BURNLEY - Home, Falmer Years:
Prem 17/18-21/22 23/24, seasons 7-11 13 . . C'ship 11/12-13/14 15/16, seasons 1-3 5.
no league meetings in seasons between 2016 to 2017, 2024 onwards.
Prem previous encounters home & away: P12 W2 D7 L3 - see Clubs in Archive.
Albion V Burnley PL/EFL record @ Amex: W = 2 D = 5 L = 3
manager: Scott Parker (2024)
Turf Moor, ave; 20.5K, cap; 21.9K . nickname: Clarets . shirt: claret, blue sleeves.
Prem/EFL record from 11/12: 13 11 2 C, 18 P, 1 C, 16 / 7 15 10 17 18 P, 1 C, 19 P @ 20/5/24.
Prem recent best finish = 7th '18, worst finish = 19th '24.
C21; bottom six - '17 '19 '21 rel - '10 '15 '22 '24 . top ten - '18 '20.
Albion v Burnley (H) from 17/18: 0-0 1-3 1-1 0-0 0-3 - 1-1 . . W = 0 D = 4 L = 2 . F3 A8
scorers: Duffy Maupay Adingra
memorable match: Season11 (H) - a stark warning that you cannot take anything for granted in this elite division.
note: for away Falmer Years results and reports scroll further below.
Season14 (8th) onwards (H) - not Premier League.
Season13, 7th Premier League (H) Sat 9/12/23 - 1-1 ~ Adingra
Back during mid summer pre-season build up Burnley visited; Genk L 2-0 (Belgium), Benfica W 0-1 (Portugal), R Betis 1-1 (Spain) and Mainz L 3-0 (Germany) for away game practice. They also hosted EFL outfits Fleetwood 3-2, Burton 1-0, Port Vale 3-1 and Sheff Wed 3-0. Albion finished 6th last term, while the old elite northwest club won the Championship title. Visitors anticipated another long run in the div following their year out. Our Prem record at the Amex versus Clarets was; dld dl over five seasons to date. Spot the missing letter from that sequence. We'd not scored nearly enough goals to get a single win. Seagulls current home form was; wlw wdd dw - unbeaten in 6. Going into this early December match BHA were 8th and Burnley were 19th after 15 played so far. Hosts were now seriously expecting to rout a bogey team. The Lancs outfit had spent 67m in the Aug transfer window on 7 buys, plus 2 undisclosed, 2 frees and 2 on loan. Travellers ex-Prem star-player boss Vincent Company was struggling to get them out of the drop zone. Based on previous meetings Brighton were still looking for that elusive first victory here hosting Burnley.
*** match report: that Burnley hoodoo continued and they remained unbeaten here in the Prem. But Albion did score a rare goal against 'em - tho it was one to level the result. Visitors were inder the cosh from word go but hosts couldn't stick the ball away. And just before halftime the lowly northern outfit smacked in a pot-shot from outside the area (45mins). Seagulls upped the ante after turnaround, with subs thrown on to do the biz. Eventually Adingra nodded home a Gross cross (77mins). Clarets keeper kept them on equal terms with a string of saves to get his name in papers next day. As usual Brighton were threatening to net from early doors but as time ran out didn't take that winning chance. It was a another sad story of missed opportunities against a side who defended in depth. We looked a tad blunt up the sharp end even tho crosses came over at regular intervals. There were lots of attempts on goal with players from around the pitch each having a dig. Alas, you may say it was unlucky for van Hecke, Milner, Baleba, Dahoud, Lallana, Gilmour and Julio to not open their accounts this term but... no go still means zero. De Zerbi thought we shoulda won, so did Brighton fans, also interested neutrals and media commentators. Brighton dropped points at home once more, obviously not because of any lack of application, probably due to odd ways football matches pan out. You just never really know how it's gonna go.
stats: ht 0-1, goals 77-45, poss 71%-29%, on target 11-3, off target 18-3, corners 9-1, fouls 5-8, yellows 0-4, subs 5-5, shape 4231-442
weather: mild . gate: 31,511, away 1043 . MoM: Gross - influential
team: 1 Verbruggen 13 Gross 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 6 Milner 24 Adingra 20 Baleba 8 Dahoud 9 Pedro 14 Lallana 28 Ferguson
subs: 22 Mitoma 45 (14), 11 Gilmour 45 (8), 3 Julio 59 (20), 41 Hinshelwood 59 (6), 40 Buonanotte 85 (5)
bench: 24 Steele 15 Moder 47 Baker-Boaitey 55 O'Mahony
squad: . injured: 2 Lamptey 4 Webster 7 March 10 Enciso 18 Welbeck 30 Estupinan 31 Fati
Prem P16 . W4 D4 L1 . F18 A12 . W3 D1 L3 . F15 A16 . Pt26 Po8 = 1.62pt/gm . W = 43.7% L = 25.0%
Clarets:
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
total: 38 . 05 09 24 . 41 78 -37 . 24 19 = 0.63 . 13.1 63.1
3qtr: 29 . 04 05 20 . 29 63 -34 . 17 19 = 0.58 . 13.7 68.9
hfwy: 19 . 03 02 14 . 18 38 -20 . 11 19 = 0.57 . 15.7 73.6
start: 10 . 01 01 08 . 08 25 -17 . 04 19 0.40 . 10.0 80.0 - V Company
EFL Cup: Everon 3-0 (A) R4, Salford 0-4 (A) R3, Forest 0-1 (A) R2
FA Cup: Spurs 1-0 (A) R3
Oct: 19th in table, 2pts off 17th at Q1.
Dec: 19th, 6pts from 16th at Q2.
Mar: 19th, 5pts off 18th at Q3.
May: finished 19th, 8pts from 17th at Q4 - rel.
23/24 odds at start: top half 5/1, bottom half 1-9, rel 5-2 . sack VC 25/1 . expected to finish: mid div
run in from 30/3/24: Chelsea 2-2 (A), Wolves 1-1 (H), Everton 1-0 (A), Brighton 1-1 (H),
Sheff Utd 1-4 (A), Man Utd 1-1 (A), N'castle 1-4 (H), Spurs 2-1 (A), Forest 1-2 (H).
run in *forecast @ 29/3/24: 17pt > *22pts . max was 44 . Actual = 24 . Po was 19th . Actual po = 19th
Season12 (6th) (H) - not Premier League.
Season11, 5th Premier League (H) Sat 19/2/22 - L 0-3.
Another campaign ground on thru midwinter as this fifth meeting with Burnley here in the Prem possibly set a benchmark for BHA facing smaller clubs fighting to prolong their stay in the elite. But Albion's home record against Clarets certainly wasn't a winning one, so improvement was required if future pecking order resulted in Brighton holding a permanent higher position than mere bottom six fodder. It was after all our first term for reaching top half of the table and attempting to stay there. Meanwhile Burnley were rock bottom and struggling to put points on the board, albeit they had games in hand on other current d-z candidates. Lack of scoring goals was their bug-bear, a problem Albion previously endured from '17 when starting in the elite div.
*** match report: Albion crashed to a second defeat in five days, conceding a total of 5 goals against with nil scored. Clarets did a job on us from kickoff and were two up by halftime (21 & 44 min). Hosts couldn't get into gear and everything said beforehand about this squad being the real deal appeared pure hype on evidence seen here. After the break Potter altered personnel but it further went pear shaped when visitors bagged a third goal (69min). A possible away fourth goal got chalked off too coz of o/s flagged in hapless Seagulls area. It was a home performance locals would be quick to forget and certainly fell well below standards anticipated or even expected. Too many poor individual displays led to a below par team showing and Potter took full responsibilty for his & players actions after the event. That was fair to shoulder misdirected tactics & changes but the starting eleven and subs collectively had a mare irrespective of coaches instructions. Defence was leaky, midfield ineffective and strikers non-existent. It was actually Duffy who recorded the only shot on target with a low punt from range. BHA seemed lightweight up aganst a side happy to scrap and keep the ball moving. Tippy-tappy soccer around little triangles in wide areas didn't put travellers under any pressure at all. Albion were clueless as how to open up Clarets rearguard - a basic back four with another four banked in front. It was so slow in centre of the pitch that their defensive shape never got disrupted from ineffectual blue & white forays forward. You could hardly call them attacks coz that would allude to getting between or behind visitors lines with direct offensive action. In a post mortem Brighton fans would question attitude and mental stength of this squad. In the Prem there is an ugly side necessary and not only for survival but also in order to keep on the right side of fine margins. If you can't win don't lose, keep a clean sheet, at least go down fighting! Potter's mantra surely doesn't include tame surrender at expense of negating supposed flowing football... does it?
