The Gus Poyet Years
After just short of four years, Gus Poyet’s reign as Brighton and Hove Albion manager has come to an inglorious end. But put aside that acrimony about how it has finished, and it remains one of the best periods in the history of Brighton and Hove Albion.
Flowing football, record amounts of money being thrown about despite Poyet’s claims of not having a good budget, a brand new stadium, huge attendances and silverware in the trophy cabinet.
There was certainly more good than bad between Poyet’s first game in charge away at Southampton in November 2009 and his last, that horrific play off semi final defeat to Crystal Palace.
We take a look back at some of the best and worst moments of the era of the Gus Bus.
Peterborough United 0-3 Brighton, 30/10/10
It was first v second in League One as Brighton made the trip to face Peterborough. Posh manager Gary Johnson had described the game as a cup final and urged their fans to pack out London Road. Those who did attend saw his side completely and utterly embarrassed as the Albion ran riot to win 3-0. Ashley Barnes hit a brace with Inigo Calderon also on target while with Elliott Bennett missing a penalty and home goalkeeper Joe Lewis pulling off save after save, it’s no exaggeration to say that it could have been double figures on the day that the “we’re f**king brilliant” chant began. Nightmare on London Road indeed.
Charlton Athletic 0-4 Brighton, 16/10/10
Just two weeks before that victory at Peterborough, the Albion went to another promotion rival in Charlton and got an equally convincing victory when winning 4-0 at The Valley. Poyet had said in the run up to the game that he wanted his side to be more ruthless after missed chances and a horrific penalty decision in the last minute saw two points dropped in the previous weeks draw with Bournemouth, and he couldn’t have asked for a much better response as goals from Calderon, Glenn Murray, Kazenga LuaLua and Matt Sparrow secured a hugely impressive win.
Brighton 3-0 Crystal Palace, 17/03/13
Despite all that happened between the St Patrick’s Day Massacre and Palace’s ultimate revenge by knocking the Albion out of the play offs, nobody can take away the brutal destruction dished out to our arch rivals at The Amex. Poyet’s men outplayed and outfought the Eagles, with Leonardo Ulloa’s brace and a stunning David Lopez free-kick doing the damage.
Brighton 0-2 Crystal Palace, 13/05/13
The end of Poyet’s reign came in the worst way possible in the form of a 2-0 play-off semi final defeat at home to Palace. The hard work had seemingly be done after a 0-0 draw at Selhurst three nights previously, but having destroyed the Eagles with pace and power down the flanks at the Amex in the league just two months earlier, Poyet left out Kazenga LuaLua as Palace snatched victory late on with two goals from Wilfried Zaha showing just why Manchester United forked out £10m. The result – Poyet’s toys being thrown out the pram over his budget again, poo in the away changing and suspensions for all the management team. A far from dignified end.
Coventry City 2-0 Brighton, 31/12/11
Having lost the previous three games without scoring, Poyet decided something to had to change and so switched to a 3-5-2 formation away at relegation threatened Coventry City. The result was a complete and utter disaster as the Albion failed to have a shot on goal against the Championship’s worst side in an uninspiring 2-0 loss to slip to 16th in the table. Not how you want to spend New Years Eve.
West Ham United 6-0 Brighton, 14/04/12
There was still a n outside chance the Albion could make the Championship play-offs prior to their visit to West Ham United, another side gunning for the top six. Those play-offs hopes were all but gone inside of 10 minutes at Upton Park as the Hammers sauntered into a 3-0 lead, and they’d rack up another three by the end of the game to inflict an embarrassing 6-0 defeat on Poyet’s side.
Liam Bridcutt v Carlisle United, 05/03/11
Coming towards the back end of the 2010-11 season, a big three points was needed when Carlise United visited Withdean. In a topsy turvy game in which Poyet’s men had been far from their best, the visitors from Cumbria thought they had earned a point when Harry Arter scored in the 90th minute to level things at 3-3. They hadn’t counted on Liam Bridcutt popping up a few minutes later with a dramatic winner however as, with the ball bouncing around the penalty box, he hit a powerful left footed volley from 20 yards that flew into the bottom corner to lead to mental running track scenes as the Theatre of Trees exploded. The stuff of champions, the stuff of dreams.
Will Buckley v Doncaster Rovers, 06/08/11
Having already netted an equaliser from the bench, Will Buckley marked the perfect debut when he latched onto Craig Noone’s pass in the 96th minute of the first league game at the Amex before scoring to give the Albion a 2-1 win over Doncaster Rovers to start life in their new ground.
Fran Sandaza v Oldham Athletic, 25/09/10
Not the best goal you’ll ever see but in terms of importance, this one was right up there. Another 90th minute winner at Withdean which lead to mental running track scenes, this time Fran Sandaza marking his home debut by coming off the bench to bundle home and send Albion top of League One, a position they wouldn’t relinquish for the remaining eight months of the season.
