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Graham Potter took no solace in his side being the “better team” in the early going against Liverpool, before addressing the Luis Diaz, Robert Sanchez incident.

Brighton put up a strong fight but ultimately fell to a 2-0 defeat to title-chasing Liverpool at the AMEX. The hosts created their fair share of chances but struggled to find the killer instinct when veering down on Alisson Becker in goal.

Instead, it was Liverpool who kept their composure in the final third when taking the lead through January recruit Luis Diaz.

The Colombian headed past the onrushing Robert Sanchez after a divine Joel Matip through ball. Diaz took an almighty clattering for his troubles in what became a controversial moment.

Mohamed Salah later doubled the advantage from the penalty spot as Liverpool kept the heat on table-toppers Man City.

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Speaking to BT Sport after the match, Graham Potter said: “We started really well. We were the better team on the front foot.

“The goal took the wind out of our sails a little bit, especially with the run we’re on and them being Liverpool. Credit to the boys they stuck in there.

“1-0 at half-time we’re still in the game. In the second half a couple of things didn’t go our way with the penalty.

“We had chances to press and unsettle them, our response throughout the game was great. I thought we finished the game really well. I think against a team as strong as Liverpool we were not good enough.”

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Sanchez, Diaz collision an “accident” – Graham Potter

A major talking point that emerged from the contest was the non-sending off of goalkeeper Sanchez.

The Spaniard caught Diaz full force with his knee a split second after the Colombian had nodded the ball goalwards.

All three pundits in the BT Sport studio were in unison when declaring Sanchez should’ve seen red. What made the non-call all the more surprising was the fact referee Mike Dean was not instructed to view the incident for a second time on the pitch-side monitor.

On the decision that didn’t even see a yellow card brandished, Potter admitted he’d not seen it a second time before claiming it was a simple accident with no malicious intent.

“I have not seen it back,” added the Seagulls boss. “I think it was an accident. The quality of the run and pass beat him.

“It’s not a happy camp when you lose, but we just need to focus on the next game. The Premier League can be difficult. The recency of results is the lens you look at. Rightly so, but we need to do better.

“We need to get to the points tally we want, and the only way we can do that is to focus on the next game.”

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