Brighton falter in audition for Double Gameweek 34

Brighton disappointed their suitors in the first of two auditions for Double Gameweek 34 on Saturday.

With a trip to Chelsea still to come, in the build-up to next weekend’s FA Cup semi-final, the Seagulls’ meeting with Southampton at the Amex Stadium had looked the more likely to showcase their options.

They host Bournemouth and Cardiff in their next round of Fantasy Premier League action, which has been touted by some as an opportunity for the Triple Captain chip, but against the Saints, very few Brighton players impressed.

We take a look at what went wrong in this latest Scout Notes article.

Brighton 0-1 Southampton

Goals: Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (£4.4m)

Assists: Nathan Redmond (£5.3m)

Brighton offensive options are not in great form ahead of their next Double Gameweek. Their 1-0 defeat to Southampton on Saturday means they have drawn a blank in four of their last seven home games in all competitions. For the third league match in a row, Glenn Murray (£6.3m) was flanked in the front three by Alireza Jahanbkahsh (£6.7m) and Anthony Knockaert (£5.2m) but neither of them could produce anything of real quality.

“I thought in the first half they were better than us – more urgency in their play. It looked like it was going to be a game of few good chances. We defended well. Probably the one really good chance they had, they scored from. We didn’t have one.” – Chris Hughton

After offering very little in the first half, it did take going behind for Brighton to wake up and try to create but despite Murray finishing top in the match for shots in the box, admittedly, none on target, and Knockaert proving the most creative (three key passes), they could not break through. The fact that the closest Brighton came to finding the back of the net was a speculative Martín Montoya (£4.3m) shot from range which rattled the woodwork tells the story of their attack.

“I understand (why it took us going behind to start creating chances). I’ve been in that situation and we have been in loads of situations here where we haven’t played so well, gone behind and then all of a sudden it changes. Momentum changes, everybody ups their game. It’s the emotions of the game. If we knew all the answers to them you would never get in that position. We were up against a good Southampton team. They played with a lot of energy.” – Chris Hughton

Despite Brighton shooting more often than Southampton, it was the visitors who had more efforts inside the box, more shots on target and registered more big chances too. In the last four home matches, the Seagulls are the joint fourth-worst for shots on target and joint-bottom for big chances and goals scored too. None of this is particularly encouraging for attacking options in Double Gameweek 34, where any interest in Murray or Knockaert will have to be based purely on the poor away defensive form of Bournemouth and Cardiff.

As already explained, Chris Hughton’s men have recently lost their way at home. Since Leicester won at the Amex Stadium in March 2018, no team outside the top six left Sussex with three points between then and early February, when Burnley were 3-1 winners. On Saturday, Southampton became the second side do that in Brighton’s last three home games, indicating a worrying downturn in front of their own fans.

It’s not just scoring goals that have been a problem for Brighton, as wasteful possession in the middle of the park cost them Southampton’s only goal of the game. It was Yves Bissouma (£4.6m), starting his third match in a row, who gave away the pass which led to Nathan Redmond (£5.3m) setting up Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (£4.4m).

Given their kind prices, Mat Ryan (£4.4m) and his defensive colleagues may still receive attention for Double Gameweek 34, despite Brighton’s poor form of late. They have kept two clean sheets in their last four at the Amex Stadium although one of those was, admittedly, against the goal-shy Huddersfield. The Seagulls are also in the top six for fewest goals conceded in home matches this season (15).

Ryan only made one save against Southampton but is still capable of the extras. In the Gameweek 29 meeting with Huddersfield, Brighton’s shot-stopper made four stops for one additional point and two bonus.

Shane Duffy (£4.7m) and Lewis Dunk (£4.4m) remain nailed on in the centre of defence with the former the primary goal threat. However, both of them were level on one shot in the box in the first match of Double Gameweek 32. Again, Dunk and Duffy are two options who should work in Wildcard squads because of their prices. Whether they are as Triple Captain-able as a few brave managers would like is another question entirely.

The full-back roles are slightly harder to evaluate. Bernardo (£4.2m) made his third start in a row at left-back but could be replaced by Gaëtan Bong (£4.4m) given the busy schedule. Martín Montoya (£4.3m) has now started the last 14 Premier League games in a row, registering 90 minutes in all of them, but again, a hectic run of matches could see Bruno (£4.4m) return.

Southampton will certainly be considered by managers playing their second Wildcards in the coming weeks. Their Double Gameweek comes in Gameweek 35 when they travel to Newcastle and Watford and there were a number of encouraging signs for them.

Danny Ings (£5.4m) was back in the starting line-up for the first time since Gameweek 25, lasting 67 minutes of the match. Crucially, none of his colleagues was able to better his minutes per chance rate. He played alongside Redmond, who notched his second assist in four matches and also finished joint top for shots inside the box among his team-mates.

Southampton manager went for a new shape for this match, going for a 4-4-2 formation, which he was able to fine-tune as his side went three weeks without a competitive fixture. Stuart Armstrong (£5.1m) and James Ward-Prowse (£5.1m) played on the left and right of midfield respectively, the former emerging from the game as the most creative Saints player. There was still a place in the midfield for Oriol Romeu Vidal (£4.2m), who has now started the last 16 matches in a row and looks perfect as bench fodder for those playing their second Wildcards soon.

“It was a new shape, a new organisation, and all we were working on in the last three weeks was really working I think. I think there was only 10-20 minutes in the second half we struggled a little bit because the opponent was taking a higher risk and then it is not so easy to defend. We had one time luck when the ball hit our bar. We didn’t have the final counter-attack that could be possible one or two times and otherwise it would be finished earlier I think so then you have to be on until the end. It was an important three points for us.” – Ralph Hasenhüttl

That change of system meant that Hasenhüttl ditched his favoured back-three to go with a four-man defence at Brighton. Ryan Bertrand (£4.8m) and budget man Jan Valery (£4.1m) survived the changes, while Jan Bednarek (£4.0m) and Maya Yoshida (£4.1m) were chosen to play at centre-back. Jannik Vestergaard (£4.6m) missed the match with a groin injury. Either way, the changes to the defence paid off for Southampton as they claimed their first clean sheet since holding Chelsea 0-0 in Gameweek 21.

“Jannik has been struggling for a few weeks now with some problems and finally he didn’t make it to the game.” – Ralph Hasenhüttl

Angus Gunn (£4.3m) is another option worth considering for Fantasy managers planning that second Wildcard. His 90 minutes at Brighton was his fifth in a row and he seems to have finally claimed the number one spot from Alex McCarthy (£4.3m).

Brighton and Hove Albion XI (4-3-3): Ryan; Bernardo, Dunk, Duffy, Montoya; Pröpper (Locadia 74′), Stephens, Bissouma; Jahanbakhsh (March 62′), Murray, Knockaert.

Southampton XI (4-4-2): Gunn; Bertrand, Yoshida, Bednarek, Valery; Armstrong (Stephens 76′), Højbjerg, Romeu, Ward-Prowse; Redmond (Sims 89′), Ings (Gallagher 67′).