[Albion] Do Brighton have a bigger problem than they realise? (Four Four Two article)

[Dave the OAP]

It looks like we are a good team , but with a manager who does not know how to win football matches

I am not sure it is that.

Personally I have been saying for ages now that we have bought some very good footballers, BUT they need to have time to gel and in effect, it is looking more and more that we are missing the very thing that we have all been banging on about for months now...a decent set of goalscorers.

Wellbeck has been used to feeding off the best payers in the world...and of course he was badly injured which is why I assume he is not at another high power team...same to be honest with lallana....he reminds me of Vicente but playing more games without the impact.

Looking from the outside, it does seem that we are very slow in the buildup , letting teams get back and organise...every other team we have played and seen on TV, including Sheffield United and Fulham all break very quickly which seems to be an anathema to us. How many times yesterday did we get into a position and immediately look backwards!

Maybe that is not potter’s fault, maybe the team that finds and recruits players see us more of a fact footballing side “ we want to play the beautiful game” but if that isn’t getting results, then maybe we need change and to have a real go at teams AT PACE rather than having 100 passes, where two will do? Just a thought.

 

[southstandandy]

My grandson (who is 6) phoned this morning to tell me he wants to give me £10 he has saved from his pocket money to help Brighton buy a new striker. I literally had tears in my eyes at his sentiment but advised him to keep it and buy something for himself. Lovely gesture though.

 

[macbeth]

Interesting that the article is basically saying what most are saying - "the goalie let in a lot of the shots and the strikers are not clinical" - but somehow consider this article as something "new" or as "proof" for what most have said for a while. The title is simply dumb - the answer is no, no one has failed to realise that these things are problems and though obviously some seem to believe that FFT is this authority able to confirm or deny their own beliefs, its simply not the case. Theres a few thousand people on this board that could have written the same article, give or take a detail or two.

To be honest I think the title is more poorly worded than anything else. Most people on here can see all the problems listed, however I would argue that in the general media there hasn't really been MUCH acknowledgement of how serious the shortcomings are proving to be. And to be honest, I think this kind of thread is a much more productive way of continuing that debate as opposed to threads like the 'end of Connolly' thread (which i know i contributed to and regret doing so), even if the article is generating large amount of confirmation bias.

 

[CheeseRolls]

Nothing much to add here, except I think it is always useful to see a bit of neutral analysis, even if it isn't that insightful.

We may only be one player away from being a good team (we may not if you recall waiting breathlessly last season for Macallister to arrive). We do have a young and inexperienced side, which may still have time to settle down and gel, it doesn't look quite right yet. We have too many tricksy attacking players and lack a little power, pace and directness.

Given the closeness of fixture can I suggest that Potter plays Yapi at right back against Arsenal and gives Dunk or White a rest. Is Yapi up to it defensively? there is only one way to find out. He will provide a better option going forward down the touchline than Ben White.and Alzate is another one, who doesn't need a spell filling in here.

As soon as there is a gap in the fixtures, could he also join the rest of us in concluding that the current zonal marking is an experiment, not an innovation. Write up the results and put it away in a drawer somewhere. I was as pleased as anyone, when we finally started leaving one player up, when we were defending corners, but the evidence is clear man to man with one man free to attack the ball is far more effective.

 

[Deleted member 2719]

it has been work in progress for over 2 years, except it isn't working. My expectations were never very high this season, but on present form to finish fourth from bottom would be a bonus.

We can't defend leads and we can barely score.

Come on if you're going to have a pop at Potter at least get the facts correct.

He is 15 games into his second season.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I am not sure it is that.

Personally I have been saying for ages now that we have bought some very good footballers, BUT they need to have time to gel and in effect, it is looking more and more that we are missing the very thing that we have all been banging on about for months now...a decent set of goalscorers.

Wellbeck has been used to feeding off the best payers in the world...and of course he was badly injured which is why I assume he is not at another high power team...same to be honest with lallana....he reminds me of Vicente but playing more games without the impact.

Looking from the outside, it does seem that we are very slow in the buildup , letting teams get back and organise...every other team we have played and seen on TV, including Sheffield United and Fulham all break very quickly which seems to be an anathema to us. How many times yesterday did we get into a position and immediately look backwards!

Maybe that is not potter’s fault, maybe the team that finds and recruits players see us more of a fact footballing side “ we want to play the beautiful game” but if that isn’t getting results, then maybe we need change and to have a real go at teams AT PACE rather than having 100 passes, where two will do? Just a thought.

