'So much talent' - Brighton transfer window recap after £200m spend
Sussex World reporters Sam Morton and Henry Bryant join Derren Howard as they assess a remarkable transfer window. Plus a look at an impressive start for German boss Fabian Hurzeler.
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00:00Okay, good morning and welcome to the Goldmouth Action podcast where we're going to be looking
00:05at the transfer window for Brighton. Quite a remarkable transfer window really. They
00:11spent north of 200 million. Some key players have arrived and a few players have departed
00:18as well. So we're going to go through that with our reporters, Sam Morton and Henry Bright.
00:26So Sam, we'll get straight straight into it. So some great players by the looks of
00:31it have have joined. Obviously, Georgina Rutter, he's smashed a transfer record 40 million
00:37for him, which is 10 million more than they paid for any other player. That sort of catches
00:42the eye straight away. What are your thoughts after after quite a remarkable transfer window?
00:47Yeah, it's been brilliant, really, hasn't it? They're kind of unheard of for Brighton
00:51to spend so much money. And that's one thing that we've not we've not been used to seeing
00:55obviously Brighton have become, became experts in signing players from relative unknown,
01:00relative obscurity, really, and sign them up for cheap prices, building them up to Premier
01:06League standards. And we've obviously seen them being sold for huge fees. Obviously,
01:09Moises Quesada being a prime example of that. And they seem to have moved away from that
01:15little bit this season. They've really kind of thought to take that next step up, they
01:19need to spend the cash. And obviously, there seems to be a little bit of friction between
01:23the university, De Servi and the owners about kind of what the plans were for the transfers.
01:28But in hindsight, you're wondering what the fuss was all about. Because if they're spending
01:33to spend all this money, then you felt that De Servi could have, might have wanted to
01:37stay in the end. But Fabian Hazard has come in and he can't believe probably can't believe
01:41his luck in the backing he's got already. And some of the players that have brought
01:45in for big fees and with them already great pedigree already. And just the fact that Brighton
01:50are able to encourage these players to come and sign for them just shows the strides they've
01:55made in recent years, really. And Brighton really are looked as a team where these players
01:58can come and improve their game and to redevelop as players and to become Premier League players
02:04in a really strong team. And as we've seen from the start of the season that Brighton
02:08have had, they are definitely one of the toughest teams to beat, really. Even when they go away
02:14at Emirates, to the Emirates, a lot of people would have expected Arsenal to get the win.
02:19Brighton can get a really good result after beating Man United. So, a good start to the season.
02:23Obviously, a lot of these new signings we've not actually seen yet because of injury.
02:27So, it does really bode well for the future when they eventually start becoming regular first-teamers.
02:32Yeah, yeah. That's the amazing thing, isn't it? They've done pretty much...
02:36Obviously, Minter has been a key figure. But other than that, we haven't really seen too
02:40many of the new signings and there's so much more to come, Henry. We were speaking to Fabian
02:45Herzela before the season and he was asked, you know, what expectations did you have? Did you
02:50come here knowing that these players were going to be coming in? And he was pretty much,
02:54I expected nothing. It just seems to be like they've given him the best possible chance,
03:00haven't they, of doing well in the Premier League this year?
03:04Absolutely. And in a recent interview with Talk Sport, Paul Barber was speaking and just saying
03:11that they believe that now is the time to buy, now is the time to reinvest in the squad. And they
03:17are definitely preparing for a European push in any way, shape or form. And it's just great to
03:22see that with such a young manager and all of these questions initially coming out as saying,
03:28is he going to be too young for this sort of role, that he's been given that amount of financial
03:34backing. The players that we've seen them get is, you know, it's remarkable really, as Sam was
03:40mentioning. I just want to echo the fact that we've got some really high quality players and
03:44we're signing players that are under 25 and still, you know, still sort of sticking to that basis of
03:52young players that we can sort of develop and improve and then maybe even reinvest a couple of
03:57them in the near future and maybe, you know, sell them on. But it does seem like there is a change
04:02in the way that Brighton are operating this season, where we're making a big impact. And I
04:08think that the fact that we're, you know, one of the biggest spenders in all of Europe is crazy to
04:15me. Yeah, absolutely crazy. I think Brighton fans really didn't expect this at all. And just to echo
04:22Sam's point as well there, I think that in terms of the Deserby situation, where there was a few
04:28comments from him sort of at the back end of the season saying that we were struggling because of
04:33the lack of players and lack of depth that we've got, I think that I don't know what's happened
04:38there. There clearly was a miscommunication, a lack of agreement, but it certainly seems like that
04:44they've been able to resolve that and sign some really high quality players. And yeah, it's
04:50fantastic to see. Yeah, I think Deserby would have won the Europa League with this squad, wouldn't
04:55he? They could have had this squad last season, but that's neither, you know, a bit hypothetical
05:01now. But who's really caught your eye, Sam? Rutter came on for a bit against Arsenal. Maybe
05:07he wasn't quite up to speed as yet, but I've really... Mint has been great in pre-season and
05:14I know he didn't score against Arsenal or against Man Utd, but he just looks such a threat,
05:19doesn't he? He's an absolute athlete, isn't he? Yeah, absolutely. He was the one I was going to
05:24mention really, he's a standout player so far. He's obviously had the most minutes at the new
05:28signings. He was absolutely brilliant in pre-season, scored goals, got assists, and he really
05:34did start to show what he's all about. And I think he's really shown Newcastle how much of a loss
05:40he could become. And I think there is definitely a lot of, not regret, because I feel like Newcastle
05:45were left in a position where they had no choice, didn't they? And I think they probably are really
05:48frustrated that they happened to lose a player of Mint's quality. Yeah, Hale didn't want him to
05:53leave, did he? Yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly. So I think that just shows kind of how valued he was
05:58in Newcastle and now Brighton are fortunate enough to have him in the ranks really.