Comedyfending v Colchester United, 25/04/11
There was nothing to play for when Brighton visited Colchester United on April Bank Holiday Monday 2011. The home side were safe in mid table, the Seagulls already crowned champions so quite why Sky Sports were broadcasting the game was anybody’s guess. Thankfully, the Brighton defence did their best to entertain the nation with the sort of kerfuffle not seen since Colin Hawkins was carrying out his wave of terror on the defence. Casper Ankergren made a hash of an initial save, palming it straight onto Tommy Elphick’s boot. Elphick’s wild swing of a clearance only succeeded in smashing it into the shin of Inigo Calderon who, having then managed to retrieve the ball, inexplicably passed it across his own unguarded net for Ian Henderson to smash home into an open goal. Click here to watch it in all its glory (complete with circus theme tune music).
Capser Ankergren v Nottingham Forest, 30/03/13
he Albion looked to be heading for a huge three points away at play-off rivals Nottingham Forest when, with just seconds remaining in the encounter, Casper Ankergren let the simplest of shots from Henri Lansbury creep straight between his legs for 2-2.
Peter Brezovan v Wycombe Wanderers, 29/12/09
With just five minutes to go before half time away at Wycombe Wanderers, a routine catch on the goal line turned into a complete disaster for Sexy Pete Brezovan as he somehow managed to drop the sort of ball that even a Granny wearing a pair of roller skates would hold, presenting John Mousinho with the easiest of tap ins to give the Chairboys the lead. The Albion did recover, Murray finishing with four goals in a 5-2 victory.
Will Buckley v Doncaster Rovers, 06/08/11
The joint-second most expensive player in Brighton history had to settle for a place on the bench in the opening Amex match against Doncaster. With the Seagulls trailing 1-0, he was introduced in the second half as Poyet sought to get something out of this historic occasion. Luckily, Buckley delivered by first notching the equaliser with 83 minutes on the clock and then going one better and netting the winning goal on 96 to send the Amex wild and instantly write himself into Albion legend. The choruses of “William Buckley runs down the wing for me” were never ending around the concourses that night as a new hero was born.
Matt Sparrow v Swindon Town, 07/08/10
Facing the previous seasons beaten League One play-off finalists in the first game of the next campaign was never going to be an easy start for the Albion in Poyet’s first full season in charge. Thankfully for Poyet, his goal scoring midfield replacement for Andrew Crofts, Matt Sparrow, got off to a flyer as he netted both goals on his debut in a 2-1 win at the County Ground.
Peter Brezovan v Exeter City, 05/12/09
Graeme Smith was, for want of a better word, shit. Poyet realised this very quickly after his appointment as Albion boss and so Sexy Pete was drafted in for his debut at Exeter City in place of the injured Michel Kuipers. Brezovan saved a penalty and kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 win, looking bloody sexy in the process.
Ryan Harley v Millwall, 18/10/11
The Albion’s penalty record under Poyet was so bad that at Withdean, the man himself would hide behind the dugout every time we were awarded a spot kick so he didn’t have to watch. The misses didn’t come much worse than Ryan Harley’s miss at Millllllllll. With no win in four, the chance to take a first half lead at the Den would have been greatly appreciated by everybody concerned and that opportunity was presented when a penalty was awarded. Harley had rather foolishly said in the press prior to the game that he didn’t feel the need to practice set pieces and those words came back to haunt him as his effort from 12 yards was more like a back pass and the easiest save of the night for David Forde.
Ashley Barnes v Bolton Wanderers, 24/11/12
Having struggled to break down teams at home in the first three months of the 2012-13 season, a penalty was just what the Albion needed when resilient Bolton Wanderers visited. Unfortunately, not only did Barnes miss the spot kick, he somehow managed to stick the rebound straight at Adam Bogdan as well with the whole goal at his mercy.
Elliott Bennet v FC United of Manchester, 27/11/10
In the midst of the worst run of league form of the 2010-11 season, the last thing Brighton needed was an FA Cup replay away on a Wednesday night at Evo Stik Premier side FC United of Manchester. But that is exactly what they got when Elliott Bennett’s 90th minute penalty was saved by Sam Ashton, leaving the game to finish in a 1-1 draw.
Ashley Barnes v Bolton Wanderers, 09/03/13
It’s hard to imagine that they’ll be a more stupid red card in the Brighton history. Having just returned from a three match ban for a wild two footed lunge that resulted in his dismissal at Sheffield Wednesday, Ashley Barnes decided to go one better away at Bolton and get himself sent off for attempting to trip over the referee. Those who were there that day at the Reebok could see something brewing, with the strikers frustrations clearly mounting as he flung himself to the ground on a few occasions in a vein attempt to win a spot kick. Nobody could have imagined that anger would manifest itself though in the way it did, with a seven match ban following.
Gordon Greer v Rochdale, 14/08/10
Not only was this Gordon Greer’s Brighton debut, but it was also his first appearance since a red card for former club Swindon in the play-off semi finals cost him the chance of leading them out at Wembley the previous. Swinging an elbow into an opponents face off the ball for a straight red wasn’t the best start to his Albion career.