Stats: ht 0-2, goals 21,40,69, poss 69%-31%, on target 1-4, off target 6-2, blocks 4-4, o/s 1-3, corners 4-4, crosses 34-15,
tackles 13-17, fouls 12-12, yellows 1-4, subs 3-3, shape 442-442
weather: wet & windy . gate: 30,781 (896 away) . MoM: Mac Allister - tried hard.
team: 1 Sanchez, 2 Lamptey, 24 Duffy Y, 34 Veltman, 3 Cucurella, 14 Moder (20 March 55), 8 Bissouma, 14 Lallana (11 Trossard 55),
10 Mac Allister, 18 Welbeck (58 Ferguson 68), 9 Maupay . bench: 23 Steele (gk), 28 Roberts, 13 Gross, 17 Alzate, 25 Caicedo, 42 Leonard.
ban: 5 Dunk . squad: 55 Turns . injured: 4 Webster, 12 Mwepu, 60 Sarmiento.
Prem: P25 . W3 D5 L4 . F10 A14 . W4 D7 L2 . F15 A14 . Pt33 Po9 = 1.32pt/gm . W = 28.0% L = 24.0%
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
Total: 38 . 07 14 17 . 34 53 -19 . 35 18 = 0.92 . 18.4 44.7
3qtrs: 29 . 04 12 13 . 25 42 -17 . 24 18 = 0.82 . 13.7 44.8
Hfwy: 19 . 01 10 08 . 16 27 -11 . 13 20 = 0.68 . 05.2 42.1
Start: 10 . 01 04 05 . 10 16 -06 . 07 18 = 0.70 . 10.0 50.0 - Sean Dyche
EFL Cup: Spurs 0-1 (H) R4, Rochdale 4-1 (H) R3, Newcastle 3pen4 0-0 (A) R2.
FA Cup: Huddersfield 1-2 (H) R3.
Oct: 18th in table and 3pts below safety at Q1.
Jan: 20th, 3pts behind 17th at halfway Q2. Out of FA Cup to C'ship side at Turf Moor.
Mar: 18th, 6pts off 17th at threequarters Q3.
May: finished 18th on 35pts, 3pts adrift safety. Went down to last day loss at home.
21/22 odds at start: top half 5/1, rel 7-4, stay up 2-7 . sack SD 20/1. expected to finish: in bottom six.
run in from 5/4/22: Norwich 2-0 (A), West Ham 1-1 (A), Soton 2-0 (H), Wolves 1-0 (H),
Watford 1-2 (A), Villa 1-3 (H), Spurs 1-0 (A), Villa 1-1 (A), Newcastle 1-2 (H).
run in *forecast @ 9/4/22: 24pt > *31pts . max was 38 . Actual = 35 . Po was 18th . Actual po = 18th
Season10, 4th Premier League (H) Fri 6/11/20 - 0-0.
Match completed in an empty stadium - due to covid lockdown 2 restrictions. For the record, Clarets were the last team we'd met (away at Turf Moor) in the virus-hit, suspended and extended, season that ended in late July (see season9 in away section of scroll below). Albion's ambition was next to better three consecutive bottom six finishes and climb the table - as per current ongoing struggle. Our visitors were an example of how to make best of what you'd got in those years that football gods decreed available in the elite - although this was being severely put to the test right now. Size of clubs didn't necessarily determine results from any particular contest but overall, being bigger should count positively in the long run. The question today was; who had individual quality, team ethic, correct set up, right tactics, game management and help or otherwise from VAR, for fickle finger of fate to produce a winner?
*** match report: Albion extended their winless run at the Amex, going back to last campaign's post lockdown fixture revisions in June. Visitors arrived with a defensive plan to keep a clean sheet and duly accomplished that feat. Hosts bombarded oppositions area with attacking forays but lacked a significant threat in front of goal. Graham Potter had friction among his squad recently but restored leading scorer Maupay to the line up and started Welbeck on debut alongside him up front. The team played well in the first two thirds of the pitch, with Lallana prominent on the ball. But in spite of an easy on the eye display, deadlock remained unbroken right to the final whistle. Other individuals stood out, like star youngster Lamptey and Potter didn't alter much or put subs on until very late in the contest. BHA were a fluid form of 442 on transition from defence to possession, which they amassed in a ratio of 3:2. VAR checks found nothing untoward, so come time for analysis it was a fair result because you don't get any points for merely playing pretty football. Potter took the positives as per his mantra, acknowledging 3 on targets were out of our control once the keeper was in play. The phrase, 'we deserved something,' seemed to apply, although registering this term's first fts stat actually meant we got a point, whereas scoring in all other fixtures thus far had produced just a single victory. That's football and everybody realises sometimes the best team doesn't win even if they do score. It ended here in stalemate, goalless even steven, where we were still stuck in the bottom six and not going anywhere else for a while. Bloom's mid table ambitions appeared pie in the proverbial Seagulls sky at present.
Stats: goal, poss 60%-40%, on target 3-1, off target 16-3, o/s 1-1, corners 5-3, fouls 11-5, yellows 1-0, subs 2-2 . Weather: cold & dry.
Team: 1 Ryan, 2 Lamptey, 4 Webster, 34 Veltman (16 Jahanbakhsh 83), 3 White, 33 Burn, 13 Gross, 8 Bissouma Y, 14 Lallana,
18 Welbeck (7 Connolly 86), 9 Maupay . Bench: 23 Steele, 30 Bernardo, 24 Propper, 17 Alzate, 10 Mac Allister.
Squad: 19 Izquierdo, 26 Sanchez . Ban: 5 Dunk . Injured: 11 Trossard, 20 March, 21 Andone . MoM: Lallana.
Prem: P8 . W0 D2 L2 . F4 A7 . W1 D1 L2 . F7 A7 . Pt6 Po16 = 0.75pt/gm . Wins = 12.5%, Loss = 50.0%
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
Total: 38 . 10 09 19 . 33 55 -22 . 39 17 = 1.02 . 26.3 50.0
3qtrs: 29 . 08 09 12 . 22 37 -15 . 33 15 = 1.13 . 27.5 41.3
Hfwy: 19 . 06 04 09 . 13 24 -11 . 22 16 = 1.15 . 31.5 47.3
Start: 10 . 01 03 06 . 05 18 -13 . 06 18 = 0.54 . 10.0 60.0 - S Dyche.
EFL Cup: Man City 0-3 (H) R4, Millwall 0-2 (A) R3, Sheff Utd 5pen4 (1-1) (H) R2.
FA Cup: Bournemouth 0-2 (H) R5, Fulham 0-3 (A) R4, MK Dons 4pen3 1-1aet (H) R3.
Nov: at finish of the first quarter, Burnley were 18th in the table.
Jan: at the halfway stage Clarets were 15th but 9pts clear of the d-z.
Mar: threequarters completed at 15th and still a big gap to bottom three.
May: Prem seventeenth after lost half of games but well clear of d-z.
Season9, 3rd Premier League (H) Sat 14/9/19 - 1-1 ~ Maupay.
Memories of last term's debacle, on a February afternoon to forget in a hurry, permeated thoughts in build up to this third PL campaign mid-September fixture. And after eventual second-season syndrome survival, BHA now had extra time to get yet another 18 match-day ducks in a revised row - following two weeks for the first international break. Brighton fans were keen to see an improvement in home form too, from that near disastrous Jan thru May '19, presently being only too happy getting behind this attacking team put out by new head coach Graham Potter. A lot of the old guard also got reselected but a mix of fresh faces among assorted ranks suggested BHA stepping up, rather than just keeping afloat treading water. Locadia & Andone lately went out on loan into Europe, while Knockaert & Kayal were borrowed earlier by Championship clubs. The point being, who could cut it at elite level right now?
* * * match report: Evidently, no matter what the perceived performance levels, it is just goals that make up the official record of results and league placing. Once again Albion failed to win at the Amex, for a series now continued into September from early March during last term. Support from stands was excellent again but that critical killer instinct went missing on the field of battle when our team was on top. After a scare or two in the first half, Potter went to 433 shape and looked to dominate play going forward. Maupay took his chance well from a March lob and supposedly the game was there for taking (51min). But all to no avail as further chances evaporated like beads of sweat on this sunny & warm afternoon. Potter responded late to visitors subs from the hour mark to up the ante but fresh legs didn't do a lot altering the status quo. In fact Clarets snatched a plucky point at the death with a well struck drive as BHA rearguard backed off to very late threats (91min). Potter said, 'it is the Premier League and is what can happen if you don't kill teams off with a second goal.' That was stating the bleeding obvious and put the basic question into Brighton fans minds, 'what are you going to do about it?' We'd once more merely witnessed a lack of quality in completing/finishing useful build-up play to edge of the away box. Yes, it was something like a Prem display but those motd highlights (we were again the last game broadcast too) didn't exactly have tv watchers on edge of their sofas at midnight. If video tape editors could cut poor stuff out, why couldn't our eleven?
