The Albion draw Spurs away in FA Cup fourth round
Brighton have drawn Spurs away in the fourth round of the FA Cup, giving the Albion an early chance to eliminate a European Super League Elite Six club on their way to Wembley.
A few seasons ago, the prospect of travelling to Tottenham would have meant inevitable elimination. Over the past 18 months however, Brighton have shown that on their day they can compete with the biggest clubs in the world.
With Spurs’ overriding priority a return to the Champions League, the FA Cup is likely to be low down the list of Antonio Conte’s priorities.
There is every chance that Conte subsequently rests players. If Graham Potter names the sort of strong line up that he did for West Brom 1-2 Brighton in the third round of the competition, then there is no reason that the Albion cannot beat a weakened Tottenham side.
Spurs made hard work of booking their own fourth round spot. They trailed League One strugglers Morecambe at half time and were booed off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with Tanguy Ndombele bearing the brunt of fan frustrations.
The Shrimps led 1-0 right up until the final 16 minutes. Harry Winks, Lucas Moura and Harry Kane all scored late on to ensure it finished Tottenham 3-1 Morecambe, sparing Spurs from what would have been one of the biggest FA Cup upsets of all time.
If Morecambe had have hung on and progressed to the fourth round, then that could have been a fantastic away day for those Albion fans lucky enough to get a ticket at the Mazuma Stadium.
Instead, it is North London where Brighton head. The 15 percent FA Cup away allocation will mean a potential 9,500 Seagulls supporters flocking to the London Stadium.
There could be quite the atmosphere – which was also the case on the one previous occasion Brighton and Spurs met in the FA Cup.
That came in the 2004-05 season when Mark McGhee’s Championship Albion nearly brought Tottenham back to Withdean for a third round replay.
The Seagulls more than matched their illustrious opponents for much of the 90 minutes. Ledley King has given Spurs a first half lead with a towering header.
That was cancelled out by Richard Carpenter scoring a stunning free-kick to send the packed away end at White Hart Lane mad.
Nobody who was there will ever forget the moment, a famous Albion FA Cup goal on a par with Jimmy Case strikes at both Anfield and Highbury during the run to the 1983 final.
Unfortunately, Robbie Keane went onto strike an equally impressive volley with eight minutes remaining to give Spurs an undeserved 2-1 success, ensuring that Martin Jol’s superstar squad avoided the ignominy of having to get changed in a portacabin at the Theatre of Trees.
The fourth round will take place over the weekend of February 5th. Because broadcasters seem to prefer showing all Premier League ties than concentrating on potential upsets these days, it is likely that Spurs v Brighton will be picked for television coverage.
