After promotion as runners-up from the Championship, Brighton were expected to struggle in their first season in the Premier League. After a shaky start the Seagulls settled in well, and a good spell at the beginning of February helped them avoid relegation without much fuss.
Steady Summer Signings Show The Way Forward
With an emphasis on bringing in defensive minded players, Brighton solidified an area of the pitch that can be difficult for newly promoted teams. The only big money spent on attacking flair went to Jose Izquierdo who was an exciting young talent.
As expected Brighton did struggle in front of goal in their first season. Glenn Murray top scoring with 12 goals, and Pascal Gros netting 7 times and getting 8 assists. Izquierdo had a hand in 8 goals, but these three players were the only ones to contribute to more than 5 goals all season.
September Form Set The Stage For Brighton
After getting only a single point in August, September set down a marker for how solid Brighton could be as they went on to win 4 games from 8. They notched 22 points before the end of the year and found themselves comfortably above the relegation zone. Despite this, they had failed to score in 11 of their 21 league games.
Realising they had a weakness they broke their transfer record and signed front-man Jurgen Locadia from PSV. He was returning from a hamstring injury and would go on to score 1 goal in 6 games for the Seagulls. He is a good young talent, although a little injury prone during his time in Holland.
The second season is likely to be much harder for Brighton, although they do have a good base to build on. Their defense was solid, conceding the least amount of goals in the bottom half. However, they will need to address their attacking threat as they scored the fourth fewest goals in the league.
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