Gull-Mouth Action podcast - episode 37 | Brighton bid farewell to Pascal Gross and Crawley Town latest
Matt Pole is joined by Sussex World reporters Derren Howard, Sam Morton and Henry Bryant as they delve into all things Brighton and Hove Albion and Crawley Town
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00:00Welcome to another episode of the Goldmouth Action Podcast where we take a look at all
00:04the latest goings on at Brighton and Hove, Albion and Crawley Town. I'm Matt Powell and
00:08I'm joined by Brian Wright as Derren Howard and Henry Bryant and Sam Morton who covers
00:12both Albion and Crawley Town. Brian entered their two game tour of Japan with an excellent
00:17win beating J League outfit Tokyo Verde 4-2 on Sunday. We'll pick over the bones of Albion's
00:22victory and their tour of Japan plus we'll bring you all the latest news from Crawley
00:26Town. You can read all the stories we are talking about with videos and pictures online
00:30at sussexworld.co.uk forward slash sport and you can check out other great videos on shotstv.com
00:35and Freeview channel 276. You may also be watching on later TV so thank you very much
00:40for tuning in. But as mentioned at the top of the podcast goals from Jan-Paul Van Hecke,
00:44Jankuba Minte, Simon Odingra and Jeremy Samiento fired Brighton to victory over Tokyo Verde
00:50in their final match in Japan. A good win. Derren, what were the main takeaways from
00:54the game?
00:55Yeah, I just think it was another good, another good reasonable performance. They were a little
01:00bit open in defensive areas at times. But, but yeah, there's still very much early days
01:06under Fabian Herzeler. It's obviously work in progress pre-season as well. Players returning
01:13to fitness and, and just getting used to each other's ways, really getting used to what
01:17the manager wants and the managers still getting used to the players as well. But, but yeah,
01:23it was a good performance, very humid, very humid conditions. And it was more of a test
01:28than the first game. I think Tokyo Verde looked pretty good, actually. They were very lively.
01:33They looked really fit as well. And they attacked quite well with pace as well. So there was,
01:39there was lots of defending for Brighton to do, some of which were probably a little bit
01:43of cause for concern. But once they get the main players back, once you get your Louis
01:48Dunne's back and Van Geck played for half the game, looked very good again as well.
01:53But well, once you get them all fit and firing, you'd think Brighton will be a bit more solid
01:58than what they showed against Tokyo Verde. But in attacking areas, I think they really
02:03impressed, impressed once again, as well. Minter, who they brought from Newcastle for
02:0830 odd million, he plays on the right flank and he's a real threat. He loves to receive
02:15the ball. He's got every trick in the book. And more importantly, he can finish as well.
02:21When he, when he gets in that position, he's calm and he's, he's ruthless in front of goals.
02:26So, so it's like I mentioned previously, it's only pre-season, but you shouldn't get too
02:31excited about a player in pre-season, but he does look very good. And he had such a
02:36good season with Feyenoord last, last year as well. So he's definitely one to watch out
02:41for. Kozodubre as well. He came off the bench, didn't have quite the impact he had against
02:47Kashima Antlers in the first game of the tour. But once again, you can just see that he's
02:52a class player as well. Technically excellent, the way he receives the ball, always, always
02:57under control. And yeah, he just looks the business as well. So, so yeah, plenty, plenty
03:04to look forward to. So yeah, overall a good, a good trip, a good trip to Japan.
03:11Deren's mentioned a few names there, Henry, but who stood out for Albion against Tokyo
03:14Verde? And I know that obviously we don't want to get ahead of ourselves, but that Minta
03:17does look quality. He does look very good.
03:20No, he really does look the business. Just echoing Deren there, you know, another goal
03:25for him and he ended up scoring two goals in two games in the Japan pre-season sort
03:30of friendlies that we did. He's really making a mark in the team, showing off his pace and
03:35his skill. A lot of fans have already been taking social media as well and thanking Newcastle
03:41for the player. And I mean, he's a player that was worth a bit of money, especially
03:47for sort of Albion spending. They normally maybe spend a little bit less than that, you
03:52know, with the history that we've seen and then normally get a bit more sort of value
03:56in the player with a few seasons.
