Gull-Mouth Action podcast: Albion ready for United
We pick over the bones of Albion’s win at the Toffees, plus we’ll bring you the latest from Crawley Town’s dream start to the new season.
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00:00Welcome to another episode of the Goldmouth Action Podcast, where we take a look at all
00:17the latest goings on at Brighton, Hove Abbey and Crawley Town.
00:20I'm Matt Paul and this week I'm joined by Brighton writer Darren Howard and Crawley
00:23Town expert Mark Dunford.
00:25Brighton's young manager, Fabian Hertzeller, started his Premier League career with an
00:28impressive win at 10-man Edited on Saturday.
00:31Goals from Kauri Matoma, Danny Wuerlbeck and Simon Odinga ensured the league's youngest
00:35ever permanent manager enjoyed a dream start to his Seagulls tenure.
00:40We'll pick over the bones of Abbey and win at the Toffees Plus.
00:42We'll bring you the latest from Crawley Town's dream start to the new season.
00:46You can read all the stories we are talking about with videos and pictures online at sussexwell.co.uk
00:50forward slash sport.
00:51And you can check out other great videos on shotstv.com and freeview channel 276.
00:56You may also be watching on native TV, so thank you very much for tuning in.
01:00Brighton and Hertzeller couldn't have asked for a better start to the Premier League season.
01:04Abbey and Serena win at Everton, sent them top of the table, albeit after just one game.
01:08How good were the Seagulls at Goodison Park, Darren?
01:11I've watched the highlights of the match today and they looked incredible in the second half,
01:14especially.
01:15Yeah, you're right.
01:16The second half, they really got into their stride.
01:20The sending off from Ashley Young didn't help Everton's cause as well.
01:24In the opening 20 minutes, Everton were actually quite good and they looked a team more likely
01:29to score.
01:31They were quite threatening and Hertzeller himself said, you know, the result was great.
01:35It was a good performance in the end, but there's still so much that we can improve
01:40on.
01:41And I think he's right.
01:43There were areas where they did look a bit vulnerable in the opening stages, particularly
01:47on that left-back position where Harrison down the right-hand side for Everton, Jack
01:54Hinchwood was playing as a sort of cover left-back and he did pretty well there, but it is an
01:59area that they need to address, which they're looking to do.
02:04They're looking to bring in a new left-back.
02:06And also we might hear that Valentin Barco may be going out on a loan to Sevilla as well.
02:12So that's an area they need to look at.
02:14But overall, attacking-wise, it looks really promising.
02:18They've got so many options there going forward.
02:20Jankuba Minter, who was excellent in the first half, had to come off due to a concussion
02:27substitution just before the break, but he looked really promising.
02:30But he goes off, Odinga comes on and looked just as good and scored a goal as well.
02:35Matoma's back to his best.
02:36So yeah, very, very encouraging start for Brighton.
02:40We'll talk about Minter in a bit, but VAR, unfortunately, was at the centre of things
02:45once again on the opening day.
02:46Everton had a penalty award overturned at the start of the second half, despite Lewis
02:51Dunk appearing to catch Dominic Cavett-Lewin.
02:53Referee Simon Hewitt reviewed the incident on the pitchside monitor and said no penalty.
02:57And then Albion thought they had a fourth goal in injury time, but substitute Yassin
03:01Eyari's effort from close range was chalked off for offside.
03:04What do you make of those decisions, Darren?
03:06It's nothing like a bit of controversy from VAR.
03:08Yeah, I know. You just sort of think, can we just leave VAR?
03:11But no, straight away, first game of the season, it comes in again.
03:16I think they made the right call in the end, especially with the Dunk situation.
03:20It looked as though that Calvert-Lewin did stand on Dunk's foot.
03:24So although Sean Dice had a major issue with it after the game, as you'd expect, the
03:30managers disagreed on the various points.
