Jack Grealish's stunning second-half equaliser grabbed Aston Villa an important point in a 1-1 draw with Brighton
 In a game of few chances, Brighton took a first-half lead through Leandro Trossard (38) but Villa improved after the break and Grealish thrashed home a fierce half-volley to get his team back on a positive footing following their embarrassing 6-1 home defeat by Manchester City
Brighton almost nicked it late on through Neal Maupay but Pepe Reina - making his debut for Villa - produced an epic one-handed save to earn Villa a share of the spoils
Tempers boiled over at the final whistle, with an altercation between Maupay and Ezri Konsa leading to the players being separated by team-mates and the coaching staff, including Villa assistant boss John Terry
The result means Villa remain in the relegation zone with 22 points from 23 matches, while Brighton stay 14th, very much looking over their shoulder as, across all competitions, Graham Potter's men have won just two of their last 13 matches
You could sense the nerves around the Amex in the early stages with the home fans knowing a Villa win would move them level on points with Potter's men
That atmosphere transferred itself onto the pitch with both teams producing little quality
With the half petering out without a single shot recorded on target, Brighton hit the front
Trossard produced the moment of quality seconds after Grealish had fired a low drive wide when sprinting through on goal
The Belgian was found in space by Maupay and fired an angled drive past the reaches of Reina for his first goal in 12 appearances
Brighton dropped deeper in the second half which allowed Villa to get a foothold into the game as the three Villa centre-backs played more aggressively with Tyrone Mings leading that charge
Dean Smith turned to his bench 23 minutes from time and brought on Douglas Luiz for the ineffective Danny Drinkwater
It was the substitute's pass that opened up the Brighton back four for Grealish to take centre stage
He was afforded plenty of space by the two Brighton centre-backs and his confidence was clear to see as he let fly with a powerful left-footed strike that found the top corner
 Cue wild celebrations in the away end
The game climaxed to a dramatic conclusion as the hosts found their stride late on but Reina, who played only once in Serie A before leaving AC Milan this season, rolled back the years to acrobatically push away a Maupay effort that was certainly heading into the bottom corner
 Maupay also had a fantastic opportunity with the last attack of the game but he could not make contact from close range following a Lewis Dunk knockdown
His frustrations were clear to see at full-time as he clashed with former Brentford team-mate Konsa, triggering a melee that involved both benches - an incident that both managers said was just "handbags"
Brighton boss said: "It was an important game and it's obviously disappointing not to win, but I thought we were really good in the first half and with a bit of luck could have probably been further ahead
"You'd expect a response from the opposition and they did come back at us, but we also responded well to their goal and had chances towards the end of the game
"Neal [Maupay] has that effort well saved and we had a little opening at the very end too, but it just wasn't to be
"Aston Villa boss : "It was a well-deserved point
 A tale of two halves
 They didn't trouble Pepe Reina too much and scored on the breakaway after Jack [Grealish] thought he should have scored
 We weren't aggressive enough in the first half - that changed in the second half
"Reina was untroubled but he is calmness personified
 You wouldn't know he was making his debut - he's a World Cup winner and very experienced
 He showed calmness
 The players know they've got a calmness behind them
 His charisma is rubbing off on everyone
 He made a telling contribution
"Are you watching Gareth Southgate? The development of the Villa skipper must be a joy for everyone associated with the club to watch
 This was a game very low on quality but one that was lit up by a moment of ruthlessness and quality finishing from a player becoming a serious talent
 Since moving further forward, Grealish has now scored seven goals in his last 14 Premier League appearances and Brighton must be sick of the sight of him
 He has scored in each of last four meetings between the teams
Brighton now go to Bournemouth on Tuesday night at 7
30pm, while Villa host Watford at the same time
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