“Be careful what you wish for Brighton fans” - How the football world owes us an apology

[vagabond]

That’s all we heard when our Tony Bloom made the choice to replace Chris Hughton.

“Be careful what you wish for”
“Arrogant Brighton”
“What do they expect to achieve?”

I won’t bring in the abhorrent accusations of racism that was seriously raised by some (yes, really..a reminder: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/f...-Townsend-slams-Brighton-sacking-Hughton.html)

And why was the football world so anti Brighton after sacking Hughton?

Because we, or specifically Uncle Tony, dared to look up. Dared to attempt to be more ambitious than backs to the wall defending and finishing one place outside relegation every year.

Chris Hughton will always be a legend to Brighton fans. But it was the right move, and Graham Potter has now vindicated Tony Blooms faith. The improvements to our club, tactically, the attractive progressive football we’re now capable of playing, all whilst achieving safety and even blooding youngsters.

Suddenly we’ve turned from being a Huddersfield or a Cardiff into a club that has legitimate aims of becoming mid table. We’re a club on the up.

All these experts, who arrogantly slated us as fans, slated Tony Bloom and our club in general, if they had any decency should make a retraction, even an apology, but of course they won’t.

As a reminder. Here’s a taster. This is what John Barnes was saying (“I don’t know what Brighton fans expect”):

Former England midfielder John Barnes has called Hughton's sacking 'a ridiculous decision'. Speaking to Sky Sports News, he said: "Chris did a fantastic job to keep Brighton in the Premier League as he did. But it shows expectations football fans have.
"I don't know what the Brighton fans or board expected.


"For a team like Brighton just to be in the Premier League is important and that's the name of the game. Yes, everyone talks about pushing on to try to finish in the top ten but what he did at Brighton was fantastic.
"It shows the level of unrealistic expectations football fans have generally. For me it's a ridiculous decision."

Danny Mills told us, “you can’t play that way at Brighton”:

Former England defender Danny Mills questioned what more Hughton could have done when speaking on Sky Sports News: "Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp have ruined it for all other managers because not only are they winning, they're playing this incredible free-flowing attractive style.
"You can't do that at Brighton, you can't do that at Burnley or Watford or Cardiff or Huddersfield.
"The remit was stay in the Premier League. He's done that and he has done so much for the club over the last four years.


"Glenn Murray who is aging is their top scorer. What more can he do with the players he's got?”

Micky Hazard, a team-mate of Hughton's during their playing careers at Tottenham, tweeted: "Wow I’m in shock, Chris Hughton sacked by Brighton, is this a wind up? Incredible, football shows no loyalty whatsoever, the guy has worked miracles at that club and deserves far better treatment. Well that’s one club who’s results I won’t look out for anymore. Shocking."

[tweet]1127992526445719553[/tweet]

We can praise Graham Potter later at the end of the season (and we surely will, he’s been a superb appointment and a breath of fresh air).

But tonight I raise a drink to Tony Bloom, Dan Ashworth and Paul Barber. They stuck their necks on the line making a hard decision for the betterment of Brighton and Hove Albion. They dared to show ambition and believed there was a better way to progress. They refused to settle for our lot in life.

They were way ahead of the curve, and certainly ahead of the so called football experts, journalists and pundits.

“Be careful what you wish for Brighton fans”. If the pundits who wrote such disparaging comments at the time had any decency, they’d write an apology today.

 

[Finchley Seagull]

That’s all we heard when our Tony Bloom made the choice to replace Chris Hughton.

“Be careful what you wish for”
“Arrogant Brighton”
“What do they expect to achieve?”

I won’t bring in the abhorrent accusations of racism that was seriously raised by some (yes, really..a reminder: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/f...-Townsend-slams-Brighton-sacking-Hughton.html)

And why was the football world so anti Brighton after sacking Hughton?

Because we, or specifically Uncle Tony, dared to look up. Dared to attempt to be more ambitious than backs to the wall defending and finishing one place outside relegation every year.

Chris Hughton will always be a legend to Brighton fans. But it was the right move, and Graham Potter has now vindicated Tony Blooms faith. The improvements to our club, tactically, the attractive progressive football we’re now capable of playing, all whilst achieving safety and even blooding youngsters.