03:32But Dice's argument was that referees are there now to make a decision and that VAR
03:38must only intervene if it's a major, major error.
03:42He didn't think it was.
03:44But clearly, I think they got to the right decision in the end.
03:48I think Calvert-Lewin did sort of initiate the contact with Dunk.
03:53It was very fine margins, but he could have gone.
03:56I think if the initial decision had stood, I don't think there would have been too many
04:00complaints. But in the end, I think it was just about right.
04:04And yeah, as you say, it's a shame for Yassin Eyari at the end.
04:07He's looked very impressive in preseason, actually.
04:09He's a real threat going forward.
04:11He presses very well, plays very well from the attack in midfield areas, and he gets
04:16into these advanced positions.
04:18And unfortunately, just for him, he just strayed a little bit offside at the key moment.
04:23But yeah, it's a shame he had his goal chalked off.
04:26But yeah, overall, a fair result all round.
04:32Absolutely. Shall we have a moratorium on VAR?
04:35This will be the first and last time we talk about it this season, or do you reckon...?
04:38I wish it was. Yeah, I wish it was. I don't think it will be.
04:41I mean, just quickly on it, I agree with Darren.
04:45I mean, I think it would have been better if the referee didn't give it in the first
04:49place and then got referred to VAR and he stuck with his decision.
04:53But yeah, it was a funny one because he did, yeah, he just sort of rode Dunk's foot,
04:58didn't he, sort of thing. But if Dunk hadn't played it and tackled him, he wouldn't have gone down.
05:04So, yeah, it's a very funny one.
05:06It was a funny one, yeah.
05:08I sympathise with Sean Dyche a little bit. I never really sympathise with him.
05:12But I do sympathise a little bit. But yeah, it was a funny one.
05:17It was a funny one. When you saw it back, I thought, I don't know which way this is going.
05:23Yeah, no, but the right decision, like you say, I think was got to at the end,
05:26probably not the right way.
05:29Sort of backhanded praise for VAR then.
05:32Yeah, it was, yeah.
05:34As Deren mentioned, Seagulls debutant Jankuba Minte was very much in the thick of the action
05:39at Goodison. His run and cross set up Matoma for Albin's first goal, but just before half-time,
05:44the £30m summer signing from Newcastle clashed with Everton's Vitaly Mikhalenko and was swiftly
05:49replaced by Dhingra due to concussion protocols. Minte was fuming as he left the pitch and the
05:54gambling continued his protestations as he made his way to the away bench.
05:59We've kind of touched upon it, Deren. It was a positive first performance, but did that
06:03reaction from him kind of sour it a little bit? And did Zala have anything to say about his
06:07reaction?
06:08Yeah, he did. I was quite surprised by his reaction, actually. He'd been playing so well
06:14and I just think he was just so frustrated that he had to come off. He looked fine. He didn't
06:19look as though, he didn't look groggy. He wasn't sort of wobbling around, you know, he wasn't
06:23knocked out by any means. But it was a head injury. There's certain protocols that you have
06:28to follow now. And it was a decision that was made for his own personal safety. Having said that,
06:36there was a similar incident in the second half where Joel Veltman went down holding his head
06:40and he was down for quite some time as well. And the same rule didn't apply to Joel Veltman. So,
06:45I'm not quite sure the seriousness, whether the physios had assessed it to be not quite as serious
06:51as Minter's issue. But yeah, so there was a little bit of difference between the two.
06:58But Minter, he's trained this week. We just had a Man United press conference at the moment,
07:03or the pre-Man United press conference. And Zala was asked how Minter's doing. He's trained
07:08perfectly well this week and he's fit and firing and ready to go to face Man United,
07:13which is a huge boost because not only is he electric going forward at the moment, he's very
07:19good off the ball as well. He tracks back, he starts to press and if you're going to play under
07:27Herlitzer, then that is sort of like a key requirement. You have to press and you have to
07:32attack the defenders. So, yeah, he'll be key against Man United, I'm sure.
