Norwich 0-0 Brighton: Josh Sargent blows two good chances as Canaries remain winless in Premier League

Josh Sargent wasted two great chances as Norwich's search for a first Premier League win of the season continued with a 0-0 draw at home to Brighton. 

Brighton should have taken the lead themselves during a first half in which Neal Maupay was harshly denied a penalty when both the referee and VAR overlooked clear contact from Tim Krul, before the goalkeeper pulled off an outstanding fingertip save to push Leandro Trossard's volley onto the bar.

However, Sargent twice let the visitors off the hook either side of the interval. Robert Sanchez's failed attempt to sweep up presented him with an open goal 20 yards out but his shot was tame and Shane Duffy was able to get back to clear. Then, after the restart, a poor first touch from Sargent when through one-on-one allowed Dan Burn to recover.

The Canaries have now failed to hit the net in four games in a row in all competitions and, although they can point to back-to-back Premier League clean sheets for the first time since March 2016, their two points this term leaves them bottom of the table.

As for Brighton - who should have won it when Maupay shot off target from close range late on - they have now drawn their last three in the league but still sit fourth.

How it happened...

Norwich were looking to build on a 0-0 at Burnley before the international break but after Grant Hanley blocked a Trossard shot and Duffy headed off target from a set-piece, they had Krul to thank for a sharp stop to keep out Adam Lallana's drive.

The hosts then rode their luck on 23 minutes when Maupay hit the deck after going past Krul in the box but saw his penalty appeal rejected by both on-field referee Peter Bankes and VAR Graham Scott despite the goalkeeper clearly catching him on the ankle.

Krul was then at full stretch to divert a fine Trossard volley onto the bar on 35 minutes after more good link-up play between the Brighton forward and his team-mate Maupay - although Norwich were left wondering why they didn't have a half-time lead themselves.

With just a few minutes of the opening 45 remaining, Sanchez raced out of goal to deal with a through ball but got his clearance all wrong and scuffed the ball to Sargent - but the American was too timid with his finish and gave Duffy time to intercept the ball before it reached the goal.

• How the teams lined up | Match stats
• Premier League fixtures | results | table
• Get Sky Sports - Latest offers

There was another moment to forget for the forward at the start of the second half, with a poor first touch allowing Burn to clear after Teemu Pukki played him in on goal.

At the other end, Trossard swerved an effort wide after Ozan Kabak gave the ball away, before the welcome return to the Premier League of Tariq Lamptey, following his nine-month hamstring lay-off, was greeted warmly by the travelling support.

Norwich - who are yet to take the lead in the Premier League this season - then saw another big moment fail to go their way, when Pukki lifted the ball into the side-netting rather than over Sanchez and in from six yards, before Burn timed a brilliant tackle on the striker in the box.

Pierre Lees-Melou worked hard to try to make something happen for Norwich but a moment of quality in the final third was lacking from both sides, with a Ben Gibson dig from range as close as the hosts came in the latter stages, while an off-target shot close-in from Maupay rather summed up the poor finishing on show.

What the managers said...

Norwich boss, Daniel Farke: "We ticked many boxes today. We wanted to get off the mark at home, we wanted a second game unbeaten in a row, we wanted a second clean sheet in a row, we wanted to take points in a home game and create more chances than we did in the Burnley game and these boxes were all ticked. We took another step in the right direction. We are not over the moon - we created so many good situations and more than enough chances to score a goal.

"I thought Josh was outstanding, his workload was unbelievable, with the ball and without the ball. He was able to keep the ball and initiate so many good situations. But yes of course, he knows better than anyone else he should have scored into an empty goal. He had time to take another touch and put the ball in easily. Then in the second half, the one-on-one was also a situation when we should have scored."

Brighton boss Graham Potter: "In the final third we struggled a little bit. The decision making wasn't as good as it can be. It was a tricky game against a back five, Norwich fighting for their points. We have to focus on the one point we did get, the clean sheet. We did some things well but not well enough to get the three points.

"If the referee on the pitch didn't give the penalty, it's tough for the VAR to overrule. I haven't seen it back closely. We can't say let the refs referee the game and then I don't think it was clear and obvious enough to be overruled"

Opta stats

• Norwich's haul of two points from their first eight league games of a season is their worst-ever tally at this stage of a league campaign.
• Since their maiden Premier League season in 2017-18, Brighton have been involved in 19 goalless draws, five more than any other side in that time.
• Norwich's last two Premier League games have ended goalless, with the Canaries registering back-to-back clean sheets in the competition since March 2016.
• Brighton are unbeaten in their last four Premier League away games (W2 D2), after losing each of the three before that; it's their longest unbeaten run on the road in the league since September 2020 (8 games).
• Norwich remain the only side yet to take the lead in a Premier League match this season. The Canaries haven't led in any of their last 12 games in the competition, with only Manchester City ever having a longer such run (15 between April and October 1995).
• Each of Brighton captain Lewis Dunk's 151 Premier League appearances have come as starts, the eighth-best 100% starting record in the competition for an outfield player (Gareth Southgate top with 426).

What's next?

Next up for Norwich is Chelsea away next Saturday at 12.30pm, while Brighton host Manchester City next Saturday live on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm; kick-off 5.30pm.

Win £250,000 with Super 6!

Another Saturday, another chance to win £250,000 with Super 6. Play for free, entries by 3pm.