Brighton 1-1 Chelsea: England contender Webster tops ratings
Everywhere you go, always take the Webster with you. Following a performance which saw him top the player ratings as Brighton drew 1-1 with European Champions Chelsea, Jamie Carragher believes that Gareth Southgate must be following those lyrics and including Adam Webster in his next England squad.
The defender was outstanding against the Blues at both ends of the pitch. Webster kept £97 million striker Romelu Lukaku eeriely quiet.
He made a couple of trademark surging runs out of defence. His passing was spot on all evening, leading to Carragher to say that there is no better centre back in the country on the ball.
And then ultimately, Webster escaped the attentions of his marker with a clever run from a corner to find the space needed to power home a bullet header and earn the Albion the point they deserved.
His score of 9.52 is the highest posted by any Brighton player this season. It was the standout individual showing in what was a brilliant team display, with 10 of the starting XI rating eight or above.
The only man in seven territory was Robert Sanchez, and that was more to do with the fact that he was a spectator for large parts of the evening than anything else.
Here are your Brighton 1-1 Chelsea player ratings.
Robert Sanchez – 7.52
Should not have been beaten at his near post from outside the area when Hakim Ziyech gave Chelsea a first half lead. Otherwise assured on the rare occasions he was called into action, including with a strong block from Lukaku.
Joel Veltman – 8.30
One of his best games of the season. He sat behind Tariq Lamptey, giving the ex-Chelsea man even more freedom to attack than normal. Used the ball well and defended stoutly.
ADAM WEBSTER – 9.52
A captain’s performance from the man entrusted with the armband in the absence of Lewis Dunk and Adam Lallana. March will show us whether Gareth Southgate hates Brighton or if he just does not rate Dunk, as Webster surely has to be in the conversation for a place in the England squad.
Dan Burn – 8.70
He has been a revelation since the absences of Dunk and Shane Duffy have seen him deployed at centre back. As good as two players are, it is hard to see how Graham Potter breaks up his Webster-Burn partnership, which remains unbeaten from a tricky set of fixtures.
Marc Cucurella – 9.00
You would be hard pushed to find a better left back in the Premier League at the minute. Five months into his Brighton career and he still surprises you, popping up in places you do not expect to see him to cause chaos and confusion in opposition ranks. For the second time in 20 days, Chelsea had no answer to him.
Steve Alzate – 8.52
A forgotten man almost, he was given his first Premier League start since the opening weeks of the season in the holding midfield role. Thrived in protecting the defence, winning possession and helping to get Brighton on the front foot. Now needs to prove he can do it every week.
Pascal Gross – 8.04
Public enemy number one following his penalty miss in the 1-1 draw with Palace. Brighton fans should know by now never to write Gross off. He bounced back with a solid display, splitting the Chelsea defence on a couple of occasions with incisive through balls. Danny Welbeck should have done better with one such opportunity.
Tariq Lamptey – 8.74
Employed as more of a winger than a wing back. Gave Marcos Alonso a testing evening in an electric display featuring numerous magical moments. Chelsea must have left the Amex kicking themselves that they were unable to tie him down to a long-term deal at Stamford Bridge.
Jakub Moder – 8.13
Did well buzzing around Welbeck in something of a free role. He continues to find himself in promising positions but still awaits that first Premier League goal.
Alexis Mac Allister – 8.96
A good few hours for the midfielder. Secured the third best ratings in Brighton 1-1 Chelsea and then recalled to the Argentina national team the following morning. He covered so much ground, sitting deep at times and then bursting forward to support Moder and Welbeck. Claimed another assist with a pinpoint corner to find the run of Webster.
Danny Welbeck – 7.70
His natural tendency to drift wide meant that the Brighton attack was missing a focal point at times in the first half. Unusually wayward with his finishing, most notably when Gross slipped him in on goal on a couple of occasions.
Neal Maupay – 7.30
Got in some good positions to receive possession but the ball kept bouncing off him. He rarely seems able to make much impact from the bench.
Leandro Trossard – 7.78
Couple of nice moments where he was able to trick and tease the Chelsea back line. Would have been interesting to see how much joy he could get from the Blues defence if he had started, especially as he missed the game at Stamford Bridge.
Solly March – 7.83
His introduction coincided with Chelsea getting on top for the only time across the 90 minutes. Had to do some important defensive work as a result at the same time as leading a couple of promising counter attacks which came to nothing.
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.