07:39Speaking of bright and new boys, Albion have completed the signing of French forward
07:43Jorginho Ruta for a club record fee of £40 million from Leeds. The 22-year-old who scored
07:49eight goals and 66 appearances for Leeds after joining from Hoffenheim in January 2023,
07:54joins the Seagulls on a five-year contract. What do you make of this signing? I must admit,
07:59seeing his goal return, Darren, I'm a little bit concerned by the amount Albion have paid for him,
08:03if I'm honest. Yeah, club record £40 million, which is £10 million more than they've paid
08:11for any other player in their history. Jao Pedro was the previous record signing, then Minta came
08:18in for £30 million as well. So, yeah, he's by £10 million, the club record signing.
08:26Herzl was asked just now actually, what's his personality like? How is he going to adapt? How
08:32is he going to cope with this big fee? He said, it's just the Premier League. The players accept
08:39it. They don't sort of feel burdened by it. And he said, he's just been walking around. He's got
08:43a big smile on his face. He's so happy to be here. And he says his focus is on integrating into the
08:48team, being part of the team rather than this big transfer fee that's sort of floating around him.
08:55But yeah, you're right. It's a big fee. His goal return hasn't been prolific. But what he does do
09:03again, Herzl is always, he judges forwards on how they press. He said, if they're good enough,
09:09they're going to score anyway. It's all about how they press, how they mix with the team, how they
09:15employ his tactics. And he thinks that Rutter will be perfect in that role. He can play centrally.
09:22His assists are quite good. If you look at his figures on his assists as well, they're very
09:27impressive as well. So, he's going to be able to link the play with the likes of Minta and Matoma
09:32as well. So, he sees him very much as a goal threat, but also he's going to be linking the
09:37play and helping to create chances for other players as well. Finally, for this half, this
09:44Saturday sees Albion entertain Man United in their first home game of the campaign. United,
09:48like Brighton, won their opener. Joshua Zirkzee's late goal saw the Red Devils beat Fulham 1-0 on
09:53Friday evening. How do you see this one going, Darren? I think most people are probably quite
09:58confident that Brighton might get a result. Well, that's right. Yeah, they sort of go at it.
10:02They've got a good record against Man United recently and they come into it. There's a
10:06question actually that was asked, are they almost favourites going into this game now against the
10:11Man United team? And Hersele stopped short of admitting that they are favourites, but they
10:16think that they can go in and attack them as equals. And why not? After their first game
10:24against Everton, they look really good and hopefully they can improve a bit defensively
10:30and start sharper than they did against Everton. But I think on their home patch as well, the
10:35Amex Stadium, Hersele's first match in charge and it's the first time that the fans have seen all
10:41these new signings come together. It's been a remarkable period for the club really. It's so
10:46unusual that they've spent this type of money. But with that, expectations will increase and
10:51the fans will now expect them to go up against teams like Man United and really
10:58potentially go there expecting a win. So, yeah, I think the mindset has changed for the fans and
11:05for the players as well. So, yeah, it's going to be an interesting one. Man United look solid in
11:12their first game against Fulham without being spectacular, but they're going to be very hard
11:17to beat. You still look through their team and they've got numerous world-class players,
11:22expensive players. So, it's going to be a tough ask, but I think Brighton will attack it with a
11:29lot of confidence, especially with the players they have going forward now. They can really go
11:33for it. Should be a very good game. Brilliant. Well, that draws an end to part one. In part two,
11:38we will be talking all things Crawley Down.
