What can be done about Brighton woodwork woes?
After Brighton hit the woodwork twice against Chelsea, I began to think about what could be done to turn these chances which strike the goalframe into actual goals.
As many of you will know if you have read my two Seagulls Best Ever Season books, I was a golf professional in my younger years. This involved teaching the game to other golfers and beginners at the various golf clubs I worked at.
Some people wanted to learn how to putt the ball as they would only ever three-putt when reaching the green, ruining their game.
The method I used to improving their putting was taught to me by the late Sir Henry Cotton. Sir Henry was Open Champion in 1934 and the golf professional at the famous Penina Golf Hotel in the Algarve.
One of his many theories to improve putting was to practice with a much smaller target. When it then came to putting on the green, the hole would seem massive.
If you practiced and mastered getting the ball to stop directly next to a pound coin, your accuracy would be such that a hole would seem like aiming at a giant bucket.
The same theory should apply on the football pitch. Start aiming for a small target in training and when the players get into a real game, a full size goal will seem so much bigger.
It is all in the mind and the mind can be easily tricked and trained to improve performance. The pound coin trick worked so many times for golfers I used to teach.
Why not Simon Adingra to volley Brighton level against Chelsea rather than the ball coming off the inside of the post? Or Joao Pedro with his header hitting the bar?
Those of you in attendance at the Amex for the Chelsea game enjoyed a wonderful warm Sussex day. Perfect, I thought, for our young South American players to feel more at home.
The weather was not so nice where I am holidaying in Perranporth, Cornwall. We had showers and temperatures barely into the teens.
Our BBC Radio Sussex commentators were squashed into their position by all accounts due to more journalists and pundits being present than normal.
Warren Aspinall did not sound like he minded; then again, he was shoulder-to-shoulder with Brighton legend Glenn Murray. Who wouldn’t want that honour?
Johnny Cantor thought it unusual that Chelsea were wearing a dark blue away strip. He hoped that referee Michael Salisbury would not become confused.
I am not sure Mr Salisbury could use the kit colours to excuse a performance in which he made several clangers. What did the PGMOL report say about his performance? A C- or even a D for me.
Brighton sounded as though they were struggling for possession through the first five minutes. The Albion soon had their first corner though, well taken by Billy Gilmour.
It instantly earned a second corner, this time from Pascal Gross. Marc Cucurella made a point of cuddling Lewis Dunk, locking both his arms and hands around the Seagulls captain’s body. Surely not acceptable, I ask?
Bart Verbruggen made a good save on the 13 minute mark from Cole Palmer. Roberto De Zerbi told us before the game that Brighton wanted to sign Palmer last summer when it became clear he would be leaving Manchester City. What a player he could have been for the Albion.
Cucurella was involved in another incident on the 18 minute mark. He brought the ball across the goal line, was challenged by Facundo Buonanotte and went to ground.
Mr Salisbury pointed to the spot. Thankfully, VAR checked the incident and called the referee to the screen. He rescinded his decision and play restarted with a drop ball rather than a corner from Buonanotte just getting a touch to put the ball out of play. An instance of VAR correcting an incorrect refereeing decision.
Johnny said Brighton were looking more like the team they were at the start of the season on 30 minutes. That proved a commentator’s curse as four minutes later, Palmer gave Chelsea the lead with a header from a Cucurella cross.
The game became a little scrappy after that. The visitors had to withdraw Mykhailo Mudryk injured and Dunk was stood down at half time having initially tried to play on after receiving a knock.
Brighton went on the attack at the start of the second half and should have had an early penalty. Adingra worked his way into the box and was clearly brought down.
Neither Mr Salisbury nor VAR thought it worth a spot kick. The good work VAR had done earlier in ensuring a correct decision was made had now been undone.
A great opportunity next came the way of Pascal Gross. Tariq Lamptey delivered a beautiful cross for Gross, who was sadly unable to convert. Gross does not miss many like that.
That miss was made to feel doubly costly when Chelsea scored their second goal on 64 minutes via Christopher Nkunku. The Albion now had it all to do in the final 25 minutes.
De Zerbi brought on Carols Baleba and Danny Welbeck in response. Introducing Welbeck would prove to be a wise decision.
VAR went back into the good books with the game approaching the 90 minute mark. It spotted Reece James kicking out at Joao Pedro’s leg, resulting in a red card for violent conduct and Chelsea playing out the remainder of the match with only 10 men.
The board showed 10 minutes of time added on. In the seventh of those, Welbeck slotted home to make it 2-1 and set up a frantic final few.
Brighton could not find an equaliser but to come so close against a squad of players costing one billion pounds was impressive. You could not fault the players for effort.
This might not have been the Seagulls Best Ever Season, but fingers cross we end it with a victory against Manchester United on.
If De Zerbi gets the pound coins out on the putting green, then you never know!
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.
