Brighton 0-0 Everton: Dull as dishwater but another important point

Take a bow Brighton 0-0 Everton. After the BBC cancelled all scheduled programmes for the best part of 24 hours over the weekend to cover the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh, there were a fair few people complaining about it being the most boring television of the year.

Well, not anymore. Just four days after Phillip made his move to the Palace in the Sky and Sky Sports showed one of the dullest games of football that will take place this season. You know it has been bad when the minutes silent before kick off could have been included in the highlights.

Not that we are complaining too much. Yes, it was 90 minutes of our lives we will never get back which could have been spent doing something more fun, like damp proofing or filling in a tax return.

But the point represents a decent one for the Albion against an Everton side with an excellent away record and who may yet qualify for European football.

It also lifted Brighton above Burnley and into 15th in the Premier League table. The gap to Fulham is extended to seven with a game in hand and the Albion’s superior goal difference is effectively worth another point on top. Eight clear with eight matches to go. Surely the Cottagers are not catching Brighton now?

Had the Albion won, then that would not be a question. They perhaps should have as well but on the rare occasions when a little bit of excitement broke out, not for the first time this season Brighton’s finishing let them down.

Brighton took 23 shots at the Everton goal in their 0-0 draw, only three of which were on target. Robin Olsen made only one save of any note to keep out a Lewis Dunk header whilst at the other end, Robert Sanchez’s sole contribution was to miscontrol a Dunk back pass, forcing the Albion goalkeeper into having to tackle an Everton player to prevent a very real opportunity for the Toffees.

In taking his evasive action, Sanchez managed to injure himself and at one point it looked to be serious enough as to have Jason Steele vigorously warming up. Imagine the carnage Steele’s introduction could have caused and suddenly, you become a little more grateful for an uneventful 0-0 draw.

Potter kept faith with the same starting XI who had performed admirably in the 3-0 win over Newcastle United and in defeat at Manchester United.

Eight days had passed since some strange refereeing denied Brighton a share of the spoils at Old Trafford so the players should have been fresh coming into Everton, yet at times their first half performance appeared laboured and lethargic.

Whilst the personnel remained consistent, the tactics were a little different. Potter had enjoyed great success using Neal Maupay and Danny Welbeck as very wide forwards with Leandro Trossard bursting through the middle from deep in a 1930s style W-M formation.

Welbeck still hugged the touchline to a degree, but Maupay was much more central. That enabled the Frenchman to have Brighton’s two best chances of the match, both of which he squandered.

It was a strange evening for Maupay, who in the first half created more opportunities than every other player on the pitch put together. His approach play was relatively good but his finishing was atrocious, once again indicating that Brighton have to find a clinical centre forward for next season and deploy Maupay off them as a second striker.

To give Everton their dues, they were excellent defensively. Carlo Ancelotti’s side were severely hampered by injury with 10 players ruled out, including Dominic Calvert-Lewin which explains why they were so toothless.

That lack of attacking edge meant that Ancelotti instead focussed on keeping goals out at the other end. As one of the finest players of his generation and then one of the best managers in the world in an era when Italian defences ruled the roost, he unsurprisingly had Everton set up perfectly to stop Brighton breaking though.

As a result, many of those 23 Albion shots in Brighton 0-0 Everton came from distance and did little to trouble Olsen. Jakub Moder gave Olsen two routine saves to make early on but the first 30 minutes resembled a pre-season friendly such was the lack of intent from either side.

Songs of Praise on BBC iPlayer looked a more attractive option at that point. Those who stayed loyal to what was happening at the Amex though were rewarded with two good opportunities for either side just past the half hour mark.

Tom Davies should have at least tested the hobbling Sanchez with a free header from a Seamus Coleman cross. The outstanding Yves Bissouma then added a few more million to his price tag by contorting his body with his back to goal to produce a spectacular overhead kick. Everton were lucky to see it drop onto the roof of the net rather than dipping under the bar.

Bissouma next proved his worth at the other end, rushing back to nick the ball off James Rodriguez with a perfectly timed challenge when the Colombian looked poised to shoot.

This was Bissouma at his very best again after a couple of months of below par performances. Gary Lineker described the midfielder as an “exceptional footballer” and after the game, Jamie Carragher in the Monday Night Football studio was singing Bissouma’s praises too.

Make the most of Bissouma folks, because the rest of English football has woken up to the fact that Brighton have a potentially world class player on their hands.

It seems impossible that one of the big boys will not pay major money for him this summer, although Carragher does not believe that should be Arsenal as a move to the Emirates would not be a step forward for Bissouma. Oh to have seen the reaction of those Gunners fans who bizarrely dislike the Albion when Carragher gave that opinion.

Maupay’s first big opportunity arrived five minutes into the second half. He was well positioned when he went for an outside of the boot effort but it was weak and looked to be no trouble for Olsen until Maupay was a tad fortunate to earn a corner after it deflected off Mason Holgate.

Welbeck then dallied for a second too long waiting for an Adam Lallana pass to reach him, allowing Ben Godfrey to just about clear the ball to safety when Dat Guy was poised to pull the trigger.

Moder connected well with a second volley of the game from a Pascal Gross corner which was not far away. There is something quite beautiful about the technique Moder has when it comes to taking on first time shots from difficult opportunities of the type that most Brighton players blaze high and wide.

We tweeted those thoughts to the world, only for Moder to then go and break a seat in Row Z of the North Stand with a wayward effort. Sorry for jinxing you, Jakub.

You wondered at that point if Potter might turn to his bench to inject a different threat in an attempt to find a breakthrough. Brighton were not without options amongst their substitutes; the guile and craft of Alexis Mac Allister, the youth of Andi Zeqiri and the pace of Jose Izquierdo were all sat there waiting to be called upon.

The Albion boss though did nothing. With 14 minutes left to play, the best chance of the game fell to Maupay who was found by Bissouma after a driving run into the box.

Maupay was 10 yards out in a very good position with only Olsen to beat. The very least he should have been doing from there was getting a shot on target. Instead, he toe punted the ball wide of the post.

A miss like that left the lingering feeling that this was one of those evenings where the Albion could play until Wednesday and still would not score. Brighton 0-0 Everton was nailed on to be the full time result.

Potter did eventually change things up, making a bizarre double substitution for the final three minutes which saw Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Dan Burn enter proceedings.

Need a goal in the last few minutes in a game you have been dominated but lacked an attacking threat? Throw on a 6’7 centre back, of course. Another candidate for this year’s Strangest Managerial Decision Award at the WAB End of Season dinner and dance.

There was a late scare when Alex Iwobi hit a thumping effort in injury time which beat Sanchez. Thankfully, it also beat the crossbar by a matter of inches.

Had that gone in, then the Albion would have lost 1-0 in the last seconds to Everton’s second shot on target. Brighton have found themselves in that sort of situation many times this season, most notably six weeks ago when Crystal Palace somehow left the Amex with a 2-1 victory.

Compared to that diabolical evening, perhaps we should not complain about Brighton 0-0 Everton having all the excitement of cleaning the bathroom.

Nobody will remember this game, but the point may yet prove vital in the battle for survival. At this stage in the season, that is all that matters.