11:47Welcome back to part two, where we'll discuss all things Crawley Down, who have enjoyed a dream
12:11start to the League One campaign, and it continued very much so on Cambridge on Saturday when Adi
12:17Yemo struck a late winner as the Reds' natural 1-0 victory at the Uves to maintain their perfect
12:21start to the season. It was another excellent result for Crawley, wasn't it, Mark? When you
12:25look at how they've done in their opening games, I'm not sure even the most optimistic Reds fan
12:28would have predicted this start. No, with everything that happened over the summer with
12:33all the players leaving and there was at one point a lot of negativity, but as the signings came in,
12:38I think people started to feel a little bit more confident, but I don't think anyone could have
12:43imagined a start like this. I mean, they played Blackpool, quite a big side. They did well last
12:48year, missed out on the playoffs, dominated that game, and then Cambridge did the same. I think
12:55that's possession stats, 60% Crawley had away from home in League One against an established
13:00League One side in Cambridge with an experienced manager in Gary Monk. And yeah, again, absolutely
13:06dominated. Cambridge might have had more of the chances, but Crawley's defence looks really good
13:12this year and it looks a lot more solid. I mean, people, when Will right-left, when Lawrence
13:16Maguire didn't come back, it was all a little bit, oh God, what are we going to do in defence? But I
13:21mean, in Josh Flynn, they've got an absolute huge upgrade in on the left side of that centre back
13:27free. He's been superb and I think there was some stats come out. We've got a story on our website
13:33today from whoscored.com, the best rated players in League One so far after two games.
13:39Josh Flynn was sixth in that list. So he's done so well and yeah, very, very impressive,
13:46but yeah, it's just been so good. And Addy Adeyemo comes off the bench,
13:51scores a brilliant goal. If you haven't seen it, he sort of, there's a long ball through from
13:55Flynn, funnily enough, an assist from Flynn and he cleanly rounded the keeper. It looked like he
13:59took it too wide, but such a calm finish, sort of into an empty net, but from a tight angle,
14:05still had a lot to do. So it was a really good finish, but they've just been so good.
14:09And I think probably the only people it hasn't surprised to start is Scott Lindsay and all the
14:14players, because I think, again, you just sense that confidence there that they are going to shock
14:19a lot of people this season. And that result of Blackpool, although bizarrely after two games,
14:25it's cost the Blackpool manager his job, isn't it Mark? Yeah, Neil Critchley, he's gone. I mean,
14:31I just find it crazy. I mean, we saw Ryan Lowe impressed in the championship,
14:35leave Preston North End after one game and then Neil Critchley after two games. It's like,
14:40I mean, I suppose you can sense after, if you've lost the opening games, if you're the owner and
14:45you sense this isn't quite right, I suppose you've got to take action early, but two games, really?
14:51Surely you've got to give, yeah, I just find it very odd. And obviously we saw Scott Lindsay's
14:55name in the list. He wasn't top this time for the Blackpool job, but I think it was Ryan Lowe who
15:02was top, wasn't he? But he is in the list again, but it's just going to be speculation. People are
15:08going to always put money on Scott Lindsay getting a job at what is seen to be a bigger club,
15:13as it were, or a higher level. So, but yeah, I just find it crazy at this time of year,
15:17but who knows Gary, if Gary Monk goes soon, that could be like a Crawley town curse this year,
15:21because they are going to be a few people. Yes, I'd say that the Wigan manager better watch out
15:28then this coming Saturday, just in case. Away from League One, Tuesday evening, sorry, much
15:33changed. Crawley side beat Brighton under 21-4 on penalties after the opening game of the EFL
15:38Trophy. Southern Group B had finished 2-2. Can Poupillon open the scoring for Albion on 10
15:44minutes before Charlie Barker levelled three minutes later? Anthony Papadopoulos fired the
15:49Reds in front 55 minutes, but Joshua Duffus equalised for the Seagulls with six minutes
15:54remaining. Good result against the Brighton side. Mark, what were the main takeaways from that game?
15:59Yeah, it's again, it just shows whatever side Scott Lindsay puts out, they are going to play
16:05the same way as they play if the first 11 are starting on a Saturday, kind of in a league match.
