Gareth Bale swoops to snatch the spoils for Tottenham

Brighton and Hove Albion goalkeeper Robert Sanchez dives in vain as Tottenham Hotspur's Gareth Bale scores the winner. Photo: Julian Finney/PA

Tottenham 2 Brighton 1

Bale is back. Gareth Bale scored his first Tottenham goal for seven-and-a-half years to see off a battling Brighton side, giving Spurs their first home win in the Premier League and moving Jose Mourinho’s men up to second in the table.

It was May 2013 when the Welshman last found the net in a Spurs shirt, before moving to Real Madrid two months later.

And his strike on Sunday night, a close-range header in the 73rd minute, was all the sweeter for ending a run of three home games without victory for Spurs.

“It’s a great feeling, nice to get off the mark,” Bale said afterwards. “I just wanted to come on and do a job for the team and was lucky enough to get the goal.”

The goal may have spared Mourinho from risking an FA charge over a controversial moment in the 56th minute, when referee Graham Scott awarded Brighton an equaliser to Harry Kane’s opening goal.

Mourinho and his men were incensed when Scott allowed Solly March to set up Tariq Lamptey’s goal after appearing to foul Pierre-Emile Hjobjerg in the build-up, the referee taking an age to review his decision on a pitchside monitor before sticking with his original decision.

Mourinho responded positively by sending on Bale as a substitute for Erik Lamela, and the Welshman proved to be the match-winner, as he had done so many times in his previous period at the club.

The delay over Brighton’s equaliser led to six minutes of stoppage time, and with Spurs having thrown away four points by conceding stoppage-time equalisers to both Newcastle and West Ham in their previous two league games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, there was an understandable sense of relief from the home contingent when the final whistle was sounded.

Bale will get the plaudits, and Spurs sit second behind Liverpool, but it was far from plain sailing.

While Mourinho stuck with his promise to return to his tried and trusted line-up, after his second-string lost at Antwerp on Thursday, Brighton manager Graham Potter threw a surprise with his team selection. Not only was leading scorer Neal Maupay dropped from the squad, but Australian international Mat Ryan was relegated to the substitutes’ bench, in order to give rookie goalkeeper Robert Sanchez his first taste of Premier League action.

The 22-year-old keeper was soon called into action, tipping over a rising drive from Sergio Reguilon, and within 12 minutes he was picking the ball out of the net, after Kane had sent him the wrong way from the penalty spot.

Kane had won the penalty when Adam Lallana crashed into him as they contested a dropping ball on the edge of the penalty area, and referee Scott called on VAR to decide that the offence was inside the area. It was not to be the first controversy of the evening.

Kane dispatched the spot-kick with minimum fuss for his 11th goal of the season and Spurs were ahead. But instead of kicking on and increasing their lead, Tottenham went on the back foot and allowed Potter’s team to get back into the game.

Brighton had a penalty appeal of their own in the 23rd minute when Leandro Trossard tumbled under a challenge from Matt Doherty, but referee Scott was not interested.

It was 10 minutes into the second half when the main controversy erupted. March slid in to send Hjobjerg flying and win the ball. Referee Scott waved play on, Brighton took full advantage and Tariq Lamptey guided a low shot past Hugo Lloris. Tottenham’s players protested, but Scott would not change his mind.

Mourinho acted decisively with 20 minutes to go, sending on Bale, whose previous taste of Premier League action came in the final quarter of Tottenham’s collapse against West Ham two weeks ago. He looked well off the pace that day, but he is getting sharper by the day and has never lost his knack of being in the right place at the right time, as he showed when Reguilon sent over an inch-perfect cross in the 73rd minute. Bale was unmarked, and simply stooped to conquer, sending the ball past Sanchez.

TOTTENHAM 4-3-3: Lloris 7 ; Doherty 6, Alderweireld 7, Dier 7 , Reguilon 6; Sissoko 6 ,Hojbjerg 8 , Ndombele 6 (Lo Celso 63); Lamela 7 (Bale 70), Kane 8 , Son 6 (Davies 84)

BRIGHTON 4-5-1: Sanchez 6; Lamptey 7 (MacAllister 79), Webster 6, Veltman 7, Burn 7; Gross 6, Bissouma 7, White 6, Lallana 5, March 6 (Bernardo 66); Trossard 5 (Welbeck 74)

Ref: Graham Scott