After failing to land a new striker over the summer, Brighton & Hove Albion boosted their options up front last week by concluding a club-record deal for PSV Eindhoven forward Jurgen Locadia.
The 24-year-old joins the Seagulls for a reported fee of £14 million and has signed a contract until June 2022.
While Locadia is capable of playing across the forward line, it is clear Hughton sees him playing primarily as a central striker:
“We brought him in because we have found it difficult to get goals and we’re not a team who has ability in the central positions to really stretch teams. Glenn and Tomer are classic number nines and what Jurgen will give us is the ability to stretch teams.”
The new arrival, meanwhile, had this to say about the change in environment:
“The tempo (is the main difference). The speed of the game and I think the system too.
In Holland, we play a traditional four defenders, three midfielders and three attackers and in England it’s more four-four-two. I think that will be a big change for me.
I know I can do it, but it will take time to learn the competition, my team-mates and also get some experience.”
The History
Born in Emmen, Netherlands, Locadia linked up with PSV Eindhoven’s academy in 2010 at the age of 16.
He made his professional debut a year later in a cup match, before making his Eredivisie bow against VVV-Venlo in September 2012.
Locadia came on as a substitute in the 68th minute and incredibly produced three goals and an assist in a 6-0 victory.
The Dutch forward enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in 2013/14, registering 13 goals and five assists in 31 league appearances while playing predominantly as a central striker.
The versatile attacker has in recent seasons played across the forward line, equally comfortable out wide as he is through the middle.
He has nine goals and six assists from 15 league matches this season, taking his total to 62 goals and 39 assists in 176 appearances in all competitions for PSV.
Locadia has represented Holland at every youth level from U17s to U21s, and while he has been called up to the senior squad, he is yet to make his debut.
The Prospects
Although Glenn Murray and, to a lesser extent, Tomer Hemed have had their moments during the first half of the season, there was clearly a need for Brighton to reinforce their attack.
They have produced six and two goals respectively, with Murray holding the edge for starts (14 to nine).
In Locadia, the Seagulls look to have a brought in a striker who will provide a fresh dimension to their forward line.
Standing at 6ft 1in tall, Locadia should have the physical attributes to be able to lead the attack on his own.
Hughton has stuck fairly rigidly to either a 4-4-1-1 or 4-2-3-1 formation this season, and is expected to continue playing with just one striker.
Locadia possesses a strong eye for goal and is also capable of holding the ball up and running in behind the opposition defence.
He relies a lot on his turn of pace, which, in the Eredivisie, at least, has seen him prosper.
Interestingly, Locadia has compared his style of play to that of Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus, primarily due to his movement.
That could help him profit from the pinpoint passing of playmaker Pascal Gross – the latter has created 11 big chances this term, third behind Kevin De Bruyne (13) and Xherdan Shaqiri (12).
Once on the radar of Liverpool, it’s perhaps something of a surprise that Locadia has had to wait this long for a move to the Premier League.
His underlying statistics from this season compare very favourably to Murray and Hemed.
Locadia has averaged a shot every 18.9 minutes, significantly superior to both Murray (46.7) and Hemed (49.9).
While it has to be taken into account that PSV have scored 51 goals compared to Brighton’s 17, the numbers still offer great encouragement.
In terms of goal conversion, though, his ratio of 13.6% is some way behind Murray’s 22.2%.
The 24-year-old’s ability to play out wide means it is perhaps little surprise that he also outshines Brighton’s forwards in terms of creativity.
In the Eredivisie this season, he has created a chance every 56.9 minutes, way ahead of both Murray (210) and Hemed (283).
Locadia has been added to the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game at a cost of 6.0, while has been priced at 8.7 in the Sky Sports offering.
One issue is that the forward arrives at the Amex with a hamstring injury, with Hughton admitting that it will take between two to three weeks for the new arrival to get up to speed.
That is a major concern regarding his prospects given that Brighton’s schedule stiffens considerably after the next four Gameweeks (sot WHU stk SWA).
Indeed, their brutal run-in from Gameweek 29 onwards may seriously dampen any enthusiasm for the Dutch forward.
There is also the fact that only Swansea City (111) and Huddersfield Town (124) have registered fewer shots inside the penalty area than the Seagulls (132).
Hughton’s men also sit fifth from bottom for big chances created with 27, highlighting the fact that he’ll be playing for a team that supply far fewer chances than he is used to.
Locadia faces a real challenge to hit the ground running, and history tells us that forwards from leagues across Europe, and, in particular, the Eredivisie, have sometimes failed to meet the demands of the Premier League.
The early performances of Everton’s Cenk Tosun, who has no goals and two off-target headed attempts in his first pair of matches, attests to that theory.
Should Locadia replace Murray in the starting XI, it’s worth monitoring the Seagull’s spot-kick pecking order – the veteran forward has taken all three of Brighton’s penalties this season.
Locadia has scored 11 of his 14 career penalties, though he wasn’t the first choice taker.
Fantasy managers will be hoping the Dutch forward can succeed given the dearth of appealing budget options currently available. But the Seagulls’ testing run-in may see him struggle for our attention.
Nonetheless, as we’ve seen so often in previous seasons, relegation candidates can often defy formbook and fixtures to offer viable budget options at the business end of the season.
And with Brighton lying just one point above the relegation zone, Locadia’s ability to score goals may ultimately prove the difference between another year in the top-flight and a drop back down to the Championship.