I agree, The pundits highlighted two separate occasions where March had run with the ball, was surrounded by two or three players, and had no other Brighton player even level with him, let alone an outlet for him to try to pass or cross to.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I think [MENTION=38333]Swansman[/MENTION] and [MENTION=616]Guinness Boy[/MENTION] are passing International Espionage Secrets in amongst their big long message exchanges in this thread.

I tend to like short sharp exchanges on a Football Forum. It tends to help me break away from work mode where I normally have to read documents with thousands of words which could quite easily be said in 100 words.

So I can only assume that there are Cryptic messages in there somewhere. ��

TL;DR - we don't agree on everything but I don't completely reject "the project" and he has valid reasons why Potter is the right person to lead it.

I'm completely addicted to writing I'm afraid. Never use one word when 1000 flowery ones will do. I suspect Swanny is similar.

 

[sydney]

I agree, The pundits highlighted two separate occasions where March had run with the ball, was surrounded by two or three players, and had no other Brighton player even level with him, let alone an outlet for him to try to pass or cross to.

March , Trossard and Maupay don't appear to be on the same wavelength and that is exacerbated when Aj comes on to get in the way of them all.

 

[Barham's tash]

It is what happened, although perhaps not moyes cunning plan

Yep that was more my point. Listening on the radio they couldn’t believe how much respect he paid us/got our tactics wrong and then didn’t properly readjust until half time.

But still for me our undoing wasn’t so much the tactics - we played okay/well in parts - it was again conceding two completely avoidable goals.

Zonal marking has to go...

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

Its slow and it will remain slower than what I think you are used to, as patience is a key word. If there are no good options, the team is going to play it backwards or sidewards until there is a good option. That said I think the target is to increase the tempo a bit in due time, but playing overly rushed really isnt any better than playing overly patient. The three most direct teams in the league are in the bottom of the table and one of the most patient is at the top of the league.

We are painfully slow at times and no that just doesn't work. If you're alluding to Liverpool being patient you are wrong, they are quick to hit the front. Some of our play recently would make Stephen's movements look rapid.

 

[Stato]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and, contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than we join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

 

[Jim in the West]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

Much, much better analysis than the journo who wrote the 442 piece.

 

[Lever]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and, contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than we join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

I think this sums it up well and thank you. There are no guarantees but I believe that sticking by Potter is our best chance of survival this season and possible greater success in seasons to come. Disunited supporters will, I fear, make matters considerably worse.

 

[Sarisbury Seagull]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and, contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than we join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

Excellent post.

 

[macbeth]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and, contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than we join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

Agree with most of that, on an overall level it's a pretty good picture fo where we are, but i do still believe the finishing capabilities in the team aren't good enough, be it the strikers or midfielders.

Just look at some of the chances that have been missed (sheff u, liverpool, west brom just to name a few), recalling those and I don't think they've been missed because we'd flung too many players forward or that the areas are too crowded. Further investment required.

Also I'm not for one minute advocating that we bring Murray and Duffy back, but I do think they were much better at providing steel from set pieces and defending crosses than our current centre backs our. For me, a lot of our team is simply too physically weak,so I don't think it's just an issue with the style that's causing the issues, though it doubtlessly plays a role

Though I do agree with your summary that sacking Potter ultimately gets us nowhere

 

[Jolly Red Giant]

Let's not forget what Potter was left with when he took over, and the transformation that has taken place in a season and a half.

And that transformation has taken place on the back of having the following players available to him over the season and a half -
Trossard
Webster
Maupay
Mooy (for a season)
Lampety
White
Connolly
Lallana
Alzate
Wellbeck
Veltman

That's where we're at, we need a top striker and we may need to sell a gem to fund buying one.

Top strikers cost £50m + and even then they can be hit and miss.

 

[Guinness Boy]

The article just trots out the received wisdom: Brighton are stylish but aren't ruthless and they are weak at the back. The truth is a bit more complicated. We are good enough to compete in matches against the top teams in the division, but cannot dominate, need multiple chances to score and will allow chances.

