2017/18 Season Review – Part Two
It will be more than a one season stay in the Premier League for Brighton and Hove Albion after Chris Hughton’s side defied the pre-season predictions to avoid an immediate return to the Championship, finishing the 2017-18 season in 15th spot, some seven points clear of the drop zone.
The Albion hit the magical 40 points target with two games to spare after a stunning victory over runners up Manchester United in what was the high point of a season packed with plenty of those.
We’ve visited some of the most famous stadiums in the world, seen some of the greatest players in the world and been on a journey that made all those years of struggle in the lower divisions with no home ground seem a million miles away.
So sit back and relax as we relive the 2017-18 season with the second part of our Season Review.
January 2018
Two cheap goals conceded from set pieces saw Bournemouth battle back twice to take a point in the opening game of 2018, a 2-2 home draw in which Anthony Knockaert and Glenn Murray scored for the Albion.
Murray was at it again a week later, netting a last minute winner against Crystal Palace to knock our rivals out of the FA Cup at the third round stage in front of a sparse crowd at the Amex, put off by ticket prices and the caper of the league meeting between the two a month previously.
The worst result of the season followed that as another two goals from corners saw West Bromwich Albion win for the first time in 20 games and first time under Alan Pardew, securing a 2-0 victory at the Hawthorns. That made it a staggering 10 goals out of 10 conceded in the league since the away game with Huddersfield Town at the start of December that had come from crosses into the box. Even worse than Brighton’s defending from set plays were reports that Baggies forward Jay Rodriguez had racially abused Gaetan Bong, allegedly telling the left black, “You’re black and you stink” on what was a terrible day all-round in the West Midlands.
Chris Hughton’s decision to change formation and try a 3-5-2 against champions Chelsea badly backfired as the Blues ran out 4-0 winners on a day in which the first “Opposition player, can I have your shirt” signs from our plastic support were aired. Eden Hazard duly gave his top to a “Brighton” fan, sparking an embarrassing trend whenever one of the big boys visited the Amex.
Having somehow muddled through the first half of the season with only Glenn Murray and Tomer Hemed as available senior strikers, the Albion finally addressed their shortage of options up front with not one, but two signings. A club record £16m was spent on Jurgen Locadia from PSV Eindhoven and Leonardo Ulloa returned on loan from Leicester City.
January was rounded off with Murray sparing us the prospect of an FA Cup Fourth Round replay with Middlesbrough as his late goal via a knee secured a 1-0 win at the end of a week in which he was arrested for tax evasion. Not paying HMRC was showing no effect on his form however as he scored again in a hugely frustrating draw at Southampton, the Albion showing absolutely no attacking intent after Murray’s penalty at St Mary’s and they got exactly what they deserved when the Saints equalised to claim a share of the spoils.
January Record: P6, W2, D2, L2, F6, A10
Results: 2-2 Bournemouth H, 2-1 Palace H, 0-2 West Brom A, 0-4 Chelsea H, 1-0 Middlesbrough A, 1-1 Southampton A
League Position at End of Month: 16th
February 2018
That Southampton game had led to some questions being asked about whether Hughton’s style had become too negative, but the Brighton boss answered those pretty unequivocally in February’s opening game against West Ham United as he sent his side on the attack from the first whistle with the result being that, for the second time in the season, the Hammers were blown away by the Seagulls.
Murray made it five goals in his last six starts, alongside what would prove to be the Albion’s Goal of the Season from Jose Izquierdo and another smart Pascal Gross finish to secure a 3-1 win and that was followed by a 1-1 draw at Stoke City.
There was late drama at the Bet365 Stadium, Maty Ryan saving a last minute penalty, Lewis Dunk scrambling away the rebound and then Anthony Knockaert heading the resulting corner off the line to preserve a huge point against the struggling Potters. Izquierdo had given Brighton the lead, finishing off a brilliant one-touch passing move from front-to-back that, had Manchester City scored, would’ve been talked about for years to come.
Locadia and Ulloa marked their full debuts with goals in a 3-1 FA Cup win over League Two Coventry City to send the Albion into the quarter finals for the first time since 1986 with Connor Goldson also scoring for the first time since heart surgery and the month ended with another big win as Swansea City were seen off 4-1, Murray netting another two and Knockaert and Locadia also scoring.
It had been at least a couple of months since we’d had a Dunk own goal and he duly delivered, notching his fourth of the season to tie the Premier League record with three months of the campaign still remaining.
February Record: P4, W3, D1, L0, F11, A4
Results: 3-1 West Ham H, 1-1 Stoke A, 3-1 Coventry H, 4-1 Swansea H
League Position at End of Month: 12th
March 2018
That fantastic February saw Hughton awarded the Premier League Manager of the Month award and things got even better at the start of March when the Albion finally claimed their first Big Six scalp of the season as goals from Dunk and Murray increased the pressure on Arsene Wenger with a 2-1 win over Arsenal. Little did we know at that point we’d go onto win only one more game between then and the end of the season, or that Murray – genuinely being linked with a shock England World Cup call up at the age of 34 – would score only once more.
