After a torrent of plaudits, Brighton & Hove Albion finally got the points they required. Graham Potter was hailed by Pep Guardiola as the best English manager around now, his Albion applauded for their progressive policies even as relegation felt ever more plausible.
A first victory in 10 league games was an endorsement of an ethos, capped by a goal that showed passing principles, but it also had the pragmatic benefit of easing fears of the drop.
“There is a lot of good in the team but if you don’t get the wins you are always under a bit of pressure,” accepted Potter. “The performance levels have been quite good but if you don’t get results then you are going to get some criticism.” This time, the praise did not need to come coated in caveats.
It also meant Leeds equalled their poorest run under Marcelo Bielsa as they suffered a third successive loss. A strangely specific Bielsa had branded the FA Cup defeat to Crawley the fifth worst result in Leeds' history. A second setback against a Sussex side felt a continuation of that and may rank as their most disappointing performance and result in the Premier League since their return to the top tier. "Of course, the game in the FA Cup and today worries me," Bielsa said.
Leeds were insipid and uninspired. Championship players who have prospered in the Premier League, such as Patrick Bamford, Luke Ayling and Stuart Dallas, seemed to have reverted to their former level. “Our performance wasn’t a good once,” Bielsa admitted.
But Brighton added to their enigmatic feel. Their victories, at Newcastle, Aston Villa and now Leeds, have all been emphatic and impressive, but they raise the question of why there are only three. This served as an illustration of the peculiarities of Potter’s management. Benching Yves Bissouma left him without a specialist central midfielder in his starting 11. Percy Tau, so bright at Manchester City, was another surprise omission. Yet the attack he formed instead excelled.
Theirs was a beautiful goal, begun by Ben White, the former Leeds loanee who Bielsa wanted to buy in the summer. He strode forward, Leeds were cut apart, Alexis Mac Allister exchanging passes with Leandro Trossard before selflessly centring to give Neal Maupay a tap-in.
“It was a good goal,” Potter added. “We were a bit unlucky not to score another one.” Trossard can be a specialist in hitting the woodwork and his cross deflected off Ayling to hit the bar. The Belgian also drilled a shot over. Adam Webster powered forward from defence to draw a save from Kiko Casilla. The Spaniard can often be a liability but was blameless for the goal; Illan Meslier was sidelined by coronavirus but Leeds missed the suspended Kalvin Phillips more.
Brighton used driving runs as a tactic, rationalising any player who escaped his man-marker could threaten. White allied surges forward with ball-winning: the Championship’s outstanding centre-back last season was a commanding presence in midfield here. Trossard and Mac Allister were elusive. Brighton repeatedly won the ball back and broke at pace, finding space between the lines.
But Leeds were disjointed. “The fluidity to attack is not the same in the last two games to what we have been used to,” Bielsa said. They have been prolific in the Premier League but one wild Matuesz Klich effort was the sum total of their first-half efforts. Jack Harrison came closer thereafter, steering a shot wide. The substitute Tyler Roberts belatedly drew a save from Robert Sanchez but they have rarely been as quiet. It left Bielsa unusually blunt. “We didn’t attack well and we didn’t defend well and we also didn’t play well,” he concluded.
