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Premier League Predictions: Brighton & Hove Albion

Premier League Predictions: Brighton & Hove Albion

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Brighton continue to be one of the most intriguing sides in Europe. The Seagulls gatecrashed the top six last season and having kept this talented group of players together (so far), it will be interesting to see what Roberto De Zerbi can do with them this time around.

By Sam McGuire

How the team did last season

The Seagulls, under Graham Potter at the time, kicked off their 2022/23 season with a 2-1 win over Manchester United. 

They went on to win four of their opening six matches before Chelsea poached Potter and his backroom staff. This could’ve been a disaster but Brighton treated it as an opportunity to improve. 

De Zerbi arrived and after a slow start – he failed to win any of his first five games – it all clicked. Under the Italian tactician, Brighton picked up victories against Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal while they also held treble winners Manchester City to a draw. 

Playing some of the best football in the league, the Seagulls finished sixth and lost an FA Cup semi-final to Manchester United. Only three teams (Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City) scored more goals than Brighton.

A number of Brighton players took their games to even greater heights under the former Sassuolo coach. For example, Alexis Mac Allister finished as the club’s top scorer having found the back of the net on 10 occasions. Pascal Gross topped the goal involvements chart though with 17 while it was Solly March who achieved the highest FotMob rating, finishing the season with an average of 7.54. 

De Zerbi developed the likes of Evan Ferguson, Karou Mitoma and Levi Cowill. He did all of that without a pre-season to really spend unbroken time on the training pitch with his players. 

What has happened during the summer?

Brighton have been busy in the transfer window. 

Despite interest in a host of their players, at the time of writing this, only Mac Allister has left. The World Cup winner joined Liverpool in a deal believed to be worth in the region of £35million. 

The Seagulls have bolstered their squad ahead of their first European campaign. João Pedro signed from Watford for a club-record fee. The 21-year-old scored 11 times in the Championship last season and he is expected to rival Ferguson for minutes as the main centre-forward in the team. Perhaps they could even form a strike partnership. Who knows what De Zerbi has up his sleeve? 

Having been unimpressed with Robert Sánchez between the sticks, De Zerbi made Jason Steele his first-choice stop-stopper last season. It wasn’t a long-term solution though but Bart Verbruggen could well be. The highly-rated youngster joined from Anderlecht and he’s expected to eventually be the undisputed No.1 for the Seagulls, both in the short and long term. 

Brighton initially wanted to bring Colwill to the club on a permanent basis but Chelsea weren’t prepared to sell the young centre-back. It forced De Zerbi to look elsewhere and the club settled on a player from Serie A, the manager’s old stomping ground. 

Fiorentina’s Igor joined having had an impressive 2022/23 campaign for the Italian side as they made it all the way to the Europa Conference League final. He is dominant both in the air and on the ground, and he can pick a pass. He should fit in seamlessly. 

The Seagulls have leveraged the free transfer marker too, signing Mahmoud Dahoud from Borussia Dortmund and James Milner from Liverpool to add real experience to this team.

What they should be aiming for next season?

A repeat of last season, maybe? 

Many of the original big six are in transition with Spurs and Chelsea under new management. Brighton have kept their team together and have a clear identify under De Zerbi and this gives them an advantage. They have strengthened their squad too, so why should a top-six push be out of the question? 

Prediction 

6th

(Images from IMAGO)

Think you know better than our Premier League expert? Then play the FotMob Predictor Game and decide where your team will finish this season! Find the game in the More tab of the FotMob app, which you can download, for free, right here.

Premier League Predictions: Brighton & Hove Albion

Brighton continue to be one of the most intriguing sides in Europe. The Seagulls gatecrashed the top six last season and having kept this talented group of players together (so far), it will be interesting to see what Roberto De Zerbi can do with them this time around.

By Sam McGuire

How the team did last season

The Seagulls, under Graham Potter at the time, kicked off their 2022/23 season with a 2-1 win over Manchester United. 

They went on to win four of their opening six matches before Chelsea poached Potter and his backroom staff. This could’ve been a disaster but Brighton treated it as an opportunity to improve. 

De Zerbi arrived and after a slow start – he failed to win any of his first five games – it all clicked. Under the Italian tactician, Brighton picked up victories against Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal while they also held treble winners Manchester City to a draw. 

Playing some of the best football in the league, the Seagulls finished sixth and lost an FA Cup semi-final to Manchester United. Only three teams (Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City) scored more goals than Brighton.

A number of Brighton players took their games to even greater heights under the former Sassuolo coach. For example, Alexis Mac Allister finished as the club’s top scorer having found the back of the net on 10 occasions. Pascal Gross topped the goal involvements chart though with 17 while it was Solly March who achieved the highest FotMob rating, finishing the season with an average of 7.54. 

De Zerbi developed the likes of Evan Ferguson, Karou Mitoma and Levi Cowill. He did all of that without a pre-season to really spend unbroken time on the training pitch with his players. 

What has happened during the summer?

Brighton have been busy in the transfer window. 

Despite interest in a host of their players, at the time of writing this, only Mac Allister has left. The World Cup winner joined Liverpool in a deal believed to be worth in the region of £35million. 

The Seagulls have bolstered their squad ahead of their first European campaign. João Pedro signed from Watford for a club-record fee. The 21-year-old scored 11 times in the Championship last season and he is expected to rival Ferguson for minutes as the main centre-forward in the team. Perhaps they could even form a strike partnership. Who knows what De Zerbi has up his sleeve? 

Having been unimpressed with Robert Sánchez between the sticks, De Zerbi made Jason Steele his first-choice stop-stopper last season. It wasn’t a long-term solution though but Bart Verbruggen could well be. The highly-rated youngster joined from Anderlecht and he’s expected to eventually be the undisputed No.1 for the Seagulls, both in the short and long term. 

Brighton initially wanted to bring Colwill to the club on a permanent basis but Chelsea weren’t prepared to sell the young centre-back. It forced De Zerbi to look elsewhere and the club settled on a player from Serie A, the manager’s old stomping ground. 

Fiorentina’s Igor joined having had an impressive 2022/23 campaign for the Italian side as they made it all the way to the Europa Conference League final. He is dominant both in the air and on the ground, and he can pick a pass. He should fit in seamlessly. 

The Seagulls have leveraged the free transfer marker too, signing Mahmoud Dahoud from Borussia Dortmund and James Milner from Liverpool to add real experience to this team.

What they should be aiming for next season?

A repeat of last season, maybe? 

Many of the original big six are in transition with Spurs and Chelsea under new management. Brighton have kept their team together and have a clear identify under De Zerbi and this gives them an advantage. They have strengthened their squad too, so why should a top-six push be out of the question? 

Prediction 

6th

(Images from IMAGO)

Think you know better than our Premier League expert? Then play the FotMob Predictor Game and decide where your team will finish this season! Find the game in the More tab of the FotMob app, which you can download, for free, right here.