Stats; ht 0-0, goals 51-91, shape 343-442, poss 63%-37%, on target 5-1, off target 7-6, blocks 2-0, o/s 2-2, crosses 15-19, corners 3-6,
tackles 23-17, fouls 13-7, yellows 0-2, subs 3-3 . Gate 29,398, away 963 . Weather - sunny & warm . MoM - March.
1 Ryan, 20 March (3 Bong 90), 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 15 Webster, 33 Burn, 6 Stephens, 24 Propper, 13 Gross, 7 Maupay (44 Connolly 83),
17 Murray (18 Mooy 80) . Subs - 27 Button, 8 Bissouma, 28 Baluta, 46 Alzate.
Squad - 14 Balogun, 16 Jahanbakhsh . Injured - 11 Trossard, 19 Izquierdo, 21 Schelotto, 22 Montoya, 30 Bernardo.
Prem P5 . W0 D2 L1 F2 A4 . W1 D0 L1 F3 A4 . Pt5 Po16 = 1.00pt/gm. Wins = 20%, Loss = 40%
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
Total: 38 . 15 9 14 . 43 50 -7 . 54 10 = 1.42 . 39.4 36.8 - S Dyche, finish 27/7/20.
3qtrs: 29 . 11 6 12 . 34 40 -6 . 39 10 = 1.34 . 37.9 41.3 PREM SUSPENDED
Hfwy: 19 . 07 3 09 . 23 30 -7 . 24 12 = 1.26 . 36.8 47.3
Start: 10 . 03 3 04 . 14 15 -1 . 12 12 = 1.20 . 30.0 40.0 - S Dyche.
EFL Cup: 2nd rnd - Sunderland 1-3 (H)
FA Cup: Norwch 1-2 (H) R4, Peterboro 4-2 (H) R3.
Aug: deep in the very congested mid-table mix but bundled out of EFL Cup by northern L1 outfit.
Oct: one of many teams crowded into midtable by end of start Q1.
New Year: slipped to lower order pos but in draw for FAC4.
March: just into top ten when Prem suspended.
July: a super season by any standards, making top ten.
Season8 2nd Premier League (H) Sat 9/2/19 - L 1-3 ~ Duffy.
This fixture was broadcast on pay tv with a teatime kickoff, to delight Albion fans with a third consecutive mid-winter domestic Saturday game. PL attendances had regularly been hitting 30k+ and even that late January FA Cup 4th round tie here attracted a profit-making 27k. The trouble was Seagulls hadn't scored at home this year, despite keeping 2 clean sheets and conceding but a single goal from those three matches. So the problem to be solved was to turn chances into goals by any means possible. An over-reliance on Murray meant if he really was in an Amex slump then there wasn't another regular scorer to step up on the day. And Andone was just suspended for three matches to boot.
* * * match report: The good news is Duffy (76min) broke the domestic 2019 duck but that in itself told a sorry story. Murray didn't score yet again here and neither did others - which added to the burden the whole team now carried. Burnley netted three goals on the break (26,61 & 74min), all from ex-Albion players to rub in the humiliation. Clarets keeper was a hero, their defence dominant and forwards sharp as a tack. Ryan had a mare and several outfield players weren't up to par either, as the rain hammered down in the second half. March went off injured and Knockaert injected a tad more get up & go but sadly the night continued to get worse for BHA. Hughton threw on Bissouma & Jahanbakhsh after conceding the second goal but Seagulls huffed & puffed to no avail. Ref denied them a penalty from clear handball, visitors went straight up the other end and Ryan fouled the striker one on one to give away a spot kick for 0-3. Hughton said, 'That decision shouldn't need var. If we score a penalty then we have a real chance of getting back in it. We need to be better in front of goal.' At least Albion were not last on motd at midnight, although watching highlights got a bit depressing prior to potential nighmares. Brighton fans got wet leaving the stadium and even a couple of drinks couldn't ease the negativity. The danger was Albion slipping down the table as we were now merely three points above the cut. Going into freefall was to be avoided at all costs. The squad was supposedly better than last term and time would tell if sufficient survival points would be gained to justify their big wages.
Stats; ht 0-1, goals 76-26,61,74, shape 433-442, poss 68%-32%, on target 6-5, off target 4-2, blocks 6-2, o/s 1-0, crosses 41-8, corners 9-3, tackles 10-11, fouls 8-7, yellows 1-1, subs 3-0 . Gate 29,323, away 837 . Weather - dry then rain . MoM - March/Knockaert.
1 Ryan, 22 Montoya, 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 13 Gross (8 Bissouma 66), 6 Stephens, 24 Propper, 20 March (11 Knockaert 48), 17 Murray,
9 Locadia (16 Jahanbakhsh 65) . Subs - 27 Button, 30 Bernardo, 33 Burn, 7 Kayal.
Prem P26 . W5 D4 L4 F16 A15 . W2 D2 L9 F12 A24 . Pt27 Po14 = 1.03pt/gm. Wins = 26.9%, Loss = 50.0%
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
Total; 38 . 11 07 20 . 45 68 -23 . 40 15 = 1.05 . 28.9 52.6 - S Dyche.
3qtrs; 29 . 08 06 15 . 32 53 -21 . 30 16 = 1.03 . 27.5 51.7
Hfwy; 19 . 03 03 13 . 17 41 -20 . 12 18 = 0.63 . 15.7 68.4
Start; 10 . 02 02 06 . 10 21 -11 . 08 15 = 0.80 . 20.0 60.0 - Dyche.
EUROPA LEAGUE; p-o - Olympiakos 1-1 (H) 3-1 (A), 3rd qual rnd - Istanbul 1-0 aet (H) 0-0 (A), 2nd qual rnd - Aberdeen 3-1 (H) 1-1 (A).
EFL Cup; 3rd rnd - Burton 2-1 (A)
FA Cup; 4th rnd - Man City 5-0 (A), 3rd rnd - Barnsley 1-0 (H)
Aug; getting into Europe was a big deal. Time would tell if the squad was robust enough to chase the repeat finishing result over a full season.
October; very disappointing start following success last term and Europa Lg a big negative. Out of EFL Cup to lower lg side.
New Year; got clear of d-z but on a knife edge in future. FA Cup progress until met City.
March; deep in danger zone and in need of points for safety.
Season7 1st Premier League (H) 16/12/17 - 0-0.
The Seagulls season was enduring a negative phase going into this fixture. Since early November there had been four losses and two draws from the last six matches, with latest three defeats on the spin beforehand. Also the lack of scoring was a huge worry, apart from falling behind in 5 of those 6 contests. Chris Hughton had used 20 of his 25 man squad to date, albeit some were on fringes or returning from injury. He had cover for every position and could employ any formation as long as it was 451! Albion really needed better support for the lone striker, with midfield & defenders conspicuous by absence of goals to help boost a meagre tally of merely 14 to date. All in all, it was time to step up and be counted or face slipping into the drop zone by Xmas.
* * * match report: It remained goalless throughout but the game was not without incidents. Murray was brought down in the area but blazed the spot kick over the bar (35min). Knockaert hit a post and Dunk had an effort cleared off the line as Seagulls pressed very hard for an opener. The second period was different as visitors got more into the game and finished strongly. Ryan did his bit well between posts to keep a clean sheet. Hughton made 3 changes to expected positions after the hour mark but these subs had little effect on the inevitable outcome. Knockaert, Stephens, Dunk & Duffy were booked, the latter in stoppage and a 5th this term that now triggered a ban. Hughton said, 'the level of performance was higher than of late. We have not been at our best and have to find form to score goals. We should have won.' Brighton fans stayed supporting the team throughout and although used to success in recent years, acknowledged this was a big step up for the ex-Championship squad. So on the face of it, BHA required to do more business in the New Year to enhance a group just treading water on the south coast.
Stats; shape 4231-4411, ht 0-0, goals none, poss 58%-42%, on target 2-6, off target 6-0, blocked 4-5, crosses 36-15, corners 8-2, o/s 2-2,
tackles 11-11, fouls 13-13, yellows 4-2, subs 3-2 . Gate 29,921 (away 1422).
