Rodrigo Muniz struck deep into stoppage time to earn Fulham a dramatic draw against Brighton on the opening weekend of the Premier League season.
The Brazilian forward pounced in the 96th minute, firing home from close range after Harry Wilson’s corner caused chaos in the box.
His equaliser stunned the hosts, who had looked set for victory after Matt O’Riley’s second-half penalty.
O’Riley, formerly of Celtic, had given Brighton the lead in the 55th minute, sending Bernd Leno the wrong way from the spot after Georginio Rutter was brought down by Sander Berge.
Before that breakthrough, Brighton had carved out several opportunities.
Kaoru Mitoma headed narrowly over from an O’Riley cross, while Lewis Dunk and Yasin Ayari both went close after the opener.
But their wastefulness proved costly as Fulham’s late surge snatched a share of the points.
Fulham’s 18-year-old midfielder Josh King showed promise early on, going to ground in the box under pressure from Jan Paul van Hecke and goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.
After a VAR review, however, no penalty was awarded.
For much of the contest, Brighton looked on course for a comfortable if narrow victory, which would have marked their fifth straight opening-day win in the top flight.
Instead, they had to settle for maintaining an unbeaten record in such fixtures.
Veteran midfielder James Milner made his 17th Premier League opening-day appearance, one short of Frank Lampard’s record.
Despite the departure of Joao Pedro to Chelsea, Brighton did not appear short in attack, with winger Yankuba Minteh catching the eye.
The Gambian youngster was lively throughout, registering more touches in Fulham’s box than any other Brighton player and hinting at a big role this season.
Manager Marco Silva has voiced frustration at Fulham’s lack of transfer activity, with just one new signing so far this summer.
But Muniz, who has been linked with a move away, again proved invaluable from the bench.
Introduced in the 66th minute for Raul Jimenez, the Brazilian delivered a poacher’s finish to secure a point.
His reputation as Fulham’s “super-sub” continues to grow—since the start of last season, he has scored seven league goals as a substitute, more than any other Premier League player.
With Silva’s squad light on attacking options, keeping Muniz could be crucial to Fulham’s hopes of building on last season’s mid-table finish.
