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Previous encounters (Fulham )
FULHAM - Home, Falmer Years: Prem 18/19 20/21 22/23-24/25, seasons 8 10 12-14 . . C'ship 14/15-16/17, seasons 4-6. no league meetings in seasons between 2011 to 2014 and 2017. Prem previous encounters home & away: P9 W0 D4 L5 - see Clubs in Archive. Albion V Fulham PL/EFL record @ Amex: W = 2 D = 3 L = 2 manager: Marco Silva (2021) P140 W = 45.0% @ July '24 . experience: results at high level consolidated. Craven Cottage - 25.7k . nickname: Cottagers . shirt: white. Prem/EFL record from 11/12: 9 12 19 P, 17 20 6 / 3 C, 19 P, 4 C, 18 P, 1 C, 10 13 6 @ 6/12/24. Prem best = 9th '12, worst = 19th '14 '19. C21: Prem top ten - 4 times . stayed up - 2 times in bottom six, relegated - '14 '19 '21 . C'ship promo - '01 '18 '20 '22. 24/25 odds at start: top half 11-4, rel 11-2 . sack MS 12/1 . expected to finish: bottom six run in: Arsenal (A), Liv'pool (H), B'mouth (A), Chelsea (H), So'ton (A), Villa (A), Everton (H), Br'ford (A), Man City (H) run in forecast: ?pt > ?pt . max was ? . actual = ? . Po was ? . actual Po = ? Albion v Fulham (H) from 17/18: - 2-2 - 0-0 - 0-1 1-1 . . W = 0 D = 3 L = 1 . F3 A4 scorers: Murray 2 Ferguson. memorable match: Season10 (H) - any point is a good point if it keeps you above the drop zone. note: for away Falmer Years results and reports scroll further below. Season14, 8th Premier League (H) Sat 8/3/25 - tba This reciprocal Mar '25 fixture was the 14th of 19 at home, coming toward the three-quarters milestone (Q3). The reverse game was 3 Dec '24 in the second quarter (Q2) - see away scroll further below. Last term we'd met here during late Oct '23 when again sharing a point apiece. We had lost the away match last season during Mar '24 when conceding three times. At the halfway stage (Q2) we had xpts and they had xpts. Now at this later stage (Q3) we had xpts and they had xpts. Our Prem record at the Amex versus Cottagers was; ddl d - over four elite seasons to date since '18. Lack of victory stands out. Current home form was; W D L F A tba. Visitors away form was: W D L F A tba. At the moment Brighton were xth, while Fulham were xth from x games played. At the halfway stage we were xth and they were xth. In the last three campaigns we'd been 9, 6 & 8 at the halfway stage and finished 9, 6 & 11. Albion were looking to get that first win over this SW London outfit. Their boss had so far ... in the January window. In the FA Cup . Headline news this week was ... * match report: tba day after result stats: ht , goals , poss %-%, on target , off target , corners , fouls , yellows , subs , shape weather: . gate: . MoM: team: 23 Steele 2 Lamptey 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 30 Estupinan 11 Adingra 10 Enciso 22 Mitoma 18 Welbeck subs: bench: 1 Verbruggen 3 Julio 4 Webster 6 Milner 7 March 9 Pedro 15 Moder 20 Baleba 28 Ferguson 34 Veltman 41 Hinshelwood 14 Rutter 17 Minteh 24 Kadioglu 27 Wieffer 33 O'Riley squad: . injured: Prem P28 . W D L . F A . W D L . F A . Pt? Po? = x.xxpt/gm . W = xx% L = xx% Cottagers: Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% hfwy: 14 . 06 04 04 . 21 19 02 . 22 06 = 1.57 . 42.8 28.5 start: 10 . 04 03 03 . 14 13 01 . 15 09 = 1.50 . 40.0 30.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Preston 16pen15 1-1 (A) R3, Birmingham 0-2 (A) R2 FA Cup: Watford (H) R3 Nov: 9th in table, 1pt off 8th at Q1 Season13, 7th Premier League (H) Sun 29/10/23 - D 1-1 ~ Ferguson Brighton & Fulham played in the PL Summer Series held in America during July '23. Today's visitors had beat Brentford 3-2 but lost to Villa 2-0 and fellow London club Chelsea 2-0. Their next friendly was entertaining Hoffenheim 2-1 (H) prior to Prem campaign kickoff. Albion finished 6th (62pts) and the west-London outfit 10th (52pts) last term, giving us a 10pts +ve difference. Visitors were aiming to consolidate this term as a top half club. Our Prem record at the Amex versus Cottagers was; ddl over three elite seasons to date. Lack of an Amex win obviously stands out. We'd 2 fts stats out of those 3 contests on home turf too. This rescheduled Sunday fixture marked end of the start period Q1 and followed Seagulls third Thursday nite Europa League group match. So far we'd W1 D1 L1 with a win & loss at the Amex. Going into this late Oct contest BHA were 7th and Fulham were 14th the Sat nite before. They had spent 46m in the Aug transfer window on 3 buys, plus 2 undisclosed fees and an on-loan signing. Visiting manager Marco Silva was given the brief to secure another top ten place and a return to black & white glory days. Based on previous meetings Brighton were now looking for that very first win hosting Fulham at this level. In the week prior to kickoff Roberto de Zerbi was concerned with a lengthening injury list. Sadly March & Welbeck joined Enciso as long-term injured. * match report: first of all it rained hard. Second of all Albion got swamped in a second-half torrent of end to end aquatic soccer. Seagulls looked good in the first half but flattered to deceive. We missed chance after chance and came to rue those flunks. Ferguson drove in a pass from Gross to open scoring and it appeared flood gates might open too (26mins). But after turnaround visitors were better and made a significant triple subbing around the hour mark. Playmaker Lallana had gone off too as expected which left Seagulls floundeing on a slick surface. Cottagers then levelled via blue & white's mistakes at the back when trying to play out of defence (65mins). De Zerbi threw in more subs as Albion again toiled to hit the mark. It was a washout and Brighton fans weren't singing in the rain either. De Zerbi said we deserved to win, although what you want compared to what you get depends on what you do. And Albion didn't keep a clean sheet, couldn't outscore opponents and had to settle for parity. The level of performance wasn't perhaps near our best coz at times ponderous play only caused stalemate. Also you merely need one mistake for opposition to take advantage from our back to front passing style. But the squad as a whole who are fit enough to play are at least getting game time in trying to gel as a team. The Prem is the peak of footballing ability and clubs we meet have very good players as well. There are no easy matches and a win has to be earned, whatever you think about deserving such things. stats: ht 1-0, goals 26-65, poss 71%-29%, on target 7-5, off target 11-5, corners 7-3, fouls 12-8, yellows 0-3, subs 5-5, shape 343-4231 weather: rain . gate: 31,550 away 2845 . MoM: Webster - solid defending team: 23 Steele 4 Webster 5 Dunk 3 Julio 24 Adingra 20 Baleba 8 Dahoud 22 Mitoma 13 Gross 28 Ferguson 14 Lallana subs: 31 Fati 58 (14), 40 Buonanotte 71 (20), 11 Gilmour 71 (8), 34 Veltman 71 (24), 9 Pedro 78 (28) bench: 1 Verbruggen (gk) 6 Milner 29 van Hecje 41 Hinshelwood squad: 15 Moder . injured: 2 Lamptey 7 March 10 Enciso 18 Welbeck 30 Estupinan Prem P10 . W3 D2 L1 . F14 A9 . W2 D0 L2 . F9 A10 . Pt17 Po7 = 1.70pt/gm . W = 50% L = 30% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% total: 38 . 13 08 17 . 55 61 -06 . 47 13 = 1.23 . 34.2 44.7 3qtr: 29 . 11 05 13 . 43 44 -01 . 38 12 = 1.31 . 37.9 44.8 hfwy: 19 . 06 03 10 . 26 34 -08 . 21 13 = 1.10 . 31.5 52.6 start: 10 . 03 03 04 . 09 16 -07 . 12 14 = 1.20 . 30.0 40.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Liverpool 1-1 (H) 2-1 (A) s-f, Everton 6pen7 1-1 (A) q-f, Ipswich 1-3 (A) R4, Norwich 2-1 (H) R3, Spurs 5pen3 1-1 (H) R2 FA Cup: Newcastle 0-2 (H) R4, Rotherham 1-0 (H) R3 Oct: 14th in table, 1pt off 10th at Q1. Dec: 13th, 4pts from 10th at Q2. Mar: 12th, 1pt off 11th at Q3. May: finished 13th, 1pt from 12th at Q4. 23/24 odds at start: top six 20/1, top half 7-2, bottom half 1-7 . sack MS 8/1 . expected to finish: bottom six run in from 30/3/24: Sheff Utd 3-3 (A), Forest 3-1 (A), N'castle 0-1 (H), West Ham 0-2 (A), Liverpool 1-3 (H), Palace 1-1 (H), Brentford 0-0 (A), Man City 0-4 (H), Luton 2-4 (A) run in forecast @ 29/3/24: 38pt > 50pts . max was 65 . Actual = 47 . Po was 12th . Actual po = 13th Season12, 6th Premier League (H) Sat 18/2/23 - L 0-1 We'd gotten two draws from merely two intermittent PL home fixtures versus Fulham to date - in Sept '18 and Jan '21 (seasons 8&10). Add three previous but sequentially conclusive C'ship results (seasons 4-6), to give a continuation point for today (see home scroll below). We might surmise from recent history that staying in the Prem is harder than actually getting there, although this observation is based on fine margins registered via both club's various Falmer years campaigns. Who could break deadlock now and go for broke? Albion head coach Roberto de Zerbi was earning a reputation for bold and imaginative set-ups & tactics since working with the wider squad from September '22. He took a large BHA group to Dubai, while Fulham went to the Algarve, for respective clubs warm-weather camps during the World Cup finals back in December. And since then both outfits were on rolls of ok results and holding positions inside the top ten at the campaign halfway stage. *** match report: people say, 'we deserved to win.' With pasing of time the only thing tangible is the recorded result. And in single score games the outcome will only go one way. Albion got sucker-punched in the 88th minute after dominating possession and racking up many credible chances to put this contest to bed before teatime. But it ended with yet another home fail to score stat and the clean sheet went west to boot. An old domestic hoodoo of not scoring at the Amex had resurfaced, almost giving lie to ongoing super-hype about being top six contenders, on course for Europe and winning the FA Cup as well this term. Pie in the sky? Well, Seagulls flapping anyway. It seemed like a reality check after 90+ minutes of tedium from watching how not to put the ball into opponents net. But credit to the away outfit who did a job on us, combined with a weak Ref who bought their unsportsmanlike shenanigans which disrupted flow of play. Frustration on three sides of the stadium developed as the atmosphere crashed to ground level. And De Zerbi was sent off by Ref in the tunnel at end of the game. Brighton fans took it on the chin (you know the feeling) although it did seem like something of an old habit returning in '23 after five previous formative Prem seasons at Falmer. They say if you can't win don't get beat. It's a very hard lesson to learn. stats: ht 0-0, goal 88, poss 65%-35%, on 7-2, off 14-3, corners 10-2, fouls 12-14, yellows 0-5, subs 3-2, shape 4231-4231 weather: cloudy . gate: 31,619, away 2961 . MoM: Dunk - pretty solid. team: 1 Sanchez 34 Veltman 4 Webster 5 Dunk 30 Estupinan 7 March 13 Gross 10 Mac Allister 25 Caicedo 22 Mitoma 28 Ferguson. subs: 2 Lamptey 62 (30), 40 Buonanotte 73 (4), 21 Undav 73 (28) bench: 23 Steele 29 van Hecke 19 Sarmiento 20 Enciso 26 Ayari 71 Hinshelwood injured: 6 Colwill 14 Lallana 18 Welbeck 27 Gilmour . squad: 49 Moran Prem: P22 . W5 D2 L4 . F17 A11 . W5 D3 L4 . F22 A18 . Pt35 Po7 = 1.59pt/gm . W = 45.4% L = 31.8% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% total: 38 . 15 07 16 . 55 53 02 .. 52 10 = 1.36 . 39.4 42.1 3qtrs: 29 . 11 06 12 . 39 40 -01 . 39 10 = 1.34 . 37.9 41.3 hfwy: 19 . 09 04 06 . 32 28 04 .. 31 06 = 1.63 . 47.3 31.5 start: 10 . 03 03 04 . 16 20 -04 . 12 11 = 1.20 . 30.0 40.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Crawley 2-0 (A) R2. FA Cup: Man Utd 3-1 (A) q-f . Leeds 2-0 (H) R5 . Sunderland 2-3 (A) 1-1 (H) R4 . Hull 0-2 (A) R3. Oct: 11th in table, 3pts off 6th at Q1. Jan: 6th, 2pts off 5th at halfway stage Q2. Apr: 10th, 0pts above 11th at three quarters stage Q3. May: 10th, 7pts behind 9th at Q4. 22/23 odds at start: rel 5-4, bottom 5/1, stay up 4-7 . Sack MS 8/1 . Expected to finish: in bottom three. run in from 8/4/23: West Ham 0-1 (H), Everton 1-3 (A), Leeds 2-1 (H), Villa 1-0 (A), Man City 1-2 (H), Liverpool 1-0 (A), Leicester 5-3 (H), Soton 0-2 (A), Palace 2-2 (H), Man Utd 2-1 (A) run in forecast @ 7/4/23: 39pt > 51pts . Max was 66 . Actual = 52 . Po was 10th . Actual po = 10th Season11 (5th) not Premier League. Season10, 4th Premier League (H) Wed 27/1/21 - 0-0. Coronavirus attendance restrictions - lockdown 3, no fans (Tier 3/4/5 = 0, 2 = 2000, 1 = 4000). Match played behind closed doors. This fixture began second half of the season and kicked off reciprocal matches against clubs we'd met once to date. Cottagers had won the C'ship playoff final last term to quickly regain Prem status once more. They hoped to consolidate as regular elite members from west London, which Albion were simultaneously attempting, although backed by our extended Sussex catchment area. Previous meetings had mainly been at level two last decade but to some degree represented comparable recent positions in the footy pyramid. The situation now was a bit more than just to determine which club could kick on and be seen as a pukka Prem standard outfit. It involved a dogfight to keep clear of the drop zone and inevitable relegation. This was a six pointer in every meaning of the phrase, or at least that's how it felt to frustrated Brighton fans stuck at home. Three points would mean a first Amex win this term and open a bigger gap to the bottom three clubs. * match report: Albion kept a clean sheet but unfortunately failed to score in a goalless encounter. Hosts were good value for creating chances and goal-scoring opportunities but could not make the net bulge. And so this match registered a ninth draw from twenty fixtures played, resulting in a points per game index of less than one. At this rate BHA would achieve merely 34pts - too little to ensure staying up. Graham Potter took the positives in characteristic level-headed response, although probably wondered how to break these stalemates & deadlocks by tweaking his line up and/or tactics on any given day. Those fine margins of Prem clashes to date were again balanced for Seagulls and somehow a way to edge a win or tip toward avoiding defeat was much needed now. If Albion didn't eventually obtain 36pt as from our successful second PL survival campaign, the modus operandi of Potter ball could then be discredited. Stats: goals nil, poss 50%-50%, on target 5-3, off target 11-7, o/s 3-0, corners 10-0, fouls 10-14, yellows 2-1, subs 1-3, shape 352-343 . Weather: wet Team: 26 Sanchez, 3 White, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 34 Veltman, 13 Gross, 8 Bissouma, 20 March, 9 Maupay, 10 Mac Allister (24 Propper 83), 11 Trossard . Bench: 31 Walton, 33 Burn, 15 Moder, 17 Alzate, 14 Lallana,22 Tau, 29 Zeqiri, 7 Connolly . Squad: 19 Izquierdo, 41 Sanders . Injured: 2 Lamptey, 17 Jahanbakhsh, 18 Welbeck . MoM: Dunk. Prem: P20 . W0 D6 L4 . F10 A15 . W3 D3 L4 . F12 A14 . Pt18 Po17 = 0.90pt/gm. Wins = 15.0%, Loss = 40.0% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% Total: 38 . 