It was a woeful showing a week later away at Everton where Knockaert threw his toys out the pram in the most dangerous way possible by trying to break Leighton Baines’ leg, picking up a deserved red card in a 2-0 defeat. Having tried to smash up the dugout when he was substituted against the Gunners, questions were now being asked about whether the Little French Magician had the temperament for Premier League football. That result at Goodison Park could’ve been even worse but for another Ryan penalty save late on from Wayne Rooney while Gaetan Bong decided to offer Dunk some company on the own goal scorers list.
It was a valiant effort in the last eight of the FA Cup at a snow-covered Old Trafford before Manchester United eventually proved too good for the Albion, the Red Devils winning 2-0 to book their spot in the semi finals while the month ended in disappointing fashion as a succession of missed chances came back to haunt Brighton as 10 man Leicester scored twice late on at the Amex to inflict a first home defeat of the season against a side from outside of the top five.
March Record: P4, W1, D0, L3, F2, A7
Results: 2-1 Arsenal H, 0-2 Everton A, 0-2 Man United A, 0-2 Leicester H
League Position at End of Month: 13th
April 2018
With the Albion’s final five games of the season coming against the top seven, April’s opening two fixtures against fellow strugglers Huddersfield Town and Palace looked vital if the Albion were going to secure survival.
The visit of the Terriers to the Amex was going well until Shane Duffy decided to play a blind pass across his own goal and straight to Steve Mounie who netted what proved to be the equaliser in a 1-1 draw. Brighton had gone ahead after an own goal from goalkeeper Jonas Lossl but we ended up hanging on for dear live in the final 20 minutes after Davy Propper saw red.
The less said about Palace away the better, the Eagles sauntering into a 2-0 lead inside of 20 minutes after some woeful Brighton defending. We did manage to pull two back through Murray and Izquierdo but at the end of the day, Wilfried Zaha was – again – too good as the Eagles leapfrogged us in the table.
Now we looked in trouble with that toughest of run-ins beginning three days later with the visit of Tottenham Hotspur. In typical Albion style, we belatedly decided to put in the sort of battling performance we all wanted to see at Selhurst and ended up claiming an excellent point against Spurs after Gross equalised Harry Kane’s opener.
The month ended with an away game in the 1970s, a 0-0 draw at Burnley that was memorable for only one good reason and one bad – the good being an outrageous save from Ryan who extended his arm like Stretch Armstrong to scoop from behind him a goal bound ball that look destined to cross the line and the bad being the home fans booing of Gaetan Bong. Bong’s crime? Having the nerve to report that racial abuse he believed he heard against West Brom back in January.
April Record: P4, W0, D3, L1, F4, A5
Results: 1-1 Huddersfield H, 2-3 Palace A, 1-1 Spurs H, 0-0 Burnley A
League Position at End of Month: 14th
May 2018
The top three teams in the Premier League would provide the final three opposition for the Albion, with three points needed to guarantee Premier League safety.
Remarkably, they were secured in May’s opening game against eventual runners up Manchester United. Jose Mourinho’s side were made to look distinctly ordinary in the final home match of the season as a second half header from Gross was ruled to have crossed the line thanks to goal line technology for a 1-0 win. It could and probably should have been more were it not for a string of superb saves from David De Gea in the United goal.
Next up the trip to champions Manchester City who never really got out of second gear on their way to a 3-1 win which saw them break the record for most points in a season, most wins in a season and most goals scored in a season. Ulloa was the man on target at the Etihad Stadium for Brighton.
The season was rounded off away at Anfield in the sunshine with the Albion looking distinctly like they were already on the beach – Duffy dreaming of a holiday in Jordan, no doubt – as Champions League finalists Liverpool sauntered to a 4-0 success, ending our proud record of never having been beaten away by more than two goals.
May Record: P3, W1, D0, L2, F2, A7
Results: 1-0 Man United H, 1-3 Man City A, 0-4 Liverpool
League Position at End of Month: 15th
Brighton and Hove Albion – a Premier League club
There was only one aim for Brighton and Hove Albion in the 2017-18 season, and that was survival. Some of our more precious fans took huge offence and were outraged that any pundit could dare tip the Albion for the drop, despite being one of the three promoted teams full of players who had never played in the Premier League before. Those predictions looked as if they would prove to be even more accurate when no new striker arrived in August.
So it is to the players credit that they managed to finish three places and seven points clear of relegation, providing some brilliant moments along the way. Nobody will ever forget destroying an established top flight side 3-0 in front of nearly 60,000 when we visited West Ham United.
That first Premier League win over West Bromwich Albion will live long in the memory, as will beating both Arsenal and Manchester United at the Amex. Maty Ryan’s penalty saves, Glenn Murray’s goals and late charge for an England call up at 34 years of age and Lewis Dunk’s fantastic own goal record all made for a memorable campaign.
Sure, there have been frustrating games on the road where maybe we’ve been a little too negative and only scoring 10 away goals all season is one obvious area for improvement, but this season has been everything we could’ve hoped for and more. The second season is undoubtedly harder, but bring it on. Brighton and Hove Albion are a Premier League club and we’re here to stay.
