Brighton and Hove Albion looked on course for safety after 24 games, sitting ten points above 18th placed Fulham. However, three games on and the picture looks extremely different.
Albion have gone on a disappointing run of three defeats on the bounce after a six game unbeaten run which included victories against champions Liverpool, Tottenham & Leeds. The Seagulls have been punished for their poor form, as Fulham have taken 12 points from their last seven games which leaves them behind Graham Potter’s side only on goal difference.
Newcastle United will also be looking over their shoulders as they sit just one point above Fulham & Brighton. Steve Bruce’s men have key players Allan Saint-Maximin, Callum Wilson & Miguel Amiron currently injured which isn’t helping their bid to stay in the top flight and have only taken two points from their last four games.
The Seagulls bid to stay up has also taken huge hits with three of their first-choice back five also injured. Wing-backs Tariq Lamptey & Solly March have both been confirmed out for the rest of the season after having surgery. Centre-back Adam Webster, who has been a growing influence in the Albion side, is out until at least the international break at the end of the month. The three players mentioned have all been key to Brighton this season. Lamptey’s injury blow has been softened by the form of the ever-reliable Joel Veltman, who has made the position his own in the explosive 20-year-old’s absence. March & Webster’s absence has been a bit more of a problem to the balance of Potter’s side. Dan Burn is arguably more of a left-sided centre back but was deployed at wing-back in the 1-0 win over Liverpool last month.
Michal Karbownik started in the 1-0 FA Cup defeat to Leicester on the right side but has yet to feature in the Premier League & even made an appearance for the club’s under 23s a few weeks ago. He can operate on the left or the right and even in central midfield but he hasn’t been included in the last three match-day squads so it is unlikely that the Pole will deputise for March anytime soon.
The key injuries have prompted Potter to revert to a back four in recent times which sees Burn at left full-back, Veltman at right-back with a central pairing of Ben White & skipper Lewis Dunk. After four clean sheets in five, Albion have conceded five goals in their run of three defeats in a row. It’s clear to see that clean sheets will help massively with their goal of staying in the Premier League this season & is something Potter will be wanting his team to do before it is too late.
Defensively, Albion have actually been statistically pretty good this season. Six clean sheets in Rob Sanchez’s first 16 games is an impressive total given their current league position. They have also conceded the second joint-least goals in the division since January 26th (six) alongside Fulham & Man City. It’s no surprise to see Chelsea first (two goals conceded) since Thomas Tuchel’s impressive start to life in London. Clean sheets are often underrated – don’t concede, you don’t lose and you always have a chance of winning the game.
In terms of team selection, fans have usually been critical of Potter for changing the team too much. However, they got their wish as the good run coincided with little disruption in selection. The recent bad run has come with calls to make changes to the side again, which contradicts what some people have been saying.
So what is Albion’s best XI?
It is very difficult to say what Potter thinks his best XI is as he often tinkers according to the opposition and picks players who are flexible and able to operate in different spaces.
Sanchez is a definite in goal, and has generally been excellent since taking the gloves from Maty Ryan, who has moved to Arsenal on loan. Despite his error for Leicester’s winning goal last Saturday, the Spaniard’s save percentage of 71.4% & six clean sheets in 16 demonstrates the quality the 23-year-old has shown since his debut in November.
As mentioned, Potter likes to change formations and systems in-game, which means Dan Burn & Joel Veltman’s versatility can be utilised. Both can play in a five, a three or a four which means the Albion can switch systems without making substitutions. Without the important Lamptey, March & Webster, it is likely that Potter will stick with a back four unless the versatile Steven Alzate is deployed at left wing back or Karbownik is introduced, but that is unlikely.
Yves Bissouma has been a mainstay in central midfield this campaign, and over the last couple of months has had the creative Pascal Gross & Alexis Mac Allister for company alongside him. A player with over 100 Premier League appearances in the name of Davy Propper has rarely featured this season but has been an unused sub in the last four games. Propper is sometimes frustrating, but sometimes absolutely brilliant and is a player who possesses great ability on the ball with the eye for a pass and we all know what the Dutchman can do, but how likely are we to see him reinstated into the team after just five Premier League appearances from a possible 27?
Another central midfield option could be the Polish international Jakub Moder, who made his Premier League debut in the 2-1 defeat to West Brom and showed glimpses of what he is capable of in the dying moments when Brighton were chasing an equaliser. Similar to Karbownik, will Potter decide to throw in someone who only has 11 minutes of top-flight English football experience in a high-pressure situation where points are needed quickly to enable their safety? Probably not.
Moving on to the more advanced positions, Leandro Trossard has been a regular in the side and has again shown glimpses on what he is capable of and Albion fans know how good he is on his day, but can he have that day more often when his team need it most? With two goals and four assists, the Belgian is one of the leaders for goal contributions within the squad, so is capable of scoring and assisting in the top flight. Striker Neal Maupay has been heavily criticised for missing chances but is Brighton’s top scorer with seven goals in 25 games, which is the number of goals he had scored at this point last season. The experienced Adam Lallana scored his first goal for the club in Saturday’s defeat and particularly in the first half showed his class but tired towards the end. If the Albion can keep him fit, he will certainly be an asset from now until the end of the season.
Danny Welbeck and Aaron Connolly both have two goals this season but have suffered with injuries throughout, limiting them to mainly sub appearances in recent weeks. Welbeck also missed a penalty in the West Brom defeat, while Connolly missed has also missed his fair share of chances this season. Swiss prospect Andi Zeqiri has been involved pretty much all season but has only made three league appearances, all off the bench so is unlikely to start anytime soon, as is South African forward Percy Tau who after a promising start to his Albion career, has rarely featured since his debut away at Man City over two months ago.
Wingers Jose Izquierdo & Alireza Jahanbakhsh have both featured on the bench this season but have not made many significant contributions and don’t look likely to be involved from the start. A surprise option is the return of the fiery Florin Andone, who is back in training following a knee injury which cut short his loan at Galatasaray last season. He has made three appearances under Graham Potter, and scored in the first game of the head coach’s reign away at Watford at the beginning of the 2019/20 season.
Predicted XI for Southampton away on Sunday
(4-2-2-2) Sanchez; Veltman, White, Dunk (c), Burn; Bissouma, Gross; Mac Allister, Trossard; Lallana, Maupay.
All stats courtesy of SofaScore & FBref.com.
Written by Joe Glayshier (@joeglayshier on Twitter).
JG Writes 