05 13 20 . 27 53 -26 . 28 18 = 0.73 . 13.1 52.6 3qtrs: 29 . 05 11 13 . 22 36 -14 . 26 18 = 0.89 . 17.2 44.8 Hfwy: 19 . 02 07 10 . 15 27 -12 . 13 18 = 0.68 . 10.5 52.6 Start: 10 . 02 01 07 . 11 19 -08 . 07 17 = 0.70 . 20.0 70.0 - Scott Parker. EFL Cup: Brentford 3-0 (A) R4, Sheff Wed 2-0 (H) R3, Ipswich 0-1 (A) R2. FA Cup: Burnley 0-3 (H) R4, QPR 0-2 (A) R3. Nov: when the first quarter finished, Fulham were 17th in the Prem. Jan: at the halfway stage Cottagers were 18th and in the d-z. Mar: threequarters completed and still 18th, stuck in the bottom three. May: Prem finish eighteenth and relegated after failure to escape d-z. Season9 (3rd) not Premier League. Season8, 2nd Premier League (H) Sat 1/9/18 - 2-2 ~ Murray 2. Into the second month of the second PL term and this match was the second home fixture. Additions to the first team squad at start of the season were, Martin Montoya, Ali Jahanbakhsh, Yves Bissouma, Bernardo da Silva, Leon Balogun, Florin Andone and homegrown keepers David Button & Jason Steele. Also deadline day signing Dan Burn was out on loan. The 25 man squad was just decided, while Hemed & Norwood had gone on loan in the Championship. Results to date were; Watford 2-0 (A), Man Utd 3-2 (H) & Liverpool 1-0 (A). So the Amex was required to become a fortress once more, to repel raiders and thus store maximum points for survival. On the day the starting eleven fielded only one new signing, most of the rest being on the bench. * match report: Albion were two down around the hour mark, having missed a first half penalty and any other number of opportunities to take the lead. Just prior to halftime Cottagers shocked the home crowd as sun beat down on a pristine pitch. Seagulls defence stood still and were carved open too easily (43min). Into the second period struggling Gross was replaced by Bissouma. Moments later visitors got their second following mistakes from Dunk & Ryan, while Duffy tried to clear the rebound off the line (62min). Brighton huffed & puffed and pulled one back on the counter when Murray slotted in a pass from Knockaert (67min). Hughton next made a double swap and Seagulls went to orthodox 442. More drama unfolded when a bizarre handball was spotted by lino and Ref awarded BHA another pen. Murray duly did the biz (84min). Hughton said, 'Glenn is experienced and used to being in that position. There was a lot of pressure but he put it away emphatically.' Brighton fans were grateful the veteran marksman turned around a two goal deficit against law of averages. Murray was soon to be 35 but would keep his place as top scorer on this form. And the big money signings had collectively yet to prove being worth that summer's enormous outlay. Stats; shape 4411-442, h-t 0-1, goals 67,84-43,62, poss 41%-59%, on target 5-5, off target 7-3, blocks 3-2, o/s 2-4, crosses 29-10, corners 7-1, tackles 19-14, fouls 12-14, yellows 3-3, subs 3-3 . MoM Murray . Gate 30,526, away 2982 . Weather - warm & sunny. 1 Ryan, 22 Montoya, 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 11 Knockaert (16 Jahanbakhsh 74), 6 Stephens Y45, 24 Propper Y52 (9 Locadia 74), 20 March, 13 Gross (8 Bissouma 60), 17 Murray Y59 . Subs - 27 Button, 30 Bernardo, 14 Balogun, 7 Kayal. Prem P4 . W1 D1 L0 . F5 A4 . W0 D0 L2 . F0 A3 . Pt4 Po12 = 1.00pt/gm. Wins = 25%, Loss = 50% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% Total; 38 . 07 05 26 . 34 81 -47 . 26 19 = 0.68 . 18.4 68.4 - Parker 3qtrs: 29 . 04 05 20 . 28 66 -38 . 17 19 = 0.58 . 13.7 68.9 - Ranieri Hfwy; 19 . 02 05 12 . 17 43 -26 . 11 19 = 0.57 . 10.5 63.1 - Ranieri Start; 10 . 01 02 07 . 11 28 -17 . 05 18 = 0.50 . 10.0 70.0 - Jokanovic. EFL Cup; 4th rnd - Man City 2-0 (A), 3rd rnd - Millwall 1-3 (A), 2nd rnd south - Exeter 2-0 (H) FA Cup; 3rd rnd - Oldham 1-2 (H) SJ record; to Aug 18 - P130 W63 D34 L35 Wins = 48.4% Aug; anticipated to step up after a strong lev2 challenge. Infrastructure there but is the overall squad quality? October; not where they would like to be given the expectation as an ex-PL outfit. Still in EFL Cup. New Year; in deep drop zone trouble. Knocked out of FA Cup at home by average L2 side. March; new manager but appear dead, if not completely buried. Season7 (1st) - not Premier League. FULHAM away; Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L% 24/25 - 2 2 2 . 7 6 1 . 8 10 = 1.33 44.4 . 33.3 33.3 - Marco Silva @ 28/11/24 23/24 - 4 6 09 . 24 37 -13 . 18 13 = 0.94 38.2 . 21.0 47.3 - Marco Silva 22/23 - 7 2 10 . 24 24 00 . 23 10 = 1.21 44.2 . 36.8 52.6 - Marco Silva 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 3 9 07 . 18 25 -07 . 18 18 = 0.94 64.2 . 15.7 36.8 - Scott Parker 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 1 2 16 . 12 45 -33 . 05 19 = 0.26 19.2 . 05.2 84.2 - S Parker, C Ranieri & S Jokanovic. 14/15 to 17/18 - not Premier League (see below, seasons 4-6). 13/14 - 4 2 13 . 16 47 -31 . 14 19 = 0.73 43.7 . 21.0 68.4 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. FULHAM PREVIOUS PREM: Prem points: 52, 43, 32, - - - -, 26, -, 28, -, 52, 47 recent Managers; Martin Jol (11-14), Felix Magath (2014), Kit Symons (14-15), Slavisa Jokanovic (16-18), Claudio Ranieri (18-19). Scott Parker (19-21), Scott Parker (19-21) - W = 46.7% @ Aug '20 . Experience: rookie who believed in career as player. Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% 23/24 - 13 09 17 . 55 61 -6 . 47 13 = 1.23 . 34.2 44.7 - Marco Silva @ 20/5/24 Mid div finsish but within a whisker of making top ten again against several middling clubs. 22/23 - 15 07 16 . 55 53 02 . 52 10 = 1.36 . 39.4 42.1 - Marco Silva @ 28/5/23 Confounded pundits by making top ten and never in big trouble like of old at home or away. 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 5 13 20 . 27 53 -26 . 28 18 = 0.73 . 13.1 52.6 - Scott Parker @ 24/5/21 Cottagers could not score enough goals to win matches and went straight back down to the C'ship. 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 7 05 26 . 34 81 -47 . 26 19 = 0.68 . 18.4 68.4 - Scott Parker Came into the division as big spenders but it wasn't enough from word go and past history in the Prem got borne out. 14/15 - 17/18 not Premier League, see below seasons 4-6. 13/14 - 9 05 24 . 40 85 -45 . 32 19 = 0.84 . 23.6 63.1 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. Writing was on the Cottage wall during mid winter and provoked a change of manager. He did well enough thru the run in but not sufficiently to prevent them dropping into level two. 12/13 - 11 10 17 . 49 60 -11 . 43 12 = 1.13 . 28.9 44.7 11/12 - 14 10 14 . 48 51 -03 . 52 09 = 1.36 . 36.8 36.8 Knockouts from 11/12; FA Cup - 4th rnd, 4th, 4th, 4th, 3rd, 5th, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 4th, 4th, q-f, 4th EFL Cup - 3rd rnd, 2nd, 4th, 4th, 3rd, 3rd, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 4th, 3rd, 2nd, s-f, 3rd. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Fulham home, Falmer years 2011 to 2017 - Championship. C'ship 14/15-16/17 . Seasons 4-6. Albion v Cottagers (H) from 11/12: -, -, -, 1-2, 5-0, 2-1 . . W = 2 D = 0 L = 1 memorable match: Season5 (H) - an Amex evening with a nap hand. Season6 (H) Championship 26/11/16 - 2-1 ~ Baldock, Murray. Going into this fixture Brighton were second in the division and clear of clubs in p-o positions. Like last term Seagulls were flying high and unbeaten in 11, following a useful beginning to this campaign. Home form was good and the bedrock of building for promotion once more. It was a case of consistency and maintaining advantage at the Amex with solid displays, clean sheets and of course scoring goals. In build up to the game Chris Hughton lost his assistant Chris Calderwood to Villa immediately after that match at the Amex last week. But just prior to this contest it was announced that Paul Trollope has been appointed as his no.2 now. On the day another great crowd attended despite cold weather and ongoing rail travel problems. * match report: Albion went a goal behind just like previously against Villa. From a corner, visitors centre back headed goalward and Stockdale was on the deck when the ball was cleared. But lino waved it had crossed the line (18min) and from then on Cottagers bossed the first half. During the second period it was a different story as locals found more rhythm and a bite to their game. Baldock equalised with a stunning volley following a f-k into the area (52min). The match became more competitive and Ref had to break up a melee after Sidwell got involved in argy bargy on the touch line. Cards were shown but it was game on to the death. Seagulls deservedly took the lead when unmarked Murray clipped home Baldock's long cross (79min). Hughton made a couple of subs, initially putting Skalak on and later Norwood to bolster midfield in final ten minutes or so. Brighton saw the comeback out for three points and maintained a gap above play-off positions. Hughton said, 'I feel the team closest to Newcastle will have a great chance of promotion.' Brighton fans went home looking at stats on phones, which showed the Amex was becoming a fortress and a place to see super goals scored to boot. Stockdale, Bruno, Duffy, Dunk,Bong, Knockaert (Skalak), Sidwell, Stephens, Murphy, Baldock (Norwood), Murray Stats; h-t 0-1, goals 52 79-18, poss 41%-59%, on target 4-5, off target 4-3, blocks 4-6, corners 3-7, o/s 7-2, fouls 14-12, yellows 3-5, subs 2-3 . att 29,445. Champ's P18 . W11 D5 L2 . F28 A11. Pt38 Po2 . W = 61.1% L = 11.1% Season5 (H) 15/4/16 - 5-0 - Hemed 3, Bruno, Knockaert. It was a Friday night and those old Cottagers took that short trip from the one-time big black smoke to visit a world-class Amex stadium. Things were a tad different these days, Albion were on a chase for promotion, while the black & white metropolitan outfit was out with the washing. Brighton were in a race for one of two auto-promo spots and attempting to hit a target in excess of 88pts to beat the current top two clubs. It would be a battle of attrition and every point would count at the death. The good news was this was winnerble ... * match report: Seagulls goals went in at 29, 34, 54, 79 & 87 minutes to record a comprehensive victory and clean sheet to boot. Hemed scored initially from the spot after Wilson was clattered. Then he headed home a ball from Knockaert to put BHA in control prior to turnaround. Bruno got his name on scoring lists early in the second period with a low drive. Then Hemed completed the hat-trick by tapping in after Stephens did the donkey work. The little French winger finally added to his personal total when curling a dig into the top corner to seal a fantastic five goal romp. Hughton had luxury of putting subs on late to freshen up attacking options and keep visitors on the back foot. He said, 'we came in leading 2-0 where possibly didn't deserve it. Certainly we were better in the second half and made it exciting to watch for supporters.' Fans went home very happy and wondering what fate next had in store for 'em home & away. Stats; poss 42%-58%, on target 11-3, off target 8-5, corners 8-3, fouls 10-9, yellows 1-3. Stockdale, Bruno, Goldson, Dunk, Rosenior, Knockaert, Stephens, Kayal, Skalak (LuaLua), Wilson (Murphy), Hemed (Sidwell). Champ's P42 . W22 D15 L5 . F63 A39 . Pt81 Po3 . W = 52.3% L = 11.9% Season4 (H) 29/11/14 - L 1-2 ~ Bent. It had taken a good few years for Albion to entertain Cottagers and very many Brighton fans hadn't even been around in those old Goldstone Ground days of yore. So perhaps playing the ex-Prem outfit was no great shakes for some supporters at the Amex now - except that both clubs badly needed the three points! The Championship was as unpredictable as ever and Seagulls were one of any number of sides flying low over the drop zone. Sami Hyypia had backing of Tony Bloom to turn things from downward to upward but this was now a must win game. Beforehand Seagulls home form was W2 D5 L2 F9 A9 which was kinda symmetrical but merely represented 11pts from 27, or a 41% success rate. Sami Hyypia had been a proponent of squad rotation but in current circumstances still needed to find & field his best settled eleven. On the day, new on-loan signing Darren Bent made his debut. A 29k crowd attended. *** match report: Albion forced four corners in opening moments but failed to convert them, or further first half superiority, into goals. LuaLua was injured with little over 15mins gone and later replaced by Ince - so BHA reshaped to more of a diamond in m-f. Soon during the all deciding second period, Colunga put Bent thru and he duly shot past the flat-footed keeper (52min). But with a crucial lead established, Seagulls sat back on the nest. Whites then came forward to press on the break and equalised as defending evaporated (62min). Not much later visitors took the lead with a deflected punt as again marking went missing (77min). Hyypia responded by immediately - by sending March on in his first game this term after injury. Albion faded as an attacking force and Hyypia was bereft of other ideas or a planB. At the death Colunga was sent off for two bookables but the game was well & truly up long before stoppage time - Albion dropped into the bottom three. Hyypia said, 'the fans have a right to be unhappy. We can concentrate on what we are doing and try to make everything better.' To some fans that sort of resignation was similar to the attitude from the team when things did not go right on the pitch. The season was apparently already going down the toilet. Stockdale, Bruno, Hughes, Dunk, J Bennett, E Bennett (March), Forster-Caskey, Gardner, Colunga, Bent, LuaLua (Ince). Champ's P19 . W3 D9 L7 . F21 A25 . Pt18 Po22 . W = 15.7% L = 36.8% Seasons 1-3 - not C'ship. * * * * * Withdean Era - from 1999 to 2011, no meetings.
