Brighton Player Ratings November 2023

An unbeaten November for Brighton means some much improved player ratings from what we saw posted in October, when the Albion managed only a single win against Ajax in the Europa League.

The Dutch giants provided one of November’s three successes as goals from Ansu Fati and Simon Adingra secured a famous 2-0 victory in the Amsterdam Arena.

Brighton’s other Europa League fixture saw another three points, Joao Pedro netting from the penalty spot for a 1-0 victory against AEK Athens which guaranteed a place in the knockout round of the competition.

In the Premier League, the Albion picked up a useful point from improving Everton when Kaoru Mitoma forced Ashley Young into scoring an own goal equaliser for a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park.

Another 1-1 followed at home to Sheffield United. Adingra was again on target, only for an Albion player to this time put through his own net – the unfortunate party being Adam Webster.

A crazy 3-2 win away at Nottingham Forest then went and ended a seven game winless run in domestic football. Joao Pedro scored twice, Evan Ferguson once and Lewis Dunk saw red for telling referee Anthony Taylor he is a bald prick. Just another normal day supporting the Albion.

Dunk’s moment of madness meant he was absent for 20 crucial minutes at the City Ground, having also missed the second half away at Ajax and the Sheffield United game due to injury.

In his stead, Jan Paul van Hecke stepped up to such a degree that he was voted WAB November 2023 Player of the Month and becomes the first man this season to achieve a monthly rating higher than an eight.

Aged just 23-years-old and with less than 20 Premier League appearances under his belt, it is scary to think how good he can become. Expect Van Hecke to be winning Player of the Month awards and topping player ratings for many years to come.

Jan Paul van Hecke – 8.11
It was not just the way Van Hecke seamlessly slotted into Dunk’s shoes as leader of the Albion defence which was impressive. Even more so was how he marshalled makeshift backlines including Gross and young Jack Hinshelwood to help secure vital victories.

Bart Verbruggen – 7.46
Probably best all those defending Roberto De Zerbi’s goalkeeper rotation stop reading now. Verbruggen started four games out of five through November and played well enough to finish second in the Brighton player ratings. Two of those matches returned rare clean sheets, with the shutout at AEK particularly hard earned through a series of excellent saves.

Lewis Dunk – 7.32
Showed his character by instantly redeeming himself for BaldPrickGate at Forest with a colossal showing in Athens as AEK had Brighton under the cosh for the majority of the evening. Delivered a big performance in the draw with Everton too.

Igor Julio – 7.14
Igor! Igor! Igor! Has taken time to adapt to DeZebiBall but is starting to look totally at home in the Albion back line. The way he carries the ball out of defence is as terrifying as it is exciting, making him a fascinating player to watch.

Simon Adingra – 7.13
Shone against Ajax by teeing up Ansu Fati for the opener and then scoring the second himself. Followed that up with a goal of individual brilliance in the Sheffield United draw, gliding in from the left flank and exchanging a one-two with Facundo Buonanotte before clinically finding the bottom corner.

Ansu Fati – 7.01
His best performance in a Brighton shirt came in Amsterdam, where his link up play with Adingra was almost telepathic and resulted in a goal and assist. The Albion have suffered a lot of cruel injury blows this season; losing Fati for three months is up there with the worst.

Joao Pedro – 6.92
No way Pedro! Showcased his underrated aerial ability with a fine header for the second Albion goal against Forest. Went onto convert a successful penalty at the City Ground and repeated the feat to secure victory in Athens.

Pascal Gross – 6.68
Right back. Left back. Holding midfielder. Number 10. You name a position and Gross played there through November, which probably explains why he is unusually far down the player ratings. But it also makes him the ultimate team player.

Joel Veltman – 6.67
The highlight of his month was that night against Ajax, returning to the club he gave nearly two decades of his life to. Needless to say, he was rock solid back in Amsterdam and played his part in helping Brighton see out the Forest game alongside Van Hecke.

Kaoru Mitoma – 6.65
Started November with a livewire performance at Everton, including when forcing the own goal which ensured the Albion came home with a point. He faded after that however, spending the rest of the month looking like a player in need of a rest.

Evan Ferguson – 6.63
Opened the scoring at Forest with a goal tying him with Wayne Rooney for most Premier League goals scored by a teenager in a calendar year. Appeared a little short of form and fitness otherwise.

Mahmoud Dahoud – 6.49
After a slow start to life at Brighton, Dahoud appeared to making some progress with good performances at Everton and Ajax. Undid all that against Sheffield United with a braindead straight red card and three match suspension after needlessly stamping on Ben Osborn.

Billy Gilmour – 6.26
Not his best month with a series of indifferent showings. Seems to play better when alongside Gross, so Der Kaiser frequently being redeployed as a full back probably did not help Gilmour.

Facundo Buonanotte – 5.61
His deft around the corner back heel allowed Adingra to apply the finish to that fine individual goal when the Blades came to the Amex. Put in a real shift during the second half at Forest, especially when Brighton went down to 10 and his role became far more defensive than he is accustomed to.

James Milner – 5.37
Put his experience to good use in the closing stages of the AEK victory. Milner was given the job of marking fellow veteran Ashley Young at Everton, a sight akin at times to watching two aging wrestlers go at it in a retirement match at WrestleMania.

Adam Lallana – 5.20
Cannot seem to rediscover the sparkling form he had been in during the first four months of the De Zerbi Era. Withdrawn at half time of both the Everton and Forest games in an attempt to sensibly manage his game time through so many fixtures.

Carlos Baleba – 5.10
Did not start any of the Albion’s five November matches, instead having to settle for cameos from the bench. The most notable of those was against Sheffield United, where his energy was helpful after Dahoud lost his mind and was dismissed.

Jack Hinshelwood – 5.03
Rather thrown in at the deep end when introduced out-of-position at left back after Tariq Lamptey was injured at Forest. Looked like a rabbit in the headlights there before a much improved outing against AEK.

Jason Steele – 3.70
Only involved in the Sheffield United match and there was little he could do when Webster diverted the ball into his own net.

Jakub Moder – 3.60
Just a fantastic sight to see Moder return to first team action at Forest 19 months after rupturing his ACL.

Tariq Lamptey – 3.09
Not so fantastic was seeing Lamptey introduced straight back into the starting XI having not played a second of competitive football for six weeks – and then breaking down again within 45 minutes. Another lengthy spell on the sidelines is a result.

Adam Webster – 2.90
Just the one appearance for Webster and he marked it with that aforementioned own goal in the draw with Sheffield United. Since ruled out with injury but the form of Dunk, Van Hecke and Igor probably would have limited his game time anyway.

Pervis Estupinan – 2.60
Lamptey was not the only Brighton player seemingly rushed back too quickly from injury in November – and in the case of Estupinan, it leaves him bottom of the ratings. 12 minutes was all he lasted after coming on against Ajax.

The November Brighton Player Ratings have been formulated through our matchday player scores. To play your part, make sure to follow us on Twitter and leave your post game player ratings in the relevant thread.