Brighton 0-1 Charlton Athletic: McAteer Strike Hands Charlton Victory Against Brighton | OneFootball

The Women’s League Cup continued with its Group C fixture, pitting Brighton & Hove Albion against Charlton Athletic . This turned out to be a well-contested match as, even though the home side dominated possession and pressed for goals, they could not break through the solid Charlton Athletic Women’s defence.

As for the visitors, they were clinically efficient as they scored the only goal of the game and left with full points. At the end, Brighton’s efforts went unrewarded, and Charlton took a vital win by one goal to nil.

As it happened

The match began with Brighton keen to dominate possession and build from the back. Charlton, aware of the home side’s threatening attack, set up with a compact shape, looking to absorb pressure and counter when possible. Both sides tested each other in the initial minutes, but it was Charlton who struck first.

The deadlock was broken in the 18th minute through Mary McAteer, who showed great composure to find the net. This gave the visitors confidence and set the tone for the rest of the half. From that point onwards, Brighton had to push more assertively to try and level.

Brighton increased their tempo and began to create openings. However, Charlton’s defence held firm. As half-time approached, Brighton probed with crosses and set pieces, but Charlton’s goalkeeper and back line were alert and organised.

At half-time, the visitors led by a single strike and looked comfortable in their system, while Brighton had work to do if they wanted to get back into the game.

Brighton emerged for the second half with urgency, shifting into more attacking shapes to try to force a breakthrough. They enjoyed more of the ball, created decent chances and put Charlton under sustained pressure. However, despite several entries into the final third, the home side lacked the final cutting edge.

Charlton, for their part, were disciplined and organised. They maintained their defensive structure, looked dangerous on the break and resisted Brighton’s waves of attack methodically. As the match wore on, the hosts brought on substitutes and sought fresh legs but still found the Charlton back-line uncompromising.

Brighton threw bodies forward in search of an equaliser in the closing minutes, but Charlton remained compact and cool as they saw out the final stages. And try as Brighton might, time ran out on them. The home side could just not find that decisive strike as the visitors held on for the 1-0 win.

The lineups:

BHA: Baggaley; McLauchlan, Auée, Carabalí, Mpome; Tsunoda, Noordam; Kafaji, Heron, Gay; Martin