Fulham - Away, Falmer Years: Prem 18/19 20/21 22/23-23/24, seasons 8 10 12-13 . . C'ship 14/15-16/17, seasons 4-6. Albion record @ Cottagers: W = 3 D = 1 L = 4 Fulham v Albion (A) from 17/18: - 4-2 - 0-0 - 2-1 3-0 3-1 . . W = 0 D = 1 L = 4 . F4 A12 scorers: Murray 2 Mac Allister Baleba. memorable match: Season8 (A) - a game of two halves and a lesson in having the right mindset. note: for home Falmer Years results & reports scroll further up. Season14, 8th Premier League (A) Thur 5/12/24 - 3-1 ~ Baleba Fulham continued as a mid-div outfit last term. They were s-f contenders in the EFL Cup and reached R4 in the FA Cup. Cottagers pre-season friendlies; QPR 4-0 (H), Watford 6-1 (H), Benfica 0-1 (A), Sevilla 1-2 (H), Hoffenheim 0-2 (A). This mid-week Prem fixture was the 7th of 19 away, coming in the second quarter (Q2). The reverse game was 8 Mar '25 at end of the three-quarters stage (Q3) - see home scroll further above. We had drawn the home match last season during Oct '23 and again failed to beat 'em. Last term we'd met here during early March '24 when comprehensively beaten. We finished 11th 48pts, while F'ham were 13th 47pts. Now we had 23pts and they had 19pts in the period up to halfway thru this campaign. Our Prem record at Craven Cottage versus Fulham was; ldl l - in four recent Prem seasons to date since '18. We had not won there. They were again hoping to improve on their elite placing. Current away form was; W3 D1 L2 F10 A8 - three wins. Hosts home form was: W3 D1 L2 F10 A11 - three wins. At the moment Brighton were 4th, while Fulham were 10th from 13 games played. In the last three campaigns we'd been 9, 6 & 8 at the halfway stage (Q2). Albion were looking to avoid another defeat in SW London. F'ham had 3 players on nations duty at Euro 24 finals in Germany during June. Their boss Marco Silva had spent around 95m on 5 new talents, plus an on loan player prior to the big kickoff and before the August window shut. A decent outlay and declaration of intent to raise their game. In the EFL Cup Cottagers suffered a bizarre ko at Preston in R3 by 16pen15 after drawing 1-1. Headline news this week was Hurzeler got a ban for picking up yet another yellow card - latest last Friday at the Amex. * match report: Albion started and finished badly, which resulted in yet another beating at Craven Cottage. First Verbruggen played out from the back straight to oppositions striker - one-nil (4mins). Despite much of possession we went into the interval a goal behind. Before the hour mark Baleba equalised from a low pop (56mins). But then while subs were being gathered hosts netted their second from a corner - going in off O'Riley (79mins). Next they went two ahead when beating Verbruggen a third time (87mins). All the pretty footy in the world couldn't get us anything up there once more. This squad doesn't like a scrap and wants to be left undisturbed to put moves together. Hello... this is the Prem and teams will pick up on our failings and exploit them. Brighton needs to toughen up and get in the game. Dunk was moaning about being pushed as the ball came over for their second goal. He has 251 Prem apps... come on buddy, spare us that sob story. BHA are a work in progress and inconsistent to say the least. We see good soccer played in patches, maybe for much of one half. But goals win games and stopping opposition scoring more to boot. What you might think you deserve ain't always what you get. Nobody is gonna roll over because we are in a false position having beaten likes of City and lately basking in that fake floodlight. You are only as good as your last result. stats: ht 1-0, goals 4,79,87-56, poss 44%-56%, on target 2-3, off target 4-10, corners 5-6, fouls 7-8, yellows 2-2, subs 5-5, shape 4231-3421 weather: rain . gate: 26k . MoM: ? team: 1 Verbruggen 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 3 Julio 11 Adingra 27 Wieffer 33 O'Riley 20 Baleba 30 Estupinan 22 Mitoma 9 Pedro subs: 2 Lamptey 72 (29), 28 Ferguson 81 (9), 14 Rutter 81 (33), 17 Minteh 81 (11), 8 Gruda 86 (27) bench: 23 Steele 15 Moder 26 Ayari 44 McConville squad: 4 Webster 6 Milner 7 March 10 Enciso 18 Welbeck . injured: 24 Kadioglu 34 Veltman 41 Hinshelwood Prem P14 . W3 D4 L0 . F12 A9 . W3 D1 L3 . F11 A11 . Pt23 Po5 = 1.64pt/gm . W = 42.8% L = 21.4% Season13, 7th Premier League (A) Sat 2/3/24 - L 3-0 Brighton came here following a FA Cup R5 tie defeat at Wolves in midweek. It was now mid-season and BHA were inside the top ten as a middle rank outfit. Since joining the elite, Albion had finished 15, 17, 15, 16, 9, 6, while Cottagers were 19, 18, 10. So far hosts habitual home record was - W7 D1 L5 F23 A15. Our Prem record at Craven Cottage versus Fulham was; ldl - in three recent Prem seasons to date. No victories is the most obvious failing. We also found it hard to score goals for any sort of positive result there. In the January transfer window no big business was done in the whole Prem, clubs being wary of fair play rules & regs. Current away form was; W4 D3 L6 F22 A25 - clearly in need of some positive improvement. At the moment in early March Brighton were 7th, while Fulham were 12th from 26 PL games played. Hosts had changed managers twice during our Prem years, tho seemed stable enough at the mo with Silva at the helm. Based on previous meetings Brighton were looking for a first win at Fulham. Albion were away yet again next week on the 7th - at Roma in the Europa League last 16 ko round. Nevertheless De Zerbi was expected to put out a strong side today, irrespective of a long injury list. * match report: Fulham continued to be one of Albion's bogey sides when completing a 3-0 win to see off hapless visitors. It all went wrong from the start and defensive errors cost two goals scored in the first half (21 & 32 mins). De Zerbi changed flank players at halftime and asked for a response. Albion were better during the second period but lacked a cutting edge. Into stoppage hosts broke away again to net their third (91mins). De Zerbi was unhappy with this performance and could see form tailing off and the season becoming a slog just to get through remaining games in the league. Brighton's results were in & out to say very least and scores swung from good to bad and back again at regular intervals. We almost let in as many goals as scored and were settling into mid table mediocrity. There was serious speculation about De Zerbi leaving for a big club in summer, which played on supporters minds a little more these days. There was a huge UEL knockout ahead that some felt had become a distraction from day to day Prem duties. The proverbial learning curve of four competitions proving too difficult for small squads to endure appeared a reality. Seagulls were inexperienced as a collective, having many players struggling to get up to speed for league & cups. Cracks developed in match-day squads due to injuries from early in the season and in many respects just got worse. Brighton's regular low key January transfer window policy resumed from New Year and here we go again. Next term some of the squad will be regarded as pensionable veterans, while many youngsters still won't have gotten enough apps to be approaching their prime years. There is a gulf between age groups which Brighton fans hope will be addressed during the close season. Does Europe matter next year? Answers to Tony, Paul & co. stats: ht 2-0, goals 21,32,91, poss 29%-71%, on target 5-5, off target 7-10, corners 2-6, fouls 16-10, yellows 1-2, subs 5-5, shape 4231-3421 weather: showers . gate: 24,460, away 2689. MoM: ? team: 23 Steele 34 Veltman 5 Dunk 4 Webster 2 Lamptey 20 Baleba 29 van Hecke 30 Estupinan 14 Lallana 28 Ferguson 10 Enciso subs: 24 Adingra 45 (2), 31 Fati 45 (10), 13 Gross 59 (5), 40 Buonanotte 59 (14), 15 Moder 78 (20) bench: 1 Verbruggen 3 Julio 18 Welbeck 19 Barco squad: 47 Baker-Boaitey. ban: 11 Gilmour injured: 6 Milner 7 March 9 Pedro 22 Mitoma 41 Hinshelwood Prem P27 . W6 D6 L1 . F27 A16 . W4 D3 L7 . F22 A28 . Pt39 Po9 = 1.44pt/gm . W = 37.0% L = 29.6% Season12, 6th Premier League (A) 30/8/22 - L 2-1 ~ Mac Allister An extra summer trip into central London this term was a bonus for Brighton fans, given no further visit into metropolitan outer reaches of relegated Watford via road or rail. Mind you those heady days at the Cottage during promo-chasing C'ship campaigns (see away scroll below) were somehow later chilled by Prem returns. We'd been hammered there in Jan '19 but had retained winter stalemate when turning up again in Dec '20 (seasons 8&10). There was all to play for now and after getting great results across the wider capital last season, summer fair-weather fans said; 'bring it on.' By August Albion had sold Yves Bissouma (Spurs 25m) and Marc Cucurella (Chelsea 60m). We signed Julio Enciso (Paraguay) and Levi Colwill on loan from Blues. Deniz Undav, Kaoru Mitoma & Kacper Kozlowski also rejoined the squad from RUSG loans last term. Then Pervis Estupinan (Villarreal 15m) penned a 4yr deal. By close of the transfer window Clarke (Middlesbro 3m) & Maupay (Everton 15m) had also gone. In contrast Fulham spent 27m by start of the season, next added men ongoing thru the Aug window to its closing, hoping this time around to actually stay in the div. Shane Duffy had joined them too on a season's loan from Seagulls during mid month. * match report: top of the league? You're 'avin a larf! Yes, Albion could have headed the Prem table for at least 24 hours with victory here. But no, it was more like left right up the swanee - on an evening with that metropolitan sinking feeling by the muddy Thames. Putney Bridge was a bridge too far for lacklustre Seagulls, who put in a below par performance from the very start. After a goalless first half hosts went two up (48 & 55mins) and visitors were chasing the game and rowing against the proverbial tide and all. So Potter threw in three subs, pumped bilges and refloated around the hour mark. Then Mac Allister scored a penaty when Ref was told by VAR to review on screen (66min). Travellers tried to find an equaliser in the final third, both dimensionally and chronologically as the clocked ticked toward time added on. But the game was pretty much up, hosts had floated their boat and we had sunk without a trace. And it's not often home support was more excited than visiting BHA fans these days. Perhaps our new 'crimson' away strip was to blame - a hideous colour on a night with no hiding place. At least travelling fans wouldn't be home too late, although reliving that nightmare in fretful sleep rather than table-topping sweet dreams would be another downer. stats: ht 0-0, goals 48,55-60, poss 40%-60%, on 3-4, off 7-3, corners 3-3, fouls 9-11, yellows 2-1, subs 2-4, shape 4231-352 weather: mild evening . gate: 22,224 (away 2230) . MoM: n/a team: 1 Sanchez, 34 Veltman, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 7 March, 10 Mac Allister, 8 Mwepu, 25 Caicedo, 30 Estupinan, 11 Trossard, 13 Gross. subs: 18 Welbeck (8) 63, 22 Mitoma (30) 63, 2 Lamptey (34) 63, 21 Undav (25) 79. bench: 23 Steele (gk), 6 Colwill, 17 Alzate, 29 van Hecke, 20 Enciso. injured: 14 Lallana, 15 Moder, 19 Sarmiento . squad: 28 Ferguson. Prem: P5 . W1 D1 L0 . F1 A0 . W2 D0 L1 . F5 A3 . Pt10 Po4 = 2.00pt/gm . W = 60% L = 20% Season11 (5th) - not Premier League. Season10, 4th Premier League (A) Wed 16/12/20 - 0-0. Revised covid precautions: London region @ Tier 3 = 0 fans. The match was originally scheduled to be played without a crowd attending due to coronavirus restrictions under lockdown2. Then the regional tier system was introduced for limited home fan numbers at venues in the second, lower (T2), category of