The WAB Brighton Player Power Rankings: March 2021
One man stood head and shoulders above any other Brighton player in our WAB Power Rankings as the Albion’s best performer in March 2021 and his name is Adam Lallana.
The midfielder’s score of 83.33 is the highest ever achieved since we started turning your post-game player ratings into monthly rankings last season. For context, the previous best in 2020-21 was Lewis Dunk’s 73.73 from January, nearly 10 short of Lallana.
It is no coincidence that with a player of Lallana’s quality fit and pulling the strings, Brighton eased their relegation fears with two wins from three games, defeating Southampton 2-1 and Newcastle United 3-0 in back-to-back matches.
Based on what we saw at the Amex in the last of those March fixtures, if you have a Coral Promo Code then the Toon to join Sheffield United and West Brom in the Championship next season looks worth trying your luck with.
It would take a pretty spectacular cock up from the Albion from this point on to somehow finish below Newcastle – especially if Lallana and his teammates can keep up their improved form.
Here are our WAB Brighton Player Power Rankings for March 2021.
1) Adam Lallana (83.33 points)
“Like watching Vicente” was probably the most used comment surrounding Lallana’s performances in March 2021 and praise does not come much higher for a Brighton playmaker than being compared to the best player in terms of natural talent that the Albion have ever had. Lallana scored 8.97 in the win over Newcastle, 8.46 against his former club Southampton and even managed a 7.57 in the 2-1 defeat to Leicester City when he notched his first goal for the Seagulls.
2) Lewis Dunk (72.42)
The Brighton captain topped both the WAB January Power Rankings and the WAB February Power Rankings but had to settle for second place in March. His best performance came in the 2-1 win over Southampton, leading a battling defensive display full of blocks, tackles and headers of the type we regularly saw in the Albion’s first two seasons in the Premier League.
3) Ben White (71.79)
It says much about how well Ben White has taken to the Premier League that he can go almost unnoticed on his way to being rated as the third best Brighton player in March 2021. Another set of solid performances, particularly in the Newcastle game when he took advantage of the visitors’ impotence to embark on frequent charges forward.
4) Joel Veltman (71.68)
March provided a reminder of the Dutch international’s versatility. Started the month as a traditional right back in a four man defence until Dan Burn limped out of proceedings at half time against Southampton, after which he took over as a left sided central defender in a back three. Went onto claim an assist from his new role by setting up Leandro Trossard for the opening in the Newcastle victory.
5) Pascal Gross (70.09)
Hands up, who thought Potter had been sniffing too much glue when Pascal Gross was moved to right wing back for the second half against Southampton? The seemingly madcap decision has since been fully vindicated as the German has excelled in an unfamiliar position, including setting up two of the Albion’s three goals against Newcastle.
6) Danny Welbeck (69.64)
Getting Lallana fit has proven massive for Brighton in March, but soo too has the return from injury of Dat Guy Welbz. His one-touch layoff was perfectly weighted to tee up Trossard for the winner at St Mary’s and he scored a screamer himself in the 3-0 win over Newcastle.
7) Yves Bissouma (68.05)
One of the more concerning aspects of the second half of the Albion’s 2020-21 campaign so far has been Yves Bissouma’s slump. Whilst people saying he is playing badly are guilty of overegging the pudding, he has been nowhere near as effective as before his agent said that he had been contacted by Arsenal and talked up a summer departure from the Amex. That cannot be coincidence.
8) Neal Maupay (67.81)
Ended his scoring drought with a well taken finish against Newcastle. Popular opinion is now behind the theory that his work rate and hold up play make him more suited to a role as a second striker, helping to feed a more clinical centre forward. He did that wonderfully when linking up with Welbeck and Trossard in the win over the Toon.
9) Leandro Trossard (67.45)
At the same time as being nominated for Premier League Player of the Month, Trossard was only scored as the ninth best Brighton player in March 2021. That sums him up perfectly – on a good day, he is an outrageous match winning talent but he is also capable of doing a passable impression of a mannequin. See the 4.00 he scored against Leicester which was followed by 7.27 at Southampton and 8.97 versus Newcastle.
10) Robert Sanchez (65.46)
Big Bob made his first major Horlicks when gifting Leicester their winner late on at the Amex. Bounced back with a solid showing at St Mary’s and was so unemployed in the Newcastle win that he could have necked 12 glasses of sangria before stepping onto the pitch and he still would have kept a clean sheet. The highlight of his March was undoubtedly a first call up to the senior Spain squad ahead of Chelsea’s £71.6 million goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga for their World Cup Qualifiers.
11) Andi Zeqiri (47.88)
The Swiss striker was a surprise choice to replace Burn at half time away against Southampton, not least because it meant playing at left wing back. He produced a lively 45 minutes out-of-position at St Mary’s, offering another reminder of his raw talent. It will be fascinating to see how much game time Potter gives him between now and the end of the campaign.
12) Jakub Moder (47.30)
Slowly, slowly catchy monkey has been the approach with Jakub Moder since his January arrival from Lech Poznan. The £9.5 million signing was handed his first Premier League start out on the left when Newcastle came to town and he showed plenty of promise, although he really should have put away at least one of the three good opportunities he found himself with… proof that he will fit right in at Brighton.
13) Alexis Mac Allister (43.55)
Controversially substituted against Leicester when Brighton were chasing an equaliser, he lost his place for the following week’s trip to Southampton to Welbeck and has had to settle for cameos from the bench since. Frustrating given how good he had looked in January and early February.
14) Dan Burn (39.74)
Only featured for 135 of the 270 minutes Brighton played in March after injury forced him off at the break at Southampton. His detractors will point to the Albion’s improved record with him out of the team, but Burn had been a pretty solid presence before he was struck down. Whether he regains his place when fully fit in April given Potter seems to have stumbled across more effective options both in the back three and on the left remains to be seen.
15) Davy Propper (20.26)
Two cameo appearances from the bench for the handsome Dutchman who cannot seem to force his way back into the starting XI. His calmness in possession alongside Lallana in midfield helped Brighton see out the second half in the Southampton win.
16) Steve Alzate (17.14)
Introduced against Leicester for similar reasons as Propper at Southampton with the Albion needing somebody in the middle of the park to put their football on the ball and assert some control. Unfortunately, Alzate was unable to have the desired impact as the game got away from Brighton.
The WAB Power Rankings are 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.
