Albion lost a pulsating, enthralling and dramatic first ever European competitive fixture.
Two penalties, a host of yellow cards and some bizarre referring decisions punctuated a match that ended in 3-2 home defeat.
Brighton were taught a harsh lesson on their Europa League debut, levelling twice at the Amex before the Greek champions AEK Athens snatched a late winner.
Substitute Ezequiel Ponce sealed the points on the counter attack six minutes from the end of normal time.
Joao Pedro had equalised from the penalty spot in the first half and again in the second – both times after VAR had intervened in Brighton’s favour.
The hosts had the better of the play but they lacked the clinical edge of AEK who scored with two excellent finishes from set-pieces.
The first goal was a superb header from Djibril Sidibe, followed by a sliding finish from Mijat Gacinovic as Brighton were undone by nerves and their own naivety.
The opening goal came after 11 minutes and was against the early run of the play.
AEK’s first attack saw them win a corner on the left after a low cross was turned behind. As the ball was whipped in, no one had picked up the lurking Sidibe who, with a late dash into the box, caught Brighton out with a superb 15-yard diving header that whistled past Jason Steele.
De Zerbi’s side had been badly caught out and seconds later it could have been two. Levi Garcia, who would torment Brighton in the first period with pace and clever movement, raced beyond the defence and went through on goal. But his tame finish was too close to Steele.
Garcia wasted another chance to double the lead from an almost identical position, this time slipping his effort just beyond the far post.
Julio Igor nodded wide from a free header inside the six-yard box as Brighton finally put together an attack to concern the AEK defence but within a minute he had made amends for his profligacy.
When defender Ehsan Hajsafi dangled a leg as Pedro looked to cut inside to shoot, the referee initially booked the striker for diving.
But after a pitch-side VAR review the booking was rescinded, Pedro stepped up and coolly rolled his penalty beyond Cican Stankovic to score Brighton’s first European goal.
At that stage it appeared that they had had their reprieve for the way they had left themselves vulnerable to AEK’s threat – but five minutes before the break there was another fine delivery from a set-piece and another critical lapse in concentration.
Brighton held a high line on the edge of their own box as a free-kick was whipped in from 40 yards out but, as blue shirts charged back towards their own goal, none could prevent Gacinovic from sliding to get a foot on the ball to turn it beyond Steele.
There was still time for Jan-Paul Van Hecke to deny Orbelin Pineda what would have been a deserved third for AEK on the stroke of half-time.
In the second half, there was relief around the Amex when the referee was directed pitch-side for another VAR review after Pedro’s tumble inside the box under Damian Szymanski’s challenge had at first been waved on.
As in the first half, the decision was overturned, and Pedro got to his feet to replicate his earlier composed finish to draw Brighton level again.
De Zerbi was booked for remonstrating forcefully on the touchline, before Pedro was handed the chance to seal his hat-trick and an opening night win when he spring the offside trap and went one-on-one with Stankovic. This time the goalkeeper got the better of their duel.
The Estonian referee however exotic that may sound, was certainly out of his depth and nearly lost control a few times.
Then came AEK’s final sting. A raking ball from the back was nodded out wide by Ponce to Niclas Eliasson, who returned the ball to his fellow substitute.
Although Steele blocked Ponce’s shot, the rebound ricocheted off the Argentinian and into the net for the winner.
Despite the defeat the mood around the Amex was bouyant, the travelling fans added to a truly unique atmosphere which will long live in the memory of all those involved.
Albion now have to dust themselves down and prepare for the visit of Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday.
They will be keen to prove Europa League participation doesn’t always develop into Premier League struggles.
