Stoke City 0-1 Brighton & Hove Albion: Seagulls reach FA Cup quarter-finals with narrow win
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FA Cup 2023 highlights: Stoke 0-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton's hopes of securing a first major trophy remain alive as Evan Ferguson's first-half goal proved enough to secure a place in the FA Cup sixth round.
Ferguson's far-post effort saw off a battling Stoke outfit, who came closest to equalising when defender Axel Tuanzebe sent a far-post header across goal and narrowly wide.
It is Brighton's third quarter-final appearance in six years, having previously only been there twice in their entire history.
They reached the final in 1983, when they were beaten in a replay by Manchester United, and the semi-final in 2019, when they lost to Manchester City.
Roberto de Zerbi's men failed to reach the heights that allowed them to beat Liverpool in the previous round, but with skipper Lewis Dunk turning in another impressive defensive display on his 400th appearance for the club, they always had a measure of control against their Championship opponents, who could have taken an early lead when Tyrese Campbell's effort was kept out by Jason Steele.
After the match, De Zerbi spoke of the club's ambitions for the rest of the season: "I can't promise anything but I can promise we will work hard every day to make them [the fans] happy and proud.
"I understand they want to win a trophy and competition. To win, we need to work and improve. For the moment we have the possibility to arrive in Europe."
Ferguson winner continues fine breakthrough season
The visitors' winning goal was typical of their trademark fluid style, opening up Stoke with some clinical passing that allowed Kaoru Mitoma to present Ferguson with the easiest of far-post finishes.
It was the Irishman's fourth goal in nine appearances and extends what has been quite a season for Ferguson, who earned full international honours in November.
Ferguson would have had a second had it not been for an excellent Jack Bonham save after the youngster had created the space to unleash a powerful shot just before the hour.
The forward's replacement Danny Welbeck also went close near the end but Bonham turned his low shot round the post and fellow substitute Deniz Undav was off balance when he chipped wide of an open goal in stoppage time.
Tuanzebe's return the high point for Stoke
While it was a disappointing night for Stoke, who are still not completely clear of relegation trouble, it was a notable one for on-loan defender Tuanzebe, who started his first game in 13 months after recovering from a back complaint that has stalled the Manchester United man's career.
Still only 25, Tuanzebe evidently has a bright future if he can stay fit.
He came so close to levelling when he sent a header narrowly wide midway through the second period and was still berating himself for failing to convert as he returned to his defensive duties.
After that, there was only frustration for the hosts, whose manager Alex Neil felt too many of their attacks were slowed down by the visitors either time-wasting or making the most of limited contact. When they did get in a position to threaten, the final pass let them down.