What would a top 10 finish in May mean for Brighton going into 2022-23?
Tony Bloom has never made a secret of his long held ambition to make Brighton & Hove Albion a top 10 club in the Premier League. After our successful start to the season, it is tempting to think we are well on track to realising the owner’s dream. However the harder challenge is not to end the 2021-22 season on the left side of the table, but to repeat this achievement year after year.
There are two ways of climbing the football ladder and becoming a(n) (even) big(ger) club. The first tried and tested method is to attract a wealthy benefactor.
This path has been followed in recent memory by Chelsea and Manchester City and by Blackburn Rovers in the nineties. Newcastle United have now joined this elite group after the Saudi takeover this month.
Morals have taken a back seat on Tyneside. “Wey aye, what do you mean human rights record, pet?” Geordies are already dreaming Kylian Mbappé will fire their beloved Toon back to the Premier League in 2023 after they fall short in the battle against relegation this season.
The talented Frenchman will break the Championship record by finding the back of the net 80 times against the likes of Luton Town and Barnsley in return for a reported £2 million a week.
Tony Bloom and the Albion board have, as we know, decided on a different strategy. Each season they are targeting marked improvement compared to the season before.
Keep this going long term and eventually it will lead to the promised land of European football and a long awaited piece of silverware.
Our owner has overseen the building of an amazing infrastructure to help a football team to grow and to be successful. We have a fantastic stadium at Falmer and a state-of-the-art training complex in Lancing.
Bloom has also attracted Dan Ashworth to oversee the technical side of the long term strategy and the best coach of his generation in Graham Potter to shape a team that can compete with clubs funded by petrodollars.
There is every chance that the Albion will reach its highest ever league position this season, but to improve the year after we will need vision and an unavoidable bit of ruthlessness.
Vision by attracting the best young talent from around the world and ruthlessness by sadly saying goodbye to players that are deemed not to be good enough to make the next step.
So with all this mind, let us have a look at how Albion could line up next season…
Robert Sanchez has been a revelation in goal after replacing Maty Ryan. It is not unfeasible that a big Spanish club will come in for him over the summer now he has broken into the national squad.
Big Bob might think his chances to become Spain number one at the upcoming World Cup in Qatar will improve if he keeps weekly clean sheets at the Bernabeu or the Nou Camp rather than at the Amex.
It shows vision that the club has brought in Kjell Scherpen from Ajax one year before this scenario could potentially become reality.
It gives Scherpen a chance to adapt to his new surroundings and the higher intensity and physicality of the English game ahead of potentially succeeding Sanchez in the Brighton goal.
The Albion’s defence is amongst the best in the Premier League. Captain Lewis Dunk will be the first name on the teamsheet for years to come.
Adam Webster has been unlucky with injuries lately but he has all the attributes Potter expects from a modern day centre half. Joel Veltman will complete our back three.
It was a total masterstroke to persuade a player with 28 caps for the Netherlands and Champions League experience to move to Sussex. Never has £900,000 been better spent.
The versatile Dan Burn and young Haydon Roberts provide adequate cover. Will there be a place for Shane Duffy in the squad after his amazing start to the season? Will we ever see Leo Ostigard or Matt Clarke at the Amex? Tough decisions.
Marc Cucurella, Tariq Lamptey and Solly March can share the wingback positions between them. Cucurella is already a firm favourite with the fans and we are all looking forward to the day when Lamptey will fly down the wing again.
March has excelled in his new role and has improved every year. In case of an injury crisis, Veltman has proved he can fill in out wide if necessary.
In midfield, we are most likely to lose Yves Bissouma who is arguably one of the best defensive midfielders in the league. Again, the club has shown vision by buying Enoch Mwepu a year before we need him to be a first team regular.
Partnering Mwepu in the engine room will surely be the impressive Jakub Moder, who has the potential to be one of the best midfielders in European football. There is more to come from Steve Alzate as well.
Will the highly rated Marc Leonard break into the first team squad or will Pascal Gross keep proving his critics wrong by delivering assist after assist?
Let’s hope the medical team can keep Adam Lallana fit for as many games as possible. His experience is invaluable, even if he only appears on the training ground.
Behind the strikers, I expect to see the best of Alexis Mac Allister next season but he will face serious competition from Jeremy Sarmiento and Taylor Richards.
Leandro Trossard has impressed in a more central role. Yet another example of Graham Potter’s coaching ability. I expect Tony Bloom will receive an offer he cannot refuse for the Vampire from Genk during the summer.
Creative players who can beat a defender and make things happen on the pitch are a rare commodity. I am sure Trossard would relish the opportunity to play in Southern Europe, thus avoiding the need for his annual hibernation. Serie A or La Liga will suit Leo down to the ground.
Upfront we will see Neil Maupay continue his development. We can expect more goals from the Frenchman and he will without a doubt keep on winding up rival supporter groups.
Next summer he will provide the perfect foil for the long awaited new striker. Selling Trossard and Bissouma will provide the necessary funds. Then again, perhaps Andi Zeqiri will make remarkable progress in the Bundesliga.
What will happen to Abdallah Sima at Stoke City? Will Danny Welbeck stay fit sufficiently this campaign to warrant a new contract for next season? The odds are not great I would say. Aarron Connolly will be sold to Coventry where he will form a deadly partnership with his old mate Viktor Gyokeres.
Our top 10 finish in May will come at a cost. We will lose some of our best players. This however is by no means the end of the road. On the contrary, we should see it as a compliment, as recognition.
It shows Brighton & Hove Albion are doing things right and we are being noticed. Leicester City won the league and lost Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante but they invested well and have been challenging for top four every season since.
The Albion are following a similar path. We do not need petrodollars. We have Tony, Dan and Graham in charge, men with vision. Keep the faith. They will lead us to Minsk or Baku on a Thursday evening in 2023. Up the Albion.