03:58But it looks like we've maybe gone that step further now with the likes of Koizumi Dubre
04:04and also Yakuba Minta with some signings that are already ready to go. I feel like
04:12with the likes of Boliva, for example, maybe Barca as well, you've got those sort of players
04:16that might have needed that season previous just to sort of get that confidence going.
04:20But with these two signings, it really looks like we're going to see them hit the ground
04:24running properly with a lot of confidence and yeah, a lot about them straight away in
04:30the Premier League.
04:31And as Darren mentioned as well, I mean, Jean-Paul van Geck has got this new confidence
04:35that we saw sort of near the end of the season, I thought, but he's doing really, really well
04:41and he's gone from a boy to a well-established defender. And it seems like maybe Lewis Dunk's
04:49sort of calmness has rubbed off on him and he seems like a real leader for the team now.
04:54It's really nice to see. And one final mention would have to be Barca. I thought that he's
04:59gaining confidence as well, just the way that he's receiving the ball, the way he's sort of
05:04on the ball and doesn't look as timid and as shy as we've seen in previous games.
05:08And I mean, if we go back to a real big test for him that he had against Manchester City
05:13when the Amex, when Albion were at home in the Amex, he looked a little bit lost at times
05:19and made a couple of mistakes. But I feel like this pre-season was really good for him as well,
05:23just to get a few minutes and sort of just get himself on the ball and get more minutes
05:28with the team, really. We'll brighten in the Tour of Japan with two wins from two,
05:32scoring nine goals and conceding three in the process. How would you assess Albion's
05:37trip to the Far East, Darren? It's very much a worthwhile endeavour, do you think?
05:42You're on mute.
05:47Sorry, guys, the old trick. Yeah, absolutely. It was a very, you know, it seemed to be a very
05:52positive experience for the players, for the manager and also commercially as well. They're
05:59sort of cashing in on the fact that Mitoma is an absolute star over in Japan. And I think they
06:07really enjoyed the occasion and it was a good chance for the team to bond in a different
06:13environment. It looks like they were training hard as well. It certainly wasn't a jolly for
06:19the players. Herlitzer had them training, you know, very hard. They're picking up their fitness
06:25in what was quite humid conditions as well. So hopefully they can reap the benefits from
06:33that tour. But yeah, I think from the outside looking in, it seemed a real success and it
06:40boosted the club's profile in an area which Paul Barber said, you know, they've got lots
06:46of commercial partners as well. So in that respect, it was good. But from the playing side
06:51as well, I think it was very worthwhile. And I'll be back to the less sort of exotic surroundings
06:57of Loftus Road this Saturday now to see how their work in Japan has progressed
07:04against QPR. They've got two more friendlies coming up. So they've got QPR this Saturday
07:08and then Villarreal the following week at the Amex. And then they're good to go or hopefully
07:14to go for Everton for the first Premier League game. So yeah, hopefully the work that they did
07:20in Japan should set them on the right path for that first Premier League game.
07:26Meanwhile, it's very much an end of an era, Brian, as it's been confirmed that Pascal
07:29Gros has left the Seagulls to join his boyhood club, Borussia Dortmund, for officially undisclosed
07:34terms as per the club. How big of a blow is it to lose Gros, Henry? And where does the German
07:40ranking Albion's pantheon of greats? He's just been superb, hasn't he, since he's joined?
