Brighton’s first season under Graham Potter was a successful one with the Seagulls securing survival with a game to spare and offering some exciting football at times. Potter’s brave approach and constant rotation of the squad made Brighton hard to face. Undoubtedly crucial for the survival were the 13 points collected in the 6 games against the 3 sides that got relegated. Dominating these matches and winning 4 of them was decisive in the end.
Fluid passing and very good use of the flanks were features of Brighton’s displays all season. Also, the Seagulls continued to be very effective from set pieces and had the second best goals scored compared to corners won ratio in the league.
The lack of a prolific goalscorer remained an issue though, with the other weakness, that was more obvious early in the campaign, being sloppy passing inside the own part of the pitch. Brighton were losing possession inside their half 5.4 times per game in the first 22 rounds!
Captain Dunk was true leader throughout the campaign and he was not only an integral part in the 9 clean sheets Brighton kept, but also proved a vital weapon in attack. Dunk ended the season with 3 goals and 4 assists.
The experienced Lallana has been added to their squad and with everyone in the team understanding Potter’s tactics much better, 2020/21 is shaping up positively for Brighton. If they can find a reliable goalscorer to compliment their squad, the Seagulls could even dream of a top 10 finish.
