Alireza Jahanbakhsh had not scored a club goal since clinching the Dutch Eredivisie golden boot with a hat-trick on the final day of 2017-18
An emotional Alireza Jahanbakhsh scored his first goal for Brighton as they beat relegation rivals Bournemouth in the Premier League.
The Iran international winger, making his 27th appearance for the club, blasted home from 16 yards after Neal Maupay's lay-off.
He appeared close to tears afterwards with even goalkeeper Mat Ryan running forward to join in the jubilant celebrations.
Dan Burn had a second goal ruled out by the video assistant referee for a marginal offside several phases of play before he smashed home.
And Yves Bissouma struck the post as Brighton - not for the first time this season - struggled to get a second goal to kill the game off.
But the clinching strike came as Aaron Mooy controlled Leandro Trossard's cross before firing in his first Seagulls goal.
Bournemouth only had two shots on target, with one of those coming from Junior Stanislas on his return from eight months out with a knee injury.
Graham Potter's Brighton move three points above Bournemouth, with both clubs on a similar run of form - one win in eight before this game - and only previously separated on goals scored.
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Jahanbakhsh finally ends goal drought
Jahanbakhsh's time in England has not gone to plan. There were high hopes for him when he joined Brighton 18 months ago, having just won the Dutch golden boot with AZ Alkmaar with 21 goals before playing at the World Cup for Iran.
But he failed to score in 25 appearances last campaign and was making his first Premier League start of the season against Bournemouth in one of seven changes from their Boxing Day defeat by Tottenham.
The 26-year-old spoke recently about wanting to work hard to get into the team despite rumours of a January departure - and started confidently with a good first-minute cross into the box.
His goal - a strike which could kickstart his English career - came soon after.
He made no mistake with his 38th shot for the club, rifling an effort into the bottom corner after good play by Maupay to net Brighton's quickest Premier League goal.
Brighton dominated possession like they usually do and created the better chances, with Maupay driving two shots over the bar before half-time.
Dunk thought he had scored his first goal for the club when he swivelled and fired home a shot on the bounce. But the VAR spotted Dunk was offside by millimetres when Mooy had crossed in his free-kick - even though the ball had bobbled around the box with several players on both sides getting a touch before it reached Dunk.
Mooy then went close from 25 yards before Bissouma ran from the centre circle before smashing a shot off the post.
The second goal that Potter's side deserved eventually came, a classy finish by Mooy, who took down Trossard's cross on his chest before stepping past Chris Mepham and stroking a shot home.
Brighton's first home win and first clean sheet in the league since 2 November takes them up to 13th - albeit before the rest of the weekend's games.
Struggles ahead for Bournemouth?
Bournemouth seem to do this every year and always escape, terrible runs of form in between excellent bursts with enough points to keep them safe. But what if the good run does not come?
They were seventh after beating Manchester United on 2 November but have won once in nine games since, and could yet end the weekend in the relegation zone.
Like Brighton they made plenty of changes - five from the 1-1 draw against Arsenal on 26 December. But they were slow out of the blocks and trailed to Jahanbakhsh's early strike.
They could have equalised after seven minutes, when King ran in on goal but fired straight at Ryan. That was their best chance of the game.
Stanislas looked rusty on his first appearance since April, giving away possession needlessly at one stage to start a Brighton attack, although he was the only other Bournemouth player to test Ryan.
Dominic Solanke is soon approaching the year anniversary of his £19m move from Liverpool but has yet to score for the club. He had a good chance to get a shot away but took too much time and was well tackled by Lewis Dunk.
Bournemouth's injury problems also increased. King and Jack Stacey went off with suspected hamstring injuries, with the Cherries having to play the final 10 minutes a man down having used all their substitutes.
This is the Cherries' fifth season in the top flight under Eddie Howe. Could it be their last?
Man of the match - Aaron Mooy
Stylish Brighton midfielder Aaron Mooy pulled the strings and scored his first goal for the clubMatch stats - Brighton end long wait for win over Bournemouth
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This was Brighton's first league win over Bournemouth since a 3-2 win at the old Withdean Stadium in League One on New Year's Day 2008.
Brighton have won four of their last seven Premier League home games (D1 L2), as many as they had won in their previous 18 at the Amex Stadium.
Since the start of the 2015-16 season, only Watford (50) have lost more Premier League away games than Bournemouth (47).
Only Liverpool (16) have had more different goalscorers in the Premier League this season than Brighton (11).
Brighton's Alireza Jahanbakhsh became the third Iranian player to score in Premier League history (also Andranik Teymourian and Ashkan Dejagah).
Jahanbakhsh netted his first goal in 1552 minutes of action in all competitions since his debut for the Seagulls in August 2018.
