João Pedro of Brighton surprises Aston Villa and stops their advance in the Champions League | first division

Aston Villa is running out of gas. The opportunity to put themselves 10 points ahead of Tottenham ended up reopening the door for Ange Postecoglou's team. Stunned after the brief change and the shocking result of his 4-2 defeat against Olympiakos On Thursday, Unai Emery's team could not replicate the energy of their coach, whose frantic exhortations reflected a golden opportunity that was in danger of slipping through their fingers.

Ezri Konsa's tired tackle on Simon Adingra led to a late penalty which Robin Olsen saved from João Pedro only for the Brazilian to head in the rebound. It was the first goal scored by a Brighton player since March.

Brighton hadn't won in nine, Last week's defeat against Bournemouth. a resounding minimum. If a long injury list and the distraction of Europa League football are reasonable excuses, Brighton's predictability against their opponents is less excusable. And it has been argued that the seeds of its slide began against Villa in September and defeat 6-1 in which Emery's team repeatedly activated counterpressure.

Here was revenge for Roberto De Zerbi. Last season's revolutionary tactician had lately become a bewildered one-dimensional thinker. Although his team dominated much of the game and Pascal Gross had a goal disallowed in the VAR (as did John McGinn later), the wheels were working. His team found a very different way to win than the fluid game that made the Italian's reputation.

For a vocal contingent among Villa fans, Birmingham City's relegation had been a cause for celebration, although now its own concerns are beginning, starting with Thursday in Greece. Brighton, led by Adingra, were the better team from the start.

Although it was often De Zerbi's turn to complain about his team, Emery also put on his personal show in the technical area, a series of Marcel Marceau-style mimes as he desperately searched for answers. When Morgan Rogers, who had entered the game on a streak of three goals in five games, left the field after just 15 minutes, Matty Cash entered midfield. With McGinn in a retired role and Nicolò Zaniolo unavailable, Villa were missing a link with their speedy forward trio.

Ollie Watkins, looking for the finish that would take him to 20 league goals, only made one promising burst in the first half, a shoulder drop that took him past Lewis Dunk, only for Joël Veltman to clear the danger. Brighton sat deeper than usual, perhaps following the lessons from Villa Park eight months ago.

Having scored just once in five games, and that Burnley own goal, the home team often had as few ideas as Villa. They were still fully capable of making an intricate pass from goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen into the opposition area, but then struggled to get the last ball or the confidence to shoot at Olsen's goal. In those moments they can look like Graham Potter's Brighton, timid on shots and goals, rather than the incisive kings of speed that led to De Zerbi being linked with some of Europe's top jobs. Fans' cries of “shoot” boiled with frustration at the repeated excessive deliberation.

Opportunities came and went. A recovered Olsen had to be brave when Adingra chased down a ball from Danny Welbeck and the two collided. The Swede concluded the half by taking advantage of an attempted volley by Adingra after a pass from João Pedro, and then narrowed the angles when Gross had escaped Villa's offside trap.

The second half started with Villa pushed much further forward, looking to steal the ball from those Brighton passes from the back. The midweek fatigue seemed gone, Cash launching a long-range effort just as Watkins, Leon Bailey and Moussa Diaby began to accelerate. Austin MacPhee, Emery's set piece expert and Gregg Allman's double, became a regular presence on the bench. A bark of instructions for Watkins to come up short resulted in a corner that hit only the first man but also a goal disallowed for McGinn, when he sensed a blocked tackle.

Villa's renewed adventure left room for Brighton to attack, Adingra injecting pace, if not always precision. The arrival of Julio Enciso for Facundo Buonanotte, a South American enigma for another, immediately preceded João Pedro forcing a sprawled Olsen to save. Adringra, again, was the supplier. Enciso then controlled a rare long ball and shot wide, eliciting a primal roar from his coach. When Gross was found offside (his knee was slightly affected by a pass from Igor Julio) after a long VAR delay, De Zerbi retreated to his seat to sadly await the verdict.

He would spend the extra nine minutes pacing his area, only to let out a cry of relief at a vindicating victory. Meanwhile, Emery grimaced because his team lost the lead at the wrong time.