Brighton leapfrogged Man City into second place in the Premier League table with a 2-0 win over 10-man Brentford.
The job was done for the Seagulls by the break, with Diego Gomez and Pascal Gross scoring either side of the straight red card shown to Bees striker Igor Thiago after he caught Chema in the face with his arm and split his lip.
As a result, Fabian Hurzeler's side enter the November international break five points behind league leaders Arsenal.
Brighton took the lead after 15 minutes in stunning fashion. Gomez seized on a poor defensive header and arrowed an unstoppable strike - worthy of all superlatives - high into the top-left corner.
And the outlook improved significantly for the hosts less than 10 minutes later, when Thiago was given his marching orders after referee Michael Oliver's brief visit to the VAR monitor to overturn his original decision to show the Brazilian only a yellow.
It was attack vs defence thereafter, with Brighton putting Brentford under heavy pressure. They got their reward when they were given a penalty after Keane Lewis-Potter dragged Luka Vuskovic to the deck as a corner was delivered from the right.
The execution from Gross was near-perfect; a thumping penalty into the postage stamp that Caoimhin Kelleher had no chance of stopping.
Brighton's comfort in the game was never in doubt after the break. They had almost 80 per cent possession and various chances - though there was little of quality, on the whole.
By then the wind had long been taken from the sails of Brentford, whose 200th Premier League game ended in misery.
The key moments from the Amex...
- 15: GOAL! Diego Gomez finds the top-left corner with a stunning strike from more than 20 yards to thump Brighton in front.
- 17: CHANCE! Brighton create an overload and almost punish Brentford, but Charalampos Kostoulas fires straight at Caoimhin Kelleher.
- 23: RED CARD! Michael Oliver goes to the monitor after Igor Thiago catches Chema in the face and quickly dismisses the Brazilian striker.
- 43: GOAL! Pascal Gross fires high into the top-right corner of the net from the spot after Keane Lewis-Potter's foul on Luka Vuskovic.
Hurzeler lauds 'professional' Brighton performance
Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler speaking to Sky Sports:
"It was very professional. We started the game really well and we were quite dominant in the first 20 minutes. Brentford had one moment with Thiago, where they got around the back and had a small chance but, besides that, we really dominated.
"We were intense, we scored a nice goal and then the red card helped us, but these games - when you are one man up and you are leading - are quite tricky with how we want to play the game.
"We created chances, not plenty of chances, not amazing big chances, but we were always good in defence, we were always good in counter-pressing, we were brilliant at the basics. In the end, we deserved to win it."
On Brighton's start: "We've only played 10 games, so therefore we focus on the next game after the international break. It will be another tough challenge against a tough opponent and we've tried to focus on the process.
"It will be a big challenge to keep the consistency, but one thing I said before the game was that we're brilliant at the basic things and this week be key for us and bring us our consistency. If we keep doing these things, I'm quite convinced we can keep the shape.
"But first of all it's about hard work, staying humble, doing the simple things right and this will be foundation of our game."
On being second: "Of course we don't take these things for granted and one thing in our culture is we want to celebrate the small milestones, the small wins. It's important you enjoy the ride together; it's about the togetherness.
"Tomorrow, I want to open the newspaper and read a lot of praise for my staff and for the effort from the players! If we keep focusing on the process, let's see what the outcome will be."
Andrews: Officials need to look at themselves after Thiago red
Brentford head coach Keith Andrews speaking to Sky Sports:
"The reality is we've lost two games this season, and both have been on occasions where we've gone down to 10 men.
"We need to do better. I also think the officials need to have a look at themselves, overall, with where the game is going.
"With both of those red cards, the incidents have been instigated by the opposition in a provocative way, where they've come towards our players to antagonise them.
"And I think the sad state of where the game is now, there's that many players going to ground holding their face, holding a part of their face that hasn't been touched. It's a sad indictment of where our game is going. As someone who loves the game, who love what it is, loves what it stands for, I find that frustrating."
