Brighton and Hove Albion have bolstered their attacking options ahead of their maiden Premier League campaign with the signing of Chelsea’s Izzy Brown on a season-long loan.
The 20-year-old was part of the Huddersfield Town squad that gained promotion to the top flight last season, and Seagulls boss Chris Hughton believes the versatile Brown can continue his development at the Amex Stadium:
“He can play on either flank and he’s done that right the way through his upbringing. He went out on loan to Holland in what was his first loan and played out on the left. At Rotherham, he played up front and at Huddersfield Town he played at number ten. He gives us good scope in the front areas, he’s developing and hopefully, he can develop here.”
The History
Brown began his youth career with a brief spell at Leicester City before joining West Bromwich Albion in 2011 at the age of 14.
He made his professional debut for the Baggies as a substitute in a 3-2 win over Wigan Athletic in May 2013, becoming the second youngest player in Premier League history, aged just 16 years and 117 days old.
In the summer of 2013, Brown signed for Chelsea, although to date he has only made one senior appearance for the Blues, ironically against West Brom in May 2015.
In order to gain first-team experience, Brown was sent on a season-long loan to Dutch outfit Vitesse Arnhem in July 2015.
He racked up 22 league appearances in total, making 12 starts, but only registered one goal and an assist.
Last season, Brown spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Championship side Rotherham United.
He was a regular starter for the Millers and made 20 appearances, managing three goals and five assists.
He then joined Huddersfield in January 2017 for the remainder of the season and produced five goals in 18 matches as the Terriers gained promotion via the play-offs.
Brown has represented England at U16, U17, U19 and U20 levels, scoring 10 goals in 36 outings.
The Prospects
Given Brighton’s relatively small squad, the addition of the versatile Brown will provide Hughton with a number of different options in attack.
The 20-year-old played predominantly as a support striker last season, although he is equally comfortable operating on either flank or even as a centre forward.
Brown is very adept at finding pockets of space in between the lines and is at his most dangerous on the half-turn and driving at the opposition defence.
While not blessed with blistering pace, Brown possesses quick feet and the vision to pick the right pass in the final third.
He also offers a goal threat, particularly when cutting in from the left – the position he started in Brighton’s 3-0 win over Southend United on Tuesday night – and has a knack for scoring from distance.
Last season, Hughton generally favoured one of Jamie Murphy, Solly March or Jiri Skalak on the left of a four-man midfield, with Anthony Knockaert the regular starter down the right.
Summer signing Pascal Gross could well get the nod in a central attacking midfield role if Hughton opts for a slightly more conservative 4-4-1-1 formation in the top flight, but Brown may also come into the reckoning in that position.
The 33-year-old Glenn Murray currently appears the favourite to lead the line for the Seagulls, although it’s likely Hughton will bring in another striker before the transfer window closes.
Brown has been handed a price tag of 5.5 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), placing him in the same price bracket as Gross, with Knockaert slightly more expensive on the budget at 6.0.
He’s priced more favourably in Sky Sports, though, coming in at 7.0, compared to 7.3 for Gross and a whopping 8.5 for Knockaert.
Comparing the trio’s underlying statistics from last season, Brown averaged a shot every 46.3 minutes, unsurprisingly inferior to Knockaert (35.6) but stronger than Gross (53.55).
Gross was hugely creative for Ingolstadt last term, though, averaging a key pass every 27.9 minutes, outshining both Knockaert (40.5) and Brown (54.47).
The big disadvantage for Brown is that he’s not expected to compete for set-piece duties, with Knockaert, Gross and left-back Markus Suttner ahead of him in that queue.
With Knockaert an injury concern for the start of the season after damaging ankle ligaments during a pre-season friendly, Brown looks to have a good chance of forcing his way into the starting XI.
Brighton begin their campaign with a difficult home fixture against Manchester City before a more favourable run of matches (lei wat WBA bou NEW) up to Gameweek 6.
Investing in the Seagulls attack could pay off based on the opening schedule, although with four teams scoring more goals than the 74 that Hughton’s men managed last season, there is a concern over their potency in the final third.
Hughton is a fairly conservative coach – his Norwich City side only scored 41 goals in 2012/13 and a meagre 28 when they were relegated the following season.
As a result, there may be no guarantees that an attacking player such as Brown will start week-in, week-out as a wide player in a four-man midfield, hindering his Fantasy appeal unless he nails down a more advanced role.
At this point, it’s Gross and Knockaert (when he’s back to full fitness), who look the safer bets, then, although there’s little doubt that Brown has the talent to be a factor over the course of the season.
Should he get those regular starts and be given the freedom to express himself, he could yet emerge as a viable budget option.
