Joel Veltman or Tariq Lamptey? The Brighton right wing back dilemma

As Tariq Lamptey closes in on a return from injury, Brighton boss Graham Potter faces quite the dilemma – how does he gets his best player back in the team when Joel Veltman has been one of the stars of the Albion’s recent upturn in form?

Lamptey’s talents need no introduction. He has taken the Premier League by storm, attracting attention from the likes of Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid with a string of eye catching performances which very few 20-years-old would be capable of delivering.

The thing which really stands out with Lamptey is that he is as good defensively as he is going forward. When Lamptey is on form, he is genuinely unplayable.

We saw that in Brighton’s 3-0 victory at Newcastle United in September. It was the Albion’s most convincing win of the season and Lamptey was at the heart of it despite only being on the pitch for an hour.

Newcastle’s only way of stopping Lamptey was to try and injure him, forcing Potter into introducing Dan Burn on the 60 minute mark. Not that it mattered; Lamptey had been so good that he had already won the game for Brighton by that point.

That was one of only two victories which the Albion managed from their first 18 games of the Premier League season. The other came at Aston Villa in November, a 2-1 success in which Lamptey was again outstanding.

The conclusion most people were drawing at that point in time was that Brighton could only win games when Lamptey was terrorising opponents. Without him on form, the Albion were blunted in an attacking sense.

Which brings us nicely onto the one downside to Lamptey’s game and unfortunately, there is little that can be done about it. His freakish speed makes him susceptible to muscle injuries, especially at his current young age when his body is still growing developing.

A hamstring injury picked up in the Albion’s 0-0 draw at Fulham in December has ruled Lamptey out for nine weeks now. In that time, he has missed 15 matches in Premier League and FA Cup.

Deny most clubs one of their most important player for such a prolonged period and they would struggle. It says much about the job that Veltman has done at right wing back that Brighton have embarked on their best run of form in the top flight since 1981 whilst Lamptey has been stuck in the physio’s room.

Lamptey and Veltman are different players, which in a way may help Potter with the dilemma he now faces. Lamptey is excitement, a young man with the world at his feet who is only going to get better.

The enthusiasm he shows in galloping up and down the right flank showing no fear about facing some of the best full backs in the world is why you cannot take your eyes off him.

Veltman meanwhile is 29-years-old, experienced and exactly what you would expect a product of Ajax’s famous academy to be. He is technically superb, never looks flustered and hardly wastes a pass.

He also has a superb footballing brain. Veltman reads the game as well as any Brighton player and that gives him the uncanny knack of always being in the right place at the right time.

We saw that quite beautifully in Brighton’s 0-0 draw with Aston Villa. Not many players in the Premier League this season have had the intelligence to pocket Jack Grealish.

Veltman made it look easy which went a long way towards ensuring that Robert Sanchez did not have a save to make on his way towards recording a fifth clean sheet in six matches.

Sanchez has taken much of the credit for that improved defensive record in recent weeks. Several of Sanchez’s shutouts though have come in games where he has hardly had a save to make; it cannot be coincidence that Brighton’s goalkeeper suddenly finds himself underemployed with a Dutch international defender added to the back five.

What then does Potter do now? Veltman has made himself undroppable, Lamptey is one of the hottest young players in European football. Selecting which one should be starting at right wing back is akin to having chose who out of Gordon Ramsay or Alain Ducasse you want to pop round and cook you dinner.

Might Potter try and fit both Lamptey and Veltman into the same Brighton team? The most remarkable aspect of Veltman’s stint at right wing back as that he has hardly ever filled that position in his life. During his eight years at Ajax, he was used as a centre back or a traditional right back.

Lamptey could come back in at right wing back with Veltman shunted into another position. Where though? Potter is finally using a settled back three, another reason why defensive performances have improved markedly.

Breaking up Lewis Dunk, Adam Webster and Ben White to redeploy Veltman as a centre back would take Brighton back to the bad old days of chopping and changing back line combinations.

Then there is the question of who out of Dunk, Webster or White is replaced by Veltman? White could be pushed into midfield again but then you are disrupting the Yves Bissouma and Pascal Gross partnership which has blossomed in the past month.

Solly March’s long-term injury might provide an opening at left wing back for Veltman to fill. Veltman is versatile and nothing seems to phase him, so Potter might consider him for a stint on the opposite side of the pitch to where he has spent his career.

Suddenly, you have Veltman and Lamptey in the same XI without needing to rip out the promising combinations developing nicely through the spine of the team.

Potter though has been heavily criticised for using players out-of-position this season. No more Leandro Trossard as a lone striker, Alexis Mac Allister and Alireza Jahanbakhsh leading the line together or Gross going for a stint at right back is another contributing factor to improved results. Do we really want him to go back to using the Team Selection Roulette Wheel with Veltman out on the left?

The answer therefore lies in a ‘horses for courses’ approach. There will be games in which Veltman is the best man for the job, such as when the opposition have an outstanding threat who needs marking out the game. Has Grealish escaped the Dutchman’s pocket yet?

Then there will be matches against teams Brighton should be beating where Lamptey’s attacking threat can cause them a world of pain. Merely his name on the team sheet will bring Newcastle’s players out in a cold sweat when they visit the Amex.

Or how about Brighton using Veltman as a starter and Lamptey as a finisher? Picture the scene. Crystal Palace come to town, Veltman keeps Wilfried Zaha quite for an hour to spark a petulant meltdown from the Eagles’ golden boy. Lamptey then enters proceedings for the final 30 minutes to torment the tiring Palace defence.

Whatever Potter decides, it is bloody nice to have such a dilemma. In the past 13 months, Brighton have acquired two outstanding players for one position for an outlay of £4.9 million. That is excellent business and the Albion are reaping the benefits of it.