‘I have never’ – Jan Paul van Hecke makes incredible claim on £30m Brighton star after Fulham victory
Defender Jan Paul van Hecke was full of praise for Brighton’s ice-cool penalty taker Joao Pedro after the 2-1 victory against Fulham.
Pedro won and converted a nerveless penalty in the sixth minute of added time to claim a first-ever win over Fulham in their Premier League era.
Albion looked set to be frustrated by the Cottagers once again, having never beaten them in nine previous meetings.
But Pedro’s spot-kick at the death settled the battle of the European hopefuls in Brighton’s favour and moved them up to sixth, just a point behind Manchester City in fourth.
Raul Jimenez’s well-taken opener for Fulham had earlier been canceled out by Van Hecke’s towering header from a free-kick in the first half.
Van Hecke had absolutely no doubt Pedro would score from the spot – his 13th successful penalty for Brighton since joining from Watford for £30m in 2023.
The Dutch defender claimed he’s never once seen Pedro miss.
“I was full of confidence,” said Van Hecke. “I have never seen him miss in my life and today he scored again. It is incredible.
“Well done to the boys for working so hard and we get the reward and the three points. Very happy.”
Van Hecke’s leveler was also his first goal for the club after 82 appearances for the Seagulls. It proved hugely popular with fans a big relief for him.
“As you could see it was an amazing feeling,” said the Netherlands international. “I was really, really happy. I think that was a great header. A nice one. Hopefully, more to come now.
“Maybe you need your first one and then there are more, hopefully.”
The 24-year-old also admitted there was frustration in the team after conceding “an easy” opening goal.
“They didn’t really have a lot of chances,” he added. “Only a lot of corners. It felt like a bit of an easy goal and then after we spoke on the pitch and said ‘Boys, we need to push because it’s not good enough.’
“It’s good that we scored before half-time and I think the second half, maybe was a draw and we put it over the line, so I’m really happy.”
Brighton are now into the top six and are in the mix for a Champions League spot. The Seagulls are also through to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup where they face a home draw against Nottingham Forest for a place in the semi-final at Wembley.
“Really excited,” Van Hecke added. “I think now you need to show up and that’s what we do at the moment. A lot more games to come, so we keep on going.”
