Club news

Hughton Frustrated With Uncharacteristic Display

By Kieran Cleeves • 14 April 2018

Brighton & Hove Albion manager Chris Hughton admitted the goals his team conceded in this afternoon’s 3-2 defeat to Crystal Palace were uncharacteristic, and was left frustrated after a below-par first-half performance at Selhurst Park.

The Seagulls created the better opportunities after the break against the Eagles, but Hughton’s men were unable to find the back of the net for a third time, and the Albion boss showed his disappointment.

He said, “We arguably had the two best chances in that second half, to get an equaliser or a winner. But you can’t give away the goals that we gave away in the earlier period of the game.

“It was uncharacteristic, because they were two goals from corners and we’ve been very good from corners since the West Brom game.

“It was also a goal conceded to a run that we know [Wilfired] Zaha makes. It wasn’t like us, but it’s very difficult to give those kind of goals away and then get something from the game.

“It’s about responsibility at set plays - you can have clever movement from players in the box, but it’s about making sure you adjust to that and take responsibility.”

Despite leaving Selhurst Park empty-handed, Hughton highlighted his team’s improved second-half performance as a positive to take into his team’s next Premier League fixture.

“The best thing about our game was the second-half performance, which was a performance that gave us chances towards the end that certainly could have given us an equaliser.

“Whether we deserved that over the balance of the 90 minutes? Probably not - because they were always a threat.

“But we very much had them on the back foot in the second half. We just needed to show more in the first half of what we were able to show in the second half.”

“There’s huge disappointment with the type of goals we conceded, and if you do that in any game, particularly in this division, it’s very hard to come back from that.”

Hughton continued to focus on Albion’s display after the break, before urging his players to show bravery when the Seagulls welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the Amex Stadium on Tuesday evening.

“The good part of what we saw today was how we finished the second half. I thought we were brave and had two very good chances to draw level.

“We’ll need a huge amount of that come Tuesday, because we know the quality of the side we’re up against.

“We’re at home and we’ll need to show some of that bravery that we showed in the second half.”