Mauricio Taricco v Woking, 16/11/10
In a difficult FA Cup first round replay against tricky Conference South opponents that is in the second half of extra time, you ideally want your assistant manager to lead by example. Cue Mauricio Taricco’s first playing appearance for six years coming to a premature end as he was sent off for mouthing off at the referee.
Liam Bridcutt, free transfer
This might not just be the best piece of business of the Poyet era, but perhaps in Brighton and Hove Albion history. Birdcutt was out-of-contract having been released by Chelsea yet he looked on paper nothing special, with just a couple of hit and miss loan spells to his name. Poyet snapped him up on a free and within a few weeks he’d replaced Radostin Kishishev in the team. There was no looking back from there as he became a mainstay in the side that won League One before winning the clubs Player of the Season award in our first two seasons in the Championship as well as making an international debut for Scotland.
Wayne Bridge, loan
It may only have been a loan deal, but Wayne Bridge was an inspired signing for the Albion. Forking out a rumoured £10k a week of his £90k wages represented superb value for money and he repaid that faith in full, becoming a popular member of the squad for bringing partner Frankie along to the Amex on a regular basis. Oh, his performances on the pitch weren’t too shabby either.
Vicente, free transfer
How many people thought they’d see a man with over 30 caps for Spain and who was once wanted for £30m by Real Madrid play in the stripes? That’s what we got with Vicente. Who knows what might have been had Poyet actually used Vicente’s talents on a more regular basis.
Ryan Harley, £250,000
Poyet spent the best part of a year tracking Harley before finally managing to secure his man after paying £250,000 to Swansea City in August 2011. Things looked good when he scored a stunning free-kick on his league debut against Peterborough United. But that was about as good as it got as it became apparent very quickly that he was a work shy player whose best achievements seemed to be saving the club money on the laundry bill by never getting his kit sweaty, let alone dirty. Harley was the epitome of the irony surrounding Poyet’s budget complaints, given he wasted such large amounts of money on players like that.
Billy Paynter, loan
Another player long tracked by Poyet who he managed to land after a year long chase, Billy Paynter arrived on-loan from The Leeds United and was seen as the natural heir to Glenn Murray. That didn’t quite work out according to plan as Paynter failed to score during his month at the club, earning the nickname “Barn Door Billy” along the way.
Stephen Dobbie, £300,000
Stephen Dobbie was the ultimate example of a Poyet panic buy, arriving at the end of the August window when Poyet thought Craig Mackail-Smith would be leaving. As it was, Mackail-Smith remained at the club and Dobbie was hardly given a chance and when he did, he looked far from interested. To rub salt into the wounds, he moved on-loan to Palace after just four months at the Amex and and helped them win promotion through the play-offs.
Singing “We’re f**king brilliant” to a crowd featuring thousands of kids
Brighton seafront in May is the sort of place you want to take your kids to relax, have fun and enjoy the sun. The last thing you’d want then is to hear a Uruguayan man with a microphone singing “We’re f**king brilliant” to a large crowd gathered below him on the beach. But that is exactly what Poyet did when he was offered the chance to make a speech at the League One Champions parade that ended in Madeira Drive. After thanking his players, Tony Bloom and the fan,s the manager to decided to conduct a little sing song with his chosen track being that which had belted out from the terraces of London Road back in October during the finest game of the Poyet era.
Getting himself sent off during the first game at the Amex
Having spent the week leading up to Doncaster’s visit to the Amex preaching about how it would be vital for his side to control themselves and not get overawed by the emotion of the occasion, Poyet promptly finds himself losing control and getting overawed by the occasion as he is sent off before half time.
Hiding behind the Withdean dugouts for penalties
We’ve already noted it in the Penalty Miss category, but Poyet disappearing behind the dugout with his hands over his eyes every time we got a penalty at Withdean deserves another mention. That is how bad we were at kicks from 12 yards in that title winning season.
Wading into the Patrice Evra v Luis Suarez racism row
To nearly everybody in the country except maybe the odd member of the EDL or BNP, Luis Suarez calling Patrice Evra “blacky blacky blacky” and “negro” is completely unacceptable. Not to Poyet, who decided to wade into the row by defending Suarez’s behaviour in his clash with the Manchester United left back. Frankly, it had nothing to do with Poyet and other than sticking up for his fellow Uruguayan, it was hard to see what on earth he was playing at. It brought negative press coverage to the Albion and he was told afterwards to stay out of anything not to do with him or the Albion in the media – which he ignored when going onto defend Suarez again after he bit Branislav Ivanovic.
Crystal Palace post game rant
Poyet had a squad containing two England internationals, a number of players from Spain’s top flight, £7m worth of attacking talent and a man once wanted by Real Madrid for £30m. Palace’s play-off final winning team put together cost less than Craig Mackail-Smith. The budget rants and threats of resignation after he was outthought by a village idiot like Ian Holloway were pathetic.
Storming off before the end away at Burnley
The Albion were still harbouring genuine play-off hopes in 2011-12 when they found themselves 1-0 down away at Burnley. With five minutes left on the clock and time still to get back in the game, Poyet decides he has had enough and walks off. Little wonder then his team ended up giving up the fight for a spot in the top six after that as well.
