Fabian Hürzeler marked his milestone 100th match in charge by watching the Premier League's top-scoring attack misfire across 26 unrewarded attempts during Thursday's UEFA Conference League trip to Stadion Střelnice.
Brighton and Hove Albion saw their six-game winning streak halted on Thursday night as Czech outfit FK Jablonec produced a disciplined defensive display to secure a goalless draw in the league phase of the UEFA Conference League at Stadion Střelnice. Despite monopolizing possession and bombarding the home penalty area, the high-flying Premier League side failed to score for the first time in ten matches.
The occasion marked Fabian Hürzeler's 100th competitive fixture in charge of the Seagulls, but the milestone evening turned into an exercise in mounting frustration. Fresh from a resounding five-goal derby triumph over Crystal Palace on Sunday, Hürzeler chose to rotate heavily, making eight changes to his starting lineup. Only goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, French defender Olivier Boscagli, and veteran midfielder Pascal Gross kept their places in northern Czechia.
Around one thousand traveling supporters made the journey from the English south coast to the foothills of the Jizera Mountains, expecting another fluid attacking display. Brighton entered the clash sitting third in the English top flight and leading the Premier League scoring charts with twenty-three goals from their opening seven games. Instead, they ran into a stubborn and well-drilled defensive wall marshaled by Jablonec head coach Luboš Kozel.
With injuries sidelining Kaoru Mitoma, Evan Ferguson, Mats Wieffer, and Yankuba Minteh, Hürzeler handed European starts to Michael Svoboda in central defense and Jaouen Hadjam at left-back. Matt O'Riley and Jack Hinshelwood joined Gross in midfield, supplying attackers Malick Yalcouyé, Georginio Rutter, and Ibrahim Osman. Kozel responded without injured pair Kevin-Prince Milla and Kryštof Karban, deploying midfielders Matěj Polidar, Richard Sedláček, Nelson Okeke, and Vakhtang Chanturishvili to shield fullback Martin Cedidla against Brighton's wide overloads.
Deploying a compact 4-2-3-1 structure, Jablonec conceded territory willingly, allowing the visitors to dictate tempo across the middle third while denying them any space behind the defensive line. Brighton commanded seventy-three percent of the ball and amassed twenty-six attempts on goal, but repeatedly found their route to the net blocked by Serbian center-back Nemanja Tekijaški and experienced goalkeeper Jan Hanuš.
Osman struggled to time his forward runs on the left flank, repeatedly falling victim to the assistant referee's offside flag during promising transitions. Yalcouyé offered Brighton's most dangerous attempt of the opening half, collecting a pass from Boscagli before unleashing a long-range drive that flew high over the crossbar. Midfielders O'Riley and Hinshelwood probed patiently alongside Rutter, yet Brighton rarely managed to test Hanuš with shots from dangerous central locations inside the penalty box.
Jablonec, who entered the match seeking to rebound from consecutive 3-2 losses against SC Freiburg in Europe and Viktoria Plzeň in domestic league action, gained confidence as the contest wore on. The hosts remained committed to their defensive duties, picking up four yellow cards in the second half through Sebastian Nebyla, Antonín Rusek, Dušan Pavlović, and Martin Cedidla as they disrupted Brighton's passing rhythm with physical challenges.
With fifteen minutes remaining, the Czech side came inches away from snatching an unexpected lead. Brighton right-back João Costinha, who had earlier received a yellow card from Norwegian referee Sigurd Smehus Kringstad, committed a loose turnover deep in his own half. The error allowed Rusek to sprint into shooting space on the right side of the penalty area, though the home forward dragged his angled effort wide of the far post under pressure.
Moments later, the hosts forced the best save of the entire contest. Jablonec left-back Jiří Sláma advanced into the final third and unleashed a fierce curling strike bound for the top corner, demanding an acrobatic fingertip denial from Verbruggen to turn the ball away from the net. The Dutch international goalkeeper reacted instantly to preserve parity when a shock deficit seemed imminent.
Referee Kringstad blew the final whistle after three minutes of stoppage time, confirming Jablonec's eighth consecutive home match in European competition without defeat. For Brighton, the solitary point lifts them to four points from two matches following their opening 4-0 victory over Kauno Zalgiris, while the Czech hosts celebrated their first point of the league phase. Hürzeler's squad now turns its attention back to domestic duty, facing a testing Premier League trip to Fulham on Sunday.
Source:
FK Jablonec x Brighton & Hove Albion - Highlights, Summary and Match Report October 22, 2026
Jablonec v Brighton live updates from the Conference League October 22, 2026