The Seagulls were out to avenge their defeat in matchday one’s reverse fixture, and teenage sensation Evan Ferguson was leading their early charge as he forced Cican Stanković into an early save at the near post.
The hosts were edgy in the opening exchanges, best displayed by Stanković’s scramble to clear a wayward backpass off the line, before Simon Adingra cut in from the right and fired over.
AEK soon established a foothold though, building pressure as Orbelín Pineda let fly from range on two occasions, only one of which caused Bart Verbruggen any trouble.
Steven Zuber was the Seagulls’ tormentor-in-chief throughout the first half, seeing an effort tipped over the bar by the Brighton keeper, before Lewis Dunk deflected another of his strikes against the woodwork.
AEK boss Matías Almeyda would’ve been looking for more of the same in the second period, and the hosts went close again within six minutes of the restart as Petros Mantalos’ cut-back found Majit Gaćinović, but once more Verbruggen stood firm.
That proved to be a turning point, as moments later the Seagulls won a penalty after a VAR review thanks to Damian Szymański’s rash challenge on João Pedro. The Brazilian, who netted twice from 12 yards in the reverse fixture, made no mistake here either, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way to put the visitors in front.
The Double-Headed Eagle completely lost discipline after falling behind, and inevitably tensions boiled over beyond the hour mark as Gaćinović was sent off for a second bookable offence after he lunged in on Joel Veltman.
A scare came the way of the visitors as Pineda came close to an unlikely equaliser, but De Zerbi’s side looked comfortable in the closing stages as they secured their place in the knockout stages, while ensuring the best AEK can hope for is a place in the Europa Conference League in the spring.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Bart Verbruggen (Brighton & Hove Albion)
