Southampton boss Russell Martin and Brighton rival Fabian Hurzeler come to blows after feisty 1-1 draw… with Seagulls manager fuming at Saints’ tough-tackling battlers

Southampton manager Russell Martin had to be separated from Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler at the final whistle of a chaotic 1-1 draw which saw Saints left furious after a controversial VAR call.

In the second-half, with the score locked at 1-1, Southampton thought they had taken the lead through Cameron Archer after the striker poked home from close range. 

However, in the chaotic four-and-half-minute period that ensued, referee Robert Jones initially ruled it out for offside before VAR then overturned the call, deeming Archer to be onside. 

Officials then checked over the footage a second time and ruled that the goal should in fact be disallowed due to the fact team-mate Adam Armstrong was offside and attempted to intervene.

However fans, both in the stadium and watching from home, were left bemused after the VAR officials checked over the goal and ruled that it was fine – before then backtracking on the decision. 

And things boiled over at full time as the two managers exchanged some choice words after a feisty 90 minutes in the Premier League. 

The pair had to be held away from one another after a controversial VAR decision against Saints

Martin was fuming about the call while Hurzeler was unhappy with the opposition’s aggression

They were eventually separated by members of the backroom staff but a firm sense of feeling lingered in the air at the Amex Stadium.

Indeed after the match, Hurzeler fumed about the aggression displayed by the Saints team when asked about the yellow card he received, which means he will serve a touchline ban in Brighton’s next game.

‘It’s not a yellow card,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘Players can foul amount of times and don’t receive a yellow card.’ 

He added: ‘How you talk to each other (on the touchline) is so important and that’s how I’ve been educated.’

‘Respect is reciprocal,’ was Martin’s response. 

Meanwhile, Martin expressed his anger at the VAR decision which denied his struggling Southampton side a vital win.

‘I’m fed up talking about decisions; I don’t want to be that guy,’ he said. ‘I respect how difficult the decision is for the referee and the assistant referee. 

‘It is really difficult, but I find it hard to accept. I think it is [clear and obvious]. I am told it effects the goalkeeper.

Southampton thought they’d taken the lead in their clash with Brighton on Friday evening

However, after a lengthy process, VAR eventually ruled it out for offside on Adam Armstrong

Though Cameron Archer (pink top, bottom) was judged to have been onside, it was Armstrong (pink top, middle) who was ruled to have been in an offside position

‘We were told it effects Bart Verbruggen ability and if Adam’s run moved Verbruggen from his position then I would understand the decision, but he hasn’t moved. I cannot see how it has effected the goalkeeper. 

‘This is the point with VAR, I would rather the guy make a mistake on the pitch and we go, “no problem”. I still thinks it’s a penalty [against Liverpool last weekend]. Me and Howard [Webb] will argue for ages about it and we have.

‘It is still human error in my opinion. The mistake is, it’s not clear and obvious enough to be corrected. The on-field decision carries weight. I am frustrated, but I am really proud of my players.’

The Premier League Match Centre explained on X: ‘The referee’s call of no goal was checked and confirmed by the VAR as Armstrong was in an offside position and deemed to be impacting Verbruggen’s ability to play the ball’.  

However, the justification was not enough for some, including Saints goalkeeper Ramsdale who took to X shortly after to air his frustrations. 

He wrote: ‘You can not be serious’ along with a ‘face-palm’ emoji.

Ramsdale would have likely been in goal for the Saints had he not suffered a broken finger which kept him out during the recent international break. 

Brighton took the lead through a Kaoru Mitoma header on 29 minutes after some poor defending from the away side, but Flynn Downes pegged the Seagulls back on the hour mark.

Hurzeler’s side held on for a draw thanks to Armstrong’s chalked-off goal and the result was enough for them to surge into second and keep Saints at the bottom of the table.