07:45Yeah, I mean, for what he's done for the club and the fact that he's been there through sort
07:49of a whole Premier League journey up until now. You'd have to put him up there, I think. I think
07:53it'd be wrong to not put him up there with a few of the Albion greats. And I mean, after seven years
07:58at the Albion, 261 appearances, 32 goals, 52 assists. I mean, he's been absolutely quality
08:06and it's a real blow for the team. He's an absolute engine. And sometimes he doesn't get
08:10the sort of credit that is due because he's sort of in that midfield role, sort of helping other
08:16players get up the pitch and coming back to defend at times. He's almost everywhere. And yet, he
08:24didn't get too much credit at times. And I think that the fact that he's just gone to Borussia
08:31Dortmund, having impressed for Germany, when he has had a few minutes with the German national
08:38side, is really good. And I think, although it's a big loss, I think he deserves it. He deserves it.
08:45There were rumours that he was homesick. Maybe some Borussia Dortmund fans might not realise
08:51what kind of player they have on their hands, but he's certainly a great in my eyes for the
08:55Albion. It's a big loss. Yeah, I'd have to agree with that, yeah.
09:00I was going to say as well, it seems that there could be another midfielder on the way out of
09:04Brighton. It's been well documented that Billy Gilmore is of interest to Antonio Conte and
09:09Napoli. An £8m bid was rejected last week and it seems Napoli are poised to make a second offer,
09:15which we believe is around £10m. What's the latest on that, Darren, and has that reported
09:20offer been materialised? We're not sure. We're not sure is the honest answer to that one. There
09:27has been, obviously they had the initial bid of £8m rejected, which seems seriously low for a
09:34player of Gilmore's age experience. And plus he's got two years on his contract as well. So, there's
09:40no need for Brighton to sell him for such a small amount. Obviously, they'd like to keep him.
09:47There was a report that came out of Italy. I'm not quite sure how serious it was, but it was
09:52saying that Gilmore has said yes, he was happy to go to Napoli. But as far as sort of the
10:00negotiation on price is going, we haven't heard any more as to whether Napoli have increased that
10:07offer. So, it's very much a case of wait and see. Personally, I'd like to see Billy Gilmore stay,
10:14especially with Pascal Gross departing. I think Gilmore can have a huge season for Brighton this
10:20year. Although they are bringing in or have brought in Mats Whiffer from Feyenoord for £25m.
10:27He looks a really good player. He didn't feature in Japan, but I think he'll be a very good,
10:32ready to go, as Henry was saying, at some of the other players that they brought in. And I think
10:36Whiffer is in that category as well. He won't need a season to get up to speed. He's good to go.
10:42And also, they're still trying to push for Diego Gomez as well from into Miami. So,
10:48if Gilmore did leave, they do have a couple more options. But hopefully, these guys coming in will
10:55be additions to Gilmore rather than replacements. We will wait and see how that resolves itself.
11:03We're going to take a quick break. And when we come back, we're going to talk all things Crawley
11:06Town. Welcome back to part two, where we'll discuss all things Crawley Town. And the Reds
11:11gave a good account of themselves as they went toe-to-toe with Premier League Crystal Palace in
11:14an entertaining pre-season friendly at the Broadfield Stadium on Saturday. The Reds were
11:194-0 down at half-time, but won the second half 3-2 as the match ended 6-3 to Palace. And it
11:23very much sounded like it was a thriller, Sam. How would you assess Crawley's performance?
11:28It certainly was a thriller, Matt, actually. It was a very fun match to watch. Definitely one of
11:32the most entertaining games I've seen at the Broadfield Stadium in recent seasons. Obviously,
11:38last year, we had the same match before the season started. And it was Ebreche Eze that
11:43stole the show on that day in a 4-0 win. And he wasn't there this year. So he kind of hoped that
11:47maybe Crawley could limit Palace's attacking threat and then could maybe make it a closer
11:52scoreline than the 4-0 result last year. But it didn't turn out like that at all, actually. They
11:59were 4-0 down very quickly, obviously, by half-time. And they were 2-0 down after two minutes.
12:07So it was a really shocking start to the match for Crawley. They looked all at sea at the back.
