Percy TAU has been told a decision to miss the Olympics is paying off.

The South Africa star scored his first goal for Albion as they beat Luton 3-1 in a friendly.

He produced a twisting run and calm finish to complete the scoring.

Tau partnered Florin Andone in attack in the second half at Kenilworth Road.

Aaron Connolly, who also scored, and Neal Maupay played the first 45 minutes.

All are competing for places with Danny Welbeck expected to miss the start of the season due to a hamstring concern.

Tau is enjoying his first Premier League pre-season after linking up with the squad last January.

He had the option of representing his country at the Games but was keen to prepare properly for the Prem season instead.

Head coach Graham Potter said: “He saw the value of being here, training with the players from the start, competing for his place.

“I’m pleased for him that he scores.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The first of many? 😏<br><br>What a goal, <a href="https://twitter.com/percymuzitau22?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PercyMuziTau22</a>! ⚡️🇿🇦 <a href="https://t.co/AUCG5grZfq">pic.twitter.com/AUCG5grZfq</a></p>— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficialBHAFC/status/1421544188458401794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 31, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“It is nice to have as much competition in that area of the pitch as you can.

“I thought Percy and Florin did well in the second half and Neal and Aaron did well in the first half so that’s positive.”

Albion retain an interest in Benfica striker Darwin Nunez, a player they tried to sign last summer, amid reports in Portugal of an unsuccessful bid.

Benfica need to sell a player and Nunez’s future could become clearer after they complete their Champions League qualifying tie with Spartak Moscow.