1 Ryan, 2 Bruno, 22 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 11 Knockaert (19 Izquierdo), 6 Stephens, 24 Propper, 20 March,
13 Gross (37 Brown), 17 Murray (10 Hemed)
Prem P18 . W4 D6 L8 . F14 A23 . Pt18 Po13 = 1.00pt/gm . Wins = 22.2%, Loss = 44.4%
Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L%
Total; 38 . 14 12 12 . 36 39 -03 . 54 07 = 1.42 . 36.8 31.5 - Sean Dyche.
3qtrs; 29 . 10 10 09 . 24 26 -02 . 40 07 = 1.37 . 34.4 31.0
Hfwy; 19 . 09 05 05 . 16 15 01 .. 32 07 = 1.68 . 47.3 26.3
Start; 10 . 04 04 02 . 09 09 00 .. 16 07 = 1.60 . 40.0 20.0
Aug - home form may be the key to survival but on travels away they need to keep many a lock out.
New Year - getting it done much better than expected.
March - in a scrap for best of the rest outside top six. EFL & FA Cups early exits from both knockouts.
BURNLEY away; Prem.
Seasn . W D L . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L%
24/25 onwards - not Premier League.
23/24 - 3 5 11 . 22 35 -13 . 14 19 = 0.73 58.3 . 15.7 57.8 - Vincent Company
22/23 - not Premier League.
21/22 - 2 8 09 . 16 28 -12 . 14 18 = 0.73 40.0 . 10.5 47.3 - Mike Jackson & Sean Dyche.
20/21 - 6 3 09 . 19 27 -08 . 21 17 = 1.16 53.8 . 33.3 50.0 - Sean Dyche.
19/20 - 7 5 07 . 19 27 -08 . 26 10 = 1.36 48.1 . 36.8 36.8 - Sean Dyche, finish 27/7/20.
18/19 - 4 5 10 . 21 36 -15 . 17 15 = 0.89 37.5 . 21.0 52.6 - Sean Dyche.
17/18 - 7 7 05 . 20 22 -02 . 28 07 = 1.47 51.8 . 36.8 26.3 - Sean Dyche.
16/17 - 1 4 14 . 13 35 -22 . 07 16 = 0.36 17.5 . 02.6 73.6 - Sean Dyche.
15/16 - not Premier League - see below Season5
14/15 - 3 5 11 . 14 32 -18 . 14 19 = 0.73 42.4 . 15.7 57.8 - Sean Dyche.
13/14 - not Premier League - see below Season3
BURNLEY PREVIOUS PREM;
Prem points: - - -, 33, -, 40, 54, 40, 54 / 39, 35 - 24
recent managers; Eddie Howe (10-12), Sean Dyche (12-22).
Vincent Company (22-24) P0 @ July '23 . Experience: top Prem player but little coaching expertise in depth.
Mike Jackson (interim) . Sean Dyche (12-22) - P391 wins = 36.8% @ Aug '21 . Experience: was toughing it out for ages and ages until one day...
Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . . W% L%
24/25 onwards - not Premier League
23/24 - 05 09 24 . 41 78-37 . 24 19 = 0.63 . 13.1 63.1 - Vincent Company @ 20/5/24
Got off to bad start and an uphill struggle all the way back down to the Championship.
22/23 - not Premier League.
21/22 - 07 14 17 . 34 53 -19 . 35 18 = 0.92 . 18.4 44.7 - Mike Jackson & Sean Dyche @ 22/5/22
Manager sacked with club in d-z. Went down with a last day defeat and so failed to average 1pt per game for survival.
20/21 - 10 09 19 . 33 55 -22 . 39 17 = 1.02 . 26.3 50.0 - Sean Dyche @ 24/5/21
A bit of a yo-yo Prem stay since '16 and this season was struggling once again to gain a secure foothold in the div.
19/20 - 15 09 14 . 43 50 -07 . 54 10 = 1.42 . 39.4 36.8 - Sean Dyche. PL SUSPENDED, complete @ 27/7/20
Excellent progress with a basic squad. Dyche again got best out of what he had available.
18/19 - 11 07 20 . 45 68 -23 . 40 15 = 1.05 . 28.9 52.6 - Sean Dyche.
Season kicked off with Europa League debacle and continued into the Prem. Manager found a basic way to get those survival points once more.
17/18 - 14 12 12 . 36 39 -03 . 54 07 = 1.42 . 36.8 31.5 - Sean Dyche.
Away teams can find trouble up on the moor, where the long-lasting & diligent ginger leader holds sway in all things tactical. Apparently the Lancs outfit also punches to its full weight on the road down south.
16/17 - 11 07 20 . 39 55 -16 . 40 16 = 1.05 . 28.9 52.6
Home is where the heart is and apparently Sean Dyche is happy to make a career in keeping the club cozy so to speak. In truth they did ok.
15/16 - not Premier League - see below, Season5. Sean Dyche.
14/15 - 07 12 19 . 28 53 -25 . 33 19 = 0.86 . 18.4 50.0 - Sean Dyche.
A second instant demotion from the elite league, from two attempts to establish there over a six year period, bought home to regular, strong Championship sides how difficult it was to reach standards required.
11/12 - 13/14 not Premier League - see below, Seasons 1-3.
FA CUP from 11/12; 3rd rnd, 3rd, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 3rd, 4th, 4th, 5th, 3rd, q-f. 3rd
LEAGUE CUP; 4th rnd, 3rd, 4th, 2nd, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, 2nd, 4th, 4th, - 4th.
EUROPA LEAGUE; 11-16 na, 17 nq, 18 p-o, 19 - 22 nq.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Burnley home, Falmer years - C'ship, 11/12-13/14 15/16 . Seasons 1-3 5.
Albion v Clarets (H) from 11/12: 0-1, 1-0, 2-0, -, 2-2, - . . W = 2 D = 1 L = 1
memorable match: Season3 (H) - Oscar Garcia arrived and things looked up at start of the campaign.
Season6 - not C'ship.
Season5 Championship (H) 2/4/16 - 2-2 - Stephens, Knockaert.
Championship fixtures resumed after yet another drawn out international break this term. And build up had alerted Sky tv coverage to present this game at a lunchtime, as the clash between the top two clubs. Albion home form in reverse order to date was - wdw www lll www dwd www w. The lapse came just prior to Xmas and into New Year but since then had been pretty positive. Recent results had also tended to be based on keeping clean sheets, ie 1-0, 0-0, 4-0, 3-2, 3-0 & 2-1 going back to late January. Apart from the blip in form during December, Seagulls had been winning consistently at the Amex but on each occasion merely by the odd goal. The mission now for Chris Hughton was to remain unbeaten at worst and pick a match day 18 capable of opening up the league leaders rearguard.
*** match report: Albion were pegged back twice after leading and goals went in at 30, 33, 45 & 90+3 minutes to level scores. Stephens opened the scoring when driving home after a Knockaert corner. But Clarets hit back quickly when their striker got his chance to shine. Then just prior to the interval Murphy did the work that Knockaert finished smartly. During the second period visitors pressed for an equalizer and although on the back foot, Seagulls appeared to be holding out. But lady luck smiled on the away outfit right at the death at a corner. Wilson had come on in the first half and as time wound the clock down, Bong & Sidwell both arrived. But it was not to be a victory six pointer for BHA. Chris Hughton said, "I never saw it as a must win game but was delighted with our performance against a top side. No one can accuse us of not trying to win." The 29k crowd would probably agree, although vast majority musta been a tad disappointed with the outcome a fortunes swung from south to north over ninety minutes plus.
Stats; poss 48%-52%, on target 6-5, off target 16-13, corners 4-9, fouls 8-8.
Stockdale, Bruno (Bong), Goldson, Dunk, Rosenior, Knockaert, Stephens, Kayal, Murphy, Baldock (Wilson), Hemed (Sidwell).
Champ's P39 . W19 D15 L5 . F54 A37 . Pt72 Po3 . W = 48.7% L = 12.8%
Season4 - not C'ship.
Season3 (H) 24/8/13 - W 2-0 ~ Crofts, Ulloa.
Oscar Garcia quickly had his work cut out at Brighton, when joining in close-season to replace the fallen angel Gus Poyet. Things hadn't started well, with two league defeats already and a whole stack of injuries to an enhanced squad. Bruno, Andrews, Hoskins, Barnes, Orlandi, CMS and Bridcutt were all on treatment tables. OG had back-up in defence and midfield from youngsters but up front there was a striker crisis. So Buckley had a role to support Ulloa as Albion adopted a diamond formation centrally - like in latter days of Withdean seasons. On the day it rained (happy memories of that old sports complex!), although it was a great summer period thru this August. Just over 26k attended, which bode well for later gates when the world went back to work from annual hols.
