Danny Welbeck fired Brighton to a 1-0 home win but Roma eased through with a 4-1 victory on aggregate in the Europa League last-16 tie
Never before in the Europa League knockout stages had a team recovered a four-goal deficit from the first leg and Brighton’s attempt to earn a place in the history books in their first European campaign fell short despite a valiant effort in the Sussex rain.
Matching last season’s remarkable sixth-placed finish in the Premier League is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility with 10 matches still to play, although De Zerbi acknowledged that his injury-ravaged squad must rediscover their clinical edge if that is to be achieved. The substitute Ansu Fati and Jan Paul van Hecke were guilty of spurning the best chances as Brighton failed to build on Welbeck’s goal after a slow start.
The Amex may not have the intimidating atmosphere of the Stadio Olimpico but the home supporters ensured De Rossi’s much-changed side were given a hostile reception. The former Italy midfielder talked his way into a booking after protesting when Sardar Azmoun’s acrobatic effort was ruled out by the referee Felix Zwayer for a high boot on Van Hecke in what looked like a lucky escape for Brighton.
Suddenly things were heating up as De Zerbi was also shown a yellow card after a cynical foul from Lorenzo Pellegrini sparked a mass brawl on the pitch and some angry words between the benches.Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'.In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings , then Notifications.