high risk. On day of kickoff London became very high risk (T3) - so, no crowd allowed. Albion had gotten good results at Craven Cottage in C'ship days (see scroll below) but were hammered here last time in the Prem. On the basis we now had vital extra experience from travels at this level, incurring defeat from such a previous game of two halves was thought probably unlikely. But proof of the proverbial post-lockdown pandemic pudding is in the goal-scoring and essentially by not conceding either. And Albion badly required to gather essential points this winter month to get out of the bottom six and secure a required berth in mid table. So was this regarded as a six pointer, a relegation clash or merely an exercise in shooting practice? Time would tell. * match report: Guess what? Yeah, stalemate prevailed from beginning to end. Lallana had a goal disallowed for handball by Welbeck just before he hit the ball in and VAR also chalked off a pen appeal by hosts later. Webster nodded an attempt on to the bar, whilst up the other end Sanchez did good to pull off a double save and keep a clean sheet to boot. Seagulls played in blue & white but this wasn't exactly lucky for them on the night either. The overall display was competent but lacked a cutting edge against fairly flat opponents, denied their fans attending under T3 covid rules & regs. Potter was pleased with things generally, although aware squad management was vital at this time of year with a full programme in progress. It was noticeable he didn't put on a sub striker but instead preserved his 2 best on field players to be fit for vital clashes soon to come. At end of the day Brighton fans were resolved to staying above the drop zone for a while. As long as we were still there into '21 we'd take that as a positive going forward. The table doesn't lie after all is said and done. Stats: goals nil, poss 46%-54%, on target 4-4, off target 5-5, o/s 1-2, corners 1-8, fouls 15-11, yellows 1-0, subs 3-3 . Weather: dry. Team: 26 Sanchez, 2 Lamptey (34 Veltman 78), 3 White, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 20 March, 17 Alzate, 8 Bissouma, 14 Lallana (13 Gross 86), 11 Trossard (16 Jahanbakhsh 78), 18 Welbeck . Bench: 23 Steele, 33 Burn, 7 Connolly, 9 Maupay. Squad: 1 Ryan, 10 Mac Allister, 19 Izquierdo, 24 Propper, 29 Zeqiri, 30 Bernardo . Injured: 21 Andone . MoM: Dunk Prem: P13 . W0 D3 L3 . F6 A10 . W2 D2 L3 . F9 A11 . Pt11 Po16 = 0.84pt/gm. Wins = 15.3%, Loss = 46.1% Season9 (3rd) - not Premier League. Season8, 2nd Premier League (A) Tuesday 29/1/19 - L 4-2 ~ Murray 2. This fixture was the third and last PL away match in January, apart from the trip to Bournemouth for that traditional FA Cup tie on the first Saturday after New Year. Albion's away form was, W2 D2 L8 F10 A20, so wdl ratios were not exactly positive, if maybe in correct proportion with 50% losses. So half the problem was accounted by poor performances at clubs in the lower third of this div. ie So'ton 2-2, Cardiff 2-1 & Burnley 1-0. Chris Hughton could point to plucky displays at top six outfits but at end of the season only positive results counted in final analysis. On a snowy night BHA fielded a regular 1st 11, including Ryan back from between sticks for Australia at the Asia Cup. *** match report: It was a cold & miserable experience for Brighton fans, who suffered disappointment and embarrasment in equal proportions come the final whistle. Albion took a very early lead via Montoya to Murray (3min) and he doubled the score with another strike (17min) after good work by Gross. But it was a totally different story after the interval. Cottagers bullied Seagulls and Stephens, Duffy & Dunk went into the book trying to keep them at bay. A flurry of 4 goals in 30 odd minutes sealed hapless Brighton's defeat (47,58,71,79mins). Hughton threw on Knockaert & Andone, going to 442 from 451 as we chased the game. But it was all over bar the shouting and not many yellow-shirts came away with decent marks out of ten - in fact that colour was representitve of a dire second half display. Hughton said, 'I was angry and entitled to be. We played a little bit deeper, changed the shape to try and get more pressure on the ball. That didn't allow us to stop their opportunities.' It all appeared way to easy for hosts to control matters from the break and their incisive positive alterations were game changers. Hughton & his side were out thought and lacked the will to win once caught cold. In fact it was a humiliating capitulation because if you cannot win then you should make damn sure not to get beat. Brighton fans at all levels of reason had their say on social media but not a lot of comment was particularly complimentary about disturbing nature of this total surrender. Stats; ht 0-2, goals 47,58,74,79-3,17, shape 442-451, poss 62%-38%, on target 7-6, off target 17-9, o/s 1-1, corners 10-1, fouls 10-5, yellows 2-3, subs 3-2 . MoM - Murray . Gate 22,008, away 2690 . Weather - cold, sleet & snow. 1 Ryan, 22 Montoya, 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 20 March, 6 Stephens, 13 Gross (10 Andone 77), 24 Propper, 9 Locadia (11 Knockaert 71), 17 Murray . Subs - 27 Button, 2 Bruno, 33 Burn, 7 Kayal, 8 Bissouma. Prem P24 . W5 D3 L3 F15 A12 . W2 D2 L9 F12 A24 . Pt26 Po13 = 1.08pt/gm. Wins = 29.1%, Loss = 50% Season7 (1st) - not Premier League. FULHAM @ home; Craven Cottage. Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L% 24/25 - 3 1 2 . 10 11 -1 . 10 10 = 1.66 55.5 . 50.0 33.3 - Marco Silva @ 28/11/24 23/24 - 9 2 08 . 31 24 07 . 29 13 = 1.52 61.7 . 47.3 42.1 - Marco Silva 22/23 - 8 5 06 . 31 29 02 . 29 10 = 1.52 55.7 . 42.1 31.5 - Marco Silva 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 2 4 13 . 09 29 -20 . 10 18 = 0.52 35.7 . 10.5 68.4 - S Parker. 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 6 3 10 . 22 36 -14 . 21 19 = 1.10 80.7 . 31.5 52.6 - Scott Parker, Claudio Ranieri & Slavisa Jokanovic. 14/15 - 17/18 not Premier League (see below, seasons 4-6). 13/14 - 5 3 11 . 24 38 -14 . 18 19 = 0.94 56.2 . 26.3 57.8 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Fulham away, Falmer years 2011 to 2017 - Championship. C'ship 14/15-16/17 . Seasons 4-6 Cottagers v Albion (A) from 11/12: -, -, -, 0-2, 1-2, 1-2 . . W = 3 D = 0 L = 0 memorable match: Season6 (A) - an emotional evening of mood swings. Season6 (A) Championship 2/1/17 - w 1-2 ~ Hemed, Dunk. Brighton fans went to London the day after New Year, for this first away return fixture to start second half of the season on the road. We'd recently played Cottagers at the Amex and they gave us a good game there. So it was interesting to see if BHA could up the ante at their place. Chris Hughton knew what it took to maintain the promotion push, having been around the block and bizarrely was the third longest serving manager in the division! Over the post Xmas period Seagulls briefly headed the division but suprisingly were overtaken at the top by Newcastle because the Amex was fog bound. At least an 8pt gap was held to Reading in 3rd, due to their home match also being abandoned for fog after h-t. Of the team that played here at beginning of last season, all except Greer were still at BHA, although todays squad did look a little different. Signings this term in Duffy, Murray & Norwood were having a positive impact. * match report: On evidence of the first half Seagulls were lucky to get nil. Stockdale saved a penalty after a quarter of an hour when Bruno handled. And locals took the lead soon into the second period just following visitors best spell. A low shot thru a crowded area evaded Stockdale's late dive (55min). Hughton threw in March after a hour or so and not too later Hemed. These both had an impact as Albion chased the game. Hemed was brought down in the box and got up to stroke home the spot kick (74min). A minute later Dunk surged forward and passed to Knockaert whose shot was blocked. But Dunk was there to head in the rebound (75min). Murphy turned up for the last 10 minutes while BHA had backs to the wall. Travellers held out for a dramatic win as they overtook Newcastle at top of the league. Hughton said, 'we stressed that in second half of the season it won't be any easier. It will be harder as everyone is pushing. We haven't done anything yet - there is too much of the season to go.' Six thou Brighton fans were euphoric at the Cottage and knew scoring more than the opposition was all that mattered at end of the day. So Albion extended the unbeaten run to 18 and kicked off 2017 as winners too. Stats; h-t 0-0, goals 55-74, 75, poss 63%-37%, on target 4-4, off target 5-4, corners 10-2, o/s 0-3, fouls 13-8, yellows 2-3, subs 3-3, att 24,300 Stockdale, Bruno, Duffy, Dunk, Bong, Knockaert (Murphy), Norwood, Stephens, Skalak (March), Murray, Baldock (Hemed). Champ's P24 . W16 D6 L2 . F40 A15 . Pt54 Po1 . W = 66.6% L = 8.3% Season5 (A) 15/8/15 - W 1-2 ~ Baldock, Hemed. It was the first away league match scheduled, although Albion had won at Southend in the League Cup earlier this week. That followed an opening day victory for optimistic Brighton fans at the Amex versus Nott'm Forest. During pre-season, several players had been signed; Bobby Zamora, Tomer Hemed, Gaetan Bong, Liam Rosenior and keeper Niki Maenpaa. And on into the transfer window, Uwe Hunemeier and Jamie Murphy had also just arrived to boost a small squad. In July, Seagulls had got beat 1-0 when visiting Aberdeen for a friendly but at start of the month eased past Sevilla 1-0 when entertaining the La Liga outfit at Falmer. Chris Hughton included a couple of youngsters from the development group in previous first team activities and had also signed prospects Jack Harper and Vahid Hambo from abroad. On the day over 3k travelled into London to bolster a crowd of only 19 thousand at Craven Cottage. * match report: Deep into stoppage time it appeared each side would take a point. Albion opened the scoring through Baldock on the half hour, when he slid home Bruno's thru ball. It was all Brighton during the first half, bar the last five minutes when Cottagers netted a neat strike after a counter attack (43min). After the break locals came more into the game and visitor's 442 looked a little stretched, especially in midfield. Hughton made all 3 tactical subs late in the day, pulling off a striker, winger and midfielder for defensive players. At the death LuaLua was tripped on edge of the area and Hemed stroked the ball in from the spot (90+). Hughton said, 'I didn't see the winner coming. I'd made changes to steady it up. We had come under a fair bit of pressure and probably would have settled for a point. Fair play to my team, they were brave enough to go for it.' Yes and go to top of the table as a result - exactly! Stockdale, Bruno, Greer, Huenemeier, Bong, March (Rosenior), Stephens (Forster-Caskey), Kayal, LuaLua, Hemed, Baldock (Ince). Champ's P2 . W2 D0 L0. F3 A1 . Pt6 Po1 . W = 100% L = 0% Season4 (A) 29/12/14 - W 0-2 ~ Colunga, March. Sami Hyypia had quit as manager just before Xmas. The halfway stage of a tumultuous campaign had just passed on Boxing Day and this was the first in a series of 23 reverse fixtures. As usual the FL computer arranged a quick return to recent opponents and sure enough, we visited Craven Cottage a calendar month after that initial match at the Amex. So what was different now then? Well, Albion were in the bottom three and needing some big results on the road against lower order sides - to aid survival thru 2015. Nathan Jones took charge of the squad and with Tony Bloom back from Australia hols looking for a new manager, the Welshman was merely taking it one day at a time. A huge Albion following turned up on the night and ably assisted as temperatures plummeted. *** match report: Seagulls soared for once and not before time - elevating above those relegation places with an impressive display to gain all three points and keep a clean sheet to boot. It was merely a second victory in twenty games but bode well for incoming manager Chris Hughton to work on through 2015. One note about visitors play was that there was more urgency and intention from forward moves, plus tough & uncompromising defensive work. The first goal was going to be crucial and BHA were at least racking up on-target stats to get one thru law of averages. But around the hour mark, with both sides attacking in an open contest, Benno was decked and Ref pointed to the spot. Colunga stroked the ball into Whites net and red&black shirts celebrated (60min). Jones replaced CMS with March with 15mins to go and the kid netted just prior to the ninety to seal all points (87min). O'Grady had come on late and put himself around to allow Teixeira to set up the goal attempt. Hughes arrived very late in the day to keep it very clean. Jones said, 'we asked the players to do certain things and they carried it out to the letter. Credit has to go to the players.' Brighton fans were very happy and finally witnessed a performance that merited victory with great team efforts and spirit. 2015 didn't look so bad after all. A day later, Chris Hughton got the gaffers job and Tony Bloomalso breathed a sigh of relief. Stockdale, Calderon, Halford, Dunk, J Bennett, Holla, Ince, Teixeira (Hughes), E Bennett (O'Grady), Mackail-Smith (March), Colunga. Champ's P24 . W4 D11 L9 . F26 A32 . Pt23 Po21 . W = 16.6% L = 37.5% Seasons 1-3 - not C'ship. * * * * * Withdean era: 1999 to 2011 - no visits to Craven Cottage.