12:11The defenders really didn't look comfortable at all, kind of giving the ball away constantly. And
12:16Palace were so ruthless, especially, obviously, Edouard with the clinical-finished
12:21token scoring. And it was just, yeah, really concerning start to the match, actually. And you
12:26kind of felt it could get really embarrassing. It could end up being a cricket score.
12:31But there was a moment where there was a drinks break towards the end of the first half,
12:35and Scott Lindsay brought his side over to make some tactical adjustments. And it did work a
12:40treat, actually. And you did start to see some improvements towards the end of the first half.
12:44And then after the second half, they really were a different team. And they scored a cracking goal
12:49from rushing Hepburn-Murphy right to the top corner. They got them back into the game.
12:55And he got another goal. And it was a lot more fortuitous with Joaquin Anderson tripping over
13:02the ball at the back, which is very comical. And he just had a bit of a tap in Hepburn-Murphy to
13:07score again. And Jack Rowles came off the bench to score for Crawley as well. And it was a lovely
13:12team move, actually, that one. And moments earlier, he'd just cleared one off the line. So
13:16really good impact from Jack Rowles, who was a bit of a bench player last season. So maybe he'll be
13:20looking to have some more starts this year. But I think, yeah, it was really impressive the way
13:25that Crawley came back after that dismal opening 25 minutes or so in the first half. And if it
13:32wasn't for that, then they would have won the game. And they actually probably were
13:37in a good position in the game for quite a large period of it, if you know what I mean.
13:41So I think it was only a small period of the game, which they did completely crumble. And
13:44it looked like it was going to be a bit of a cricket score. But Scotland did a great job.
13:48Obviously, he pulled his team in at halftime and got them playing a lot better football.
13:52And I think he basically just said the press wasn't quite right initially. And he had to
13:56change that and to make sure that those turnovers weren't happening. But he fixed those little
14:00issues. And they got a few goals. And obviously, the defence was still a little bit leaky. And
14:04they conceded six goals in the end. But the second half was a lot better than the first.
14:10You were also in attendance with Sam Morton of the game. Henry,
14:13who stood out for the Reds against Palace? As Sam kind of alluded to,
14:16it seemed like a great afternoon for the Crawley forwards, but one to forget for the defenders.
14:20Oh, yeah, absolutely. I think in those first 10 to 15 minutes, I was thinking,
14:24what am I doing here? No, I'm only joking. But it did seem like Crawley was almost like a rabbit
14:31in the headlights. They'd been caught really badly. And it only took sort of rushing Hepburn,
14:37Murphy to sort of help them out in that 50th minute, scoring an absolute beauty from outside
14:42the box, as Sam mentioned. But it did take till the second half to get there. It did take that
14:48half of sort of getting battered a little bit to go, actually, there's some things we can do here
14:53to actually get ourselves in the game, not sort of embarrass ourselves and actually, you know,
14:58have a pretty decent competitive friendly in that second half. I thought there was some excellent
15:04pressing as well by Murphy. He sort of came off the blocks really quickly. And he was a very,
15:11very good player in that game for Crawley Town. And as Sam mentioned as well, Jack Rowles was part
15:17of a lovely team goal, which he scored, cleared a goal off the line when he came on. And that was
15:22literally his first touch of the game. So if that's a good statement, you know, to sort of
15:27represent himself, you know, I think there's no better way than, you know, than doing that.
15:31But Renan Darcy as well, he struggled to get into the game at times. But once Crawley were on the
15:37attack in that second half and actually looking like the better side, there was a lot of times
15:42where he was able to actually win back the ball from the Palace players and get the ball up. So
15:48I think overall, a lot of positives to take away from that. And Scott Lindsay after the game was
15:53saying that he was questioned sort of about the sort of the start and what he thought about the
15:58whole game, maybe insinuating that they didn't have the best game. But he said he thought it was
16:03a pretty good performance and he was very impressed with his players. So I think another really good
16:08pre-season game for Crawley and a lot of things they can take into the season with.
