Match Review: Brighton 0-1 Sheffield United

Churchill Square must have been hell on Earth on Saturday afternoon. Four days out from Christmas, people going mad with last minute gift shopping, absolute chaos. And yet it still would have been more enjoyable than watching the Albion take on Sheffield United.

The Blades are fifth in the Premier League table. They haven’t lost away since January. You don’t have either of those statistics to your name if you aren’t a good side, and those who shamefully booed Brighton off at the break should remember that.

Would they have booed the Albion off against Manchester United for being 1-0 down at the break? Or Arsenal? Or Tottenham Hotspur? Because right now, Sheffield United are better than those three teams.

Just because they are newcomers to the top flight, doesn’t mean that Brighton are a bigger club or have a divine right to beating them.

People go mad at the whole “We should be beating teams like Brighton” thing that we constantly get, and then display the exact same attitude themselves. We should be beating teams like Sheffield United, apparently.

Playing like this though, we wouldn’t have beaten the Dog & Duck United. As good as the Blades were, Brighton were absolutely dreadful. Comedically bad.

Without VAR, it could have been 3-0. Maty Ryan should be sending the VAR system a Christmas card and a box of After Eight mints to thank it for getting him out of jail twice. The technology couldn’t save Adam Webster however as Shane Duffy’s case for reinstatement grew stronger with each passing minute.

The players had their Christmas Party earlier in the week and some of them played like they were still pissed. Ryan and Webster were two of the main culprits, Dale Stephens wasn’t great on his return from suspension and Leandro Trossard touched the ball a grand total of two times before he was hauled as part of a double half time substitution from Graham Potter.

We’ve been constantly told what a tactical genius Potter is, but he got it completely wrong against United. Wilder’s overlapping centre backs have made headline news this season; stop their back three rampaging forward to join the attack and you have a good chance of stopping them playing.

Playing 3-4-3 would have given three central defenders three strikers to deal with. If one of those strikers was Aaron Connolly, a tireless runner who you can’t give an inch too, then United’s defence would have found it much more difficult to carry out their unique roles.

Potter did belatedly realise that at half time when he threw on Connolly and Glenn Murray, but by that point the infectious nature of playing like a bunch of clowns had already spread around the team and taken hold.

Perhaps if we had have put some crosses into the box with Murray on the pitch, we might have forced Dean Henderson into more than one meaningful save. Instead, the Albion failed to give their record scorer the service he thrives upon.

Brighton had no real clue how to find a way through a well-organised United side. People will point to the possession stats and say that we had nearly 70% of the ball, but it isn’t much use if that 70% represents short passes across the midfield and back line which get you nowhere.

When you’re playing a team that you can’t breakdown, then you can’t afford to gift them opportunities either as if they take them, you’re in more trouble than Prince Andrew at an Epstein party.

It took just seven minutes for Ryan to gift United what should have been the lead. He somehow missed a routine punch from a corner which brushed John Egan’s hand as he bundled home. VAR checked and disallowed the goal, sparing Ryan’s blushes. Get writing that card, Maty.

Next up it was Stephens’ turn to give the visitors a helping hand. With a swarm of yellow shirts pinning Brighton into their own penalty box, the Albion tried to play their way out but only succeeded in losing the ball with John Lundstram hitting the side netting.

A rare Brighton attack saw Neal Maupay convert a Martin Montoya cross but Montoya was well offside in the build up, giving VAR another chance to flex its muscle.

Then came the only goal of the game. Potter said it was disappointing to concede a route one goal, but there’s always a risk that will happen when you’re picking a centre back who isn’t convincing in the air but is in the team because he can play a six yard pass.

Henderson’s long kick forward was met by Webster, who genuinely looked like he didn’t have a clue what was going on. As a result, he succeeded only in heading the ball towards his own goal which put Oliver McBurnie in.

McBurnie still had a lot to do but do it he did, easily out muscling Lewis Dunk before beating Ryan at his near post. It was a terrible goal to concede from a defensive point of view, particularly for Webster. You’d have backed his Coronation Street-based relatives Kevin, Sally, Rosie or Sophie to deal with it better.

To concede once in such fashion might be considered unfortunate. To do it again four minutes into the second half borders on incompetence – not something you expect from a defender who cost £18m.

Another long ball over the top left Webster looking like a rabbit in the headlights. Firstly, he ducked out of the header and allowed the ball to bounce towards goal.

He then attempted to nod the ball back to Ryan, but only succeeded in heading it up in the air while falling over at the same time.

As Webster lay on the ground and Duffy sat on the bench wondering what the hell he has to do to get picked, David McGoldrick rounded Ryan but somehow put his effort with an open goal gaping against the side netting.

Inspired by this calamitous defending, Ryan decided to get in on the act again. This time, a free kick that should have been easy to gather was spilled by Ryan straight to feet of Jack O’Connell. He bundled home, but VAR found that McGoldrick was offside in the build up. Get buying those mints, Maty.

Yves Bissouma entered proceedings after that with Davy Propper dropping in to right wing back, the sort of positional adjustment that Mark McGhee used to come up with after his eighth pint of whiskey of the day.

Needless to say, this wasn’t a great success. Bissouma did at least inject a little dynamism into the Albion, but his only real contribution was to get booked for a dive in the box late on. He isn’t going to be troubling the nominees list for the Best Actor Oscar anytime soon.

Which was a shame, as seeing a bit of acting worthy of Daniel Day-Lewis might have at least made up foe the rest of a terribly disappointing afternoon.

The result was hardly a good way to go into the busy Christmas period. Three Premier League games in the space of six days are to come and none of them look easy, even if the Albion do prove that this circus-style showing was a one-off.

Spurs away and Chelsea at home are two games we’re yet to take anything from. Then there’s Plucky Little Bournemouth, a club who the Albion haven’t won a league game against since New Year’s Day 2008 and who’s 5-0 win at the Amex back in April convinced many of us that it was time for Chris Hughton to go.

With just one win in seven to our name and the relegation zone only five points away, it isn’t inconceivable that by the time 2020 arrives, the Albion could be in the bottom three. That wouldn’t be deserved given our performances this season, but points rather than possession is what wins you games.

And if we play like this again, we won’t be winning many more under Potter this season. This needs to be a one-off, filed away under “One of those days” and a performance that we can all look back on in five years time and laugh at how disastrous it was. We don’t want our goalkeeper and centre back to be forking out for gifts for VAR every week.