Mario Lemina fired Wolves into the FA Cup quarter final after a nervy 1-0 win over Brighton.

The hosts reached the last eight for just the second time in 21 years and the first time since 2019, when they made the semi-finals.

There is now a path to Wembley for O’Neil’s side, who will host Championship side Coventry in the next round, but they lived dangerously at Molineux.

Facundo Buonanotte wasted a fine opening and goalkeeper Jason Steele, up for a late corner, missed the chance to take the tie extra time.

But last season’s semi-finalists – who dominated for long spells – could not find a way back from conceding the winner after just 77 seconds.

Brighton – missing eight regular starters including Solly March, Joao Pedro, Kaoru Mitoma and James Milner – were already underdogs even before going behind early.

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s fine turn sent him scampering away from Jan Paul van Hecke down the left and Steele could only flap at his deflected cross.

Lemina and Pervis Estupinan arrived at the far post, with the Wolves midfielder reacting first to slide the ball in at the second attempt.

But, much like Sunday’s 1-0 Premier League win over Sheffield United, the hosts failed to build on their lead.

Brighton recovered from the shock of the early goal and, with Simon Adingra and Jakub Moder shooting off target, got a grip of the game.

There was little suggestion Wolves would add to their lead, although Steele had to be alert to clear at Bellegarde’s feet after he raced on to Igor’s weak backpass.

It was the Seagulls who created the best openings and they should have levelled seven minutes before the break when Buonanotte planted a free header wide from Estupinan’s cross.

Roberto De Zerbi clearly sensed a way back into the tie and introduced Danny Welbeck at the break, with Brighton continuing to press.

Lewis Dunk nodded wide and Wolves’ frustrations grew when they lost Hwang Hee-chan and Lemina to injury.

Yet the changes, with Pedro Neto and Pablo Sarabia called on, briefly gave the hosts much-needed zip even if they failed to add to a slender lead.

The visitors, though, regrouped again and pinned Wolves back without testing Jose Sa as the game entered its final 15 minutes.

Julio Enciso drilled wide from 25 yards, more in frustration than with a belief he would score, and Welbeck nodded over.

Steele, up for a last-gasp corner, should have taken the tie to extra time but sliced wide from six yards as Wolves squeezed through.

Kaoru Mitoma’s superb solo effort and Solly March’s second-half double helped lift Brighton top of the Premier League table after an impressive 4-1 win at Wolves.

Japan midfielder Mitoma’s mesmeric run and finish gave Brighton a slender half-time lead before Roberto De Zerbi’s side put Wolves to the sword with three goals in nine minutes at the start of the second half.

Pervis Estupinan doubled Brighton’s lead within 60 seconds of the restart and two carbon-copy goals from March, both assisted by teenage forward Julio Enciso, sealed the Seagulls’ second-straight win.

Wolves responded through substitute Hwang Hee-chan’s header just after the hour mark, but it was mere consolation for Gary O’Neil’s side, who were emphatically punished for missed first-half chances and lost Matheus Nunes to a late red card.

Mitoma gave Brighton a 15th-minute lead with a brilliant effort, cutting inside 40 yards from goal and beating three Wolves defenders before sliding the ball beyond goalkeeper Jose Sa.

Brighton deserved their lead, but Wolves spent the rest of an end-to-end first half chasing an equaliser.

Fabio Silva was brilliantly denied by Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele’s out-stretched boot in the 28th minute after the Portuguese forward had ghosted on to Joao Gomes’ deft through-ball.

The home side went close again when Nunes curled a shot off-target following impressive Brazilian Matheus Cunha’s powerful run and Pedro Neto flashed an angled drive just wide.

Brighton continued to threaten on the counter – Mitoma and Paraguayan Enciso were a constant menace – but Wolves passed up another chance just before the break.

Rayan Ait-Nouri found himself clear in front of goal after exchanging passes with Silva, but the Algeria defender blazed over shortly before half-time.

Wolves were made to pay inside 60 seconds of the restart as Brighton extended their lead and then put the game to bed with two more strikes, all within the space of nine minutes.

Estupinan tucked home the visitors’ second, stepping on to Mitoma’s cut-back after Danny Welbeck’s fierce drive had been parried by Sa.

March then slammed home his first as he charged on to Enciso’s lovely weighted ball inside the penalty area to make it 3-0 in the 51st minute and that became 4-0, just four minutes later.

Enciso this time found himself free on the opposite edge of the area and his ball in was turned home again by March to leave Molineux stunned.

Wolves responded just after the hour-mark as Hwang headed home fellow substitute Pablo Sarabia’s corner and they drove gamely forward in a bid to mitigate the damage.

Efforts from Sarabia and Pedro Neto were held by Steele and rebounded off Evan Ferguson respectively, while March was twice denied his hat-trick with goal-bound shots blocked by Toti Gomes and Steele.

Wolves’ misery was complete in stoppage-time when Nunes was sent off for his second yellow card after pushing Estupinan to the ground.