*** match report: Ulloa proved his worth as a target-man with hold-up skills and goal-scoring ability. He laid goal one on an Amex plate for Crofts after robbing his marker (28min), then headed a cracker from Buckley's deep cross over the spot in the second period (72min). In between, either side of the break, Ref booked Claret's goalie twice (45 & 56 min) and so travellers were reduced to ten men. Initially the hapless keeper floored Buckley as he chased a loose ball, then on turn-about handled twice at very edge of his area. Brighton fans reacted very vocally to Ref's original yellow card decision and perhaps this influenced the interval-stewarded official later. Anyway, superiority in numbers needed to be converted into an unassailable lead but as Albion racked up on/off stats, the ball wouldn't cross the line again until OG tinkered with shape. After an hour LuaLua came on to press left flank. When Ulloa netted, JFC replaced Agustien and BHA saw it out as rain fell on unfortunate visitors. Buckley said, 'every team needs that goalscorer who can get 15 to 20 goals. But we have got to chip in and hopefully we can keep doing that.' Yeah, do it and all.
Kuszczak, Calderon, Greer, Upson, Ward, Crofts, Ince, Agustien (Forster-Caskey), David (LuaLua), Ulloa, Buckley (March).
Champ's P4 . W2 D0 L2 . F5 A4 . Pt6 Po10 . W = 50% L = 50%
Season2 (H) 23/2/13 - W 1-0 ~ David.
It was a bitterly cold afternoon at Falmer but over 25k locals attended, all hoping to support Seagulls into play-off places come 5pm. Albion would probably have been there already but for too many dropped points at the Amex, especially earlier in this tough campaign. Gus Poyet didn't have lots of probs selecting his match-day squad, although Bridcutt was banned and a few others injured (Buckley, Crofts, Hoskins). There was cover in most positions and even with players out on loan (Painter, Dobbie, Harley) the bench seemed strong. Brighton owed Burnley a beating for last term's injustice but our home record against them (Withdean era) wasn't great.
*** match report: A hard fought victory pushed BHA into play-offs for the first time in five months - in fact since summer pacesetting days. Albion scored a crucial winner when Bridge's cross was headed on for David to drill low inside a post (20min). Some of the opening plays via MoM Vicente were exciting in the extreme but Ref took a dim view and booked him later for trying too hard! What was Seagulls Spanish genius supposed to do against crowds of Clarets, fly? In the second half Gus double-subbed after the hour mark and pushed CMS ahead in lieu of target-man Ulloa. When it appeared we needed to make it safe, Greer came on late to replace Vicente. Gus said, 'we now have a different character to the squad and keeping clean sheets is a good sign. We didn't play fantastically and technically we were not at our best but we won the game somehow.'
Kuszczak, Bruno, El-Abd, Upson, Bridge, David, Hammond, Dicker, Orlandi (Barnes), Vicente (Greer), Ulloa (Mackail-Smith)
Champ's P33 . W13 D13 L7 . F46 A34 . Pt52 Po6 . W = 39.3% L = 21.2%
Season1 (H) 17/12/11 - L 0-1.
Prior to Xmas, BHA presented plans to BHCC for an 8k increase in capacity at the Amex, plus proposals for a new training ground within Lancing boundaries to Adur DC. Albion had been operational at Falmer for six months and our youth team recently won there to advance in their cup competition versus academy teams. Everything was being prepared for the future, including dedicated coaching of the development squad and appointment of a new head of football operations. It was all a long way from Withdean and B'ton fans didn't have to experience that regular Friday night pre-Xmas fixture either. Seagulls were settling in ok at level-two, in front of 20k crowds and Gus Poyet said, 'we look back at a momentous and successful year but now we must look forward.' He was doing better than anticipated, although the squad suffered from several injured, while our card count was also mounting towards suspensions for others. On the day it was cold but quite festive and Gully's Girls done good in Santa outfits as crowds enjoyed hospitality in their various concourses.
*** match report: The match very quickly turned into a nightmare for fans, Gus and Albion alike. Vincelot was sent off with merely five mins on the clock. The fourth official spotted handbags as teams regrouped, calling Ref over to deal. Not long afterwards Barnes clattered into a challenge and received a second straight red card (12m). Poyet then evoked a double swap, bringing on Noone and Navarro and shaping like 341. In fact we had eight back most of the game and CM-S operated solo up front. Burnley scored from outside the area when getting off a free pot-shot (32m). Brighton fans got behind those heroic lads left to continue the fight and helped lift a tense and frustrating atmosphere. Clarets seemed content to sit on one-nil, however couldn't open us up anyway. Approaching final moments, Buckley came on as Seagulls counter attacked, where CM-S got three or four chances to level scores but was right out of luck. Gus wouldn't comment on Refs coz we were in trouble with the FA already, from a 15k fine for previously losing the plot. Albion were not a dirty unit but our reputation as a footballing side was again compromised by these frequent contentious incidents.
Ankergren, El-Abd, Greer, Dunk, Taricco, Harley (Noone), Bridcutt (Buckley), Vincelot, Barnes, Mackail-Smith, LuaLua (Navarro).
Champ's P22 . W9 D5 L8 . F23 A23 . Pt32 Po9 . W = 40.9% L = 36.3%
* * * * *
Withdean Era: 12 seasons 1999 - 2011
Seasons 4 02/3, 6 04/5, 7 05/6 - Championship.
Withdean era: Albion v Burnley 2-2, 0-1, 0-0 . . . W = 0 D = 2 L = 1
memorable match: Season4 (H) - a season spent in the drop zone and we had to host these dirty northern bast...
see: Seasons 4, 6, 7 for club & stadium info. Also Steve Sidwell, Steve Coppell & Mark McGhee.
|
Burnley - Away, Falmer Years:
Prem 17/18-21/22 23/24, seasons 7-11 13 . . C'ship 11/12-13/14 15/16, seasons 1-3 5.
Albion record @ Clarets: W = 3 D = 4 L = 2
Burnley v Albion (A) from 17/18: 0-0 1-0 1-2 1-1 1-2 - 1-1 . . W = 2 D = 3 L = 1 . F6 A5
scorers: Bissouma, Connolly Dunk Maupay Mac Allister og
memorable match: Season11 (A) - new season, old venue but right result to start another elite campaign.
note: for home Falmer Years results & reports scroll further up.
Season14 (8th) onwards (A) - not Premier League
Season13, 7th Premier League (A) Sat 13/4/24 - 1-1 ~ og
In the January transfer window no big business was done across the Prem because of fair play rules & regs. And authorities were clamping down on past & ongoing financial breaches. Only those BHA players still fit from the squad that started this campaign had gotten to mid April and into the run-in - with merely three away games left. Since joining the elite, Albion had finished 15, 17, 15, 16, 9, 6, while Burnley were 7, 15, 10, 17, 18. So far hosts habitual home record was; W2 D3 L11 - registering relegation form. Our Prem record at Turf Moor versus Clarets was; dlw dw - in five seasons to date and a fair record to boot. Goals got scored in what were generally tight contests. Current away form was; W4 D4 L8 - hardly a good return with half of games lost. At the moment Brighton were 10th, while Burnley were 19th - from 31 & 32 played respectively. So it was hoped more points on travels would be gathered by Seagulls in the northwest today. The Lancs outfit had changed managers merely twice during our Prem years - but Vincent Company was now under more drop-zone pressure. Based on previous meetings Brighton were looking for a third win at Burnley. Victory was required to help us get back on track with obtaining enough Prem points to compete for a starting place in Europe again next term. There were several other clubs in the mid-table mix who could make the final cut and BHA were up against it to reach 7th place by middle of May. A long injury list still prevailed, which began many months ago when initially approaching midweek UEL matches, four different competitions ahead, plus phased international duties too and latterly a disjointed Prem schedule as well. Time would tell if we used any of those above as excuses for not making the grade.
