eventful week or so for Tottenham...
Six days ago, Mauricio Pochettino's men somehow prevailed in an epic Champions League tie against Manchester City, before playing City for the third time in 11 days on Saturday, succumbing to a 1-0 defeat in the Premier League.
The Independent's very own Jack Pitt-Brooke wrote about 10 things we learned from the City vs Spurs trilogy:
Despite Saturday's draw at Wolves on Saturday, Brighton are in torrid form:
The Seagulls haven't scored in six games in all competitions, and have won just two from their last 14 in the league. They're currently in 17th, and are three points ahead of Cardiff City below them (this is their game in hand tonight).
That being said, Brighton could do what Crystal Palace, Manchester City and Huddersfield Town couldn't, and that's be the first away team to score at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
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