Welbeck fires Brighton into quarter-finals as Gordon red hurts Newcastle | FA Cup

When the dust finally settled on a tie featuring two red cards and an incessant stream of high calibre drama crowned by Danny Welbeck’s extra time winner, Brighton were in the FA Cup quarter-finals.

By then Newcastle’s Anthony ­Gordon was out of this month’s ­Carabao Cup final against Liverpool at Wembley after being shown a straight red card in the 83rd minute.

As Eddie Howe began assessing the damage, his Brighton counterpart, Fabian Hürzeler, celebrated the final whistle with abandon, his smile as wide as the Tyne.

Two hours of sheer entertainment had not only reaffirmed the FA Cup’s enduring power to mesmerise but offered confirmation of the old adage about a team merely being as good as its strikers. While the 34-year-old Welbeck stepped off the bench to secure Brighton’s fifth straight win, Alexander Isak’s gangling yet supremely graceful presence had earlier threatened to mesmerise Hürzeler’s defence into submission.

When Harvey Barnes, the otherwise underwhelming, lofted a clever cross across the face of goal, the Sweden striker, starting unexpectedly after recovering from a groin problem, saw his initial header blocked by Adam Webster. Although Isak could merely blaze the rebound over the bar he had emphasised his ­gamechanging potential.

Brighton’s counterattacking ability can prove similarly transformative and Tariq Lamptey, in particular, used his change of pace to good effect as he initiated a series of breaks from right-back. Lamptey’s duel with the generally disappointing Gordon would become one of the more engrossing subplots. Who could have guessed that both would ultimately be sent off?

With much of their passing far too slapdash for Howe’s liking, Newcastle struggled to control an extremely open tie and could not quite believe their luck when Yankuba Minteh panicked before flinging himself into a late challenge and needlessly felling Tino Livramento in the area.

Isak stepped up to the penalty spot and, despite Bart Verbruggen diving the right way, the Swede’s kick was far too good for Hürzeler’s goalkeeper to keep out as it rose into the top corner.

It was Isak’s 22nd goal of the season and shortly afterwards he thought he had increased that tally only for his fine right-footed finish to be disallowed for a tight offside. According to Howe general “tightness” led to his replacement late on by Callum Wilson and the manager did not look too worried.

Howe, though, appeared distinctly rueful as Minteh drew Brighton level. The winger, sold reluctantly for £30m by Newcastle last summer in order to meet Premier League spending rules, had perhaps being trying too hard when he conceded the penalty but now the 20-year-old showed off some serious poise under pressure.

After a slick, smart, exchange of passes with João Pedro, Minteh highlighted the reason why Howe was so disappointed to lose a player who spent last season on loan at Feyenoord as he unleashed a composed shot that was helped on its way beyond the recalled Martin Dubravka by a deflection off Kieran Trippier.

As the second half unravelled and Carlos Baleba showed off his bite in the visiting midfield, Brighton’s desire to win the club’s first piece of major silverware became increasingly ­apparent and Dubravka ­performed minor wonders to deny João Pedro.

Gordon’s mounting frustration boiled over when the England winger felt he should have been awarded a penalty after some shirt tugging on Brajan Gruda’s part. Unwisely, he proceeded to take his anger out on Jan Paul van Hecke, forcibly shoving the defender in the back of the head with both hands as the pair tussled for the ball after Brighton had been awarded a free-kick for offside.

Perhaps this temporary loss of sanity was contagious because Lamptey soon flew into a stupid challenge on Jacob Murphy and was sent off after receiving a second yellow card.

Capitalising on the resultant visiting confusion, Fabian Schär swiftly connected with a free-kick but what seemed a perfectly cushioned volleyed winner was disallowed after a review using the semi-automated offside technology.

As extra time unfolded and the impressive yet ultimately cramp-ridden João Pedro ran through the pain barrier, Dubravka enhanced his chances of starting ahead of Nick Pope in the final thanks to a brilliant save from Diego Gómez. Yet even Dubravka was confounded as Brighton broke and put through by Solly March, Welbeck expertly dinked the ball over the goalkeeper. With a swipe of a boot Newcastle’s hopes of lifting their first FA Cup since 1955 were extinguished.