*** match report: it would possibly have finished goalless but for two bizzare scores late in the game. Albion couldn't hit a barn door and Clarets were just as bad. But in a crazy few minutes hosts took the lead before surrendering it soon afterwards. First a clearance from Verbruggen hit an attacker and shot into the net (74mins). Then the Burnley keeper let a backpass go under his boot for Brighton's equaliser (79mins). The rest was largely forgettable. Torrential rain came down to finish this unlikely stalemate and everybody was glad to get off home. Brighton fans saw our season stalling, while locals were facing the drop with just a handful of matches left. It wasn't the Prem at its best and we were last on motd at midnight to boot. We took the point but in truth our campaign had imploded and decided by fickle finger of fate. Scoring goals is what the Prem is about but BHA were struggling to find the net lately. It was like a return to our formative years when we were a regular bottom six outfit... playing just to stay in the div.
stats: ht 0-0, goals 74-79, poss 44%-56%, on target 3-8, off target 8-12, corners 4-5, fouls 18-8, yellows 1-2, subs 4-5, shape 442-4231
weather: rain . gate: 20,887 away 1940 . MoM: 15 Moder - getting up to speed
team: 1 Verbruggen 34 Veltman 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 30 Estupinan 24 Adingra 20 Baleba 13 Gross 15 Moder 28 Welbeck 9 Pedro
subs: 3 Julio 13 (30), 40 Buonanotte 77 (18), 31 Fati 77 (15), 14 Lallana 77 (24), 55 O'Mahony 89 (9)
bench: 23 Steele 19 Barco 42 Offiah 44 Peupion
squad: 38 McGill (gk) . injured: 2 Lamptey 4 Webster 6 Milner 7 March 10 Enciso 11 Gilmour 22 Mitoma 28 Ferguson 41 Hinshelwood
Prem P32 . W7 D6 L2 . F28 A19 . W4 D5 L8 . F24 A31 . Pt44 Po10 = 1.37pt/gm . W = 34.3% L = 31.2%
Season12 (6th) (A) - not Premier League.
Season11, 5th Premier League (A) Sat 14/8/21 - W 1-2 ~ Maupay, Mac Allister.
Covid: no restrictions on travel.
Going to Turf Moor was often a tough experience, bar that end of term dead rubber of two seasons ago - our only Prem victory here. Now onus was on Albion upping the ante in the historical northwest and returning south with points plundered from supposedly lesser rivals on opening day of our fifth consecutive Prem campaign.
During the close season, White (50m), Jahanbakhsh (5m), Ryan, Propper, Bernardo, Izquierdo and Gyokeres had left. New signings were Enock Mwpeu (20m) in m-f and young custodian Kjell Scherpen (4m) between the posts. Meanwhile Clarets hadn't done very much business, considering money initially appeared available via their US stakeholders. Sean Dyche's plan was just to stay in the div again, although some pundits saw Burnley as perpetual bottom six fodder and one day eventually time would run out on their Prem participation. Albion were beaten last week without scoring in our only Amex pre-season friendly, so also had a big point to prove about being good enough to maintain a place at elite level.
*** match report: Albion upset local vocal support but sent travelling fans into raptures by snatching late victory. Visitors went a goal behind, from a basic corner routine, as early as the second minute. From then it was an uphill struggle to stay in the game until half time. Our 4141 formation didn't seem to fit with any method to get collective best out of proven on field talent. Debutant Mwepu was swapped for Lallana after the break and a reshuffle of original positions applied. Seagulls chased the game but Potter made two more decisive changes as it all hung in balance. Moder came on and immediately provided the pass for Maupay to equalise (73min). Mac Allister followed and scored straight away from a Gross assist (78min). Hosts attempted to pull fat from the fire as the clock ticked down but BHA held out for first day smash & grab. Brighton fans went home happy and all was well with the world. Potter said; 'play on their terms and it's tough but we grew into the game and attacked better'. It was perhaps a typical contest of small margins, where both outfits were capable of winning from different game plans. The great thing for visitors was in adapting tactics, so turning potential defeat into three points and scoring two very good goals to boot.
Stats: ht 1-0, goals 2-73,78, poss 36%-64%, on target 3-8, off target 8-4, blocks 3-2, o/s 1-0, corners 7-6, crosses 36-14,
tackles 16-16, fouls 10-7, yellows 2-1, subs 3-3, shape 442-4141.
weather: warm . gate: 16,910, away 1339 . MoM: Duffy - immense.
team: 1 Sanchez, 4 Webster, 5 Dunk, 24 Duffy, 13 Gross, 20 March, 12 Mwpeu (14 Lallana 46), 17 Alzate (15 Moder 71), 8 Bissouma,
11 Trossard (10 Mac Allister 75), 9 Maupay Y . bench: 23 Steele, 6 Karbownik, 19 Zeqiri, 21 Andone, 25 Caicedo, 30 Richards.
squad: 7 Connolly, 22 Tau . injured: 2 Lamptey, 18 Welbeck, 33 Burn, 34 Veltman, 16 Scherpen.
Prem: P1 . W0 D0 L0 . F0 A0 . W1 D0 L0 . F2 A1 . Pt3 Po6 = 3.00pt/gm . W = 100% L = 0%
Season10, 4th Premier League (A) Sat 6/2/21 - 1-1 ~ Dunk
Covid restrictions - lockdown 3, no fans attending @ Tier 3/4/5.
Back in late July Albion had got a right result here to belatedly complete our interrupted third Prem campaign - see Season9 below. Now the onus was on us to prove it was no flash in the Prem pan, given BHA ambitions to progress into a solid & competitive midtable outfit. However this campaign to the halfway stage could hardly be labelled progressive from the point of view regarding winning results. In fact it was all a bit of a struggle to obtain enough points for parity, being merely 17pt or 0.89pt/gm with 19 of 38 fixtures completed. At present this index was actually 1.09pt/gm, by just coming off the back of a superb away win at last term's champs Liverpool in midweek. The question on Brighton fans lips was words to the effect of could Albion repeat their win here as well?
*** match report: Albion got a draw, which meant we'd gone unbeaten in the last five PL matches and picked up 7pts in a week. The fine margins from the Prem had been with us recently and although Seagulls rode their luck, fickle finger of fate also decided Clarets would not win. Dunk opened scoring when heading in a Gross corner (36min). Hosts hit back after turnaround to bag an equaliser after constant pressure (53min). The rest of this contest was about BHA holding out for parity while locals tried to add another goal. In the event Sanchez kept them at bay, so at end of the day it was all about a half decent defensive team performance once more. Recent results had been L 1-0 W 0-1 0-0 W 1-0 W 0-1 - therefore keeping a clean sheet got extra rewards if bagging a goal. Potter was pleased with progress, as well as knowing Seagulls were still 10pts clear of the d-z. There was a long way to go until May but at this juncture things appeared to be going in the right direction at last. Brighton fans hoped we'd turned a corner and everything would be onwards & upwards in weeks ahead.
Stats: ht 0-1, goals 36-53, poss 54%-46%, on target 7-2, off target 7-6, blocks 6-2, o/s 3-0,
crosses 29-14, corners 8-7, tackles 8-6, fouls 8-10, yellows 2-0, subs 0-3, shape 442-352 . Weather: wet.
Team: 26 Sanchez, 3 White, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster (14 Webster 75), 34 Veltman, 13 Gross, 8 Bissouma, 10 Mac Allister, 33 Burn,
9 Maupay (11 Trossard 61), 7 Connolly (18 Welbeck 61) . Bench: 31 Walton, 6 Karbownik, 15 Moder, 17 Alzate, 22 Tau, 29 Zeqiri .
Squad: 16 Jahanbakhsh, 19 Izquierdo, 24 Propper . Injured: 2 Lamptey, 20 March . MoM: Dunk
Prem: P23 . W1 D6 L4 . F11 A15 . W4 D4 L4 . F14 A15 . Pt25 Po15 = 1.08pt/gm. Wins = 21.7%, Loss = 34.7%
Season9, 3rd Premier League (A) Sunday 26/7/20 - W 1-2 ~ Bissouma, Connolly.
PL suspended until restart from 17/6/20 after Sun 17/5/20 postponed. Revised final fixture played behind closed doors without fans attending.
The third campaign was scheduled to complete up at remote Turf Moor; being yet another long journey to do by any measurement for travelling Brighton fans thru the previous year. But current Covid-19 pandemic restrictions stopped any crowd attendance all together - it could possibly have been another middle of winter fixture, so at kickoff we took those related bleak positives as a kind of irony anyway. By now Graham Potter had just secured Albion's participation in the Prem next term, which was a great relief all round. Brighton fans knew it would be a fourth campaign of sweat, toil, blood & many extra tears if new signings failed to materialise real soon. The next Prem fixture list was due to show opening matches from September12, so there wasn't too much time before we anticipated fresh faces arriving at Lancing for enhancing the revised squad. That begged the question; how important was it that more wins were registered overall? Well, a no brainer, especially when we met clubs at our lower level, instead of ever increasing pressure to get results from top ten sides to compensate.
