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Brighton & Hove Albion promoted to the Premier League

Writer's picture: Andrew ZarbAndrew Zarb


Brighton & Hove Albion have clinched promotion to the Premier League and a return to the top flight after a 34-year absence.

Going into today, Brighton knew that a win coupled with Huddersfield Town failing to win would seal promotion. Brighton beat Wigan 2-1 thanks to goals from striker Glenn Murray and Solly March. Nick Powell scored a late consolation for Wigan. Brighton had done their part, now the pressure was on Huddersfield to deliver in order to prevent Brighton from being mathematically promoted.

Huddersfield took the lead away to Derby County in the 9th minute through Colin Quaner. It looked like they were going to merely delay the celebrations at Brighton, but in the 88th minute Jacob Butterfield scored for Derby to kickstart the celebrations. Now Brighton could win the title if they beat Norwich City next Friday after Newcastle United lost away to Ipswich Town at Portman Road.

Speaking on their promotion, manager Chris Hughton said:

“I’m incredibly proud of the way that they bounced back [from last season]. To put together the run they have, at this stage of the season, is incredibly difficult, and they deserve every bit of credit. “I expected us to be right up there challenging, and if you said to me at some stage we’d be top of the division, I would have thought we’d have developed well and learned a lot from last season. “I knew we had a group of lads that were capable of doing it, but being capable of doing it and actually doing it are two different things. “They’ve been good all season. They’ve bounced back and shown good determination and desire to win as many game as possible. “It’s a wonderful achievement and there’s so many people that I’m absolutely delighted for, certainly the chairman. He’s a local man and has invested an incredible amount of money in this football club.”

“Right at this moment, this is the most exciting one [achievement]. I went up with Newcastle as a team that just came down, and although we’d lost players, I had a very strong team. “At Norwich it was different, they were already a Premier League team and we managed to finish 11th in that first season. “But this is a club that haven’t been in the Premier League. This was a club that had been in the play-offs two years running before I got here, so it wasn’t a club that was used to being at the bottom end of the division. “Fortunately in that first season, the players were able to turn things around and we’ve gone from strength to strength from then on.

“I’m as excited as anybody, but I have to have that little bit of sensibility, because we’ve got another big game on Friday. “If we’re able to win the game on Friday, that would be the ultimate, not only promotion but it would see us winning the Championship and that’s got to be the target now.”


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