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Previous encounters (Fulham )
FULHAM - Home, Falmer Years: Prem 18/19 20/21 22/23-24/25, seasons 8 10 12-14 . . C'ship 14/15-16/17, seasons 4-6. no league meetings in seasons between 2011 to 2014 and 2017. Prem previous encounters home & away: P9 W0 D4 L5 - see Clubs in Archive. Albion V Fulham PL/EFL record @ Amex: W = 2 D = 3 L = 2 manager: Marco Silva (2021) P140 W = 45.0% @ July '24 . experience: results at high level consolidated. Craven Cottage - 25.7k . nickname: Cottagers . shirt: white. Prem/EFL record from 11/12: 9 12 19 P, 17 20 6 / 3 C, 19 P, 4 C, 18 P, 1 C, 10 13 6 @ 6/12/24. Prem best = 9th '12, worst = 19th '14 '19. C21: Prem top ten - 4 times . stayed up - 2 times in bottom six, relegated - '14 '19 '21 . C'ship promo - '01 '18 '20 '22. 24/25 odds at start: top half 11-4, rel 11-2 . sack MS 12/1 . expected to finish: bottom six run in: Arsenal (A), Liv'pool (H), B'mouth (A), Chelsea (H), So'ton (A), Villa (A), Everton (H), Br'ford (A), Man City (H) run in forecast: ?pt > ?pt . max was ? . actual = ? . Po was ? . actual Po = ? Albion v Fulham (H) from 17/18: - 2-2 - 0-0 - 0-1 1-1 . . W = 0 D = 3 L = 1 . F3 A4 scorers: Murray 2 Ferguson. memorable match: Season10 (H) - any point is a good point if it keeps you above the drop zone. note: for away Falmer Years results and reports scroll further below. Season14, 8th Premier League (H) Sat 8/3/25 - tba This reciprocal Mar '25 fixture was the 14th of 19 at home, coming toward the three-quarters milestone (Q3). The reverse game was 3 Dec '24 in the second quarter (Q2) - see away scroll further below. Last term we'd met here during late Oct '23 when again sharing a point apiece. We had lost the away match last season during Mar '24 when conceding three times. At the halfway stage (Q2) we had xpts and they had xpts. Now at this later stage (Q3) we had xpts and they had xpts. Our Prem record at the Amex versus Cottagers was; ddl d - over four elite seasons to date since '18. Lack of victory stands out. Current home form was; W D L F A tba. Visitors away form was: W D L F A tba. At the moment Brighton were xth, while Fulham were xth from x games played. At the halfway stage we were xth and they were xth. In the last three campaigns we'd been 9, 6 & 8 at the halfway stage and finished 9, 6 & 11. Albion were looking to get that first win over this SW London outfit. Their boss had so far ... in the January window. In the FA Cup . Headline news this week was ... * match report: tba day after result stats: ht , goals , poss %-%, on target , off target , corners , fouls , yellows , subs , shape weather: . gate: . MoM: team: 23 Steele 2 Lamptey 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 30 Estupinan 11 Adingra 10 Enciso 22 Mitoma 18 Welbeck subs: bench: 1 Verbruggen 3 Julio 4 Webster 6 Milner 7 March 9 Pedro 15 Moder 20 Baleba 28 Ferguson 34 Veltman 41 Hinshelwood 14 Rutter 17 Minteh 24 Kadioglu 27 Wieffer 33 O'Riley squad: . injured: Prem P28 . W D L . F A . W D L . F A . Pt? Po? = x.xxpt/gm . W = xx% L = xx% Cottagers: Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% hfwy: 14 . 06 04 04 . 21 19 02 . 22 06 = 1.57 . 42.8 28.5 start: 10 . 04 03 03 . 14 13 01 . 15 09 = 1.50 . 40.0 30.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Preston 16pen15 1-1 (A) R3, Birmingham 0-2 (A) R2 FA Cup: Watford (H) R3 Nov: 9th in table, 1pt off 8th at Q1 Season13, 7th Premier League (H) Sun 29/10/23 - D 1-1 ~ Ferguson Brighton & Fulham played in the PL Summer Series held in America during July '23. Today's visitors had beat Brentford 3-2 but lost to Villa 2-0 and fellow London club Chelsea 2-0. Their next friendly was entertaining Hoffenheim 2-1 (H) prior to Prem campaign kickoff. Albion finished 6th (62pts) and the west-London outfit 10th (52pts) last term, giving us a 10pts +ve difference. Visitors were aiming to consolidate this term as a top half club. Our Prem record at the Amex versus Cottagers was; ddl over three elite seasons to date. Lack of an Amex win obviously stands out. We'd 2 fts stats out of those 3 contests on home turf too. This rescheduled Sunday fixture marked end of the start period Q1 and followed Seagulls third Thursday nite Europa League group match. So far we'd W1 D1 L1 with a win & loss at the Amex. Going into this late Oct contest BHA were 7th and Fulham were 14th the Sat nite before. They had spent 46m in the Aug transfer window on 3 buys, plus 2 undisclosed fees and an on-loan signing. Visiting manager Marco Silva was given the brief to secure another top ten place and a return to black & white glory days. Based on previous meetings Brighton were now looking for that very first win hosting Fulham at this level. In the week prior to kickoff Roberto de Zerbi was concerned with a lengthening injury list. Sadly March & Welbeck joined Enciso as long-term injured. * match report: first of all it rained hard. Second of all Albion got swamped in a second-half torrent of end to end aquatic soccer. Seagulls looked good in the first half but flattered to deceive. We missed chance after chance and came to rue those flunks. Ferguson drove in a pass from Gross to open scoring and it appeared flood gates might open too (26mins). But after turnaround visitors were better and made a significant triple subbing around the hour mark. Playmaker Lallana had gone off too as expected which left Seagulls floundeing on a slick surface. Cottagers then levelled via blue & white's mistakes at the back when trying to play out of defence (65mins). De Zerbi threw in more subs as Albion again toiled to hit the mark. It was a washout and Brighton fans weren't singing in the rain either. De Zerbi said we deserved to win, although what you want compared to what you get depends on what you do. And Albion didn't keep a clean sheet, couldn't outscore opponents and had to settle for parity. The level of performance wasn't perhaps near our best coz at times ponderous play only caused stalemate. Also you merely need one mistake for opposition to take advantage from our back to front passing style. But the squad as a whole who are fit enough to play are at least getting game time in trying to gel as a team. The Prem is the peak of footballing ability and clubs we meet have very good players as well. There are no easy matches and a win has to be earned, whatever you think about deserving such things. stats: ht 1-0, goals 26-65, poss 71%-29%, on target 7-5, off target 11-5, corners 7-3, fouls 12-8, yellows 0-3, subs 5-5, shape 343-4231 weather: rain . gate: 31,550 away 2845 . MoM: Webster - solid defending team: 23 Steele 4 Webster 5 Dunk 3 Julio 24 Adingra 20 Baleba 8 Dahoud 22 Mitoma 13 Gross 28 Ferguson 14 Lallana subs: 31 Fati 58 (14), 40 Buonanotte 71 (20), 11 Gilmour 71 (8), 34 Veltman 71 (24), 9 Pedro 78 (28) bench: 1 Verbruggen (gk) 6 Milner 29 van Hecje 41 Hinshelwood squad: 15 Moder . injured: 2 Lamptey 7 March 10 Enciso 18 Welbeck 30 Estupinan Prem P10 . W3 D2 L1 . F14 A9 . W2 D0 L2 . F9 A10 . Pt17 Po7 = 1.70pt/gm . W = 50% L = 30% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% total: 38 . 13 08 17 . 55 61 -06 . 47 13 = 1.23 . 34.2 44.7 3qtr: 29 . 11 05 13 . 43 44 -01 . 38 12 = 1.31 . 37.9 44.8 hfwy: 19 . 06 03 10 . 26 34 -08 . 21 13 = 1.10 . 31.5 52.6 start: 10 . 03 03 04 . 09 16 -07 . 12 14 = 1.20 . 30.0 40.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Liverpool 1-1 (H) 2-1 (A) s-f, Everton 6pen7 1-1 (A) q-f, Ipswich 1-3 (A) R4, Norwich 2-1 (H) R3, Spurs 5pen3 1-1 (H) R2 FA Cup: Newcastle 0-2 (H) R4, Rotherham 1-0 (H) R3 Oct: 14th in table, 1pt off 10th at Q1. Dec: 13th, 4pts from 10th at Q2. Mar: 12th, 1pt off 11th at Q3. May: finished 13th, 1pt from 12th at Q4. 23/24 odds at start: top six 20/1, top half 7-2, bottom half 1-7 . sack MS 8/1 . expected to finish: bottom six run in from 30/3/24: Sheff Utd 3-3 (A), Forest 3-1 (A), N'castle 0-1 (H), West Ham 0-2 (A), Liverpool 1-3 (H), Palace 1-1 (H), Brentford 0-0 (A), Man City 0-4 (H), Luton 2-4 (A) run in forecast @ 29/3/24: 38pt > 50pts . max was 65 . Actual = 47 . Po was 12th . Actual po = 13th Season12, 6th Premier League (H) Sat 18/2/23 - L 0-1 We'd gotten two draws from merely two intermittent PL home fixtures versus Fulham to date - in Sept '18 and Jan '21 (seasons 8&10). Add three previous but sequentially conclusive C'ship results (seasons 4-6), to give a continuation point for today (see home scroll below). We might surmise from recent history that staying in the Prem is harder than actually getting there, although this observation is based on fine margins registered via both club's various Falmer years campaigns. Who could break deadlock now and go for broke? Albion head coach Roberto de Zerbi was earning a reputation for bold and imaginative set-ups & tactics since working with the wider squad from September '22. He took a large BHA group to Dubai, while Fulham went to the Algarve, for respective clubs warm-weather camps during the World Cup finals back in December. And since then both outfits were on rolls of ok results and holding positions inside the top ten at the campaign halfway stage. *** match report: people say, 'we deserved to win.' With pasing of time the only thing tangible is the recorded result. And in single score games the outcome will only go one way. Albion got sucker-punched in the 88th minute after dominating possession and racking up many credible chances to put this contest to bed before teatime. But it ended with yet another home fail to score stat and the clean sheet went west to boot. An old domestic hoodoo of not scoring at the Amex had resurfaced, almost giving lie to ongoing super-hype about being top six contenders, on course for Europe and winning the FA Cup as well this term. Pie in the sky? Well, Seagulls flapping anyway. It seemed like a reality check after 90+ minutes of tedium from watching how not to put the ball into opponents net. But credit to the away outfit who did a job on us, combined with a weak Ref who bought their unsportsmanlike shenanigans which disrupted flow of play. Frustration on three sides of the stadium developed as the atmosphere crashed to ground level. And De Zerbi was sent off by Ref in the tunnel at end of the game. Brighton fans took it on the chin (you know the feeling) although it did seem like something of an old habit returning in '23 after five previous formative Prem seasons at Falmer. They say if you can't win don't get beat. It's a very hard lesson to learn. stats: ht 0-0, goal 88, poss 65%-35%, on 7-2, off 14-3, corners 10-2, fouls 12-14, yellows 0-5, subs 3-2, shape 4231-4231 weather: cloudy . gate: 31,619, away 2961 . MoM: Dunk - pretty solid. team: 1 Sanchez 34 Veltman 4 Webster 5 Dunk 30 Estupinan 7 March 13 Gross 10 Mac Allister 25 Caicedo 22 Mitoma 28 Ferguson. subs: 2 Lamptey 62 (30), 40 Buonanotte 73 (4), 21 Undav 73 (28) bench: 23 Steele 29 van Hecke 19 Sarmiento 20 Enciso 26 Ayari 71 Hinshelwood injured: 6 Colwill 14 Lallana 18 Welbeck 27 Gilmour . squad: 49 Moran Prem: P22 . W5 D2 L4 . F17 A11 . W5 D3 L4 . F22 A18 . Pt35 Po7 = 1.59pt/gm . W = 45.4% L = 31.8% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% total: 38 . 15 07 16 . 55 53 02 .. 52 10 = 1.36 . 39.4 42.1 3qtrs: 29 . 11 06 12 . 39 40 -01 . 39 10 = 1.34 . 37.9 41.3 hfwy: 19 . 09 04 06 . 32 28 04 .. 31 06 = 1.63 . 47.3 31.5 start: 10 . 03 03 04 . 16 20 -04 . 12 11 = 1.20 . 30.0 40.0 - M Silva EFL Cup: Crawley 2-0 (A) R2. FA Cup: Man Utd 3-1 (A) q-f . Leeds 2-0 (H) R5 . Sunderland 2-3 (A) 1-1 (H) R4 . Hull 0-2 (A) R3. Oct: 11th in table, 3pts off 6th at Q1. Jan: 6th, 2pts off 5th at halfway stage Q2. Apr: 10th, 0pts above 11th at three quarters stage Q3. May: 10th, 7pts behind 9th at Q4. 22/23 odds at start: rel 5-4, bottom 5/1, stay up 4-7 . Sack MS 8/1 . Expected to finish: in bottom three. run in from 8/4/23: West Ham 0-1 (H), Everton 1-3 (A), Leeds 2-1 (H), Villa 1-0 (A), Man City 1-2 (H), Liverpool 1-0 (A), Leicester 5-3 (H), Soton 0-2 (A), Palace 2-2 (H), Man Utd 2-1 (A) run in forecast @ 7/4/23: 39pt > 51pts . Max was 66 . Actual = 52 . Po was 10th . Actual po = 10th Season11 (5th) not Premier League. Season10, 4th Premier League (H) Wed 27/1/21 - 0-0. Coronavirus attendance restrictions - lockdown 3, no fans (Tier 3/4/5 = 0, 2 = 2000, 1 = 4000). Match played behind closed doors. This fixture began second half of the season and kicked off reciprocal matches against clubs we'd met once to date. Cottagers had won the C'ship playoff final last term to quickly regain Prem status once more. They hoped to consolidate as regular elite members from west London, which Albion were simultaneously attempting, although backed by our extended Sussex catchment area. Previous meetings had mainly been at level two last decade but to some degree represented comparable recent positions in the footy pyramid. The situation now was a bit more than just to determine which club could kick on and be seen as a pukka Prem standard outfit. It involved a dogfight to keep clear of the drop zone and inevitable relegation. This was a six pointer in every meaning of the phrase, or at least that's how it felt to frustrated Brighton fans stuck at home. Three points would mean a first Amex win this term and open a bigger gap to the bottom three clubs. * match report: Albion kept a clean sheet but unfortunately failed to score in a goalless encounter. Hosts were good value for creating chances and goal-scoring opportunities but could not make the net bulge. And so this match registered a ninth draw from twenty fixtures played, resulting in a points per game index of less than one. At this rate BHA would achieve merely 34pts - too little to ensure staying up. Graham Potter took the positives in characteristic level-headed response, although probably wondered how to break these stalemates & deadlocks by tweaking his line up and/or tactics on any given day. Those fine margins of Prem clashes to date were again balanced for Seagulls and somehow a way to edge a win or tip toward avoiding defeat was much needed now. If Albion didn't eventually obtain 36pt as from our successful second PL survival campaign, the modus operandi of Potter ball could then be discredited. Stats: goals nil, poss 50%-50%, on target 5-3, off target 11-7, o/s 3-0, corners 10-0, fouls 10-14, yellows 2-1, subs 1-3, shape 352-343 . Weather: wet Team: 26 Sanchez, 3 White, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 34 Veltman, 13 Gross, 8 Bissouma, 20 March, 9 Maupay, 10 Mac Allister (24 Propper 83), 11 Trossard . Bench: 31 Walton, 33 Burn, 15 Moder, 17 Alzate, 14 Lallana,22 Tau, 29 Zeqiri, 7 Connolly . Squad: 19 Izquierdo, 41 Sanders . Injured: 2 Lamptey, 17 Jahanbakhsh, 18 Welbeck . MoM: Dunk. Prem: P20 . W0 D6 L4 . F10 A15 . W3 D3 L4 . F12 A14 . Pt18 Po17 = 0.90pt/gm. Wins = 15.0%, Loss = 40.0% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% Total: 38 . 