* * * match report: Albion completed their 3rd campaign with a win on the road which saw them finish in 15th place. Bissouma opened scoring with a thunderbolt from distance (20min). Unfortunately Clarets equalised just prior to halftime to slightly take the edge off a useful away display in 5212 shape. After turnaround Maupay soon set Connolly off and he made no mistake using speed to get an opportunity (50min). Hosts pounded visitors area with crosses but BHA held out against odds. 2 VAR decisions went our way, so we got rub of the green to boot. Potter boosted the side with fresh legs approaching that final open phase when the game got stretched. Perhaps we got lucky but hey-ho, it's Prem football and you get it where you can. Brighton fans now turned attention to next season beginning on September 12 - merely seven weeks hence. Signings were necessary, perhaps an overhaul of the squad but Tony Bloom didn't have bottomless pockets and wouldn't splash cash he couldn't raise against other investment. The top ten Prem club dream was on hold yet again.
stats: shape 442-5212, ht 1-1, goals 44-20,50, poss 55%-45%, on target 2-4, off target 9-6, o/s 3-2, corners 6-7, fouls 11-11, yellows 3-0,
subs 2-5 (5/9) . MoM - Dunk . Gate - 0 . Weather - mild.
1 Ryan, 2 Lamptey, 15 Webster, 5 Dunk, 33 Burn, 20 March (30 Bernard 73), 8 Bissouma (24 Propper 73),
6 Stephens, 10 Mac Allister (18 Mooy 73), 44 Connolly (17 Murray 90), 7 Maupay (16 Jahanbakhsh 90).
Bench (5/9) - 27 Button, 22 Montoya, 13 Gross, 11 Trossard . Squad - 50 Cochrane . Injured - 4 Duffy, 19 Izquierdo, 46 Alzate.
Prem: P38 . W5 D7 L7 . F20 A27 . W4 D7 L8 . F19 A27 . Pt41 Po15 = 1.07pt/gm. Wins = 23.6%, Loss = 39.4%
Season8 2nd Premier League (A) Sat 8/12/18 - L 1-0.
December was a particularly busy month on the way to completlng first half of the campaign before New Year. Form on the long road wasn't exactly satisfactory and sometimes BHA didn't 'turn up' at certain venues where defeat appeared avoidable - on paper at least. Having said that, various other circumstances compounded usual nip & tuck, huff & puff or will to win. In the last four fixtures (2H & 2A) there had been a red card card shown (2 to BHA & 2 for opponents). Law of averages now suggested it was unlikely to occur here and extend the 11v10 series to five. But 7 points from a 24 max tally to date, or 0.87pt/gm, wasn't enough to maintain a 1pt average per fixture overall. Albion had to up the ante on travels or again be reliant on wins at the Amex to cut the proverbial PL mustard.
* * * match report: Guess what? You could blame a hangover for midweek queasyness following fab fun at the Amex but not also being responsible for this wet & windy Saturday debacle. Once more (and we say that a lot on travels) Albion did not come up to par and consequently suffered a single score defeat. At least there were no sending offs, nor indeed any yellows shown either for disciplined but disturbingly toothless Seagulls. The old problem of failing to score, not keeping a clean sheet and chasing the game to no avail emerged today with knobs on. Blah, blah, blah... excuses came thick & fast from warm & cosy Sussex fans happy to occupy a mid-table berth but the negative remained that travelling support were fed up with watching the team get beat regularly for nowt. Clarets winner went in prior to the interval as they constantly pressed BHA yellow shirts deep into the area (40m). In the second period Hughton put on Murray & Locadia and later Stephens to do the do but it made no difference to the score - fact! Hughton said, 'we were the better team but conceded a scrappy goal. We didn't do enough in the first half to really force that goal.' Social media criticism of some starters, subs, tactics and chances were to be seen in relation to basic stats - see below. One shot on target meant visitors had to net it, thereby win one nil... if not conceding of course. QED!
Stats; shape 442-451, h-t 1-0, goal 40, poss 38%-62%, on target 4-1, off target 4-12, blocks 6-1, o/s 2-1, crosses 15-20, corners 2-7, tackles 11-12, fouls 11-11, yellows 2-0, subs 2-3 . Gate 18,497, away 810 . Weather - wet & windy.
1 Ryan, 2 Bruno, 14 Balogun, 5 Dunk, 30 Bernardo, 11 Knockaert (9 Locadia 63), 24 Propper, 8 Bissouma, 20 March, 13 Gross (6 Stephens 79), 10 Andone (17 Murray 63) . Subs - 23 Steele, 3 Bong, 28 White, 7 Kayal.
Prem P16 . W4 D2 L1 . F12 A8 . W2 D1 L6 . F7 A14 . Pt21 Po11 = 1.31pt/gm. Wins = 37.5%, Loss = 43.7%
Season7 1st Premier League (A) 28/4/18 - 0-0.
Only three fixtures left after this and they all were versus the top 3 clubs! Results on the road against top half teams had been: Leicester 2-0, Bournemouth 2-1, Arsenal 2-0, Man Utd 1-0, Spurs 2-0, Chelsea 2-0, Newcastle 0-0, Everton 2-0 with Liverpool & Man City yet to play. Albion's away form overall was; W2 D4 L10 F9 A22 GD-13 Pt10. Obviously a single point today would go a long way to making survival mathematically conclusive. But in reality several additional points were considered unlikely and Seagulls were trusting sides currently in & around the bottom three would not gain equivalent points. Watch this space.
Pascal Gross had been voted Player of the Season, while Jose Izquierdo got Goal of the Season.
* * * match report: Albion duly took home a point from a dour display where defences were on top throughout. They survived two pen appeals and a frantic pin-ball melee in the goalmouth when the post got struck & Ryan saved twice. Up front it was same old, same old and Seagulls never really looked like scoring. Stephens & Murray were booked and Bong continually booed by home fans, following a recent FA inquiry into his receiving racial remarks. Hughton said, 'their reaction was shameful. He is an incredibly disciplined and straight individual. He's big enough to handle it.' Travelling support was happy enough to avoid defeat although the current points total was not quite enough to ensure being in the div next season. And it was Man Utd next at the Amex.
Stats; shape 442-451, ht 0-0, goals 0, poss 44%-56%, on target 4-1, off target 2-4, blocks 4-4, corners 3-4, o/s 4-3,
fouls 5-17, yellows 0-2, subs 3-3 . Gate 19,459.
1 Ryan, 2 Bruno (21 Schelotto 89), 22 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 11 Knockaert, 6 Stephens, 13 Gross, 7 Kayal,
19 Izquierdo (20 March 85), 16 Ulloa (17 Murray 67).
Prem P35 . W8 D13 L14 . F32 A47 . Pt37 Po14 = 1.05pt/gm . Wins = 22.8%, Loss = 40.0%
BURNLEY @ HOME; Turf Moor.
Seasn . W D L . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L%
24/25 onwards - not Premier League.
23/24 - 2 4 13 . 19 43 -24 . 10 19 = 0.52 41.6 . 10.5 68.4 - Vincent Company
22/23 - not Premier League.
21/22 - 5 6 08 . 18 25 -7 .. 21 18 = 1.10 60.0 . 26.3 42.1 - Mike Jackson & Sean Dyche.
20/21 - 4 6 09 . 14 27 -13. 18 17 = 0.94 46.1 . 21.0 47.3 - Sean Dyche.
19/20 - 8 4 07 . 24 23 +1 . 28 10 = 1.47 51.8 . 42.1 36.8 - Sean Dyche, finish 27/7/20.
18/19 - 7 2 10 . 24 32 -8 .. 23 15 = 1.21 57.5 . 36.8 52.6 - Sean Dyche.
17/18 - 7 5 07 . 16 17 -1 .. 26 07 = 1.36 48.1 . 36.8 36.8 - Sean Dyche.
16/17 - 10 3 6 . 26 20 +6 . 33 16 = 1.73 82.5 . 52.6 31.5 - Sean Dyche.
15/16 - not Premier League - see below Season5
14/15 - 4 7 08 . 14 21 -7 .. 19 19 = 1.00 57.5 . 21.0 42.1 - Sean Dyche.
13/14 - not Premier League - see below Season3.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Burnley away, Falmer years - C'ship, 11/12-13/14 15/16 . Seasons 1-3 5.
Clarets v Albion (A) from 11/12: 1-0, 1-3, 0-0, -, 1-1, - . . W = 1 D = 2 L = 1
memorable match: Season2 (A) - start of the season and like 10 years ago, little did we know the turn of events.
Season6 - not C'ship.
Season5 Championship (A) 22/11/15 - 1-1 ~ Zamora.