Brighton's Aaron Mooy ended a run of 17 Premier League appearances without a goal.
Neal Maupay has been directly involved in more Premier League goals this season than any other Brighton player (seven goals, one assist).
What's next?
Brighton host Chelsea on New Year's Day (12:30 GMT), with Bournemouth going to West Ham five hours later.
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Line-ups
Match Stats
Live Text
Line-ups
Brighton
1Ryan
22Montoya
4Duffy
5Dunk
33Burn
24Pröpper
8BissoumaSubstituted forMurrayat 89'minutes
16JahanbakhshSubstituted forAlzateat 84'minutes
18MooySubstituted forStephensat 84'minutes
11Trossard
7Maupay
Substitutes
6Stephens
13Groß
15Webster
17Murray
27Button
30Bernardo
46Alzate
Bournemouth
12Ramsdale
17StaceySubstituted forat 81'minutes
3S CookBooked at 22mins
33Mepham
21Rico
22H WilsonSubstituted forFraserat 62'minutes
29BillingBooked at 67mins
4Gosling
19StanislasSubstituted forC Wilsonat 62'minutes
9Solanke
7KingSubstituted forL Cookat 73'minutes
Substitutes
1Boruc
6Surman
8Lerma
13C Wilson
16L Cook
24Fraser
25Simpson
Referee:
Paul Tierney
Attendance:
30,441
Match Stats
Home TeamBrightonAway TeamBournemouth
Possession
Home55%
Away45%
Shots
Home16
Away10
Shots on Target
Home6
Away2
Corners
Home9
Away2
Fouls
Home8
Away11
Live Text
Posted at
Match ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 2, Bournemouth 0.
Full TimePosted at 90'+4'
Second Half ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 2, Bournemouth 0.
Posted at 90'+2'
Foul by Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Posted at 90'+2'
Philip Billing (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 90'+1'
Attempt blocked. Leandro Trossard (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Steven Alzate.
Posted at 90'+1'
Corner, Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Aaron Ramsdale.
Posted at 90'+1'
Attempt saved. Glenn Murray (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Steven Alzate with a through ball.
Posted at 90'
Foul by Shane Duffy (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Posted at 90'
Steve Cook (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 89'
Corner, Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Philip Billing.
SubstitutionPosted at 89'
Substitution, Brighton and Hove Albion. Glenn Murray replaces Yves Bissouma.
Posted at 87'
Attempt blocked. Dominic Solanke (Bournemouth) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Chris Mepham.
Posted at 86'
Attempt blocked. Callum Wilson (Bournemouth) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ryan Fraser.
SubstitutionPosted at 84'
Substitution, Brighton and Hove Albion. Dale Stephens replaces Aaron Mooy.
SubstitutionPosted at 84'
Substitution, Brighton and Hove Albion. Steven Alzate replaces Alireza Jahanbakhsh.
Posted at 83'
Attempt saved. Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Aaron Mooy.
Posted at 82'
Attempt blocked. Aaron Mooy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Davy Pröpper.
Posted at 81'
Jack Stacey went off injured after Bournemouth had used all subs.
Posted at 81'
Attempt missed. Lewis Cook (Bournemouth) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Dominic Solanke.
Posted at 80'
Foul by Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Posted at 80'
Diego Rico (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Goal!Posted at 79'
Goal! Brighton and Hove Albion 2, Bournemouth 0. Aaron Mooy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the top right corner. Assisted by Leandro Trossard.
Posted at 77'
Leandro Trossard (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 77'
Foul by Jack Stacey (Bournemouth).
Posted at 76'
VAR Decision: No Penalty Brighton and Hove Albion.
Posted at 75'
Corner, Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Philip Billing.
SubstitutionPosted at 73'
Substitution, Bournemouth. Lewis Cook replaces Joshua King because of an injury.
Posted at 68'
Offside, Brighton and Hove Albion. Martín Montoya tries a through ball, but Neal Maupay is caught offside.
BookingPosted at 67'
Philip Billing (Bournemouth) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 67'
Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Posted at 67'
Foul by Philip Billing (Bournemouth).
Posted at 66'
Foul by Neal Maupay (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Posted at 66'
Chris Mepham (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 65'
Attempt missed. Aaron Mooy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the right.
Posted at 64'
Corner, Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Diego Rico.
Posted at 64'
Attempt blocked. Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Posted at 63'
Attempt saved. Yves Bissouma (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Leandro Trossard.
Posted at 63'
Attempt missed. Aaron Mooy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Yves Bissouma.
SubstitutionPosted at 62'
Substitution, Bournemouth. Callum Wilson replaces Junior Stanislas.
SubstitutionPosted at 62'
Substitution, Bournemouth. Ryan Fraser replaces Harry Wilson.
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Source: bbc.com