16:11He made, I mean, he's had the same back three for the first three games. And I think
16:15a takeaway from that is that they are a little bit weak in strength, in terms of depth in that
16:22area, because Dion Conroy's injured. He's still maybe a week away, I think. And yeah, they played
16:28Charlie Barker in midfield because they're managing Jay Williams's time in that. So they're,
16:34if that's, they stay fit, those three, McKainer, Malarkey and Josh Flint, they haven't got a
16:40problem, but obviously you're asking a lot if they're going to play, if they're going to play
16:44in Carabao Cup, EFL trophy, et cetera, it's a lot of minutes. So he's got to manage that.
16:48I know Malarkey came off at halftime and Charlie Barker dropped back into defence because that
16:53he had, they signed him as a defender, but he's actually played a couple of games in midfield now.
16:57And he's looked impressive. He scored a cracking goal as well to equalise. And like you say,
17:02Ante Papadopoulos, he scored a cracking goal as well. And actually that's one thing I noticed
17:06in the last two games, in the midweek games, when it's been the Carabao Cup where he's played a
17:10different side, EFL trophy played a different side, the goals have been spectacular. They've
17:15all been, a lot of them outside the box, Jack Rowles twice against Swindon in the Carabao Cup.
17:19And it's something we maybe didn't see as much last year. A few, a couple from Will Wright
17:23from distance, but most of them were really good football, crossing in, Orsi tapping in kind of
17:29thing. This year we've already seen, I think they've had seven different, seven different
17:33goalscorers from the nine goals they've scored. So that's a real big positive for Scotland.
17:38I was speaking to him this afternoon, I'm going to talk to him about,
17:41he's just got so many options where goals are going to come from. And that just adds such an
17:45excitement to the team. But it was a really important competition last year, the EFL
17:49trophy in terms of bringing players through. Joey McKenna, I don't think would be playing
17:54centre-back and captain in the side in these games, if it wasn't for the EFL trophy performances
18:00he put in last year. So I think we're going to see a few more players come through and make
18:04names for themselves in this competition this year.
18:08Well, next Tuesday sees a massive game in Sussex, Amber Sussex-Weld, as Brighton entertain Crawley
18:14at the Amex in the second round of the Carabao Cup. The time will be the first competitive
18:18Sussex derby since 1992, where the Seagulls ran up five-nil winners in the third round of the FA Cup.
18:24Deron, I'd be interested to know how you think Albion would be approaching this game.
18:29I think the League Cup, obviously we know that they play United on Saturday,
18:33the League Cup comes between two stern Premier League tests, I think, for Brighton. Where do
18:37you see that going for them? Yeah, it does. It would be interesting to see what team they put
18:42out against Crawley. As you say, they've got Manchester United on the Saturday lunchtime
18:47kick-off and then the Crawley game is sandwiched in between the trip to Arsenal the following
18:52weekend. So yeah, lots to juggle and it would depend on injuries following Manchester United
18:59and how players are shaping up. But I expect some of the fringe players to be included. It could be
19:05a good occasion for the likes of the new signings, Brian Gruder and Georgina Rutter. They could get
19:13some minutes against Crawley as well. But expect the likes of Koza Dubri as well. He could be
19:20featuring as well. He wasn't in the matchday squad against Everton. He came from Arsenal
19:25on a free transfer in the summer. He looked really good in pre-season in Japan. So that
19:31could be an opportunity for players such as that who aren't really getting some minutes on the
19:37pitch so far in the Premier League. So it could be a good test for them against Crawley. But yeah,
19:43like you say, it would be a really good match, especially for the fans as well. First Sussex
19:47derby for a long while and a good test for Crawley. The way Crawley are playing, I'm sure
19:53they'll be confident that they can go to the Amex stadium and give a really good account of
19:57themselves. So yeah, but it'd be one that Brighton would want to progress in. But they'll have to
20:03manage the team quite carefully for that one with those two Premier League games, as you say,
20:09either side. Mark, how do you think Crawley Town are going to attack this? Do you reckon they're
20:14going to go full tilt for this, considering the great start they've had for the league season?