This fixture was re-arranged for Sunday lunchtime tv cameras to show the contest between 2nd & 5th teams. Beforehand Albion got to the third and final international break still unbeaten, having set a new club record for matches in sequence without loss. Chris Hughton had worked miracles this term and Seagulls led the division during opening weeks. A number of players from previous squads (see below) were continuing to be picked, plus useful additions this campaign like Liam Rosenior, Jamie Murphy, Tomer Hemed, Elvis Manu and Bobby Zamora. Due to late injury & illness the match-day eighteen was a little below par. On a cold day in Lancashire, over 300 intrepid away fans got to Turf Moor hoping luck would hold against ex-Prem opposition who were very strong on their patch.
*** match report: Albion went a goal up in the first minute. March worked the flank and Hemed let fly but his effort was touched onto the bar. From the rebound, Zamora was on hand to poke it home (1min). But incredibly Ref pointed to the spot at the other end two minutes later when Dunk pulled a shirt in the area. The pen was duly blasted into the net and from then on the match remained at parity (4min). Each side operated with 442 and tended to cancel one another out, although stats suggested the result may have gone either way on chances. After the break it became something of a tactical affair as defences held firm against most threats from attackers. Both managers subbed from the hourmark, Forster-Caskey replacing Zamora as visitors switched to 451. Late in the day Manu brought fresh legs up front in lieu of Hemed. By then BHA were mainly soaking up pressure and hitting Clarets on the counter. Hughton said, 'a lot of what we worked on went out of the window. In the end it's about the team performing. You can't tell them what sort of game it's going to be. They have to adjust to all of that.' Albion put up a creditable display and a point appeared good value by all accounts - whether by luck or judgement.
Stats; poss 41%-59%, on target 3-3, off target 4-5, corners 8-5, o/s 0-3, fouls 12-18, yellows 1-3.
Stockdale, Bruno, Greer, Dunk, Rosenior, March, Stephens, Kayal, Murphy, Zamora (Forster-Caskey), Hemed (Manu).
Champ's P17 . W9 D8 L0 . F22 A13 . Pt35 Po2 . W = 52.9% L = 0%
Season4 - not C'ship.
Season3 (A) 28/1/14 - 0-0.
On a Tuesday night in late January the Albion went north - but only from the midlands where previously they had played at Port Vale in the potteries for an FAC4 tie last Saturday. The staring eleven that head coach Oscar Garcia turned out against Micky Adams' Valliants now had eight changes in all for this Championship fixture. Compared to a couple of seasons ago; Brezovan, Calderon, Greer, Buckley and CMS were still around. In contrast, Vokes and Barnes were both on Burnley's books. El-Abd had also recently transferred to Bristol City. From last term's squad, Crofts was out for the campaign thru injury, while Bridcutt remained subject to transfer before the mid-season window shut at end of the month. Albion had useful form on the road and were pushing for a p-o spot to join Clarets in the top six. Locals were over-achieving in this division and remained unbeaten at their place on the moors.
*** match report: In a pretty even game for stats, neither side was able to break deadlock and defences proved resolute throughout. Burnley twice hit posts and Brighton might have nicked all points available but for heroic goal-keeping when it really mattered. Seagulls set up to prevent opposition 442 from exploiting crosses into the area and left Ulloa up front alone. He was assisted by JFC in an advanced role when breaking from midfield. LuaLua and David provided supply from flanks but chances were few and far between. Both wingmen were replaced in the last twenty minutes as Garcia attempted to take pressure off our stubborn rearguard. Lady Luck helped BHA gain a well deserved point and keep us on verges of play-offs. Regarding transfer targets, asst coach Nathan Jones said, 'overall the aim is to strengthen because we want to push on. The players have put in a proper shift tonight. We defended particularly well and had a couple of chances. Our extra edge from not travelling proved vital in final minutes, as we finished strongly.'
Kuszczak, Bruno, Greer, Upson, Ward, Ince, Andrews, Forster-Caskey, LuaLua (March), Ulloa, David (Orlandi).
Champ's P27 . W10 D10 L7 . F30 A23 . Pt40 Po8 . W = 37.0% L = 25.9%
Season2 (A) 1/9/12 - W 1-3 ~ Mackail-Smith 2, Greer.
It was early in the second Championship campaign based at Falmer when Albion went north again looking for some away points. Since last springtime our record on the road was; ddl dll dl, including defeat at Turf Moor - see below. Gus Poyet revised that squad from a few months ago, dispensing with Navarro in close season and selling Noone to Cardiff this very week. Brezovan and Calderon were dropped, while those loan players (Mattock, Reyes, Vokes) went elsewhere, so he introduced Kuszczak, Bruno, Bridge and Crofts. Vicente had returned but was injured previously like Buckley. Gus had landed Andrea Orlandi from Swansea just before the transfer deadline and he was available to go onto the bench. Stephen Dobbie (Swansea), David Lopez (Bilbao) and Dean Hammond (loan So'ton) were also signed but would be on board later. Gus now had all round midfield options and another striker to support those up front.
*** match report: Brighton tried to get a foothold from word go at Turf Moor and CMS opened the scoring in visitors favour with a neat strike when Greer chested down a f-k (18min). Albion began to control the game but lost Crofts to injury (37m) and he was replaced by Buckley. Momentum was lost before and after halftime and Clarets sought an equaliser. It came on the hour mark via Greer's head and Burnley had other chances to go ahead. The contest got a tad scrappy and Ref handed out more yellows with the match finely balanced. Kuszczak made a couple of good stops and Seagulls flew up the other end where CMS chance was saved. Within a minute he netted via an overhead kick from a cross by Bruno (77m). Orlandi immediately came on for LuaLua and stamped his skills in midfield with Albion still maintaining 433 as Barnes moved out wide again. Greer completed a useful victory over struggling northern opposition by heading in at an Orlandi corner (88m). Poyet said, 'we played very well and Macca is on fire.' Clarets boss Eddie Howe said, 'we have conceded from three set plays and that is hugely frustrating.'
Kuszczak, Bruno, Greer, El-Abd, Bridge, Crofts (Buckley), Bridcutt, Dicker, Barnes, Mackail-Smith, LuaLua (Orlandi).
Champ's P4 . W2 D1 L1 . F8 A3 . Pt7 Po4 . W = 50% L = 25%
Season1 (A) 6/4/12 - L 1-0.
Easter had arrived and Albion went to visit Clarets place up north on Good Friday. At start of the season many Brighton fans would have settled for just being in the top ten during this stage of the run-in. To occupy a play-off place was stuff of dreams and although away form was dodgy, here we were in sixth. Gus Poyet knew the game inside out but we were all on a massive learning curve in the Championship and competing against clubs with plenty of experience at level two. Anybody could beat anyone else and week by week, threw up such close results in a very competitive division. Poyet was now selecting from almost a complete squad, where Dicker returned from months out with injury and Vicente got selected too after niggling fitness worries. Gus problem was to find a shape that worked on the road and so he dispensed with traditional wingers for starters. BHA appeared a tad narrow with 442 and diamond midfield and marauding wing-backs. A relatively untried front pairing hoped to address shortage of winning goals on travels.
*** match report: Unfortunately it was one of those days and Albion lost to a team merely playing for pride. Burnley snatched a lead via good fortune when a rebound put their striker one on one with Brezovan (23min). Chances came and went for both sides but the score remained fixed throughout. Brighton had plenty of possession, especially in the second period but could not find the net. Gus waited until the hour mark and made a trademark double substitution when introducing Buckley and Barnes. Albion huffed and puffed, couldn't blow grey and miserable Turf Moor down and were derided by hostile home support to boot. Mattock was withdrawn twenty minutes from time and Noone ran up and down left flank. Clarets knew enough to use brutal spoiling tactics on southern softie artistry and petty frustrations began to boil over. Gus took himself off out the back to make sure he did not incur a card from Ref for speaking his mind. It was a bad day at the office and every optimistic away fan also had chocolate egg left on their faces due to excessive comfort eating.
Brezovan, Calderon, Greer, El-Abd, Mattock (Noone), Reyes (Buckley), Dicker, Navarro, Vicente, Mackail-Smith, Vokes (Barnes).
Champ's P41 . W17 D12 L12 . F49 A42 . Pt63 Po6 . W = 41.4% L = 29.2%
* * * * *
Withdean Era: 12 seasons 1999 - 2011
Seasons 4 02/3, 6 04/5, 7 05/6 - Championship.
Withdean era: Burnley v Albion 1-3, 1-1, 1-1 . . . W = 1 D = 2 L = 0
memorable match: Season4 (A) - start of the season and little did we know the turn of events.
Noughties last there: 24/9/05 (A) - Championship.
Last of three unbeaten visits to Turf Moor, all played at level2.
see: Seasons 4, 6, 7 for club & stadium info. Also Martin Hinshelwood & Mark McGhee.
|