Brighton full backs crisis – bad luck or poor planning?

Brighton are in something of a crisis when it comes to their full backs. Injuries have decimated the options available to Roberto De Zerbi in a position where many Albion fans worried the squad was thin when the summer transfer window slammed shut.

There are two ways you can view the current situation. One is that Brighton have been extremely unfortunate to see three players capable of playing at full back ruled out at the same time.

The other is that the club are paying the price for not having invested in reinforcements in an area where the squad looked short.

A good starting place for this particular debate is what options Roberto De Zerbi had prior to the treatment room filling up with full backs.

Joel Veltman and Tariq Lamptey covered the right. Over on the left, Pervis Estupinan was the only natural option in the squad, although Lamptey has since proven he can do a job there.

Even in the days of versatile players who can fulfil numerous different roles, it remains conventional wisdom that the strongest squads have two natural options for every position.

Such depth becomes even more important when the club in question has European commitments to fulfil.

Trying to navigate 38 Premier League matches, at least six Europa League matches, plus whatever the FA Cup now throws up with only three just specialist full backs was always likely to be a stretch. Especially when one has an injury record like Lamptey.

Had the Albion brought in a new natural left back in the summer as many hoped, the current injury crisis may not feel quite so bad.

The counter to the new signing argument is that Brighton had enough players in their squad capable of doing a job in either of the full backs positions as to not need to spend money on a specialist.

James Milner was signed to cover midfield, right back and left back. That seemed a sensible move at the time, although having seen the carnage caused whenever Milner is faced with a quick and direct winger, it might need a rethink.

Me watching James Milner at right back against a fast winger #BHAFC pic.twitter.com/WwxhN8OwjW

— We Are Brighton (@wearebrighton) October 25, 2023

Pascal Gross has played both right and left back before. Igor Julio had a brief stint as a left back at Fiorentina a couple of years ago.

Jan Paul van Hecke and Adam Webster have been used as emergency right backs. Simon Adingra and Kaoru Mitoma played as wing backs during their respective spells with Union Saint-Gilloise.

And then of course there is Solly March. With Estupinan and Lamptey ruled out, March did a fine job at left back in both the 2-2 draw with Liverpool and the 2-1 defeat to Manchester City. It is cruel in the extreme that his season appears to have been ended in such luckless manner with a freak knee injury.

And whilst the players who can cover rationale is a decent one, it ignores the knock-on effect when you pull one individual out of one position to cover another.

If March has to move to left back because there are no other options, it leaves Simon Adingra as the only natural right winger. Move Adingra or Mitoma to left back for the Ajax game and who takes their place in the forward line?

Play Gross at full back and you lose his much-needed presence in midfield. The last time the Albion lined up without Der Kaiser in the middle was the shambolic 6-1 defeat at Aston Villa, where the hosts ran riot through Billy Gilmour and Jack Hinshelwood.

Hinshelwood remains an intriguing option. His full Premier League debut might have come in midfield against Villa, but De Zerbi used him at full back during the pre-season tour of the United States.

The 18-year-old could well find himself thrown in at the deep end (again) until Estupinan is fully recovered and Lamptey returns, whenever that may be.

Estupinan is at least back in training. Which brings us nicely onto the initial view laid out some 600-odd words ago. Have Brighton just been unlucky with multiple injuries all happening at once to players De Zerbi has been using as full backs?

Lamptey being ruled out does not really come as a surprise. Estupinan though was one of the fittest and most reliable Albion players in 2022-23, not requiring a rest until the final day of the campaign. As for March, you can never legislate for a nasty twisted knee resulting in a suspected ACL.

Whether you think it is bad luck or poor planning which has led Brighton into this full backs injury crisis, one thing everyone surely agrees on is what De Zerbi said after defeat at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

We need more players.