Did that gift from Burnley just about keep Brighton season alive?
According to Warren Aspinall, there are not many towns like Burnley in the Premier League. He reckoned the smoking chimneys were great for health, although I think he might have been joking.
He also said he saw a three-wheeled pram whilst walking to the ground. That was ironic as by full time, it was not the only wheel in Burnley to have fallen off.
The Albion’s visit to Turf Moor was a crucial game. Warren, Johnny Cantor and Tim Durrans on BBC Radio Sussex made that perfectly clear, as did other commentators and presenters on radio and television.
Brighton could not afford to lose. And whilst they did not lose, in the end that was thanks to Burnley scoring an own goal gift on behalf of the Albion. Did it just about keep Brighton’s season alive?
There were not many other positives. The lengthy injury list has grown again, now sitting at 10 players after Pervis Estupinan was taken off early with an ankle injury.
Estupinan joins Tariq Lamptey, Solly March, Kaoru Mitoma, James Milner, Jack Hinshelwood, Adam Webster, Evan Ferguson, Julio Enciso and Billy Gilmour.
If one of Brighton’s goalkeepers were to get injured, Roberto De Zerbi would be missing an entire XI of players. For the Albion to still be in top 10 of the Premier League with so many absentees is testament to the team’s resilience and the efforts of the remaining players.
In the handful of games left, the squad’s depth will be further tested. There are no easy fixtures in the Premier League, not a run of Manchester City, Bournemouth, Aston Villa, Newcastle, Chelsea and Manchester United looks particularly tough.
Brighton have tended to love tough matches in the past, but maybe not so much with so many players out. All we can do is hope the Albion finish the season on some sort of high.
We can then park the campaign as one in which lessons were learned and Europe experienced and look forward to what lies in store in 2024-25.
Roberto De Zerbi certainly seems to be looking towards the future based on comments in recent press conferences. Fingers crossed that means he will still be Brighton head coach next season.
The players took the knee before kick off at Turf Moor to remind us there is no room for racism. The travelling Albion support sounded in good voice but it was Burnley who made a swift start.
Estupinan was spared the wrath of referee Simon Hooper early on, who ruled he had played the ball before taking out Wilson Odobert in the box. Clarets assistant manager Craig Bellamy disagreed and thought Burnley should have been given a penalty.
Jacob Bruun Larsen missed an absolute sitter next when shooting wide from a couple of yards. Things were not sounding good over the airwaves. The Brighton performance did, however, look a great deal better watching the highlights back. Creative editing on the part of the MyAlbion TV team maybe?
Brighton did at least have some chances after that. Simon Adingra shot at Arijanet Muric from distance, Muric spilled a Carlos Baleba drive and Pascal Gross crossed for Joao Pedro to head just wide.
Danny Welbeck was fouled just outside the area to give Jakub Moder a shooting chance from a free kick. Moder is still yet to score a Premier League goal but he came very close here with an attempt saved by Muric.
Burnley missed another chance from a matter of yards through David Datro Fofana in a second let off for the Albion, meaning the half time whistle blew with the scores at 0-0.
Brighton had the lion’s share of possession in the first ten minutes of the second half. Adingra nearly had his shirt ripped off his body at one point when he was away on goal. Apparently, that’s okay now. It looked like a clear foul on Adingra when watching the highlights back.
Pedro was giving 110% to try and find a breakthrough but the ball would just not go into the onion bag, as Warren likes to say. Gross almost broke the deadlock with an amazing shot which was heading in before Muric just managed to tip it over the bar.
Then came a real blow. A poorly weighted pass back from Baleba to Bart Verbruggen was way short of the Albion goalkeeper. He still almost got their first, only for the ball to be put in the back of the net by Rick O’Shay after Verbruggen and Josh Brownhill collided.
Brighton were now 1-0 down with everything to do. The way the previous 70-odd minutes had gone, there did not seem much hope of the Albion finding an equaliser.
Luckily, they did not need to. Less than five minutes later, our prayers were answered. I felt like Rhys Ifans’ character Spike in Notting Hill, looking to the sky, clasping my hands together and saying “Thank you God” as a pass from Sander Berge went straight under the foot of Muric and rolled over the goal line.
A nightmare for the Burnley goalkeeper, just as the rain started to fall over Turf Moor. Berge and the home fans could not believe their eyes.
Neither side could find a winner in the time remaining, with Brighton looking the more promising. But it is 44 points and 10th spot which the Albion occupy going into the finishing straight.
Next up, Manchester City at home. There would be no better game to get back on track and have a say in the title race than by beating Pep Guardiola’s reigning champions.
Tony Noble @Noble1844Tony
Seagulls Best Ever Season Volume 2 charts Brighton’s record breaking 2022-23 campaign through the eyes of Tony Noble, an East Stand Upper season ticket holder at the American Express Stadium. It is available from Waterstones, WHSmith, Amazon Bookstore and all good bookshops as well as the Albion Superstore at the Amex and via this link.