16:13Yeah, Henry's kind of mentioned it there, Sam. Scott Lindsay was very,
16:17quite chipper despite the scoreline, wasn't he, at the end of the game?
16:20He was, he was. Yeah, he was very happy with the way Crawley performed towards the end of the first
16:25half and in the second half because he disputed the claim that it was a game of two halves,
16:29actually, because that's something that was put to him by the club and media. He didn't agree
16:33with that at all and he felt that Crawley actually, bar the first 25 minutes, were good apart from
16:39that. So he felt that it was more than just a 45-minute performance from Crawley. And he said
16:43the fans certainly got their money's worth and he said there's lots of it that he's really pleased
16:48about. Obviously, the goals that Pally scored mostly came from mistakes and he acknowledged
16:53that. But he said there's nothing to worry about and he said that's obviously just, it comes with
16:56the territory being a pre-season and the mistakes are going to happen. As long as they happen now
17:01and not in League One when that starts, I think that's what he's hoping for, I think. And he's
17:07not too concerned about that and he'll obviously iron out those mistakes. But he said Crawley
17:12scored two really good goals on the press, which really pleased him, and he wants to make sure
17:17players are rewarded for their hard work as it makes them buy into it more. I think he was alluding
17:21to the mistake from Anderson, but Crawley obviously were pressing high up the pitch and perhaps
17:27forced him into that mistake. So I think Lindsay was pleased with the way that his players
17:32performed in that sense. And he said if they can press like that against a Premier League team
17:37and score goals, then they can certainly do it in League One. But he is hoping they can create
17:41more goals from open play, or create more chances I should say. That's something they're working
17:45hard to do on the training ground. But obviously it's a new group of new players, so it will take
17:49time. And the priority is just getting more minutes into the tank in pre-season and bedding
17:55down those principles of how he wants his team to play. In stark contrast, Lindsay was less enthused
18:01by Crawley's performance in their 2-1 win at Aldershot on Tuesday, in which Roland Darcy and
18:05Hepburn-Murphy netted. What drew the ire of the Reds boss at the EBB Stadium, Sam?
18:11Well yeah, exactly that. He wasn't too pleased. I think it was all down to do with their mentality
18:15actually. I think when the game was 1-1, he saw players kind of walking around and not in any
18:20rush to take corners. And that did frustrate him by the sounds of it. He said that mentality won't
18:26cut it and won't help them win games in League One. But I think to start off with, the game is
18:31really open and free-flowing. Crawley took the lead through Hepburn-Murphy, who scored his third
18:36goal of pre-season, adding to the two that he scored against Palace. So that's another positive
18:40for Crawley that he's in amongst the goal. Obviously it's a big task to replace Danilo
18:44Rossi after the season he had. So a good start for Hepburn-Murphy as he opened the scoring.
18:51But Aldershot equalised very quickly. It was a clever scissor-kick goal actually,
18:57that Wollacott was kind of caught off guard for and he couldn't stop it. It wasn't until the 55th
19:02minute that Crawley retook the lead through Ronan Darcy, who's obviously one of the players
19:07remaining there from last season. But yeah, so I think Lindsay was just a little bit unhappy. He's
19:12happy with the way the game started, but I think he felt they started well. But then the mentality
19:17shifted a little bit for the worse after the Aldershot's goal actually. He felt they weren't
19:22conducting themselves in the right way and weren't putting enough effort into it, which is something
19:26he did say last season on a few occasions. And we saw how he drilled that out of the team very
19:32quickly and got them playing with passion and pride all throughout the season. I think the hope
19:38is that he can do that again. And this is just a one-off that some players may be a bit tired
19:42before the season starts. And I'm sure they've been made to work really hard in pre-season. So
19:47yeah, I think it's one of those games for Crawley that it's good they got the win,
19:52but I think Lindsay probably wanted a bit more from them.