Suddenly we’ve turned from being a Huddersfield or a Cardiff into a club that has legitimate aims of becoming mid table. We’re a club on the up.

All these experts, who arrogantly slated us as fans, slated Tony Bloom and our club in general, if they had any decency should make a retraction, even an apology, but of course they won’t.

As a reminder. Here’s a taster. This is what John Barnes was saying (“I don’t know what Brighton fans expect”):



Danny Mills told us, “you can’t play that way at Brighton”:





https://twitter.com/ks9667/status/1127992526445719553


We can praise Graham Potter later at the end of the season (and we surely will, he’s been a superb appointment and a breath of fresh air).

But tonight I raise a drink to Tony Bloom, Dan Ashworth and Paul Barber. They stuck their necks on the line making a hard decision for the betterment of Brighton and Hove Albion. They dared to show ambition and believed there was a better way to progress. They refused to settle for our lot in life.

They were way ahead of the curve, and certainly ahead of the so called football experts, journalists and pundits.

“Be careful what you wish for Brighton fans”. If the pundits who wrote such disparaging comments at the time had any decency, they’d write an apology today.

Agree completely. And the irony was many of the pundits criticising the club for changing manager were the same ones having a go at our playing style for much of last season.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Well. We're not mathematically safe yet.

But...

(1) We now have the same number of points with five games still to play that we did at the end of last season

(2) We have a significantly better XG this season, for those who follow that kind of thing. I think we're tenth, or something like that.

(3) The football has generally been far better: when we've clicked, it's been a joy to watch. The trick is to make it click more consistently

(4) I remain firmly convinced that we would have gone down under Hughton this season regardless: therefore even if we do the same under Potter, it would still have been an improvement than some of the turgid, paralysed-by-fear football we witnessed in the second half of last season (Palace game excepted).

(5) We have younger, hungrier players in the squad now, who are likely to improve, and a manager who isn't afraid to give youngsters a run out. That wasn't the case last time around.

(6) Our squad is stronger regardless.

 

[Springal]

Probably need another couple of points to justify this don’t we ?

 

[Pavilionaire]

I agree with all the OP has said and I'd also add that more than a year later Chris is still out of work. Now that is partly down to Chris being picky about his next job but it does suggest many chairman are also concerned about his conservative style of football.

The Prem needs chairmen like Bloom who will gamble. Arsenal, Spurs, Chelsea, Wolves and Leicester have all dropped points against us, and this is because we are a better football team. You don't get your Leicester, Wolves and Sheff Utd so far up the table unless you have sides like us taking points off the big boys.

 

[seagullwedgee]

I recall learning last year that a young player would have to train with the first team squad for literally months before being even considered for a place in the match day 18 under CH. And then along came Potter. And Lamptey. I’m pretty sure Lamptey would have been behind Montoya, Schelotto, Webster, and maybe others, for the right back position. But here he is under Potter, played in all positions on the right flank in just three games, and already a MOTM. It was the right time to change, CH did a good job was devoid of new ideas and fluidity, GP was the perfect appointment, we’re watching better football, more youth, and regularly getting results against top 8 sides. We are in a completely new era, and thank goodness they had the balls to make the big call. They had to act fast to get Potter, and they did.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

I agree, he'd sort them out defensively and also in the championship Hughton proved he was capable of playing more offensive football as well.

 

[Eeyore]

I don't agree.

Firstly, the team isn't safe yet. Let's not jump the gun.

Secondly, there were many Albion fans of the same opinion. Chris did do an incredible amount for the club and I would not have had a problem with him starting the next season with a re-vamped team.

They may be proved wrong in the long term, but I never felt antipathy to what is merely opinion then or now. It is just their view- and there was reasonable cause for them to think that way.

I can't see why someone needs to apologise for simply having a benign opinion. If that is the case then I would spend most of my life in a sorry state where football is concerned.

 

[Barham's tash]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

That’s not a bad shout actually. I’d expect CH to maybe think twice given the style of recruitment - they favour a similar approach to us - and depends whether he has the autonomy he wants, much more a sticking point with us in his final season due to Ashworth I’m led to believe.

All things being equal he’s kidding himself in holding out for a Prem chance he’ll just have to plump for a viable Championship challenging squad/club and be done with it. Whether Bristol City fit that bill in his mind remains to be seen but good luck to him wherever he goes.