20:19What has Reds manager Scott Lindsay said about the game?
20:22Oh, he's really excited about it. He just says what a great fixture it is for the club to go
20:25there to a great stadium. He's good friends with Andrew Cross, first team coach of Brighton. So
20:30he's been having text banter with him apparently. But I think it's a funny one because the temptation
20:37for Lindsay will be like, right, we don't want to go there and we want to be our strongest and
20:42give them a real good run. But he's also very much about giving the whole squad minutes and
20:47he manages the minutes so carefully for these players. And I think he would have seen the
20:52Carabao Cup and the EFL Trophy as a chance to use these players. And they've proven themselves so
20:56far. The likes of Jack Rowles, Addy Adeyemi, Panuche Kamara has started in those two midweek
21:02games. Cameron Bragg, who's on loan from Southampton, he started those and he's been
21:11really impressive. So I think I wouldn't be surprised if Lindsay goes with the side that
21:16beat Swindon or most of the side that beat Swindon. I think he'll stick with the same back three.
21:22Jojo Wallachot in goal, I think he'll go with. So I think he will stick with that because again,
21:27he will see the Wigan game and the Barnsley game at home afterwards as huge games as well
21:33for the club as well. Well, I'll ask you both your predictions for that game in a minute. But
21:38Deren starting with you, Brighton Man United on Saturday at the Amex. How do you see that one
21:43going? I think it's going to be tight. I think it's going to be a close game. I'm going to go
21:491-0 for Brighton. I think they may just sneak it this weekend. Mark, how do you see that one going?
21:56You're a fool, Deren. Brighton are going to hammer them 3-1. Yeah, foiling the score, but Brighton
22:02will have too much for them. I think, like you say, confidence. I played so well against Everton
22:05in the second half. So yeah, I think a comfortable win for Brighton. I think I'll have to agree with
22:11you there, Mark, I think. And speaking of Mark, Wigan-Crawley on Saturday, what do you reckon?
22:17I'm going for another 1-0 away win for Crawley. I think they'll keep it tight at the back
22:22and they will get another latest goal. And whether that's Adeyemo, whether that's
22:27Hepburn-Murphy, I think they'll have enough confidence is high at the moment.
22:33And Deren, how do you see that one going at Wigan?
22:35Yeah, I agree. I think their confidence is high and they just seem to be finding a way to win
22:39at the moment. So yeah, I'll go 2-1 to Crawley. I think we're looking at six points for our
22:45side in Sussex this weekend. And finally, the big one, Brighton-Crawley in the League Cup.
22:50Deren, what do you reckon?
22:53I'm going to go for a Brighton win. I'm going to go for a 2-0 Brighton win. Crawley have been
22:57really good lately, but I think the Brighton starting XI is very strong, but so is their
23:03squad these days as well. So they've got quite a lot of strength in depth. So I think they may
23:07just have too much for Crawley on the night.
23:09And Mark, how do you see this one?
23:12I'm going for a draw in 90 minutes and then I think it goes straight to penalties in this
23:16competition, doesn't it?
23:17It does go straight to penalties.
23:18Yeah, it goes straight to penalties. And if you saw Crawley's penalties the other night,
23:22they're going to win. Crawley to win on penalties. That's what I'm going for.
23:27All I know is that Sussex World will be the real winner, won't it, I think,
23:30at the back of that game. Yes, you can catch up with all this latest sports news covering
23:35everything we've talked about today at sussexworld.co.uk for SES Sport. And you'll also be
23:39able to keep up with all the latest from Brighton's game against Crawley in the League
23:43Cup on Tuesday there as well. So keep your eyes peeled there. And you can watch more
23:46excellent videos on shotstv.com and Freeview channel 276. Thank you very much for listening
23:52and watching. And we will see you all next week.