19:54Meanwhile, the Reds have dipped their toe in the transfer market once again,
19:59making two signings since the last pod. A tacky midfielder, Junior Quaterna,
20:03has been signed from Fleetwood for an undisclosed three. And the 24-year-old
20:07started in Saturday's friendly against Palace. How did he acquit himself, Henry?
20:12Well, I think when he was given the ball, he was able to get up that line really quickly. He wanted
20:17to show what he could do. You could tell that there was a lot of urgency in his play.
20:23And he was able to get a few dangerous crosses in for the Reds. And I would say
20:28he was one of their sort of key players, but I wanted to save it for this question.
20:33But he was a real nuisance and he kept on trying. And it was great to see the 24-year-old
20:38sort of making that impact and getting into the game like that. And I mean,
20:43against Premier League opposition, from not playing loads and loads of games for Fleetwood
20:48to hopefully becoming a player that they can sort of trust, Crawley Town can trust.
20:55I think it will be really interesting to see how he does this season. He seemed like a real talent.
21:00And instantly when I was there and I wasn't too sure who these new signings were, I said to Sam,
21:06he looks good. He looks really, really good. He was sort of right in our eye line,
21:10sort of playing really quality football. And he looked like he was the sort of level needed for
21:17a quality signing that will do well in League One for Crawley. And I'm looking forward to seeing
21:23what he can do. Finally, Cameron Bragg has joined from Southampton on a season-long loan,
21:29adding to Crawley's midfield options. What do you make of the signing, Sam? Do you see the
21:3319-year-old being more of a rotational option? They seem to have quite a lot of midfielders
21:38at the moment, Crawley. Yeah, they certainly do, don't they? They've signed a number of
21:42midfielders. I think after they've lost Liam Kelly, maybe it's a case of trying to sign as
21:46many as possible and hope that one of them can do as well as he did, or at least a few of them.
21:52But I think this is a promising signing for Crawley, Cameron Bragg, actually. It shows
21:55the Premier League clubs are looking at Crawley as a good team to develop their young talent,
22:00which bodes well for the future. And he did actually sign a new and improved contract
22:03to Southampton recently. So I think that shows how highly thought of he is over at Southampton.
22:08And I think it's just a case of trying to get those minutes in the tank. And
22:11now Crawley are in League One. They've got that kind of...
22:15They've obviously been looked at as a team to develop these Premier League players, which is
22:18great. And, yeah, time will tell if he is a starter or a bit more of a rotational player. I think,
22:23yeah, he might get some minutes, hopefully, at the end of pre-season,
22:27see what he can do. And if he impresses Lindsay enough, then there's no reason why he won't be
22:31able to start games in League One. But the 19-year-old has been at the Saints since the
22:35age of eight and has progressed nicely through the Premier League side's academy before signing
22:39his first professional contract with the club in 2023. He's played 79 matches in his career,
22:45scoring two goals and grabbing 11 assists, been to 38 games in Premier League too.
22:49He actually had high praise from Saints boss Russell Martin, who gave the teenager his
22:53professional debut in the FA Cup last season. So I think he's definitely made some waves and
22:59impressed people at Southampton. And he spoke about how he's really excited to get the deal
23:03over the line. He said it actually took a little bit longer than he might have expected to get the
23:08deal with Crawley signed, but he's glad that it's all been sorted. He had a really good meeting with
23:14Scott Lindsay, and it was obvious to me and his family that this was the place he needed to be,
23:18and he just can't wait to get started. So, yeah, another promising signing for Crawley,
23:22and I hope he does well. Well, best of luck to all those Crawley Town new boys,
23:27and thank you very much for joining us this week. Chaps, you can catch up with all the latest sports
23:30news covering everything we've talked about today at sussexwell.co.uk forward slash sport,
23:35and you can watch more excellent videos on shotstv.com and Freeview channel 276.
23:39Thank you very much for listening and or watching, and we will see you next week.