Brighton FPL season review 2020-21
Gameweek 38 was not the end to the 2020-21 season that Brighton & Hove Albion fans and FPL managers alike were hoping for but there is plenty of encouragement ahead of the new campaign which begins in August.
Across the recently finished season, Brighton were only 15th across the division for goals scored (40) but their underlying stats hint at better things to come.
You probably do not need telling that though as after virtually every game this season, the debate has turned towards the Albion’s need for a more clinical centre forward.
Brighton ranked 11th for expected goals (xG) with 51.7, seventh for efforts on goal (487) and eighth for shots in the box (320). Those stats back up the fact that if the Seagulls could convert some of the countless opportunities they create, then the top 10 is really not that far away.
On an individual level, Pascal Gross (£5.8 million) was eighth across the division for chances created (70), which led to an impressive eight assists in FPL. Not bad for a player who up until November had to settle for a place among the substitutes.
Leandro Trossard (£5.5 million) was the highest points-scoring Brighton asset with 132, more than the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£11.3 million), Gylfi Sigurdsson (£6.8 million) and Gareth Bale (£9.2 million) could manage.
That is in spite of the Belgian international enduring a typically inconsistent season; when he has been good, he has been unplayable. Those days though were often followed by four or five games in which he struggled to make an impact.
Brighton were even better for FPL managers from a defensive perspective, finishing joint seventh for fewest goals conceded (46). The Seagulls also recorded 12 clean sheets, with just Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United and Aston Villa managing to keep more.
Gareth Southgate seemed determined to ignore those impressive numbers recorded by a largely English backline up until giving Ben White a surprise call up to his provisional England squad for Euro 2020 (in 2021).
Captain Lewis Dunk (£4.8 million) can once again feel harshly done by in missing out on international recognition. He finished 10th among FPL defenders for points (130), with his total of five goals bettered only by Stuart Dallas (£5.5 million) among players in Dunk’s Fantasy position. Dunk will fancy his chances of defending his WeAreBrighton.com Player of the Season crown after another outstanding campaign.
One benefit of carrying out a review of the previous FPL season is that looking back at 2020-21 can be used to inform what will happen in 2021-22, when there will be a lot to look forward to from a Brighton Fantasy Premier League perspective.
With the return of Tariq Lamptey (£4.6 million), Fantasy managers will once again be able to invest in one of the best young defenders in the Premier League with the added bonus of huge attacking potential.
The improvement in Brighton’s defensive statistics since the turn of the calendar year will make the goal-hungry Dunk and a set-and-forget number one goalkeeper in the form of Robert Sanchez (£4.5 million) look like great options.
And if the Albion can start delivering on their promising underlying attacking numbers, budget-friendly assets like Gross, Trossard and Danny Welbeck (£5.5 million) will also come to the fore – providing Brighton can convince Danny Welbeck to remain at the Amex after a season in which he revitalised his career.
Thank you to Fantasy Football Scout for their Brighton FPL articles throughout the 2020-21 Premier League season. They will be back in 2021-22 with more great advice for Albion supporters.
