Brighton’s rock-solid defence ready for its most testing week yet

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After eight games of the current Premier League season, only Manchester City and Chelsea have conceded fewer goals than Brighton and Hove Albion’s five.

Whilst Graham Potter’s side did seem to find a clinical edge in attack to help guide them into a Champions League qualification spot in the early stages of the campaign, it has been their defensive resolve that has kept them there in recent weeks.

They were fortunate to leave Carrow Road on Saturday with their clean sheet intact after Norwich City’s Josh Sargent missed two inviting chances to open the scoring, including an open goal after a mix-up between Seagulls’ captain Lewis Dunk and his goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, as both sides were forced to settle for a goalless draw.

Yet the result against the Canaries means that Brighton have conceded just twice in their last five games, keeping three clean sheets in the process.

One of those clean sheets came in a 0-0 draw against a resurgent Arsenal side in the final game before the October international break, and that was a far more accurate representation of the team’s defensive prowess than the trip to East Anglia turned out to be.

Brighton limited Mikel Arteta’s side to just two shots on target in the fixture at the Amex, restricting the Gunners to their second-lowest 90-minute Expected Goals total of the season.

Brighton’s Expected Goals Against per 90 is currently averaging at 1.11 this season, last season it stood at a relatively similar 1.25 per 90, but at a similar stage last season, the Seagulls had conceded nine more goals than their impressive tally so far this season. So what has caused this improvement?

A significant change has been a reduction in the number of individual errors in the Brighton defence. Although the aforementioned misunderstanding between Sanchez and Dunk was followed in the second half by the Seagulls’ skipper firing a long pass straight at Adam Lallana to set up Sargent for his second presentable chance of the afternoon, these lapses are becoming far less regular.

Sanchez has also proven to be a reliable presence between the sticks, registering a Post-Shot Expected Goals – Goals Allowed (a calculation of a goalkeeper’s ability to stop shots) number of +0.13 so far this season whereas Mat Ryan posted a considerably worse -3.0 in his 11 appearances for the club in the 2020/21 season.

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You would think that cutting out these errors would be a result of Potter being able to select a consistent backline comprised of individuals who are attuned to each other having built relationships with one another over the past two seasons. However, Brighton have not yet been able to name what most would consider their strongest backline due to a string of absentees.

Joel Veltman missed the first two games of the season after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, Solly March has struggled with hamstring issues and Adam Webster’s hamstring injury picked up in the 1-0 win at Brentford in September was a particularly significant blow given how excellent a performer he has been since signing from Bristol City in August 2019.

Those who have stepped up to replace the absentees of course deserve credit. Shane Duffy has been immense since forcing his way back into Potter’s plans and Marc Cucurella is already looking like an intelligent summer purchase following some impressive performances at left wing-back, but simply having quality defenders does not necessarily equate to having a strong defence.

Brighton’s defensive improvement is a consequence of Potter’s ability to shape his team into a cohesive unit capable of being effective at both ends of the pitch. The defensive structure that he has implemented has allowed Dunk, Duffy, Webster and the rest to put in so many strong defensive performances this season so far, and this is an even greater achievement when you factor in the departure of Ben White in the summer.

Although Brighton’s start to the season has been exceptional, they now face a week of fixtures that could barely be harder and will no doubt put their defensive resolve to the test. On Saturday, they host current champions Premier League Manchester City at the Amex before a midweek trip to Leicester City in the Carabao Cup. The tough week ends with a visit to Anfield to take on a Liverpool side that are in a frightening vein of form.

“It’s not easy if you just relied on beating Man City and Liverpool to accumulate your points. That’s common sense.

“At the same time, we have to have the ambition to try and win against those teams. It’s about being consistent with our performance, being good enough to get points against anybody.

“Every game is different, there’s a tactical difference, there’s a dynamic in the supporters, all sorts of things going on in the game.

“We have to maintain our humility, our respect, but at the same time maintain our ambition of trying to play the way we want to play, and do our best to try to improve.”

– Brighton Head Coach Graham Potter

Whilst it would be little surprise if the Seagulls were to bow out of the cup and fail to pick up any points from the two league fixtures, these are exactly the sort of games that can now be seen as pressure-free opportunities to make a statement given how strong a start to the campaign they have made.

With Webster now back in training and Tariq Lamptey edging closer to full fitness after coming off the bench for the final 30 minutes at Carrow Road, Brighton’s defence is set to only become stronger. Would it really be much of a surprise if Brighton ended this week with a couple of impressive results to continue their quest for a top-half league finish?

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