Spurs 3-1 Brighton: Bissouma good in ratings, everyone else not so good
It takes a special player to be the best on the pitch in a side well beaten against opposition containing the likes of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min. Take a bow then Yves Bissouma, who managed just that when topping the player ratings as Brighton lost 3-1 away at Spurs.
Whilst nobody else in the Albion starting XI managed to score higher than a six, Bissouma produced a goal scoring performance full of dynamism which earned him an 8.18 to stand head and shoulders above his teammates.
Substitute Joel Veltman was the closest to Bissouma, scoring 6.82 for 45 minutes work. Next came the much-maligned Pascal Gross on 6.00 with the other 12 players used at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium not doing much to impress at all.
And that is why Brighton’s FA Cup adventure came to an end at the fourth round stage. You cannot afford to underperform or give away goals against Kane and Son, as shown by their link up in two of the three Spurs goals.
For the Albion, dreams of a Wembley final are over for another year. Here are your Spurs 3-1 Brighton player ratings.
Robert Sanchez – 4.76
The presence of the Albion’s number one in the starting XI was a sign of how seriously Graham Potter was taking the FA Cup. Lucky to escape gifting Kane a goal inside of the opening 15 minutes with a failed clip across his own goal, but he recovered after that to make several decent stops which kept the score down.
Adam Webster – 4.47
File this one under a remarkable off-evening. Gave Spurs their first when he miscontrolled and then slipped to hand Son possession. For the third, his attempted tackle on the same player simply served to knock the ball past Sanchez and towards the Albion net. Would have been a fantastic own goal had Kane not slid in to convert and claim it.
Lewis Dunk – 5.18
Looked very much like a bloke who has spent six weeks out injured. Gave Son and Kane far too much room on a number occasions, but he will be all the better for getting 90 minutes under his belt ahead of the Albion returning to the bread and butter of Premier League football at Watford next week.
Marc Cucurella – 5.88
Potter deploying him as the left sided centre back in a three man defence worked at Chelsea. It was a failure here as both he and Webster looked to move out of defence with the ball, leaving Dunk at times as a one-man back line. That played straight into the hands of Spurs, who had been set up to counter with breath taking efficiency by Antonio Conte – most notably when Cucurella was nowhere to be seen as Emerson Royal ran 70 yards down the pitch for the second goal.
Tariq Lamptey – 5.59
Not only had Conte done his homework on the benefits to be had from playing on the break against Brighton, but he also fathomed a way to keep Lamptey quiet. With both Lamptey and Cucurella shackled, it was little wonder the Albion struggled to create much.
Adam Lallana – 5.82
One of his quietest games of the season. He was the sacrificial lamb at half time as Potter sought to sort out his back line via the introduction of Veltman.
YVES BISSOUMA – 8.18
Took some time to get going on his return from AFCON duty. He grew into the game as it progressed and spent the second half threatening Hugo Lloris’ goal in a manner we have rarely seen. The Spurs captain produced a magnificent save to deny one deflected Bissouma drive from distance but there was nothing he could do when another flew past him minutes later.
Pascal Gross – 6.00
The Gross haters are going to, er, hate the fact that he was the second best Brighton player in the 3-1 defeat to Spurs according to the player ratings. Got one superb Gross Turn in during the second half and used the ball far more sensibly than anyone else in hyper-turq, bar Bissouma.
Solly March – 5.35
Seemed to spend most of the first half having to cover defensively for Cucurella, including when chasing back Royal and being unfortunate enough to send the Spurs right back’s cross looping over the head of Sanchez. The half time change did little to coax more out of him.
Jakub Moder – 5.59
A disappointing showing from a man who has otherwise excelled in cup competitions this season. Potter deployed him almost as a second striker off Neal Maupay. He seemed ill-equipped to fulfil such a role, especially when he struggles so much to get shots on target.
Neal Maupay – 4.76
Oh Neal! One of those days where he could not hit a cow’s posterior with a string instrument. Failed to trouble Lloris when well positioned in the first half and then put a weak effort straight into the arms of the grateful home goalkeeper when through one-on-one in the second. As a confidence player, hopefully he will not dwell on those two misses and rediscovers his superb recent form at Vicarage Road.
Joel Veltman – 6.82
Brighton were much improved in the second half following his introduction. Brought some solidarity to a backline which had resembled an episode of Chucklevision up to that point. He also offered an attacking outlet during a few forays forward.
Moises Caicedo – 5.65
An interesting cameo from the Ecuadorian international. Always wanted the ball and looked to get Brighton on the front foot, linking up well with Bissouma. It would be nice to get a look at him in the Premier League before the end of the campaign.
Danny Welbeck – 5.41
Received a frosty reception from the home crowd thanks to winning more trophies in five years at Arsenal than Spurs have lifted in the past three decades. Nearly had his football do the talking, only for Lloris to keep out a decent glancing header.
Evan Ferguson – 5.18
Sent on for the closing stages but did not have much time to make an impression. Not entirely sure how he has scored a 5.18, but he will no doubt be happy about it having touched the ball no more than a couple of times.
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.
