Shot! Brighton vs Villarreal
Ahead of the new season, and with a new coach in the dugout, the high-flying Seagulls sunk La Liga’s Yellow Submarine in an easy-as-you-like friendly at the Amex
For their final pre-season game before the 2024/25 season kicks off, some 11,500 fans came to witness new head coach Fabian Hurzeler’s first home game in charge as the Seagulls took on Villarreal.
Given the occasion, I was surprised how small the crowd were in a stadium that holds just shy of 32,000.
Perhaps it was the late announcement of the game, the indifference to the opposition – Villarreal finished a disappointing eighth in La Liga last season – or a combination of both, but the entire South stand was empty and it appeared no Spanish fans were in attendance.
Surely, some creative marketing such as a kids go free promotion could have attracted a bigger crowd?
The next day, by contrast, Arsenal played Lyon at the Emirates on their last pre-season friendly in front of 60,000 fans.
Admittedly, both teams are bigger than Brighton and Villarreal, but the Seagulls surely could have done more.
Not only was it the first opportunity for home fans to see their 31-year-old new head coach, but also to see the team wear their new home kit.
The game started with a shock, with Villarreal’s Arnaut Danjuma hitting the post after just 24 seconds.
Things might have been different if Marcelino’s team had scored, but as it turned out that would be pretty much the only time they came close to threatening Jason Steele’s goal.
Without seeming to break sweat, the home side cruised to a comfortable four-nil victory, despite never looking especially sharp or cohesive.
For both teams this was more about getting minutes into the legs and getting as many of the players on the pitch, than winning the game. Indeed, Hurzeler got to see twenty of his squad in action.
The first half ended with Brighton two up with goals from Joao Pedro and Danny Welbeck.
Once again, much rides on 22-year-old Pedro. Last season the Brazilian international scored 20 goals in all competitions, earning him a place among the nominees for the Professional Footballers’ Association young player of the year award. The assuredness in which he took his opening goal made you believe he could definitely increase his tally next season.
As is usually the case in these friendlies, the second half saw Brighton make a raft of changes with Ecuadorian Jeremy Sarmiento showing glimpses of being a promising addition to the first-team squad following his successful loan at Ipswich and Simon Adingra being the pick of the subs.
With Arsenal apparently hovering, can Brighton hang onto the talented Ivorian?
Speaking of the Gunners, there was a bit of an Arsenal old-boys reunion going on with former Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck up against Nicolas Pepe.
Prior to the arrival of Declan Rice last season, Pepe was Arsenal’s record signing. It never worked out for him at the Emirates and he eventually left on a free transfer. His time in Turkey with Tradzonspor didn’t fare much better, and he’s now resurfaced at Villarreal on another free.
Also making his home debut for Brighton was former Arsenal youth prospect Amario Cozier-Duberry.
Welbeck bagged his brace with a well-taken 85th-minute penalty, while new £30m signing Yankuba Minteh announced his arrival with a goal.
This a period of major change at Brighton. They’ve brought in an untried new manager and moved on experienced players like Adam Lallana, Pascal Gross and Deniz Undav.
As with many pre-season friendlies, I don’t think much can be gleaned from this game. The real test for the league’s youngest ever head coach will come when the Brighton’s eighth season in the Premier League gets underway with a visit to Goodison Park. Albion’s first home game will see Hurzeler up against Erik ten Hag’s new-look Man Utd.
That game could also see the appearance of another young German: Brajan Gruda, the 20-year-old midfielder from Mainz who Albion just signed for £26m.
You can expect the Amex to be rammed for that one!
Brighton & Hove Albion starting lineup:
Steele, Veltman, Van Hecke, Dunk, Barco, Milner, Ayari, Minteh, Mitoma, Welbeck, Pedro
Villarreal starting lineup:
Conde, Suarez, Albiol, Bailly, Alti, Comesana, Danjuma, Terrats, Femenia, Pino, Cardona
Behind the shot: All these images were taken with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 using the M Zuiko 1.8 75mm lens. The challenge was getting shots from my seated position in the press box with fans sitting directly in front of me. Photographed at the Amex on 10 August 2024.
About the author: Based in Sussex-by-the-Sea, on England’s south coast, Gary is a creative writer and image-maker. He specialises in creating out of the ordinary portraits of musicians and people with interesting faces, as well as photographing some of the world’s finest flowers and gardens, not forgetting an array of automotive exotica.
On the writing side, he has used his research skills to author deep dives into some noteworthy songs beginning with Bryan Ferry’s ‘These Foolish Things’ ‘Ghost Town’ by The Specials, ‘Real Wild Child’ by Ivan and ‘All The Young Dudes’ by Mott the Hoople.
He has also written a biography of Robert Palmer and the stories behind Whitesnake’s blatant Led Zep rip-off, ‘Still Of The Night’, Harry Styles’ anthem to positivity, ‘Treat People With Kindness’ and the little known Queen track ‘Cool Cat.’
Most recently, Gary has penned the fascinating story behind George Orwell’s dystopian novel ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four.’ as well as ‘Believe It Or Not’ a look into the rise of fake news.
All these can be found here on Medium, along with his reviews of gigs and events and chats with musicians including the likes of Royal Blood, Joe Satriani and Wolf Alice.
