Vote for your September 2020 Player of the Month
Brighton & Hove Albion have enjoyed an encouraging opening month to the 2020-21 season, which should make choosing our WeAreBrighton.com September 2020 Player of the Month quite a challenging task.
The Seagulls gave excellent performances in all three Premier League games against Chelsea, Newcastle United and Manchester United that were deserving of more than the three points they yielded.
That single win came at St James’ Park. Neal Maupay scored twice and Tariq Lamptey ran the show as the Albion cruised to victory on Tyneside. Lamptey’s performance in particular sparked a frenzied reaction as the rest of the nation belatedly joined us Albion fans in realising what a talented young man he is.
Leandro Trossard netted in the 3-1 defeat to Chelsea and rattled the woodwork three times as United somehow escaped the Amex with a 3-2 win. Maupay was again on target in the United game alongside Solly March, who had his best month as a Premier League player at left wing back.
It wasn’t just Graham Potter’s first choices who impressed in September. The Albion’s fringe players also put on quite a show, becoming only the second Brighton side to reach the fourth round of the League Cup in 41 years.
Portsmouth and Preston North End were comfortably despatched with the 2-0 victory at PNE being Brighton’s first ever success at Deepdale. Alireza Jahanbakhsh was the star of that cup run with two goals and a couple of assists enough to see him sneak onto the shortlist.
The candidates for WeAreBrighton.com Brighton & Hove Albion September 2020 Player of the Month
Yves Bissouma
In our 2020-21 Season Predictions we said that if Yves Bissouma could be as consistent over the entire campaign as he had been in the final nine games of 2019-20, he would be a shoe-in for Player of the Season. He’s certainly begun that way with dominating displays against Chelsea and Newcastle. Not even picking up a red card and three match ban for accidentally kicking Jamal Lewis in the head at St James’ Park can keep him off the shortlist.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh
Not often that we include someone in a WeAreBrighton.com Player of the Month poll based purely on their League Cup performances. Take a bow then Prince Ali, who pushed himself into first team contention and then played a big part in March’s goal against United.
Tariq Lamptey
We are only three games into 2020-21 and are already starting to run out of superlatives for young Lamptey. Man-of-the-match versus Chelsea, man-of-the-match versus Newcastle despite being on the pitch less than an hour and pushed March close for man-of-the-match versus United. He won our last WeAreBrighton.com Player of the Month Award for July 2020 and must be favourite to retain the crown.
Solly March
Looked to be the odds on to take over as the boo boys new favourite following Dale Stephens’ departure to Burnley. Nobody in their right minds could criticise March when he is in the sort of form he showed in September, however. He looks thoroughly at home as a left wing back in Potter’s new 3-4-1-2.
Neal Maupay
Two goals at Newcastle and a cheeky Panenka penalty past David De Gea means that the French striker has nearly matched one third of his entire 2019-20 goal tally with just three games of 2020-21 played. This could be a big season based on what we have seen so far.
Leandro Trossard
Like Bissouma, Leandro Trossard looked a new player post-lockdown. He’s continued that form into the new campaign, scoring against Chelsea, earning an assist at Newcastle and being desperately unlucky to hit the frame of the Manchester United goal three times in 90 minutes.
Poll closes at 8pm on Sunday 2nd August
