Cardiff are still alive. Victory on the south coast against the only team they can realistically catch in the scramble to remain in the Premier League means reports of Welsh demise were more than a little premature. There were those who wondered how Neil Warnock had managed to get his side promoted last season. If he maintains this sort of momentum, heads need not be scratched as to exactly how he kept them up. Topped off by two smart goals, this was a performance of bravery, intensity and intelligence. Which are three words that nobody would use to describe a Brighton side apparently sleep walking into the Championship. The statistics before kick off did neither side any favours. Finding the net just nine times on the road all season, Cardiff arrived with the worst away goals record in the division. Brighton, meanwhile, had suffered four defeats in the last six at the Amex. Brighton hopeless at home, Cardiff awful away: this was a clash of the desperate. But it began with a real zip. Brighton’s Solly March had piled a shot into the side netting within two minutes.<doc-sep>Brighton are rocking – and they can't find the emergency handbrake. As goals from Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Sean Morrison closed the gap between the Bluebirds and safety to just two points, Albion manager Chris Hughton cut a lonely and dispirited figure on the Amex touchline. Booed off, after a second calamitous home defeat in four days, Brighton have lost the plot. And with a daunting run-in, culminating in a home date with Quadruple-hunting Manchester City, it is hard to see where their next point is coming from. Cardiff we can deal with in short measure. They are short on quality but love a scrap. A squad of Championship players under the stewardship of that shy and studious academic, Mr Neil Warnock, was never going to give up. (Image: AFP/Getty Images) Warnock has a record eight promotions to his name, but he has never guided any of his teams to Premier League safety – and if drayman's hatch awaits him again, he ain't going quietly. City have been forced to play since January with the trauma of record £15 million signing Emiliano Sala's tragic fate on their minds. In truth, they have done well to sustain hope until Easter when some feared they would be relegated by Christmas. Warnock had called on his players to draw on the spirit of Tiger Woods because “nobody gave him a chance either.” But the difference between Tiger and Warnock is that the five-times Green Jacket winner had a formidable set of clubs in his bag at the US Masters – Cardiff have been trying to shoot level par with cocktail sticks. It would be an astonishing feat of survival, Bear Grylls-plus, if they stay up. Brighton – 12 points from a possible 51 after Saturday's meltdown against Bournemouth deserve their own forensic analysis because they had been going downhill faster than the Cresta Run. (Image: REUTERS) These Seagulls are so tame they wouldn't even nick your chips on the promenade. It says much for their collapsing form and haemorrhaging confidence that Hughton turned to 38-year-old club captain Bruno Saltor to apply the emergency tourniquet. Bruno's satellite dish and splendid beard were reassuring sights for home fans, a throwback to the days when Brighton's recruitment was more informed than expensive punts on hunches from the continent. But with nerves jangling like an ice-cream vendor's loose change on the promenade, this was never going to be a beauty contest. Warnock has never settled for artistic merit where earnest scuffling is available, but occasionally Cardiff surprise us by putting out a Da Vinci masterpiece with the recycling. And Men of Halech was in full cry among the visiting contingent when Nathaniel Mendez-Laing collected a return pass from Junior Hoilett to curl a superb opener beyond Mat Ryan form 20 yards. It was only Mendez-Laing's second goal of the season, and the Bluebirds' communal celebration with their coaching staff conveyed a renewed sense of belief that the great escape was on. (Image: Getty Images) But if you couldn't hear the alarm bells ringing in Brighton, there was nobody home in the belfry. If Alireza Jahanbakshsh, not cheap at £17 million, is the answer, what was the question? And 13-goal top scorer Glenn Murray has had an enviable season, but asking a 35-year-old target man to work the channels is a waste of energy. Albion justifiably felt aggrieved when referee Andre Marriner ignored their penalty appeal for Bruno Ecuele Manga's headlock on Lewis Dunk. But Dunk was at fault when Cardiff stretched their lead five minutes after the break, Sean Morrison escaping his marker to head Victor Camarasa's free-kick emphatically beyond Mat Ryan. Murray's header hit the post in stoppage time, but by then Brighton were merely going through the motions of a fightback.<doc-sep>Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Brighton & Hove Albion host Cardiff City on Tuesday (Watch live, 2:45 p.m. ET on NBCSN and online via NBCSports.com) at the Amex, in a massive game in the relegation battle. WATCH LIVE ONLINE, HERE The Seagulls have slumped in recent months and were hammered 5-0 at home by Bournemouth last time out. Chris Hughton‘s men sit five points above Cardiff heading into this game, with Neil Warnock‘s side occupying the final relegation spot and knowing they simply must win to give themselves a chance of staying in the Premier League. In team news Brighton make five changes as Bruno, Jahanbakhsh, March, Gross and Murray all come into the starting lineups following their thumping at the weekend. Cardiff make two changes in attack, as Oumar Niasse and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing replacing Kenneth Zohore and Josh Murphy in attack. LINEUPS 🔢 Here's how Albion line up for tonight's @premierleague match against @CardiffCityFC at the Amex Stadium… 👀 Bruno returns to captain the Seagulls – Jahanbakhsh, March, Gross and Murray also come into the side! 📲 Matchday Live is presented by @SnickersUKcom.#BHAFC 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/ekEl0DBhWP — Brighton & Hove Albion ⚽️ (@OfficialBHAFC) April 16, 2019 Follow @JPW_NBCSports<doc-sep>
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Sean Morrison struck for the visitors on the south coast Cardiff City claimed a huge victory on the south coast as they beat Brighton 2-0 at the Amex on Wednesday night. While some of the brightest talents in Europe were on display in the Champions League, the sole Premier League fixture on the night provided fabulous entertainment. 2 Cardiff City celebrate their crucial win over Brighton Goals from Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and captain Sean Morrison ensured all three points would be returning to the Welsh capital in this basement battle. With title-chasing Liverpool and Manchester United still to come this season, anything but a win on the south coast would have left the visitors with an improbable chance of avoiding an immediate return to the Sky Bet Championship. Bluebirds manager Neil Warnock reacted to Saturday’s defeat at Burnley by making three changes, including recalling attacking duo Mendez-Laing and Oumar Niasse. Warnock‘s men are now two points behind the Seagulls, despite having played a game more, to ensure there will be a thrilling finale to the end of the season. 2 Mat Ryan could do nothing to stop Mendez-Laing’s rasping shot Glenn Murray headed against the woodwork in stoppage time but the Seagulls offered little in attack and remain anxiously looking over their shoulders. Brighton’s Solly March twice went close in the early stages but it was the visitors who took the lead 22 minutes into the game. Nathaniel Mendez-Laing finished off a fine counter-attack by the Bluebirds when he curled the ball home from 25 yards. Dale Stephens had Brighton’s best chance to hit back but his shot was blocked for a corner and the visitors led 1-0 at the break. Cardiff were 2-0 ahead five minutes into the second half and the goal came from Sean Morrison.