Well, thank you Georgi for the last few minutes of that game. Sometimes this football club really does confuse me!
Albion come away with a point against West Ham to continue a strong record against the Hammers dating back to 2012! Just the single defeat during that period, and if you are old enough to remember the 6-0 drilling at Upton Park, then I am sure you know the history.
Confidence and consistency lacking?
When writing articles like this, it is important to keep the context of the recent games. The Seagulls had won back-to-back games last week against Nottingham Forest and Brentford. During this period, many fans seemed to be embracing a good understanding of European football, with some even reaching the Champions League. Football really is a funny old sport. Since then, Albion have only one point out of a possible six with home frustrations against Aston Villa and West Ham.
When looking at the manner of these games, it is a stark contrast to what we saw in the previous. As people know, I have never been sold on the manager since his arrival on the south coast, but that doesn’t mean to say opinions couldn’t change. During the first 20 minutes against Villa, there was an inner feeling that perhaps something had changed. Winning the ball back high and causing them problems with the high press was a joy to watch at times, and it led to Albion holding a 2-0 lead inside the first half.
Fabian Hürzeler’s Brighton have been renowned, infamously, for dropping points from leading positions and losing a sense of game management throughout a full 90 minutes. We saw this in the build-up to the previous international break, but there were hopes that times had moved on and we had learned from our mistakes. Subsequently, Brighton went on to concede the next four goals and ultimately lost 4-3, featuring a late fight back into the game. A similar trend happened again today, it took seemingly 90 minutes and going a goal down before taking the situation seriously. Why? I actually do not know.
A sluggish mentality in ‘lesser’ games has become a theme, and the fact a dull 1-1 draw was so predictable, as seen on my Fanalysis prediction today, is probably the most worrying sign to me.
Watching the path that Albion were taking in the last few years has been an absolute pleasure. Decisions were perfect, and upgrades were common. In all honesty, the feeling for 2pm afternoons at the Amex for a game like this felt more like the opening couple of seasons in the Premier League. Limited expectations, and ultimately a feeling of knowing what you’re in for… a pretty boring game!
The reasoning behind this could lead to all different roads. Are we happy being mediocre as long as we make profits? Do we want to actually ‘challenge the establishment’? Are we just not that good anymore? There has been a serious mentality shift since the new manager came in, and it is quite worrying to see. With that being said, we are not ‘bad’ to the extent where relegation is a genuine possibility, and you’d hope so with the money spent, quality of squad and progress made over the years.
Why do ‘narratives’ exist? Can’t we just say what we see?
I often see mentions towards the ‘points per game’ records and ‘league positioning’ when comparing to previous managers, which always seem contextless and unfair. The situation of squad and club now should be at its highest it has ever been, as well as factoring in the lower quality of the Premier League. The league is dramatically worse off than it was only a few years ago, as the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool etc are far less dominant. Gaps in the league are hard to come by until you filter down to the foot of the table. Sorry, Wolves fans.
The point is, you’d expect to have more points per game if your squad is in a better position. You’re not forced to play multiple games per week with a large portion of academy players being stuck out of position to achieve anything. There is something to play for, and that confidence in the squad should be as high as that. Instead, I like to look at the progress per player. Are players exponentially improving week after week? Is the style of play threatening the rest of the league? Are players prospering for being at this football club? And, most importantly, are we competing at the very best we can be every week?
I feel sorry for Carlos Baleba in recent games; his early substitutions will rightly feel frustrating for him. He has been one of our best players on the pitch for two games running now.
The defensive instability is worrying at times. Long balls can single-handedly ruin us, and we’ve seen it so often now. Naive high-lines and players out of position is relentlessly costing us valuable points and a feeling of tactical understanding.
Bart Verbruggen has been one of my standouts for progress this season, possibly due to do with the new incoming goalkeeping coaches for this season. He is starting to seriously establish himself as a top Premier League shot stopper!
You don’t need 6-0 wins with perfect football every week, but you do need reassurance that it’s possible more often than it isn’t. Consistency is key in everything and not just football matches. The direction of the club needs to align as it did before, and fans need to feel it. I’m missing that feeling, to be honest. By February, Hürzeler will have been at the club for the same amount of time as Roberto De Zerbi was here for, but the impact is noticeably different.
I’m not sitting here to draw comparisons, but hearing and reading the same narratives on different platforms can feel draining for fans. We want to see the club progress and feel entertained.
As aforementioned, and with great emphasis, it nearly felt like that feeling of confidence returned against Villa before the collapse.
We were bailed out again, thank you, Georginio Rutter, but let’s think critically too.