05 13 20 . 27 53 -26 . 28 18 = 0.73 . 13.1 52.6 3qtrs: 29 . 05 11 13 . 22 36 -14 . 26 18 = 0.89 . 17.2 44.8 Hfwy: 19 . 02 07 10 . 15 27 -12 . 13 18 = 0.68 . 10.5 52.6 Start: 10 . 02 01 07 . 11 19 -08 . 07 17 = 0.70 . 20.0 70.0 - Scott Parker. EFL Cup: Brentford 3-0 (A) R4, Sheff Wed 2-0 (H) R3, Ipswich 0-1 (A) R2. FA Cup: Burnley 0-3 (H) R4, QPR 0-2 (A) R3. Nov: when the first quarter finished, Fulham were 17th in the Prem. Jan: at the halfway stage Cottagers were 18th and in the d-z. Mar: threequarters completed and still 18th, stuck in the bottom three. May: Prem finish eighteenth and relegated after failure to escape d-z. Season9 (3rd) not Premier League. Season8, 2nd Premier League (H) Sat 1/9/18 - 2-2 ~ Murray 2. Into the second month of the second PL term and this match was the second home fixture. Additions to the first team squad at start of the season were, Martin Montoya, Ali Jahanbakhsh, Yves Bissouma, Bernardo da Silva, Leon Balogun, Florin Andone and homegrown keepers David Button & Jason Steele. Also deadline day signing Dan Burn was out on loan. The 25 man squad was just decided, while Hemed & Norwood had gone on loan in the Championship. Results to date were; Watford 2-0 (A), Man Utd 3-2 (H) & Liverpool 1-0 (A). So the Amex was required to become a fortress once more, to repel raiders and thus store maximum points for survival. On the day the starting eleven fielded only one new signing, most of the rest being on the bench. * match report: Albion were two down around the hour mark, having missed a first half penalty and any other number of opportunities to take the lead. Just prior to halftime Cottagers shocked the home crowd as sun beat down on a pristine pitch. Seagulls defence stood still and were carved open too easily (43min). Into the second period struggling Gross was replaced by Bissouma. Moments later visitors got their second following mistakes from Dunk & Ryan, while Duffy tried to clear the rebound off the line (62min). Brighton huffed & puffed and pulled one back on the counter when Murray slotted in a pass from Knockaert (67min). Hughton next made a double swap and Seagulls went to orthodox 442. More drama unfolded when a bizarre handball was spotted by lino and Ref awarded BHA another pen. Murray duly did the biz (84min). Hughton said, 'Glenn is experienced and used to being in that position. There was a lot of pressure but he put it away emphatically.' Brighton fans were grateful the veteran marksman turned around a two goal deficit against law of averages. Murray was soon to be 35 but would keep his place as top scorer on this form. And the big money signings had collectively yet to prove being worth that summer's enormous outlay. Stats; shape 4411-442, h-t 0-1, goals 67,84-43,62, poss 41%-59%, on target 5-5, off target 7-3, blocks 3-2, o/s 2-4, crosses 29-10, corners 7-1, tackles 19-14, fouls 12-14, yellows 3-3, subs 3-3 . MoM Murray . Gate 30,526, away 2982 . Weather - warm & sunny. 1 Ryan, 22 Montoya, 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 11 Knockaert (16 Jahanbakhsh 74), 6 Stephens Y45, 24 Propper Y52 (9 Locadia 74), 20 March, 13 Gross (8 Bissouma 60), 17 Murray Y59 . Subs - 27 Button, 30 Bernardo, 14 Balogun, 7 Kayal. Prem P4 . W1 D1 L0 . F5 A4 . W0 D0 L2 . F0 A3 . Pt4 Po12 = 1.00pt/gm. Wins = 25%, Loss = 50% Quatr: Pl . W D L . . . F A GD . . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% Total; 38 . 07 05 26 . 34 81 -47 . 26 19 = 0.68 . 18.4 68.4 - Parker 3qtrs: 29 . 04 05 20 . 28 66 -38 . 17 19 = 0.58 . 13.7 68.9 - Ranieri Hfwy; 19 . 02 05 12 . 17 43 -26 . 11 19 = 0.57 . 10.5 63.1 - Ranieri Start; 10 . 01 02 07 . 11 28 -17 . 05 18 = 0.50 . 10.0 70.0 - Jokanovic. EFL Cup; 4th rnd - Man City 2-0 (A), 3rd rnd - Millwall 1-3 (A), 2nd rnd south - Exeter 2-0 (H) FA Cup; 3rd rnd - Oldham 1-2 (H) SJ record; to Aug 18 - P130 W63 D34 L35 Wins = 48.4% Aug; anticipated to step up after a strong lev2 challenge. Infrastructure there but is the overall squad quality? October; not where they would like to be given the expectation as an ex-PL outfit. Still in EFL Cup. New Year; in deep drop zone trouble. Knocked out of FA Cup at home by average L2 side. March; new manager but appear dead, if not completely buried. Season7 (1st) - not Premier League. FULHAM away; Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L% 24/25 - 2 2 2 . 7 6 1 . 8 10 = 1.33 44.4 . 33.3 33.3 - Marco Silva @ 28/11/24 23/24 - 4 6 09 . 24 37 -13 . 18 13 = 0.94 38.2 . 21.0 47.3 - Marco Silva 22/23 - 7 2 10 . 24 24 00 . 23 10 = 1.21 44.2 . 36.8 52.6 - Marco Silva 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 3 9 07 . 18 25 -07 . 18 18 = 0.94 64.2 . 15.7 36.8 - Scott Parker 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 1 2 16 . 12 45 -33 . 05 19 = 0.26 19.2 . 05.2 84.2 - S Parker, C Ranieri & S Jokanovic. 14/15 to 17/18 - not Premier League (see below, seasons 4-6). 13/14 - 4 2 13 . 16 47 -31 . 14 19 = 0.73 43.7 . 21.0 68.4 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. FULHAM PREVIOUS PREM: Prem points: 52, 43, 32, - - - -, 26, -, 28, -, 52, 47 recent Managers; Martin Jol (11-14), Felix Magath (2014), Kit Symons (14-15), Slavisa Jokanovic (16-18), Claudio Ranieri (18-19). Scott Parker (19-21), Scott Parker (19-21) - W = 46.7% @ Aug '20 . Experience: rookie who believed in career as player. Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm . W% L% 23/24 - 13 09 17 . 55 61 -6 . 47 13 = 1.23 . 34.2 44.7 - Marco Silva @ 20/5/24 Mid div finsish but within a whisker of making top ten again against several middling clubs. 22/23 - 15 07 16 . 55 53 02 . 52 10 = 1.36 . 39.4 42.1 - Marco Silva @ 28/5/23 Confounded pundits by making top ten and never in big trouble like of old at home or away. 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 5 13 20 . 27 53 -26 . 28 18 = 0.73 . 13.1 52.6 - Scott Parker @ 24/5/21 Cottagers could not score enough goals to win matches and went straight back down to the C'ship. 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 7 05 26 . 34 81 -47 . 26 19 = 0.68 . 18.4 68.4 - Scott Parker Came into the division as big spenders but it wasn't enough from word go and past history in the Prem got borne out. 14/15 - 17/18 not Premier League, see below seasons 4-6. 13/14 - 9 05 24 . 40 85 -45 . 32 19 = 0.84 . 23.6 63.1 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. Writing was on the Cottage wall during mid winter and provoked a change of manager. He did well enough thru the run in but not sufficiently to prevent them dropping into level two. 12/13 - 11 10 17 . 49 60 -11 . 43 12 = 1.13 . 28.9 44.7 11/12 - 14 10 14 . 48 51 -03 . 52 09 = 1.36 . 36.8 36.8 Knockouts from 11/12; FA Cup - 4th rnd, 4th, 4th, 4th, 3rd, 5th, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 4th, 4th, q-f, 4th EFL Cup - 3rd rnd, 2nd, 4th, 4th, 3rd, 3rd, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 4th, 3rd, 2nd, s-f, 3rd. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Fulham home, Falmer years 2011 to 2017 - Championship. C'ship 14/15-16/17 . Seasons 4-6. Albion v Cottagers (H) from 11/12: -, -, -, 1-2, 5-0, 2-1 . . W = 2 D = 0 L = 1 memorable match: Season5 (H) - an Amex evening with a nap hand. Season6 (H) Championship 26/11/16 - 2-1 ~ Baldock, Murray. Going into this fixture Brighton were second in the division and clear of clubs in p-o positions. Like last term Seagulls were flying high and unbeaten in 11, following a useful beginning to this campaign. Home form was good and the bedrock of building for promotion once more. It was a case of consistency and maintaining advantage at the Amex with solid displays, clean sheets and of course scoring goals. In build up to the game Chris Hughton lost his assistant Chris Calderwood to Villa immediately after that match at the Amex last week. But just prior to this contest it was announced that Paul Trollope has been appointed as his no.2 now. On the day another great crowd attended despite cold weather and ongoing rail travel problems. * match report: Albion went a goal behind just like previously against Villa. From a corner, visitors centre back headed goalward and Stockdale was on the deck when the ball was cleared. But lino waved it had crossed the line (18min) and from then on Cottagers bossed the first half. During the second period it was a different story as locals found more rhythm and a bite to their game. Baldock equalised with a stunning volley following a f-k into the area (52min). The match became more competitive and Ref had to break up a melee after Sidwell got involved in argy bargy on the touch line. Cards were shown but it was game on to the death. Seagulls deservedly took the lead when unmarked Murray clipped home Baldock's long cross (79min). Hughton made a couple of subs, initially putting Skalak on and later Norwood to bolster midfield in final ten minutes or so. Brighton saw the comeback out for three points and maintained a gap above play-off positions. Hughton said, 'I feel the team closest to Newcastle will have a great chance of promotion.' Brighton fans went home looking at stats on phones, which showed the Amex was becoming a fortress and a place to see super goals scored to boot. Stockdale, Bruno, Duffy, Dunk,Bong, Knockaert (Skalak), Sidwell, Stephens, Murphy, Baldock (Norwood), Murray Stats; h-t 0-1, goals 52 79-18, poss 41%-59%, on target 4-5, off target 4-3, blocks 4-6, corners 3-7, o/s 7-2, fouls 14-12, yellows 3-5, subs 2-3 . att 29,445. Champ's P18 . W11 D5 L2 . F28 A11. Pt38 Po2 . W = 61.1% L = 11.1% Season5 (H) 15/4/16 - 5-0 - Hemed 3, Bruno, Knockaert. It was a Friday night and those old Cottagers took that short trip from the one-time big black smoke to visit a world-class Amex stadium. Things were a tad different these days, Albion were on a chase for promotion, while the black & white metropolitan outfit was out with the washing. Brighton were in a race for one of two auto-promo spots and attempting to hit a target in excess of 88pts to beat the current top two clubs. It would be a battle of attrition and every point would count at the death. The good news was this was winnerble ... * match report: Seagulls goals went in at 29, 34, 54, 79 & 87 minutes to record a comprehensive victory and clean sheet to boot. Hemed scored initially from the spot after Wilson was clattered. Then he headed home a ball from Knockaert to put BHA in control prior to turnaround. Bruno got his name on scoring lists early in the second period with a low drive. Then Hemed completed the hat-trick by tapping in after Stephens did the donkey work. The little French winger finally added to his personal total when curling a dig into the top corner to seal a fantastic five goal romp. Hughton had luxury of putting subs on late to freshen up attacking options and keep visitors on the back foot. He said, 'we came in leading 2-0 where possibly didn't deserve it. Certainly we were better in the second half and made it exciting to watch for supporters.' Fans went home very happy and wondering what fate next had in store for 'em home & away. Stats; poss 42%-58%, on target 11-3, off target 8-5, corners 8-3, fouls 10-9, yellows 1-3. Stockdale, Bruno, Goldson, Dunk, Rosenior, Knockaert, Stephens, Kayal, Skalak (LuaLua), Wilson (Murphy), Hemed (Sidwell). Champ's P42 . W22 D15 L5 . F63 A39 . Pt81 Po3 . W = 52.3% L = 11.9% Season4 (H) 29/11/14 - L 1-2 ~ Bent. It had taken a good few years for Albion to entertain Cottagers and very many Brighton fans hadn't even been around in those old Goldstone Ground days of yore. So perhaps playing the ex-Prem outfit was no great shakes for some supporters at the Amex now - except that both clubs badly needed the three points! The Championship was as unpredictable as ever and Seagulls were one of any number of sides flying low over the drop zone. Sami Hyypia had backing of Tony Bloom to turn things from downward to upward but this was now a must win game. Beforehand Seagulls home form was W2 D5 L2 F9 A9 which was kinda symmetrical but merely represented 11pts from 27, or a 41% success rate. Sami Hyypia had been a proponent of squad rotation but in current circumstances still needed to find & field his best settled eleven. On the day, new on-loan signing Darren Bent made his debut. A 29k crowd attended. *** match report: Albion forced four corners in opening moments but failed to convert them, or further first half superiority, into goals. LuaLua was injured with little over 15mins gone and later replaced by Ince - so BHA reshaped to more of a diamond in m-f. Soon during the all deciding second period, Colunga put Bent thru and he duly shot past the flat-footed keeper (52min). But with a crucial lead established, Seagulls sat back on the nest. Whites then came forward to press on the break and equalised as defending evaporated (62min). Not much later visitors took the lead with a deflected punt as again marking went missing (77min). Hyypia responded by immediately - by sending March on in his first game this term after injury. Albion faded as an attacking force and Hyypia was bereft of other ideas or a planB. At the death Colunga was sent off for two bookables but the game was well & truly up long before stoppage time - Albion dropped into the bottom three. Hyypia said, 'the fans have a right to be unhappy. We can concentrate on what we are doing and try to make everything better.' To some fans that sort of resignation was similar to the attitude from the team when things did not go right on the pitch. The season was apparently already going down the toilet. Stockdale, Bruno, Hughes, Dunk, J Bennett, E Bennett (March), Forster-Caskey, Gardner, Colunga, Bent, LuaLua (Ince). Champ's P19 . W3 D9 L7 . F21 A25 . Pt18 Po22 . W = 15.7% L = 36.8% Seasons 1-3 - not C'ship. * * * * * Withdean Era - from 1999 to 2011, no meetings.
