[Albion] Brighton & Hove Albion vs West Bromwich Albion *** Official Match Thread ***

[Recidivist]

Hmmmm not great, a game of two halves between to very average PL squads.

We’ve got some quality, but not enough for one or two to have an off night or even a half.

I think we’re in trouble this year, sadly, and that spells a long hard faith sapping slog with very little to brighten our winter months.

Here’s hoping we turn up against a superb Spurs, but (alas) I rather suspect certain defeat and yet more confidence lost conceding an average of 3 per game against good teams isn’t a particularly good base from which to build.

If the club moved to replace GP btw, which I sincerely hope they don’t, it’ll be Phil Neville - almost certainly... gulp. I say we stick with GP no matter the outcome.

Got to agree with this.

Seems to me that it's inevitable that we'll be right down in the relegation scrap unless both Lallana and Welbeck come good pretty quickly.

We're still wholly reliant on Maupay converting our few chances and we're simply not quick enough or incisive enough in midfield without Lallana.

Depressing evening all round and we had to pay to watch on TV, adding insult to injury!


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[Guinness Boy]

Because of one second half performance?

I’m gutted too, but at what point do you give the opposition any credit? West Brom were immense in that second half. They drew with Chelsea too right?

That was like watching a Hughton team. In that case we might as well have stuck with Hughton.

West Brom are awful and will go down comfortably.

Total waste of 15 quid. I hope most watched it on a stream.


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[peterward]

I think we can say the entire team was anonymous in that second half.

I’m super gutted, but there’s a lot of knee jerk reactions here tonight. Long way to go yet this season.

I do agree with you on questioning the recruitment however. I’m on record not being impressed with Zequiri and Webeck as our striker signings. They are not the answer if they can’t get in the team. I don’t how much the recruitment is down to Potter though.

I like Potter a lot, thoroughly decent man, but is he just too nice?......... and whilst I may be wildly wrong, i get the impression he's a bit of a Yes man. accepting of circumstances/recruitment rather than kicking off as many managers might.

tonight, imho, it was same old until he started to change it when it fell apart. His substitutions and formation change affected the game massively, but to WBA advantage.

 

[The Fits]

It’s about quality, not quantity. All our CB’s have critical errors or going to sleep in them, including Dunk this season.

Everton fans yesterday couldn’t believe how annoyingly great the Stains CB’s were, fairly bullying their forwards out of the match.

If only.

There's been a strong argument for cutting the quantity of the squad and improving the quality of the first team. Some teams have three centre backs. If that do get an injury or suspension they deal with it

 

[doogie004]

Interesting Lallana went off after exactly 60 mins , which makes me think that was always the plan , whats worrying is how we fell apart in his absence , confidence went to pieces.
Needed him to stay on tonight.

Bloke is a sick note can see his quality on the pitch but it bit parts no other team takes part timers in prem
March gross burn not prem standard
And for all those Stephens fans see he on bench tonight didn’t take long for them to see what little he offers


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[BLOCK F]

And how can the team with the 'most strength in the league at CB' be so utterly dross at the back?

Coaching?

 

[MJsGhost]

But the problem isn't just these 45 minutes. The problem is we don't win however we play, or very very rarely. Did you not watch last season? This season is so far following a very similar pattern. We won't keep being so lucky in the relegation dog fight.

I did watch last season. I saw us play a much more attractive brand of football and I saw us stay up.

We now have a better squad and have played better than last season so far (2nd half tonight notwithstanding).

We have a disappointing number of points (compared to performance AND expectations) but it’s 6 games in FFS!

 

[The Oldman]

Potter needs to grow some balls and get a ruthless streak in the players. Pretty fairies tonight. Carry on like this and Potter will be gone by Christmas.

 

[Miximate]

Just glad I didn't pay to watch it!

 

[BN41Albion]

Because of one second half performance?

