Btay

Allan has been huge since coming on.

Pawson is a twat. Never a foul again there

That’s never a yellow card or even a foul.

Our fans are dickheads.

Doucoure has had some brilliant moments with some very average ones

What a save Pickford. Offside but still amazing. Would like to see Allan on for Townsend at the half time break.

Decent start, little bit more quality in the final third.

Dropped Coleman and Keane. Huge respect

I’d adjust my line up to have Gray on the right as well. Gray is the exact kind of winger Digne struggles against so we need to get him 1v1 against him as much as possible or exploit the space he leaves behind when going forward.

I think 12th. We’ve got our full team available now for the first time in a long, long time. We will definitely have a better idea after the next 3/4 games

Run more

To be fair if the team do both of those it’s going to be an instant improvement on recent performances….

Potter has Brighton 9th and playing some very good football, he deserves a lot of credit for that. Our overall squad is mid table - 10-14th but our first 11 can definitely challenge for top 8 with the right manager and approach.

I just don’t understand why Dunc can’t have the same impact in his role under another manager though… the run we’ve been on surely at some point he has tried to galvanise this squad - otherwise what has he been doing?

I actually wonder how much input brands had. He didn’t want benetiz at all and he has probably had little say or really had to fight to get “his” recommendations.

I think the anti Benetiz fans foresaw this situation - doesn’t mean they wanted it. I was willing to give him a chance, I don’t want him gone for his liverpool connections but for his absolute shit, dire tactics.

He would have to play every game for the rest of the season without injury and at a consistent high level for us to even consider keeping. Even then I would sell as clubs would be willing to get him. Must be getting warmer over there as he is magically back fit.

Absolutely. Keane gets dominated by strikers under 6” and if he plays with Mina 9/10 times Mina has to take up the mantle with any sort of physical striker.

4231 and no Rondon should be a good start. After last week both Keane and Coleman should be rested but I can’t see that happening. Pickford Coleman Mina Godfrey Mykolenko Allan Doucoure Gordon Gray Richarlison DCL

Hit the nail on the head. Only problem is Mina getting injured.

I find Micheal Keane anything but calm to be honest. Can’t compare him to Jags for a minute. He probably would get more grace but he also wouldn’t get bullied by nearly every striker we play against. That closing sentence sends chills down my spine

If Godfrey was 27 and been playing for us for 4/5 years I’d be the same towards him as I am Keane. He is young though but he needs to learn and learn fast. The one thing with Godfrey however is desire and attitude that gets him a little bit more grace. Mina is our best defender but as we both mentioned we can’t rely on someone for 15-20 games a season. Holgate - I didn’t even mention because I agree with your points wholeheartedly. Brainthwaite though I think could be a real gem and I really hope we can get him on the pitch.

I understand that none of us are experts but how on earth did Rafa not see this. We set ourselves up constantly for the counter but we can’t defend. 3 man midfield - control the ball and cover the defence, let the 3 up front do their thing and Doucoure freedom to support them.

Until it gets tough again though. It’s rinse and repeat. I’m critical of him - probably overly so and I put my hand up but I am just so frustrated because he does have moments where he is a very good defender but when he cracks he spirals. Honestly over the last 12 or so games when has he stepped up and showed anything that resembles resilience? In an ideal world Keane and Mina are a top 6 centre half pairing but one performs inconsistent and the other can’t stay fit. We’re all looking for answers for the performances of the last few years but we won’t improve until we address this issue.

He had no money to work with.. Niasse was the stranger of the signings - there was definitely something behind the scenes there