Fulham - Away, Falmer Years: Prem 18/19 20/21 22/23-23/24, seasons 8 10 12-13 . . C'ship 14/15-16/17, seasons 4-6. Albion record @ Cottagers: W = 3 D = 1 L = 4 Fulham v Albion (A) from 17/18: - 4-2 - 0-0 - 2-1 3-0 3-1 . . W = 0 D = 1 L = 4 . F4 A12 scorers: Murray 2 Mac Allister Baleba. memorable match: Season8 (A) - a game of two halves and a lesson in having the right mindset. note: for home Falmer Years results & reports scroll further up. Season14, 8th Premier League (A) Thur 5/12/24 - 3-1 ~ Baleba Fulham continued as a mid-div outfit last term. They were s-f contenders in the EFL Cup and reached R4 in the FA Cup. Cottagers pre-season friendlies; QPR 4-0 (H), Watford 6-1 (H), Benfica 0-1 (A), Sevilla 1-2 (H), Hoffenheim 0-2 (A). This mid-week Prem fixture was the 7th of 19 away, coming in the second quarter (Q2). The reverse game was 8 Mar '25 at end of the three-quarters stage (Q3) - see home scroll further above. We had drawn the home match last season during Oct '23 and again failed to beat 'em. Last term we'd met here during early March '24 when comprehensively beaten. We finished 11th 48pts, while F'ham were 13th 47pts. Now we had 23pts and they had 19pts in the period up to halfway thru this campaign. Our Prem record at Craven Cottage versus Fulham was; ldl l - in four recent Prem seasons to date since '18. We had not won there. They were again hoping to improve on their elite placing. Current away form was; W3 D1 L2 F10 A8 - three wins. Hosts home form was: W3 D1 L2 F10 A11 - three wins. At the moment Brighton were 4th, while Fulham were 10th from 13 games played. In the last three campaigns we'd been 9, 6 & 8 at the halfway stage (Q2). Albion were looking to avoid another defeat in SW London. F'ham had 3 players on nations duty at Euro 24 finals in Germany during June. Their boss Marco Silva had spent around 95m on 5 new talents, plus an on loan player prior to the big kickoff and before the August window shut. A decent outlay and declaration of intent to raise their game. In the EFL Cup Cottagers suffered a bizarre ko at Preston in R3 by 16pen15 after drawing 1-1. Headline news this week was Hurzeler got a ban for picking up yet another yellow card - latest last Friday at the Amex. * match report: Albion started and finished badly, which resulted in yet another beating at Craven Cottage. First Verbruggen played out from the back straight to oppositions striker - one-nil (4mins). Despite much of possession we went into the interval a goal behind. Before the hour mark Baleba equalised from a low pop (56mins). But then while subs were being gathered hosts netted their second from a corner - going in off O'Riley (79mins). Next they went two ahead when beating Verbruggen a third time (87mins). All the pretty footy in the world couldn't get us anything up there once more. This squad doesn't like a scrap and wants to be left undisturbed to put moves together. Hello... this is the Prem and teams will pick up on our failings and exploit them. Brighton needs to toughen up and get in the game. Dunk was moaning about being pushed as the ball came over for their second goal. He has 251 Prem apps... come on buddy, spare us that sob story. BHA are a work in progress and inconsistent to say the least. We see good soccer played in patches, maybe for much of one half. But goals win games and stopping opposition scoring more to boot. What you might think you deserve ain't always what you get. Nobody is gonna roll over because we are in a false position having beaten likes of City and lately basking in that fake floodlight. You are only as good as your last result. stats: ht 1-0, goals 4,79,87-56, poss 44%-56%, on target 2-3, off target 4-10, corners 5-6, fouls 7-8, yellows 2-2, subs 5-5, shape 4231-3421 weather: rain . gate: 26k . MoM: ? team: 1 Verbruggen 29 van Hecke 5 Dunk 3 Julio 11 Adingra 27 Wieffer 33 O'Riley 20 Baleba 30 Estupinan 22 Mitoma 9 Pedro subs: 2 Lamptey 72 (29), 28 Ferguson 81 (9), 14 Rutter 81 (33), 17 Minteh 81 (11), 8 Gruda 86 (27) bench: 23 Steele 15 Moder 26 Ayari 44 McConville squad: 4 Webster 6 Milner 7 March 10 Enciso 18 Welbeck . injured: 24 Kadioglu 34 Veltman 41 Hinshelwood Prem P14 . W3 D4 L0 . F12 A9 . W3 D1 L3 . F11 A11 . Pt23 Po5 = 1.64pt/gm . W = 42.8% L = 21.4% Season13, 7th Premier League (A) Sat 2/3/24 - L 3-0 Brighton came here following a FA Cup R5 tie defeat at Wolves in midweek. It was now mid-season and BHA were inside the top ten as a middle rank outfit. Since joining the elite, Albion had finished 15, 17, 15, 16, 9, 6, while Cottagers were 19, 18, 10. So far hosts habitual home record was - W7 D1 L5 F23 A15. Our Prem record at Craven Cottage versus Fulham was; ldl - in three recent Prem seasons to date. No victories is the most obvious failing. We also found it hard to score goals for any sort of positive result there. In the January transfer window no big business was done in the whole Prem, clubs being wary of fair play rules & regs. Current away form was; W4 D3 L6 F22 A25 - clearly in need of some positive improvement. At the moment in early March Brighton were 7th, while Fulham were 12th from 26 PL games played. Hosts had changed managers twice during our Prem years, tho seemed stable enough at the mo with Silva at the helm. Based on previous meetings Brighton were looking for a first win at Fulham. Albion were away yet again next week on the 7th - at Roma in the Europa League last 16 ko round. Nevertheless De Zerbi was expected to put out a strong side today, irrespective of a long injury list. * match report: Fulham continued to be one of Albion's bogey sides when completing a 3-0 win to see off hapless visitors. It all went wrong from the start and defensive errors cost two goals scored in the first half (21 & 32 mins). De Zerbi changed flank players at halftime and asked for a response. Albion were better during the second period but lacked a cutting edge. Into stoppage hosts broke away again to net their third (91mins). De Zerbi was unhappy with this performance and could see form tailing off and the season becoming a slog just to get through remaining games in the league. Brighton's results were in & out to say very least and scores swung from good to bad and back again at regular intervals. We almost let in as many goals as scored and were settling into mid table mediocrity. There was serious speculation about De Zerbi leaving for a big club in summer, which played on supporters minds a little more these days. There was a huge UEL knockout ahead that some felt had become a distraction from day to day Prem duties. The proverbial learning curve of four competitions proving too difficult for small squads to endure appeared a reality. Seagulls were inexperienced as a collective, having many players struggling to get up to speed for league & cups. Cracks developed in match-day squads due to injuries from early in the season and in many respects just got worse. Brighton's regular low key January transfer window policy resumed from New Year and here we go again. Next term some of the squad will be regarded as pensionable veterans, while many youngsters still won't have gotten enough apps to be approaching their prime years. There is a gulf between age groups which Brighton fans hope will be addressed during the close season. Does Europe matter next year? Answers to Tony, Paul & co. stats: ht 2-0, goals 21,32,91, poss 29%-71%, on target 5-5, off target 7-10, corners 2-6, fouls 16-10, yellows 1-2, subs 5-5, shape 4231-3421 weather: showers . gate: 24,460, away 2689. MoM: ? team: 23 Steele 34 Veltman 5 Dunk 4 Webster 2 Lamptey 20 Baleba 29 van Hecke 30 Estupinan 14 Lallana 28 Ferguson 10 Enciso subs: 24 Adingra 45 (2), 31 Fati 45 (10), 13 Gross 59 (5), 40 Buonanotte 59 (14), 15 Moder 78 (20) bench: 1 Verbruggen 3 Julio 18 Welbeck 19 Barco squad: 47 Baker-Boaitey. ban: 11 Gilmour injured: 6 Milner 7 March 9 Pedro 22 Mitoma 41 Hinshelwood Prem P27 . W6 D6 L1 . F27 A16 . W4 D3 L7 . F22 A28 . Pt39 Po9 = 1.44pt/gm . W = 37.0% L = 29.6% Season12, 6th Premier League (A) 30/8/22 - L 2-1 ~ Mac Allister An extra summer trip into central London this term was a bonus for Brighton fans, given no further visit into metropolitan outer reaches of relegated Watford via road or rail. Mind you those heady days at the Cottage during promo-chasing C'ship campaigns (see away scroll below) were somehow later chilled by Prem returns. We'd been hammered there in Jan '19 but had retained winter stalemate when turning up again in Dec '20 (seasons 8&10). There was all to play for now and after getting great results across the wider capital last season, summer fair-weather fans said; 'bring it on.' By August Albion had sold Yves Bissouma (Spurs 25m) and Marc Cucurella (Chelsea 60m). We signed Julio Enciso (Paraguay) and Levi Colwill on loan from Blues. Deniz Undav, Kaoru Mitoma & Kacper Kozlowski also rejoined the squad from RUSG loans last term. Then Pervis Estupinan (Villarreal 15m) penned a 4yr deal. By close of the transfer window Clarke (Middlesbro 3m) & Maupay (Everton 15m) had also gone. In contrast Fulham spent 27m by start of the season, next added men ongoing thru the Aug window to its closing, hoping this time around to actually stay in the div. Shane Duffy had joined them too on a season's loan from Seagulls during mid month. * match report: top of the league? You're 'avin a larf! Yes, Albion could have headed the Prem table for at least 24 hours with victory here. But no, it was more like left right up the swanee - on an evening with that metropolitan sinking feeling by the muddy Thames. Putney Bridge was a bridge too far for lacklustre Seagulls, who put in a below par performance from the very start. After a goalless first half hosts went two up (48 & 55mins) and visitors were chasing the game and rowing against the proverbial tide and all. So Potter threw in three subs, pumped bilges and refloated around the hour mark. Then Mac Allister scored a penaty when Ref was told by VAR to review on screen (66min). Travellers tried to find an equaliser in the final third, both dimensionally and chronologically as the clocked ticked toward time added on. But the game was pretty much up, hosts had floated their boat and we had sunk without a trace. And it's not often home support was more excited than visiting BHA fans these days. Perhaps our new 'crimson' away strip was to blame - a hideous colour on a night with no hiding place. At least travelling fans wouldn't be home too late, although reliving that nightmare in fretful sleep rather than table-topping sweet dreams would be another downer. stats: ht 0-0, goals 48,55-60, poss 40%-60%, on 3-4, off 7-3, corners 3-3, fouls 9-11, yellows 2-1, subs 2-4, shape 4231-352 weather: mild evening . gate: 22,224 (away 2230) . MoM: n/a team: 1 Sanchez, 34 Veltman, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 7 March, 10 Mac Allister, 8 Mwepu, 25 Caicedo, 30 Estupinan, 11 Trossard, 13 Gross. subs: 18 Welbeck (8) 63, 22 Mitoma (30) 63, 2 Lamptey (34) 63, 21 Undav (25) 79. bench: 23 Steele (gk), 6 Colwill, 17 Alzate, 29 van Hecke, 20 Enciso. injured: 14 Lallana, 15 Moder, 19 Sarmiento . squad: 28 Ferguson. Prem: P5 . W1 D1 L0 . F1 A0 . W2 D0 L1 . F5 A3 . Pt10 Po4 = 2.00pt/gm . W = 60% L = 20% Season11 (5th) - not Premier League. Season10, 4th Premier League (A) Wed 16/12/20 - 0-0. Revised covid precautions: London region @ Tier 3 = 0 fans. The match was originally scheduled to be played without a crowd attending due to coronavirus restrictions under lockdown2. Then the regional tier system was introduced for limited home fan numbers at venues in the second, lower (T2), category of