Why unique Brighton defence is so tricky to unpick — SkimNews
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- Brighton sit third in the Premier League behind Manchester City and leaders Arsenal, are the league's top scorers with 24 goals in nine games, and have conceded just seven — fewer than every side except Arsenal — after beating both leaders this season.
- Manchester City lost 1-0 to Brighton in the rematch of their Carabao Cup knockout, failing to score at home for the first time in 23 matches.
- Fabian Hurzeler said after the cup exit, "We have a great chance on Saturday to take revenge," with his side then beating the same opponents 1-0 the following Saturday.
- Maxim de Cuyper, Brighton's left winger, followed Matheus Nunes into left centre-back to create a back five, using the defensive experience of his left-back career to handle a roaming attacking full-back.
- Enzo Maresca instructed right-back Matheus Nunes to push up and move infield into a right-sided striker's position — an attacking shape also used by Arsenal and Paris St-Germain.
- Abdukodir Khusanov's powerful ball-carrying from a wider position was perhaps the best Manchester City had on show, and one of the few solutions to Brighton's organised, man-oriented defending.
- Brighton press man-to-man from opposition goal-kicks, one attacker curving his run to cut off the keeper's passing angle, then retain a measured man-to-man shape with a 'plus-one' fifth defender against four forwards and block central zones instead of dropping into a 4-4-2.
Why it matters: City and Arsenal have both lost to a side that has conceded only seven goals in nine matches, and the common top-team answer of a rigid 4-4-2 zonal block no longer solves the problem. Brighton's third place, on a league-leading 24 goals, rests on matching individuals, adding a fifth defender and keeping the free centre-back far from the ball.
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