Southampton 1-2: Brighton: Lallana tops ratings for second week running
Two consecutive 90 minutes under his belt makes it two consecutive matches at the top of the WAB Player Ratings for Adam Lallana following another excellent performance, this time in Southampton 1-2 Brighton.
The Albion’s medical staff have come in for a lot of criticism of late following Tariq Lamptey requiring surgery and Adam Webster’s lengthy absence. Lallana though is a cause to celebrate what goes on in the physio room as he has been nursed to full fitness and Brighton are now reaping the rewards.
Danny Welbeck has been in a similar boat and he too showed his quality to be the third best player on the pitch at St Mary’s. Sandwiched between those two was Lewis Dunk, the Brighton captain continuing to impress after a hit-and-miss first half of the campaign.
Here are you full player ratings from Southampton 1-2 Brighton as the Albion picked up a first win in six and a first success away against the Saints since Gordon Brown was Prime Minister.
Robert Sanchez – 7.15
How he responded to the previous week’s cock up against Leicester would be telling of what sort of character Brighton now have as their number one. The good news is that he did not let that mistake impact him, having a solid game which included one fine second half block with his feet from Che Adams.
Joel Veltman – 7.12
Lost out to Ryan Betrand in the build up to the Saints’ equaliser in a rare poor moment. It almost went unnoticed how seamlessly he coped with the switch from right back to left sided centre half in a back three, which again highlighted his class and the way in which he just gets on with things.
Ben White – 7.04
Not as impactful as he would have liked against the club he was at until turning 16. Put in some decent blocks and won some headers, but playing in a back four seems to blunt his best attributes such as stepping out of defence with the ball.
Lewis Dunk – 7.73
Would have been disappointed with his role in the Southampton goal as he merely succeeded in helping the ball onto Adams to volley home. He more than made up for that with a battling defensive display as well as popping up with his fourth goal of the season, meaning he is now Brighton’s top scorer from open play.
Dan Burn – 5.92
Bit of a harsh score this seeing as he was doing okay before his hamstring pinged embarking on a charge forward to tee up Pascal Gross for an easy chance. No doubting that his enforced substitution helped win the game for Brighton though.
Pascal Gross – 6.65
Spurned a glorious chance when he could only put a one-on-one straight at the feet of Fraser Forster at the end of the first half. Looks nowhere near as effective wide on the right where he started, let alone as a right wing back – and yet he still managed to claim his 20th Premier League assist with a typically pinpoint corner for Dunk to head home.
Yves Bissouma – 6.00
Scored the lowest ratings of the players who completed 90 minutes in Southampton 1-2 Brighton. He really has not been the same since his agent came out in January and said Bissouma was prepared to move to Arsenal in the summer. If his head has been turned to such a degree, then it may not be long until we see Jakub Moder getting an opportunity.
ADAM LALLANA – 8.46
He makes football look easy. Glided into space, spotted Welbeck through the tightest of gaps in the build up to Leandro Trossard’s goal and looked after the ball brilliantly. If he can stay fit for the remaining 10 games of the season then Brighton’s survival chances will receive a massive boost.
Leandro Trossard – 7.27
Started the first five minutes well and then faded into anonymity for the remainder of the first half. He was the big beneficiary of Potter’s tactical tweaks at the break, moving into a more central role which put him in the position to lash home a clinical effort 11 minutes into the second half for what proved to be the winner.
Danny Welbeck – 7.42
Made his first start since West Ham away in December. A first half layoff teed up Neal Maupay for the saved shot which earned the corner Dunk scored Brighton’s first from and his perfectly weighted one-touch pass into the path of Trossard created the second.
Neal Maupay – 6.08
Linked up well with Welbeck in another performance highlighting that he is probably better as a second striker. Denied a first half goal by a strong Forster save.
Andi Zeqiri – 7.19
More than a few eyebrows were raised when he entered proceedings at left wing back. It turned out to be an inspired decision from Potter as the Swiss striker did well in an unfamiliar role, nearly wrapping things up with a near-post effort that a startled Forster had to turn behind.
Davy Propper – 6.08
Having stood idly by as Leicester dominated the second half at the Amex last week when Brighton were crying out for someone to try and regain a foothold in midfield, Potter learnt his lesson and introduced the Handsome Dutchman to prevent a repeat. His calmness was a welcome addition and he nearly had an assist when sending Zeqiri away.
Jakub Moder – 5.85
Replaced Trossard for the final five minutes. Other than allowing a ball to run out of play which he mistakenly thought would be a Brighton throw, he had little time to do anything.
The WAB Player Ratings are formulated using marks out of 10 given by Brighton fans via Twitter. To have your scores included, follow We Are Brighton on Twitter and look out for the player rating thread after each game.
