What to expect from Brighton in the new season?
The 2018-19 Premier League season may have been a too little close for comfort for Brighton.
They had to wait until a few weeks before the end of the season to ensure their Premier League safety and it was touch and go for a while.
Chris Hughton’s side endured a terrible second half of the season which dragged them into the abyss and but for a Cardiff City defeat against Crystal Palace it could have been a different story.
The belief that there were simply just three teams worse than them holds a lot of weight, and it’s difficult to argue with that.
They struggled to score throughout the season and become reliant on 35-year-old Glenn Murray to bail them out on countless occasions. Something needed to change, and the board thought so too.
A fresh start under Graham Potter
There has been a host of changes throughout the summer months at the Amex, including the departure of arguably the greatest manager the club has ever seen.
Hughton guided the club to the Premier League, and after two years at the top-flight, it was decided that a new man at the helm was needed.
That man came in the form of Graham Potter. The Englishman enjoyed an excellent time at Swedish outfit Ostersunds; in which he guided the club to the latter stages of the Europa League, and despite defeating Arsenal, they were ultimately knocked out.
His passing game had impressed so much during a difficult season as Swansea that Tony Bloom was willing to appoint him. Off the field, the appointment of former FA technical director Dan Ashworth was also an undoubted step in the right direction.
Ashworth was credited with leading England on the path to the semi-finals of the men’s and women’s World Cup. While it was downplayed, Brighton held off interest from Manchester United in appointing the former Norwich defender, and that could prove pivotal.
On the field, there were goodbyes to fan favourite Anthony Knockaert and club legend Bruno. The former of which was a shock move, as he was allowed to leave to Fulham on a season-long loan despite being one of the better players at the club.
However, the Seagulls have acted efficiently in bringing in the highly-touted winger Leandro Trossard and Matthew Clarke from Genk and Portsmouth respectively.
Brighton’s new playing style
The most significant change that fans of the Premier League can expect to see is a drastic change in the way that Brighton will approach games.
Under Hughton, they became very one dimensional with defenders always looking to play the ball long up to Murray and allow him to bring players into play.
However, under Potter, that won’t be the case. Instead, throughout his career, he has prided himself on his team, being comfortable to pass the ball quickly and enjoys having a speedy forward line. So, it would seem likely we will see a more expansive and attacking brand of football from Brighton this season.
Potter continuously operated with a back three last season with Swansea, and it will be interesting to see if he attempts that with a Brighton defence that has never been deployed in that set-up.
Pre-season would suggest that he will instead look to play 4-3-3; once again, with vibrant wingers surrounding the sole striker. Whether he will change the system again will be dependent on how well the team are learning in training. But the addition of Trossard will indeed add the pace to the wings that Potter sides have been renowned for.
Brighton’s Premier League fixtures
The opening exchanges of the Premier League season will be crucial to see how Brighton will perform in the top-flight. Last season they were slow starters with just the one win in their opening seven fixtures, and that set them up for a long season ahead.
Throughout the season they went on winning runs, but once these were ended, they would go three or four games suffering defeats. The first five fixtures of the season, excluding Manchester City, would all be considered as games that Brighton could get something out of.
First five fixtures for Brighton:
• Watford (A)
• West Ham (H)
• Southampton (H)
• Manchester City (A)
• Burnley (H)
Potter will be looking at those fixtures, knowing that they will need to take at least seven points to ensure the start of his tenure is seen as a success.
At the other end of the season, they will know that they will have to finish much stronger than they did last season. The Seagulls didn’t win in their last nine outings in the Premier League last time out, and that was the deciding factor in why they finished two points above the relegation places.
Of course, a solid start and middle of the season would mean that the Seagulls would likely finish out of the relegation places anyway, but according to most bookmakers’ odds, fans shouldn’t expect a comfortable ride at the business end of the season. Compare Your Odds shows that the best odds of Brighton to go down is 2/1.
Last five fixtures for Brighton
• Liverpool (H)
• Manchester City (H)
• Southampton (A)
• Newcastle United (H)
• Burnley (A)
It isn’t the easiest of run-ins for Brighton, so you would expect them to be in grave danger if their Premier League status hasn’t been secured by the beginning of May.
Overall, however, fans will fall in love with the way that Brighton will play this season as they use the speed in the team to its fullest potential. But, whether they can stay up is a very different question.