 

[Dolph Ins]

Agree with OP and it is quite funny to read again the opinions of the 'experts'.........................but the squad is an upgrade on last season by quite a way. Where would GP be with last seasons squad? but maybe that is also the real genius of Uncle Tony. Well done to Chris for what he achieved with us. This would not be possible without him.

 

[Silverhatch]

Bristol City are perfect for Chris. Good infrastructure and chairman in a City starved of footballing success.

 

[Napper]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

same size as us really

Johnson hard to take seriously

Good job for hughton that

 

[Finchley Seagull]

I don't agree.

Firstly, the team isn't safe yet. Let's not jump the gun.

Secondly, there were many Albion fans of the same opinion. Chris did do an incredible amount for the club and I would not have had a problem with him starting the next season with a re-vamped team.

They may be proved wrong in the long term, but I never felt antipathy to what is merely opinion then or now. It is just their view- and there was reasonable cause for them to think that way.

I can't see why someone needs to apologise for simply having a benign opinion. If that is the case then I would spend most of my life in a sorry state where football is concerned.

It's not the opinion that is the issue. People are entitled to their opinion.

It is the sanctimonious nature of the comments. How dare Brighton want to do anything other than survive. They are lucky to be here. And this after many of them had spent the season criticising our tactics.

I am confident we would have gone down this season if Chris Hughton had stayed. He did a fantastic job but had run out of ideas. And we revamped the team the previous season with a number of big signings and it didn't help.

 

[Eeyore]

It's not the opinion that is the issue. People are entitled to their opinion.

It is the sanctimonious nature of the comments. How dare Brighton want to do anything other than survive. They are lucky to be here. And this after many of them had spent the season criticising our tactics.

I am confident we would have gone down this season if Chris Hughton had stayed. He did a fantastic job but had run out of ideas. And we revamped the team the previous season with a number of big signings and it didn't help.

I see your point, but there is a natural profiling of teams that is a trait of most of us.

Just look at how teams such as Bournemouth are perceived on this board. If they just about survive and sack Eddie Howe then the same opinions would be trotted out.

It's a blinkered way of viewing things, yes, but it's not sanctimonious. Folk are influenced by what they see as historical limitations.

If Watford, Bournemouth and Norwich City go down, with Leeds United, WBA and Nottingham Forest coming the other way, then Albion are the, based on history, the least of the top flight clubs next season.

The reality is, of course, something different. But it's the way folk view things. And I'm sure if we look at ourselves we would see a lot of it in our attitudes too.

 

[Skaville]

One pundit didn’t jump on the bandwagon, ignored all the histrionics and said it was entirely justified for football reasons. That man was Ian Wright.

 

[neilbard]

Be careful what you wish for? I can't say I wished for the dire shite we dished up at times this season.

Great timing by the OP after thumping the mighty Norwich today, how smug and arrogant we have become being the 10th biggest spenders in Europe buying mostly crap!

Lamptey on the other hand has been the bargain of the decade.

Be careful what you wish for? Mid table mediocrity would be a start..

 

[Acker79]

How do you know Hughton wouldn't have made signings last summer that would have us pushing for Europe this season and instead because of this change we've basically just replayed last year, with improved performances that haven't really been matched with the same improvement in results.

We don't. We can guess, have a gut feeling, but none of us know.

 

[Skaville]

Be careful what you wish for? I can't say I wished for the dire shite we dished up at times this season.

Great timing by the OP after thumping the mighty Norwich today, how smug and arrogant we have become being the 10th biggest spenders in Europe buying mostly crap!

Lamptey on the other hand has been the bargain of the decade.

Be careful what you wish for? Mid table mediocrity would be a start..

Signing crap? Potter has signed Webster, Maupay, Trossard and Mooy - all regulars. Compare that to Locadia, jahanbakhsh, Andone et al.

 

[rogersix]

How do you know Hughton wouldn't have made signings last summer that would have us pushing for Europe this season and instead because of this change we've basically just replayed last year, with improved performances that haven't really been matched with the same improvement in results.

We don't. We can guess, have a gut feeling, but none of us know.

do we think that this quality of player would have signed for hughts?