Brighton 0-0 Arsenal: Cucurella tops ratings in wind and rain
On Saturday morning, there was a fascinating article in The Argus about Marc Cucurella. In it, the £15 million Spanish signing talked about the difference between the Spanish and English weather. Lord knows what he made of conditions during Brighton 0-0 Arsenal, but they still could not prevent him topping the player ratings.
This is the second time in four matches that Cucurella has found himself in first place. He achieved the feat in the 2-1 victory over Leicester City at the Amex and however good a performance he gave that day, this showing against the Gunners was even better.
Cucurella was not the only one to impress. There were high marks awarded across the board as the Albion gave what Graham Potter described as the best display of his reign.
Only one ingredient was missing – a goal. 21 shots with nothing on the scoreboard harked back to last season’s xG nightmare, but the Albion could be forgiven for failing to find the back of the net on this occasion given Arsenal’s outstanding defensive record.
Since a certain Ben White returned from Covid, the Gunners have kept four consecutive clean sheets in the Premier League.
They are not an easy team to score against, so there is no reason to be worried by drawing a blank. Do the same in the next game against Norwich City however and maybe those drawing comparisons to 2020-21 might have a point.
Anyway, back to Brighton 0-0 Arsenal – here are your player ratings.
Robert Sanchez – 7.40
These were the worst possible conditions to be a goalkeeper so he would no doubt have been grateful that the defence in front did such a good job of protecting him. One block at his near post late on from Emile Smith Rowe and dealing with a couple of difficult high balls into the box were about as far as his evening work went.
Shane Duffy – 7.67
A good rating for King Shane which might have been even better had he put away the free header he had right at the death. Made one genuinely world class last man tackle on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after the Arsenal captain had rounded Sanchez and had an open goal to aim at. Aubameyang turned out to be offside so in the end it did not matter, but it was still an outrageous moment of defending.
Lewis Dunk – 7.73
Arsenal have a talented set of forward players and Dunk was one of the main reasons they struggled to trouble Sanchez. Showed his worth in an attacking sense when popping up on the right wing to whip over a cross which David Beckham would have been proud of.
Dan Burn – 7.47
With Bukayo Saka raiding down the Gunners right, Cucurella really should have had more defending to concentrate on rather than frequently charging forward. That the player who topped the Brighton 0-0 Arsenal ratings could do so much attacking was because of Burn, doing a seriously underrated job defensively which allowed his Spanish teammate the freedom of the left flank. Like Duffy, he would surely have scored higher had he been on target with a header.
Joel Veltman – 7.07
Everyone talks about the prospect of Cucurella and Tariq Lamptey terrorising opponents from out wide, but that does a disservice to Veltman who will not give up his spot without a fight. His versatility makes him a big asset and we saw that against Arsenal when he defended and attacked well.
Pascal Gross – 6.87
The presence of Jakub Moder gave the midfield more legs than it had during the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace. That helped Gross avoid getting too caught up in defensive duties and allowed him to get on the ball more. The result being several clever passes and a number of Gross Turns.
Adam Lallana – 7.87
One of those games where everything he tried came off. Two moments stood out. First, the spin near the edge of his own box which took him away from three Arsenal players. Second, a burst into the Gunners area followed by an outrageous volleyed cross that White did brilliantly to turn behind with Leandro Trossard lurking. Lallana’s best game of the season so far.
Jakub Moder – 7.33
The absence of Yves Bissouma and what it resulted in at Palace was a real cause for concern ahead of Arsenal. Moder’s elevation to the starting XI did not replace Bissouma exactly (who could?), but it did give the Albion a player closer to their star man than anyone else. Covered a lot of ground and with less wayward shooting, might have notched his first Premier League goal.
MARC CUCURELLA – 8.53
Four games into his Albion career and we can safely say that the £15 million paid to Getafe is an absolute bargain. His engine is unreal; one minute he would be helping Burn out defensively, the next exchanging quick passes with Trossard to drill a low cross into the area which only needed a touch to convert. He even made one crucial intervention over on the right in the first half, spotting the danger before anyone else and haring across to intercept. His hair looked bloody fantastic too, despite the wind and rain.
Leandro Trossard – 7.87
One of his better evenings as he tied with Lallana for second in the Brighton 0-0 Arsenal ratings. The Gunners could not cope with his movement or wizardry and he was the most likely man in blue and white to make something happen.
Neal Maupay – 7.53
White knows him well and it showed as despite a lot of hard work, he was unable to make much of an impact against opponents who he has thrived against in the past. Two speculative overhead kicks were as close as he came; one was inches wide but the other was like watching Jonathan Obika reincarnated as it flew off towards Ditchling.
Alexis Mac Allister – 6.80
Introduced to try and add a little more invention in an attempt to break the deadlock. Could not live up to his recently earned reputation as a super sub, even though Brighton applied even more pressure on the Arsenal goal once he had been introduced.
Solly March – 6.20
Hardly given any time once introduced down the right but he still managed to get a sight of goal when cutting inside with one of the Albion’s final chances.
The WAB Player Ratings are formulated using marks out of 10 given by Brighton fans via Twitter. To have your scores included, follow We Are Brighton on Twitter and look out for the player rating thread after each game.
