Vote for your May 2023 WAB Brighton Player of the Month

Seven matches through May 2023 yielded three wins, one draw and three defeats for Brighton and makes for a competitive final Player of the Month vote of the campaign.

It was something of a strange four weeks, even if the ultimate goal of European football was secured. The Albion veered from defeating Manchester United to losing 5-1 at home to 19th placed Everton to winning 3-0 away against title chasing Arsenal.

They then lost 4-1 at Newcastle United, beat Southampton 3-1, drew 1-1 with champions Manchester City and rounded if all off with a 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa.

Such inconsistency should not have come as a surprise. Roberto De Zerbi not only rotated his squad heavily through May 2023, but more than one Brighton player found themselves being asked to do a job out of position.

Who knew before this month that Moises Caicedo was a right back as well as a central midfielder? Or that Pascal Gross can play left back?

In terms of fringe players stepping up to the plate, Julio Enciso followed up on his second spot in our April Player of the Month award by delivering another dazzling set of displays. It is frightening to think how good he will be next season.

And then there is Deniz Undav. The German striker has struggled for much of his first campaign in English football, only to flourish in the past month.

Two goals in the 6-0 hammering of Wolves which rounded off April were followed by another three in seven outings through May. He looks a happier, more confident player… even if he is still yet to find a decent kebab in Brighton.

So many fantastic contributions made selecting this six man shortlist hard. Evan Ferguson for example misses out, despite scoring a brace in the victory over Southampton.

Levi Colwill deserves a spot for the unique job he did in man marking Martin Odegaard and Kevin De Bruyne, tracking them into midfield in a manner which we have never seen before from a Brighton centre back. Lewis Dunk is back in the England squad but not on the May 2023 WAB Player of the Month shortlist.

We could go on and list everyone not included, but then we would be here all day. So here are the players you can pick from in the final vote of one of the greatest seasons in Albion history.

The candidates for WeAreBrighton.com May 2023 Brighton Player of the Month

Moises Caicedo
Roberto De Zerbi sprung a surprise with Caicedo at right back against Man United but it worked a treat as he marked Marcus Rashford out of the game. Went onto repeat the trick by doing a similar job against Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard at Arsenal. This new-found versatility should add another £20 million to his already massive price tag in the summer.

Julio Enciso
Became the first ever Brighton player to win BBC Match of the Day Goal of the Season for his absolutely stunning equaliser against Man City. He also scored at the Emirates and was the most dangerous Albion player on the pitch in defeat against Aston Villa.

Pervis Estupinan
Played more minutes than any other outfield player during May, being rested only for the first half at Villa. Another superb month in which he scored his first Albion goal with the third at Arsenal. Kept Bukayo Saka reasonably quiet in that same game and had a particularly excellent evening against City.

Pascal Gross
Scored his 10th goal of the season with the strike that confirmed European football for Brighton in the win over Southampton. Assists at Arsenal and Villa moved him onto 10 in that category as well, making 2022-23 the most productive of his Albion career. Just to further highlight his importance, he played right back, left back, central midfield and took the captain’s armband when Dunk was rested.

Alexis Mac Allister
Mac Allister was in tears following the full time whistle at Villa as the travelling Albion support saluted their World Cup winner, quite probably for the last time in a Brighton shirt. Kept things ticking throughout May in midfield with his best moment being the 98th minute penalty despatched into the top corner to beat United at the Amex. It was particularly sweet coming just 11 days after the Red Devils had won the FA Cup semi final at Wembley between the sides on spot kicks.

Deniz Undav
Undav answered his critics in fine style through May. Goals against Arsenal, Newcastle and Villa were all notched with finishes of the highest quality, showing why he was such a deadly marksman last season for Union Saint-Gilloise. His evening at St James’ Park was particularly enjoyable as he also scored an own goal and got booked for giving away the free kick which led directly to the Saudi Sportswasher’s second. Such high-quality entertainment has made him a firm cult favourite here at WAB Towers.

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Poll closes at 8pm on Sunday 4th June