Brentford 0-2 Brighton: 5 things we learnt as Albion sting Bees
You should always take what happens in a pre-season friendly with a pinch of salt, but if there are any headlines to be written from Brentford 0-2 Brighton then they will deservedly focus on Simon Adringa.
The Albion’s second game of the Premier League Summer Series saw the highly rated Ivorian winger score both the goals at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta.
It was a far less chaotic 90 minutes than what we witnessed on Saturday in the thrilling 4-3 defeat to Chelsea, with Brighton looking much more solid defensively despite fielding another makeshift backline.
That will have pleased Roberto De Zerbi. Here are five things we learnt from Brentford 0-2 Brighton.
Simon Adringa can follow in the footsteps of Kaoru Mitoma
Plenty of comparisons have been made between Adringa and Kaoru Mitoma, largely based on the former having an even better year-long loan on the left wing with Union Saint-Gilloise than the latter.
That seemed to set the bar very high for Brighton fans’ expectations of Adringa. But based on his performance in Brentford 0-2 Brighton, Albion fans should be excited about what the 21-year-old can bring to the Premier League this coming season.
Adringa gave the Bees an early glimpse of what they were dealing with when a speedy run down the left flank earned a free kick. Der Kapitan Pascal Gross nearly bent the resulting set piece directly into the top corner from way out wide.
Next came Adringa nearly beating onrushing Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken to a through ball. Flekken managed to clear on that occasion.
The 19th minute was a different story. Jason Steele picked out the run of Adringa with one of his brilliant raking passes over the top.
Adringa produced a sublime first touch before hitting an early effort from 25 yards out which caught Flekken completely by surprise and clipped the inside of the post on its way in.
A quite brilliant goal very reminiscent of Mitoma against the Bees in April’s 3-3 draw at the Amex, when Steele also provided the assist.
Adringa’s second half effort again had shades of Mitoma. Steve Alzate fed a ball left, Adringa cut in from his wing and hit a low right footed effort from a tight angle into the opposite bottom corner of Flekken’s goal.
Jason Steele is not going to give up the number one shirt easily
Bart Verbruggen might have cost Brighton £17 million and be one of the most highly rated young goalkeepers in Europe, but he has a fight on his hands to wrest the number one shirt from Steele.
The assist for Adringa’s opener was a reminder of Steele’s ability on the ball, which helped him usurp Robert Sanchez in March and led to the Spanish international leaving toys thrown from his pram strewn all over Sussex.
Steele also made four big saves against the Bees. He pulled off a fine reaction stop to deny Josh Dasilva just before Adringa added the second goal.
Then came two interventions in the final 30 minutes to keep out Yoane Wissa. Steele used his feet to repell the first and plunged low down to his right for the second.
Whisper it quietly, but Verbruggen in contrast conceded all three of the shots he face against Chelsea at the weekend. Right now, Steele looks likely to be starting against Luton Town on the opening day of the Premier League season.
Good luck to Verbruggen wresting the gloves off of a man who has worked remarkably hard whilst waiting five years to become the Albion’s number one.
De Zerbi hot on Jack Hinshelwood
The omission of Odel Offiah (did you know he is the nephew of rugby legend Martin?) from the Brighton squad for the tour of the United States came as something of a surprise.
With the Albion’s lack of natural right backs, the increase in fixtures brought about by European football and Offiah receiving Premier League minutes at the back end of last season, it looked like he would have a bigger role to play in the senior squad in 2023-24.
Now we know Jack Hinshelwood is the reason Offiah is likely heading out on loan. The 18-year-old midfielder was given his second start of the Summer Series at right back and just like against Chelsea, he looked extremely comfortable.
De Zerbi is unafraid to chuck in teenagers if he feels they are good enough. We saw that in 2022-23, when he put faith in Julio Enciso, Facundo Buonanotte and Evan Ferguson during key moments in the campaign when other managers would not have taken the risk.
Hinshelwood being in De Zerbi’s XI for two games out of two so far might be because Tariq Lamptey, James Milner and Lewis Dunk are injured, Igor Julio does not join up with his new teammates until after the tour, Levi Colwill is back at Chelsea and Pervis Estupinan easing back in after international duty.
Or it might be because De Zerbi believes Hinshelwood is ready to come into the senior squad for the new campaign. Either way, he is certainly a young player to keep an eye on.
Joao Pedro looks a lot of fun
For all the praise that comes the way of the Albion in the transfer market, Brighton have a pretty poor record when it comes to record buys. Hello DJ Jurgen Locadia and Alireza Jahanbakhsh.
As the Albion’s first £30 million player, Joao Pedro will be hoping to buck that trend. From what we have seen so far, he looks like he can make an impression on the Premier League – and have a lot of fun doing it.
De Zerbi opted to use Pedro as the focal point of the attack in Brentford 0-2 Brighton. The Brazilian brought his own interpretation to the role, often dropping deep as more of a number 10 to collect the ball compared to Danny Welbeck and Evan Ferguson who operate more as target men.
There was one moment in the first half when Pedro was deep inside the Albion half receiving a pass from Billy Gilmour. Pedro spun, covered 40 yards of the pitch quicker than Taylor Swift can sell tickets for a stadium tour and slipped in Enciso for a shot saved by Flekken.
It was the sort of powerful drive forward which excites supporters. More of that, please.
Moises Caicedo is still a Brighton player
Guess what, Chelsea fans? Moises Caicedo is still a Brighton player. He has not gone on strike yet to try and force through a move to Stamford Bridge, like you think he should. And Brentford 0-2 Brighton saw him have a decent 35 minute runout.
The situation regarding Caicedo is now clearer than ever. Tony Bloom is highly unlikely to lower his asking price, so Todd Boehly either strikes a deal for £100 million, offers Levi Colwill in part-exchange to reduce that number, or Caicedo remains a Seagull for 2023-24.