At the back end of last season, Potter showed that he could set up a solid team to grind out results against Leicester, Southampton & Newcastle, but in games against Liverpool & Man Utd, had a free swing and ended up with a bloody nose. The beginning of this season presented several free swing games: Chelsea, Man Utd, Everton and, although losing, we equipped ourselves fairly well in all of these whilst in between, dismantling Newcastle. Two things resulted from this, we fancied ourselves capable of going toe to toe with anyone, teams around us approached their matches against us with caution. Palace, West Brom, Burnley, Sheffield United, Fulham all came for a point and all got it by being defensively solid and forcing us to play in front of their defence. Moyes selected a team to do the same yesterday, but his defenders let him down. We generally can't find a way of breaking down teams that do this. We don't have the creativity of a Hazard or De Bruyne, so instead we flood players high up the pitch and leave ourselves vulnerable to counter attack. We have also been very poor at focusing ourselves on defensive duties for set pieces that can arise from this. Webster, Burn and White have been frustratingly passive in dealing with aerial balls and Ryan had become reliant on Dunk & Duffy to deal with these and didn't adapt.

The (over) confidence gained from the good performances against the top sides also led to Potter selecting a ridiculously attacking line up for the away game at Leicester when he should have been looking to grind out a result. In the Newcastle and Villa games we showed that we can counter attack quickly and well, but the opportunity to do this relies on the opposition committing players forward, but most are too wary to do this against us, particularly at the Amex, and we don't seem to be able to find a way to lure them out.

The result is that we are good enough for most opponents to change their set up to counter our strengths and we haven't been good enough to deal with this. Hence most of our games end in draws. We've generally been close, but not quite good enough against the top sides. Our team is still young and lacks the top level on-field leadership and winning mentality that could have helped us hang onto leads or turn draws into wins. We don't have a Danny Ings, Grealish or (hate to say it) Zaha who can often be relied on to dig something out individually. At present, we are a nearly there side, with good ball players, but no world beaters.

Its frustrating, but the answer seems to be to become less attacking in our approach in a lot of games, committing lots of players forward more selectively. Firstly we have to prioritise defensive solidity and build from there. Potter showed at the end of last year that he can do this when results are needed. If he doesn't do it soon, confidence could be further hit and mentality will be an added complication. Set piece drills must be the first move. Stop the goals being conceded there turns the West Ham game into a win and the Man Utd and Southampton games into draws.

The 'Potter out' calls are silly and, contrary to the article, the problems are actually smaller than many pundits and fans are making out. These defenders can defend, but are struggling with being asked to do that whilst also being ball playing quarter and running backs, the strikers are no worse than those at half a dozen or more teams in the league. Things will change for everyone as the season progresses, watch Villa and Leeds slip as teams start to get wise to their counter attacking. We need to allow opponents a little more possession, but be harder to break down. Then our strikers may start to enjoy better chances in less crowded areas.

Graham Potter is a talented and adaptive coach, but he is inexperienced at this level and will have things to learn. He seems very capable of doing this, but must make mistakes to learn from them. This season could go either way, but, despite the current massive frustration, I'd far rather we stick it out and give ourselves a chance of becoming something special, than we join Palace in endlessly throwing money at a conveyor belt of relegation avoiders with no dream of ever having anything more.

Another long post. [MENTION=30752]NooBHA[/MENTION] will have your guts for garters (or just ignore you).

I don't disagree with a lot of that at all. It's a good summary of the season. But I have bolded where I see that you have called out coaching issues. If he learns from all of those in 2021 then the Potter Out voters will indeed have been made to look silly. However, make them all over again and that quote about Mr Worthing's parents springs to mind.

 

[Justice]

Cold hard facts our manger/coach is producing a 20% win rate, not good enough to keep us up. Basically we are last seasons Norwich we have a go can’t take chances can’t defend.

To survive in this league especially with a low budget you have to be smarter yesterday after taking the lead we weren’t smart Veltman should of come on to protect the slim lead and probably Propper with his experience instead of Alzate. I heard Mourhino once say you need a reason to play the youth and not just for the sake of it, sums us up yesterday.

 

[WATFORD zero]

And that transformation has taken place on the back of having the following players available to him over the season and a half -
Trossard
Webster
Maupay
Mooy (for a season)
Lampety
White
Connolly
Lallana
Alzate
Wellbeck
Veltman


Top strikers cost £50m + and even then they can be hit and miss.

Are those all the players that have been bought in since Potter was appointed ? If so, I'm not sure what point you are trying to make

 

[Blue3]

I and others keep saying it we need a big mobile forward a target man a younger version of Murrey plus we need a ball winning midfielder in the mold of a younger Dale Stephens