All Things Brighton Beautiful

 I haven't been to Brighton for twenty-nine years. The last time was to attend The Brighton Music Festival, which I can't actually remember too much about. One thing that sticks in the memory was the fact they had two stages facing each other but a fair distance apart and the bands appeared alternatively at stage A and then stage B. This was actually a pretty good idea as it meant you could be stuck at back for one band but then right near the front for the next. There must have been about ten different groups on the Bill but  I can only remember three, Skunk Anansie, The Lightening Seeds and Dodgy.

Now 'dodgy' is definately a word that could be used to describe Spurs last visit to the AMEX Stadium. Even taking into account the fact that we started with four full backs making up the defence and still having 55% possession we were 4-0 down after sixty three minutes. A Hinshelwood goal after eleven minutes, two Joao Pedro penalties and a quality strike from Pervis Estupian looked to have put the match to bed.

However, in the last fifteen minutes Brighton tried to metaphorically shit the bed and despite previously playing like they'd never met each other before, Spurs made a fist of it. Alejo Veliz scored his first, and so far only, Premier League goal turning in Sonny's cross. He went absolutely mental, understandable given it was his first goal for his new club in a new country, but it kind of belied the match situation. Four minutes later Ben Davies headed in a Porro cross. So with five minutes to go, Spurs had the momentum. Brighton then survived a couple of late scares to see the game out. Our fans were left wondering why didn't they play like that for the first seventy-five minutes?

Veliz scores what could be his one & only Tottenham goal

The truth is that Brighton probably eased off a bit (although panic definately set in) and in all honesty, we couldn't have been any worse in that last period than they'd been for the majority of the game beforehand.

Since then of course Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi has departed for Marseille where he manages one of the Spurs starters from that game, Pierre-Emil Hojbjerg. The Seagulls have replaced him with Fabian Hurzeler the former St Pauli Manager. The thirty one year old German is the leagues youngest manager and eyebrows were certainly raised when he was appointed but I reckon if there's any club that would have done their homework in this situation, its Brighton who must be in the reckoning when you look at the best run clubs in Europe. 

PEH signs for Marseille. 

Ange revealed in yesterdays press conference that Hurzeler spent a day at Hotspur Way last season having a look at how things are done at our training ground. Hurzeler obviously has his own philosophy but judging by the insane high line Brighton played in the defeat at Chelsea last week, he thinks pretty much along the same lines as Ange about how football should be played.

The injury situation for Spurs is much as it was. Odogie looks likely to return but Son is very doubtful. Odebert and Richarlison remain on the sidelines. 

I'd imagine the side virtually picks itself but with one question mark. Will Ange stick with the out of form Werner or throw the precocious Mikey Moore in? Moore played the whole ninety minutes on Thursday so if I were a betting man I'd go with an unchanged side from Old Trafford, but you never know.