Aston Villa 2-2 Brighton: Points are shared at Villa Park as Seagulls strike late equaliser to deny hosts fourth straight home victory

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Unai Emery waved goodbye to 2024 with an extraordinary blast at Premier League officials but the Aston Villa boss should save his anger for his wasteful team.

Villa could have been out of sight long before Tariq Lamptey equalised for Brighton nine minutes from time and this time Emery could blame nobody but the men in claret and blue in front of him.

After Simon Adingra had given the visitors the lead, goals either side of half-time from Ollie Watkins – a penalty – and Morgan Rogers should have set Villa up for three points. But they could not find the killer blow and Lamptey punished them.

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler was angry Villa were not penalised for blocking goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen at the corner that led to the penalty decision. ‘Unless the Premier League find a clear rule for the blocking that happens on goalkeepers, in the end you will have a different kind of sport,’ he said. Hurzeler was booked at the time and then confronted referee Craig Pawson at full-time.

Earlier, Emery had used his programme notes to launch an attack on refereeing chiefs’ interpretation of VAR. He remains furious that Villa’s appeal against the red card shown to Jhon Duran at Newcastle on Boxing Day was dismissed, and his players’ failure to see this one out will not have improved his mood.

‘I am a little bit frustrated with the result,’ said Emery, who lost defender Pau Torres to a suspected broken foot. ‘This league is very tight and we have to try to improve and correct why we are conceding a lot of goals. The point was not enough for how we played after the first goal.’

Brighton battled to earn a deserved point away at Aston Villa after facing 19 shots on target

Villa now lie ninth and missed the chance to move closer to the top four spots with a win

Unai Emery's inconsistent side have won just four of their last 15 games in all competitions

Emery believes VAR is being used too much to back the on-field officials rather than reach the correct decisions – though he might have changed his tune by half-time here. Pawson was advised by the team at Stockley Park to award Villa a penalty when Joao Pedro clattered Rogers as he tried to clear his lines.

Watkins, recalled for the suspended Duran, scored from the spot on his 29th birthday and Rogers hit the second soon after the break. Hurzeler’s men managed somehow to hang in there and earned their reward in the end.

Emery had concluded his diatribe in the programme by saying he hoped nobody would be talking about refereeing decisions in this game. Anyone who read that would have anticipated what was to follow.

With Brighton leading through Simon Adingra’s goal, Rogers demanded a spot-kick when he tumbled under Jan Paul van Hecke’s challenge. Pawson signalled a corner and VAR did not intervene, as Emery took out his frustration on fourth official Gavin Ward.

The next call went in Villa’s favour. Verbruggen flapped at the corner and Pedro kicked Rogers in the ankle as he tried to clear. This time VAR did step in and – encouraged from nearby by Emi Martinez – Pawson awarded a spot-kick. Watkins sent Verbruggen the wrong way from 12 yards.

That was exactly what Villa needed after some dire defending had given Albion the lead. Ezri Konsa did not deal with Lewis Dunk’s ball over the top and was held off by Pedro, allowing Adingra to sneak past Pau Torres and beat Martinez with an angled effort.

Brighton managed to negotiate 12 minutes’ added time before the interval, thanks largely to Villa’s hasty finishing. Watkins shot into the side netting and struck for goal when he should have fed John McGinn. Leon Bailey also found some excellent positions but could not deliver when he got there.

Rogers’ first-half booking for a foul on Carlos Baleba means he will be banned for Saturday’s meeting with Leicester – and the Villa man needed just 72 seconds of the second half to show his team what they will be missing.

The Seagulls led early but would have left empty-handed were it not for Lamptey's equaliser

Verbruggen was again exposed under the high ball and when Brighton could not clear, Boubacar Kamara nodded to Watkins. His clipped pass found the visitors’ defensive line wanting and Rogers controlled on his chest before firing Villa ahead.

With only a one-goal lead, Villa were always vulnerable and Pedro hammered a good chance over after Kamara had dawdled on the ball.

The home side were rocked when Lamptey finished a fine move involving substitute Kaoru Mitoma and Pedro by hammering beyond Martinez from 16 yards.

Watkins had a final chance to seal it well into stoppage time but rushed his shot from a perfect spot inside the box.