high risk. On day of kickoff London became very high risk (T3) - so, no crowd allowed. Albion had gotten good results at Craven Cottage in C'ship days (see scroll below) but were hammered here last time in the Prem. On the basis we now had vital extra experience from travels at this level, incurring defeat from such a previous game of two halves was thought probably unlikely. But proof of the proverbial post-lockdown pandemic pudding is in the goal-scoring and essentially by not conceding either. And Albion badly required to gather essential points this winter month to get out of the bottom six and secure a required berth in mid table. So was this regarded as a six pointer, a relegation clash or merely an exercise in shooting practice? Time would tell. * match report: Guess what? Yeah, stalemate prevailed from beginning to end. Lallana had a goal disallowed for handball by Welbeck just before he hit the ball in and VAR also chalked off a pen appeal by hosts later. Webster nodded an attempt on to the bar, whilst up the other end Sanchez did good to pull off a double save and keep a clean sheet to boot. Seagulls played in blue & white but this wasn't exactly lucky for them on the night either. The overall display was competent but lacked a cutting edge against fairly flat opponents, denied their fans attending under T3 covid rules & regs. Potter was pleased with things generally, although aware squad management was vital at this time of year with a full programme in progress. It was noticeable he didn't put on a sub striker but instead preserved his 2 best on field players to be fit for vital clashes soon to come. At end of the day Brighton fans were resolved to staying above the drop zone for a while. As long as we were still there into '21 we'd take that as a positive going forward. The table doesn't lie after all is said and done. Stats: goals nil, poss 46%-54%, on target 4-4, off target 5-5, o/s 1-2, corners 1-8, fouls 15-11, yellows 1-0, subs 3-3 . Weather: dry. Team: 26 Sanchez, 2 Lamptey (34 Veltman 78), 3 White, 5 Dunk, 4 Webster, 20 March, 17 Alzate, 8 Bissouma, 14 Lallana (13 Gross 86), 11 Trossard (16 Jahanbakhsh 78), 18 Welbeck . Bench: 23 Steele, 33 Burn, 7 Connolly, 9 Maupay. Squad: 1 Ryan, 10 Mac Allister, 19 Izquierdo, 24 Propper, 29 Zeqiri, 30 Bernardo . Injured: 21 Andone . MoM: Dunk Prem: P13 . W0 D3 L3 . F6 A10 . W2 D2 L3 . F9 A11 . Pt11 Po16 = 0.84pt/gm. Wins = 15.3%, Loss = 46.1% Season9 (3rd) - not Premier League. Season8, 2nd Premier League (A) Tuesday 29/1/19 - L 4-2 ~ Murray 2. This fixture was the third and last PL away match in January, apart from the trip to Bournemouth for that traditional FA Cup tie on the first Saturday after New Year. Albion's away form was, W2 D2 L8 F10 A20, so wdl ratios were not exactly positive, if maybe in correct proportion with 50% losses. So half the problem was accounted by poor performances at clubs in the lower third of this div. ie So'ton 2-2, Cardiff 2-1 & Burnley 1-0. Chris Hughton could point to plucky displays at top six outfits but at end of the season only positive results counted in final analysis. On a snowy night BHA fielded a regular 1st 11, including Ryan back from between sticks for Australia at the Asia Cup. *** match report: It was a cold & miserable experience for Brighton fans, who suffered disappointment and embarrasment in equal proportions come the final whistle. Albion took a very early lead via Montoya to Murray (3min) and he doubled the score with another strike (17min) after good work by Gross. But it was a totally different story after the interval. Cottagers bullied Seagulls and Stephens, Duffy & Dunk went into the book trying to keep them at bay. A flurry of 4 goals in 30 odd minutes sealed hapless Brighton's defeat (47,58,71,79mins). Hughton threw on Knockaert & Andone, going to 442 from 451 as we chased the game. But it was all over bar the shouting and not many yellow-shirts came away with decent marks out of ten - in fact that colour was representitve of a dire second half display. Hughton said, 'I was angry and entitled to be. We played a little bit deeper, changed the shape to try and get more pressure on the ball. That didn't allow us to stop their opportunities.' It all appeared way to easy for hosts to control matters from the break and their incisive positive alterations were game changers. Hughton & his side were out thought and lacked the will to win once caught cold. In fact it was a humiliating capitulation because if you cannot win then you should make damn sure not to get beat. Brighton fans at all levels of reason had their say on social media but not a lot of comment was particularly complimentary about disturbing nature of this total surrender. Stats; ht 0-2, goals 47,58,74,79-3,17, shape 442-451, poss 62%-38%, on target 7-6, off target 17-9, o/s 1-1, corners 10-1, fouls 10-5, yellows 2-3, subs 3-2 . MoM - Murray . Gate 22,008, away 2690 . Weather - cold, sleet & snow. 1 Ryan, 22 Montoya, 4 Duffy, 5 Dunk, 3 Bong, 20 March, 6 Stephens, 13 Gross (10 Andone 77), 24 Propper, 9 Locadia (11 Knockaert 71), 17 Murray . Subs - 27 Button, 2 Bruno, 33 Burn, 7 Kayal, 8 Bissouma. Prem P24 . W5 D3 L3 F15 A12 . W2 D2 L9 F12 A24 . Pt26 Po13 = 1.08pt/gm. Wins = 29.1%, Loss = 50% Season7 (1st) - not Premier League. FULHAM @ home; Craven Cottage. Seasn . W D L . . F A GD . . Pt Po pt/gm %Pt . W% L% 24/25 - 3 1 2 . 10 11 -1 . 10 10 = 1.66 55.5 . 50.0 33.3 - Marco Silva @ 28/11/24 23/24 - 9 2 08 . 31 24 07 . 29 13 = 1.52 61.7 . 47.3 42.1 - Marco Silva 22/23 - 8 5 06 . 31 29 02 . 29 10 = 1.52 55.7 . 42.1 31.5 - Marco Silva 21/22 - not Premier League. 20/21 - 2 4 13 . 09 29 -20 . 10 18 = 0.52 35.7 . 10.5 68.4 - S Parker. 19/20 - not Premier League. 18/19 - 6 3 10 . 22 36 -14 . 21 19 = 1.10 80.7 . 31.5 52.6 - Scott Parker, Claudio Ranieri & Slavisa Jokanovic. 14/15 - 17/18 not Premier League (see below, seasons 4-6). 13/14 - 5 3 11 . 24 38 -14 . 18 19 = 0.94 56.2 . 26.3 57.8 - Martin Jol & Felix Magath. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Fulham away, Falmer years 2011 to 2017 - Championship. C'ship 14/15-16/17 . Seasons 4-6 Cottagers v Albion (A) from 11/12: -, -, -, 0-2, 1-2, 1-2 . . W = 3 D = 0 L = 0 memorable match: Season6 (A) - an emotional evening of mood swings. Season6 (A) Championship 2/1/17 - w 1-2 ~ Hemed, Dunk. Brighton fans went to London the day after New Year, for this first away return fixture to start second half of the season on the road. We'd recently played Cottagers at the Amex and they gave us a good game there. So it was interesting to see if BHA could up the ante at their place. Chris Hughton knew what it took to maintain the promotion push, having been around the block and bizarrely was the third longest serving manager in the division! Over the post Xmas period Seagulls briefly headed the division but suprisingly were overtaken at the top by Newcastle because the Amex was fog bound. At least an 8pt gap was held to Reading in 3rd, due to their home match also being abandoned for fog after h-t. Of the team that played here at beginning of last season, all except Greer were still at BHA, although todays squad did look a little different. Signings this term in Duffy, Murray & Norwood were having a positive impact. * match report: On evidence of the first half Seagulls were lucky to get nil. Stockdale saved a penalty after a quarter of an hour when Bruno handled. And locals took the lead soon into the second period just following visitors best spell. A low shot thru a crowded area evaded Stockdale's late dive (55min). Hughton threw in March after a hour or so and not too later Hemed. These both had an impact as Albion chased the game. Hemed was brought down in the box and got up to stroke home the spot kick (74min). A minute later Dunk surged forward and passed to Knockaert whose shot was blocked. But Dunk was there to head in the rebound (75min). Murphy turned up for the last 10 minutes while BHA had backs to the wall. Travellers held out for a dramatic win as they overtook Newcastle at top of the league. Hughton said, 'we stressed that in second half of the season it won't be any easier. It will be harder as everyone is pushing. We haven't done anything yet - there is too much of the season to go.' Six thou Brighton fans were euphoric at the Cottage and knew scoring more than the opposition was all that mattered at end of the day. So Albion extended the unbeaten run to 18 and kicked off 2017 as winners too. Stats; h-t 0-0, goals 55-74, 75, poss 63%-37%, on target 4-4, off target 5-4, corners 10-2, o/s 0-3, fouls 13-8, yellows 2-3, subs 3-3, att 24,300 Stockdale, Bruno, Duffy, Dunk, Bong, Knockaert (Murphy), Norwood, Stephens, Skalak (March), Murray, Baldock (Hemed). Champ's P24 . W16 D6 L2 . F40 A15 . Pt54 Po1 . W = 66.6% L = 8.3% Season5 (A) 15/8/15 - W 1-2 ~ Baldock, Hemed. It was the first away league match scheduled, although Albion had won at Southend in the League Cup earlier this week. That followed an opening day victory for optimistic Brighton fans at the Amex versus Nott'm Forest. During pre-season, several players had been signed; Bobby Zamora, Tomer Hemed, Gaetan Bong, Liam Rosenior and keeper Niki Maenpaa. And on into the transfer window, Uwe Hunemeier and Jamie Murphy had also just arrived to boost a small squad. In July, Seagulls had got beat 1-0 when visiting Aberdeen for a friendly but at start of the month eased past Sevilla 1-0 when entertaining the La Liga outfit at Falmer. Chris Hughton included a couple of youngsters from the development group in previous first team activities and had also signed prospects Jack Harper and Vahid Hambo from abroad. On the day over 3k travelled into London to bolster a crowd of only 19 thousand at Craven Cottage. * match report: Deep into stoppage time it appeared each side would take a point. Albion opened the scoring through Baldock on the half hour, when he slid home Bruno's thru ball. It was all Brighton during the first half, bar the last five minutes when Cottagers netted a neat strike after a counter attack (43min). After the break locals came more into the game and visitor's 442 looked a little stretched, especially in midfield. Hughton made all 3 tactical subs late in the day, pulling off a striker, winger and midfielder for defensive players. At the death LuaLua was tripped on edge of the area and Hemed stroked the ball in from the spot (90+). Hughton said, 'I didn't see the winner coming. I'd made changes to steady it up. We had come under a fair bit of pressure and probably would have settled for a point. Fair play to my team, they were brave enough to go for it.' Yes and go to top of the table as a result - exactly! Stockdale, Bruno, Greer, Huenemeier, Bong, March (Rosenior), Stephens (Forster-Caskey), Kayal, LuaLua, Hemed, Baldock (Ince). Champ's P2 . W2 D0 L0. F3 A1 . Pt6 Po1 . W = 100% L = 0% Season4 (A) 29/12/14 - W 0-2 ~ Colunga, March. Sami Hyypia had quit as manager just before Xmas. The halfway stage of a tumultuous campaign had just passed on Boxing Day and this was the first in a series of 23 reverse fixtures. As usual the FL computer arranged a quick return to recent opponents and sure enough, we visited Craven Cottage a calendar month after that initial match at the Amex. So what was different now then? Well, Albion were in the bottom three and needing some big results on the road against lower order sides - to aid survival thru 2015. Nathan Jones took charge of the squad and with Tony Bloom back from Australia hols looking for a new manager, the Welshman was merely taking it one day at a time. A huge Albion following turned up on the night and ably assisted as temperatures plummeted. *** match report: Seagulls soared for once and not before time - elevating above those relegation places with an impressive display to gain all three points and keep a clean sheet to boot. It was merely a second victory in twenty games but bode well for incoming manager Chris Hughton to work on through 2015. One note about visitors play was that there was more urgency and intention from forward moves, plus tough & uncompromising defensive work. The first goal was going to be crucial and BHA were at least racking up on-target stats to get one thru law of averages. But around the hour mark, with both sides attacking in an open contest, Benno was decked and Ref pointed to the spot. Colunga stroked the ball into Whites net and red&black shirts celebrated (60min). Jones replaced CMS with March with 15mins to go and the kid netted just prior to the ninety to seal all points (87min). O'Grady had come on late and put himself around to allow Teixeira to set up the goal attempt. Hughes arrived very late in the day to keep it very clean. Jones said, 'we asked the players to do certain things and they carried it out to the letter. Credit has to go to the players.' Brighton fans were very happy and finally witnessed a performance that merited victory with great team efforts and spirit. 2015 didn't look so bad after all. A day later, Chris Hughton got the gaffers job and Tony Bloomalso breathed a sigh of relief. Stockdale, Calderon, Halford, Dunk, J Bennett, Holla, Ince, Teixeira (Hughes), E Bennett (O'Grady), Mackail-Smith (March), Colunga. Champ's P24 . W4 D11 L9 . F26 A32 . Pt23 Po21 . W = 16.6% L = 37.5% Seasons 1-3 - not C'ship. * * * * * Withdean era: 1999 to 2011 - no visits to Craven Cottage.
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