Why the 2019-20 fixture list gives Potter the chance for a fast start
On paper, Graham Potter could not have wished for much more of an easier start to life as Brighton and Hove Albion manager.
In his first 10 Premier League games in charge, the Albion will face only three of the big six. The trip to champions Manchester City lies in wait on the weekend of August 31st, Chelsea away follows four weeks later on September 28th and the following week, Tottenham Hotspur visit the Amex.
It’s a gentle introduction to life as a top flight manager for Potter, which is important. Given the manner in which Chris Hughton was dismissed and with large swathes of the fan base still not convinced it was the right decision, Potter is perhaps going to be under more pressure than normal early on as he needs to justify the gamble taken by Tony Bloom.
For that reason, he needs a fast start. A repeat of last season’s fixture list in which the Albion faced four of the big six in their first seven games would have been a disaster for a manager looking to implement a new style and fresh ideas.
According to the odds generated by the top betting sites, none of the Albion’s first six opponents bar Manchester City are going to trouble the top 10.
Newcastle United are ranked the best side Brighton will face at 300/1 for the title. Those odds are shorter than they should be however as the bookies have factored the rumoured takeover at St James’ Park into the price, believing that if Mike Ashley sells to a rich investor and Rafa Benitez remains at the helm, then the Toon Army might finally start to unlock some of their undoubted potential
That start to the season means that there are no excuses for the Albion not to get points on the board early in the Potter reign. Doing so will silence some of the more vocal critics of Hughton’s sacking, unite the supporters behind Potter and his new coaching team and help lift a lot of the doom that enveloped the club in the final months of Hughton’s reign.
Potter can also take solace from the opponents who will visit the Amex before the New Year. Aside from the fixture with Spurs, Brighton will host West Ham United, Southampton, Burnley, Everton, Norwich City, Leicester City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sheffield United and Bournemouth.
With the possible exception of Wolves, Leicester and Everton, they are all opponents that the Albion should be targeting points from if the new season isn’t to follow in the footsteps of the second half of the old one.
Potter will know this. He’ll be fully aware that home form is likely to determine whether or not he is a success – just as it was for Hughton.
In 2017-18, Brighton lost only four times at the Amex all season. Only one of those was to a club outside of the big six when Leicester won 2-0 in Sussex. With the Albion winning only twice away all season, that home form was effectively what kept us up.
Last season’s spectacular collapse from being 12 points clear of the relegation zone to relying on Crystal Palace beating Cardiff City to keep us up came about largely because the Albion’s performances and results at the Amex nosedived spectacularly.
After the turn of the year, Burnley, Southampton, Bournemouth and Cardiff City all left Brighton with three points. The Albion’s only home win of 2019 to date has come against Huddersfield Town, a side so bad that they were relegated with six weeks of the campaign still to play.
Making the Amex a fortress again will be high on Potter’s priority list. The 2019-20 fixture list should help him do that by giving him exactly the sort of start he needs.
A winnable set of fixtures in his first six games with which to make an impression. That’s followed by an opportunity to impress the home crowd with games for the first three months almost exclusively against sides who you would expect to be in the lower half of the table come the end of the campaign.
Excited? We can’t wait. Bring on Watford.