I’m gutted too, but at what point do you give the opposition any credit? West Brom were immense in that second half. They drew with Chelsea too right?

I'm in no way calling for the manager's head, but we hardly ever win in a results based business. We don't win when we play well, nor when we play badly. If it continues, he simply has to come under some pressure.

 

[peterward]

Lallana was great tonight, real quality. I can understand the manager wanting to protect his fitness but we really did miss him when he went off. Hopefully Welbeck will have a similar influence if we can get him on the pitch.

As others rightly said though tonight was a game on paper we should win, spurs isnt...... so why take him off, he was purring in that midfield and running the game

 

[Bold Seagull]

Bloke is a sick note can see his quality on the pitch but it bit parts no other team takes part timers in prem
March gross burn not prem standard
And for all those Stephens fans see he on bench tonight didn’t take long for them to see what little he offers

Top work. Even managing to have a pop at a player no longer with us.

 

[Weststander]

Warren is growing tired of Maupay's wastefulness

Rightly so.

 

[Farehamseagull]

As I said at the time, the Groß for Lallana change was ****ing ridiculous and doubled the intensity of our ****ing shitness.

I am so ****ing pissed off by that performance, just in case that doesn't come across.

Agreed, the game totally changed on that substitution. Lallana was by far our best player, if he had to go off, it should have been for Alzate.

Gross shouldn’t be anywhere near the first team anymore, he simply isn’t good enough and hasn’t been for 2 years. And before someone comes back with the chance creation crap, they were all set pieces. And he’s not even good at those anymore, Mac Allister should be on all dead balls when he’s on the pitch.

Gross should have gone the same way as Murray, Duffy and Stephens in the summer. Thanks for the service and memories, but not good enough anymore.

 

[BN41Albion]

As others rightly said though tonight was a game on paper we should win, spurs isnt...... so why take him off, he was purring in that midfield and running the game

And crucially, we were only one up. Terrible decision imo, and clearly pre planned as others have said, but I'm presuming with the hope that we'd be more than 1 up at the time.

 

[sagaman]

Missing Dale on front of the centre backs!

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[DarrenFreemansPerm]

I dread to think what Spurs are going to do to us.

 

[Normandy seagull]

Agreed, the game totally changed on that substitution. Lallana was by far our best player, if he had to go off, it should have been for Alzate.

Gross shouldn’t be anywhere near the first team anymore, he simply isn’t good enough and hasn’t been for 2 years. And before someone comes back with the chance creation crap, they were all set pieces. And he’s not even good at those anymore, Mac Allister should be on all dead balls when he’s on the pitch.

Gross should have gone the same way as Murray, Duffy and Stephens in the summer. Thanks for the service and memories, but not good enough anymore.

Totally agree with your assessment of Gross. What Potter and ashworth see is beyond me

 

[Henfield One]

I’m still supportive of GP and wouldn’t lay all of the blame for tonight’s woeful performance on him. We only played well for 25 minutes in the first half. For the rest of the game the decision making and skill level were awful. We slowed it down when we needed momentum. We rushed when we had time. We kept trying to make difficult passes when better and easier options were available. The initial defending for their goal was dire, even if they benefited from a fortunate deflection.

IMHO Alzate and Connolly should both have started. I was baffled by the substitutions. The prospect of a second goal disappeared on 60 minutes, which handed the initiative even more to WBA.

Very disappointing, but it needn’t be season defining.

Totally agree. Our passing was either rushed and poor or slow and poor - Bissouma, Trossard & Maupay were very ineffective. A shocking 2nd half - one that you could foresee an equaliser at best, at worst a winning goal for WBA. No width, no getting to the byeline and crossing. No passion on display either, which is a real concern. Changes I'm sure for WHL on Sunday.

 

[Farehamseagull]

Missing Dale on front of the centre backs!

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We really, really, truly aren’t, we would be a lot worse with him there.

We should be starting Bissouma and Alzate in midfield rather than a centre back though.