The Media Review: Spurs

If there was any consolation to be had for Albion after another 2-1 defeat away to Tottenham Hotspur (there wasn’t), it was that the reporters in the press box enjoyed the game and thought that Roberto De Zerbi’s team, well directed on this occasion by Andrea Maldera, deserved a point at least.

Perhaps Jim White put it best in The Sunday Telegraph, “What a terrific game this was. A non-stop blur of action, effort and skill. Plus an awful lot of mistakes. It was played at a pace which was at times ridiculous, the ball spinning from one team to the other with barely time to draw breath. 

“It was probably as well for his blood pressure that Brighton’s excitable manager Roberto de Zerbi was absent from the fray, recovering from dental surgery. Though for him root canal work would have been preferable to this most painful of defeats, the points snatched from his team’s grasp at the death. You imagine had he been here, his response would have been noteworthy.

“He would not have been allowed to make his considerable presence felt regardless: he was serving another touchline ban. But his team played as he would have wished, with real ambition and effort. Though sadly for them, no reward.

“’We lose the game, but not the quality of the match,’ said his second-in-command Andrea Maldera. ‘We know we lose, but we are proud about the players’.

“And so they should be. Brighton did everything right here. Except for one thing: holding on to the final whistle.”

Ed Aarons of The Observer also revelled in the attacking intent that was on view. “This was the kind of Premier League match you could happily watch all weekend: two sides sticking to the ultra-attacking principles of their managers and never afraid to take a risk,” he wrote.

“In the end, a dramatic winner in the sixth minute of injury time from Spurs substitute Brennan Johnson, set up by the returning Son Heung-min, broke Brighton’s hearts in the cruellest fashion moments after they had come within inches of snatching the points themselves.

“It was a harsh lesson for Roberto De Zerbi’s assistant Andrea Maldera– the son of a former Milan defender – who watched his side take the lead after a penalty from Pascal Gross only for the impressive Pape Matar Sarr to equalise.

“Leading 1-0 but under siege from Tottenham 15 minutes into the second half, the Brighton assistant opted to make an attacking change by bringing on forward Ansu Fati for midfielder Adam Lallana rather than stick with what he already had. The result was a narrow defeat but you could only credit the visitors for their daring.

“’We knew that we would have chances in the second half and that’s why we put on an extra forward,’ said Maldera, who confirmed he had made the substitution on De Zerbi’s advice after speaking to him at half-time. ‘We always want to score the second goal – we don’t think about staying in our half.’

“The previous meeting between these two sides six weeks ago saw Brighton race into a 4-0 lead and they were quickest out of the blocks once again here.”

Tom Allnutt of The Sunday Times saw “a game of cat and mouse between two teams determined to play their way out of trouble but more polished in their pressing than their passing out from the back.

“Brighton will feel aggrieved not to have held on for a point, especially as for large parts of this game they looked more likely to claim victory. They led through Pascal Gross’s early penalty and for the last 20 minutes they threatened a winner when Tottenham were all at sea. Son came on with Johnson and Yves Bissouma but Brighton stemmed the tide and took charge.” 

In The Sun On Sunday, Tom Barclay thought that “the late defeat was tough on Brighton, who had gone closest to scoring after Pape Matar Sarr had cancelled out Pascal Gross's first-half penalty.

“Inside the first minute, Welbeck took the Micky out of Van De Ven and forced a good save from Guglielmo Vicario.

“But 15 minutes later the Brighton forward tempted the Dutchman into a crucial mistake. Van de Ven is the fastest player since Premier League records began, but he was too slow to deal with Welbeck’s turn and clipped his heels. “

Matt Barlow wrote in The Mail On Sunday that “with penalty expert Joao Pedro out injured, Gross stepped up to take responsibility from the spot and sent Vicario the wrong way. Roberto De Zerbi must have been delighted with the start even if it was painful to smile.

“Brighton resisted until the 61st minute, when Tottenham’s mounting pressure finally told. Kulusevski released Sarr who tried to cut a pass square across goal to Richarlison. Lewis Dunk slid in and intercepted, diverting the ball against a post and the rebound came back to Sarr, who tucked it into the net, his third goal of the season.

“Postecoglou sent on Son and Yves Bissouma, both back from international duty, as he made changes but his team lost some of their impetus after the goal. Brighton recovered their fluency, creating a couple of clear chances via the trickery of Mitoma on the left. Ansu Fati turned one wide and Facundo Buonanotte had the other deflected wide before Johnson completed the fightback.”

On The Mirror website, Alan Smith wrote that “it was heartbreak for Albion, who arrived without banned head coach Roberto de Zerbi and still created enough chances to win the game after Pascal Gross gave them an early lead from the penalty spot before Pape Sarr equalised on the hour.

“De Zerbi was not even at the ground as he recovers from invasive dental surgery scheduled to coincide with his suspension. Yet there was little deviation from his team’s style of play with assistant Andrea Maldera placed in temporary charge.

“Brighton started well and continued to push forward whenever possible - typified by the decision to bring on Ansu Fati for Adam Lallana while leading 1-0.

“Even after Spurs levelled they continued to push and while the daring approach does not always pay off the commitment to their identity must always be praised.”