Watch FULL MATCH REPLAYS & more via LFC TV 24/7 on beIN SPORTS | Sign up to take advantage of our 7-day FREE TRIAL here | AU | NZ

Welbeck netted either side of Milos Kerkez's first-half finish, with the Brighton striker's 56th-minute winner compounding Liverpool to a 10th league defeat of the season.

Arriving without the injured Alisson and Mohamed Salah, Liverpool was forced into an early change after Hugo Ekitike was involved in a coming together with for Reds stalwart James Milner.

Brighton then took the lead in the 14th minute through Welbeck, who rose above Ibrahima Konate to nod into the net, with the attack coming after Giorgi Mamardashvili's pass was miscontrolled by Liverpool's number five.

However, another defensive lapse in concentration hauled Liverpool level 16 minutes later. Mamardashvili's long punt forward was headed back by Lewis Dunk, but Kerkez was on hand to steal in and loop the ball over Bart Verbruggen.

But Fabian Hurzeler's side started the second half strongly and was rewarded when Yankuba Minteh's deep cross was steered back across goal by Jack Hinshelwood for Welbeck to tap into the net.

Minteh was then denied one-on-one by Mamardashvilli before Yasin Ayari saw his shot cleared off the line as Brighton comfortably held on against Liverpool's blunt attack.

Liverpool's underwhelming second-half display left boss Arne Slot frustrated.

"As much as I dislike us losing here today, Brighton away has always been a difficult one and will always be a difficult one as long as they keep bringing in so many good players," Slot said.

"But there are other games where we should have picked up more points, like last week against Tottenham [Hotspur].

"That is far more unacceptable than this. But even away at Brighton, a club like Liverpool should be able to get a result.

"There is always pressure at Liverpool. On me, on the players. That is completely normal.

"We have qualified for the quarter finals of the FA Cup and the Champions League but in the league we need to make sure that in the end, we qualify for the Champions League."

When asked if Liverpool is running out of time to secure a UEFA Champions League spot, Slot added: "That is what I meant before the game. What I thought was, 'You won't need 24 points to qualify', and hopefully I am right because we aren't able to get 24 points any more.

"We kept trying. In the second half we were close but they were closer to scoring a third one than we were. Unfortunately it wasn't enough after a week like this.

"It is clear that we have lost a lot of points after playing in Europe. I have tried to explain a lot of times already why this is, but today we also have to give credit to Brighton.

"The first half was equal but in the second half, Brighton were the better team on the pitch." 

Brighton, meanwhile, took a huge step in its own bid to secure European football for next season with this victory.

"It was a great performance, especially in the second half. We played really good football," Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said. 

"I was pleased with the support from the crowd, incredible energy here at home.

"That's what we want to create, we want to create a place where nobody wants to go. We want to build a place where we can build the togetherness and we are in a good way."