Ipswich Town 0-2 Brighton: Mitoma and Rutter seal win for visitors

Brighton beat relegation-threatened Ipswich Town 2-0 at Portman Road to end a run of eight Premier League games without a victory.

Goals from Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter after half-time were enough to seal victory for the Seagulls, boosting their hopes of European qualification.

Ipswich did threaten in the opening period as Liam Delap and Omari Hutchinson forced Bart Verbruggen into saves.

But Mitoma smuggled in an effort just before the hour mark before Rutter's clever flick made the points safe nine minutes from time, taking Brighton up to ninth in the table.

They are just four points behind sixth-placed Manchester City, while Ipswich drop back into the relegation zone on goals scored, behind Wolves.

𝐈𝐩𝐬𝐰𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝟎-𝟐 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐨𝐧 Goals from Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter send Ipswich into the relegation zone on goals scored. Brighton earn their first Premier League win since November, ending a run of eight without victory (D6 L2).#IPSBHA pic.twitter.com/FSMEaeBfm0

— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) January 16, 2025

Data Debrief: Game of two halves

Ipswich were more than competitive during the first 45 minutes at Portman Road, matching Brighton at 4-4 in terms of shots and losing the xG battle by a marginal 0.14-0.27.

The Seagulls upped their game in the second period, though, restricting their hosts to just one effort despite taking the lead with 30 minutes still to play.

Fabian Hurzeler's side racked up seven shots and 0.7 xG after the break, ultimately winning very comfortably.