Brighton 4-0 West Ham: Caicedo ends good week at top of ratings
A lot can change in a little over a month. The end of January saw Moises Caicedo put on gardening leave after his agent tried to force through a move to Arsenal. The start of March has seen Caicedo sign a new contract with the Albion and then top the player ratings as Brighton hammered West Ham 4-0 in their biggest Premier League victory of the season.
When Caicedo did not get his move to the Emirates Stadium, a lot of people wondered whether he would maintain the same high performance levels he has delivered since breaking into the Brighton starting XI back in April.
Such worries have been thoroughly dispelled. Caicedo has not only shown no drop off in commitment or quality, but if anything he is playing even better now than he was before all that transfer window drama.
If he carries on like this and helps the Albion into Europe and the FA Cup final, then one of the European Super League Elite Six will surely cough up the money Tony Bloom values Caicedo at this summer. Frankly, they would be mad not to.
Because Caicedo is a superb player with a superb mentality. This was a brilliant team performance from Brighton and yet he still scored a clear 0.5 points more than any of his teammates.
The Albion were class; Caicedo was world class. Here are your Brighton 4-0 West Ham player ratings.
Jason Steele – 7.94
The first Premier League home appearance of his career went as well as could be hoped. Good with the ball at his feet and made two important first half saves in the space of 20 seconds. Had either of those gone in for West Ham to level the game, this may not have been such a straightforward Brighton victory.
Tariq Lamptey – 6.94
Anyone on the delayed 14.40 service out of Brighton would have missed his contribution after he limped off with just 15 minutes played. Which was the fate to befall your correspondent after an ill-advised “we’ve got time for one more pint” in The Evening Star before the game.
Adam Webster – 7.94
His 100th Premier League appearance saw him continue to make a strong case to remain Lewis Dunk’s partner even when Levi Colwill returns from injury. Denied Danny Ings his normal goal against Brighton with an important first half challenge.
Lewis Dunk – 8.06
Appearance number 401 for the Albion was one of the easiest he has enjoyed as a Premier League player. Webster picked up Ings and that meant Dunk’s defensive qualities were rarely tested. His most noteworthy contribution was therefore his role in starting attacks via crisp, sharp passing.
Pervis Estupinan – 8.22
The first half saw him put in another one of the perfectly timed last ditch sliding blocks to prevent a near-certain goal which are fast becoming his calling card. Followed that up with a lot of good attacking down the left flank in the second half.
Pascal Gross – 8.22
Mesmerising stuff from Der Kaiser. Two Gross Turns were wildly cheered from the terraces to go with two assists; the corner for Joel Veltman’s goal and the low cross converted at the back post by Kaoru Mitoma.
MOISES CAICEDO – 9.06
Three times now Caicedo has faced Declan Rice and on each occasions he has made one of the best midfielders in the world look utterly anonymous. A world class midfield showing worthy of at least £90 million if anyone is serious about signing him this summer deservedly put him at the top of the Brighton 4-0 West Ham ratings.
Solly March – 8.22
Maybe should have scored but that was the only black mark against his name as he tormented West Ham down their left side. The days when the Irons were linked with his signature and some Brighton fans offered to drive him to the London Stadium seem a million years away.
Alexis Mac Allister – 8.56
Confidently despatched the penalty which set the Albion on their way and unlucky not to add another with a cheeky second half back heel. A much improved performance following a couple of below par outings compared to his normal high standards.
Kaoru Mitoma – 8.67
It was hard not to feel sorry for Hammers right back Ben Johnson by the end after the merry dance he was led on by Mitoma. The Japanese Bullet Trained earned the Albion penalty and sprinted and stretched to slide in the third. An unstoppable showing.
Evan Ferguson – 8.22
No goals or assists but his movement off the ball and link up play were so important to Brighton’s dominance. A player whose intelligence makes him a joy to watch.
Joel Veltman – 8.29
Exactly the sort of player you want to chuck on if there is a disruptive injury inside the opening quarter hour. Made the most of Lamptey’s misfortune to chest in a rare goal when finding himself totally unmarked from a Gross corner.
Facundo Buonanotte – 7.50
Displayed some nice touches to once again look at a natural at Premier League level. With a manic end to the season, he should expect to feature more through the end of March and into April.
Danny Welbeck – 7.94
Already 2-0 down, West Ham must have been even more fearful when they saw Welbeck entering the fray given his ridiculous record against them. And they were right to be as Dat Guy struck in a clinical drive from nowhere to complete the rout.
Julio Enciso – 7.67
So close to a first Brighton goal when his curling effort from outside the box had to be tipped onto the bar by a brilliant save with Alphonse Areola at full stretch. A lively cameo.
Jeremy Sarmiento – 7.67
Limited minutes but still managed to wiggle his way into some good positions, particularly when drifting out towards the left to dovetail with Estupinan.
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.