06:04Yeah, he's been brilliant so far, as you say, a real threat on that right-hand side. And he's,
06:10yeah, long may it continue really. Hopefully he can start to get a few goals in the Premier League.
06:14He did obviously get an assist against Everton. But at 19 years of age, he's got so much room for
06:19improvement as well. So yeah, a really exciting one for Brighton. But I'm really looking forward
06:23to seeing more from the new signings, such as Matt Swiper, who we obviously got a glimpse of
06:28in the pre-season and against Everton. You look good at Everton. Yeah, I saw him against Everton.
06:32And yeah, a couple, a little bit patchy at the beginning, but really got into it after a while.
06:37And I thought, yeah, that he looks encouraging. Yeah, yeah, definitely looking forward to watching
06:41more from him. And obviously, Cadioglou, Matthew Reilly brought in towards the end of the window
06:46again, but it looks like we have to wait quite a while to see Reilly in action after that injury
06:50against Crawley. But Cadioglou, it sounds like, from what Josella was saying, that he could be
06:55ready after the international break, which is real positive. And it sounds like he's a real
06:59versatile player that can fill in midfield if needed, and obviously at full-back. So yeah,
07:04hopefully we can see some glimpses from him. I think from reading what Fenerbahce fans are saying,
07:10it sounds like Brighton are signing a real gem in him as well. So yeah, definitely, definitely
07:15exciting players still to show what they can do for Brighton.
07:18Yeah, yeah, no, it's looking good. And then Ibrahim Osman, he came in as well for 16 million
07:24earlier in the window. He's gone out on loan. Malik Yarkoui, he's gone to Stroomgrass out on
07:30loan as well. And Koza Dubri as well. I thought he looked great in pre-season as well. I wonder
07:36whether he would just stay in and around the fringes of the squad, but he's gone out on loan
07:41to Blackburn. And they're more like the Brighton signings that we've seen in the past,
07:46aren't they? These younger players that have come in, Henry, and then they've gone on to develop.
07:53Absolutely. I think that the way Brighton see it is the best way to improve is to play.
07:59And if that means going out on loan and then building up experience from the bench with
08:04the Albion in a season or two afterwards, then that's the way they'll do it. And they'll be
08:09able to continue this train of just getting in these players, giving them some game time,
08:15sending them away, and then coming back as a completely different player that's got
08:19that vast experience. And the competitiveness of the championship, I think, really does set up
08:26some players really nicely for the Premier League. And obviously, it's not the same intensity,
08:31but I feel like with what we've got in the English Football League, it's a fantastic
08:37structure for allowing young players to develop and to grow and then to find their feet in the
08:42Premier League thereafter, I think, because of Dewberry. I agree with you, Darren. I was
08:46thinking that maybe he would be on the fringes. He would be one of those players that you would
08:50see on that subs bench and think, oh, I wonder if he'll have a couple of minutes, even if it's
08:56Brighton dominating a game or losing a game quite convincingly and just coming on just to get that
09:02little bit of Premier League exposure. But maybe going to the championship might be the right
09:08thing for him. I think that regular minutes for a talent of his and seeing what he did with the
09:14youth side at Arsenal was great to see. And I think that the more game time, the better for
09:21him really. And I think next season, unless he has an absolute barnstormer in the championship,
09:28then I don't think we'll be seeing him until next season. But I do think that he's got a lot
09:33of potential and it's good to see that whilst we are signing some players for considerably more
09:38money than we're normally seeing, it's also nice to see a few free transfers here and there and a
09:44few sort of couple of million pound signings that we are used to seeing, especially Brighton fans
09:50and just seeing those players develop. It does really kind of prove how much quality is in this
09:56Brighton side that they can afford to leave, talent leave, such as Sarmiento, Barco, Buonanotte,
10:01kind of really talented players that they've let out go on loan. So just really just show how much
10:07talent there is in the squad, really. If you're telling these players that you're probably not
10:10going to get minutes this season, that really does say a lot, doesn't it? So yeah, we hope those
10:15players can get those minutes they need on loan. And I think Henry raised a good point to me the
10:20other day, actually, going to Arsenal, that it could be that if there are some injuries in January,
10:28if they might try and recall some of these players, and if you recall them and they're
10:32obviously fresh from playing lots of games with lots of minutes in the tank, then they can really
10:36come in straight away and improve Brighton. That might not be the case if they've not been playing
10:41for a while. Yeah, that's a good, very good point. Yeah, they could come back fresh and then ready to
10:46go in the new year. And then hopefully Soli March will come back at some stage as well. So he's
10:52another attacking option for Herzéla as well. But it was interesting. And as you say, Henry,
10:58like Koza Dubri at Blackburn will get the minutes. And that's exactly what Yassin Ayari did, isn't it,
11:03last season. He had a loan at Blackburn, did pretty well, but then is really impressed in pre-season.
11:10And because of all the injuries, like 200 million spent, he got his chance against
11:15Arsenal. James Milner had to come off injured and because of Wiffers injured, O'Reilly's injured,
11:21Yassin Ayari was thrown in with Bolivar and looked really good, didn't he?
11:27Yeah. And I just think that that's testament to Brighton and the way that these young players can
11:32sort of grace the pitch at the Emirates and put in a performance like they did and get a draw.
11:38And some would say with the circumstances of the game that they were unlucky not to win it in the
11:42dying embers. So yeah, it was really good to see. And I think that his attacking threat and
11:48his confidence, you could really see that he was poised and the way that he was going for players.
11:54He wasn't a young player. It's almost like how Herzéla describes himself. He's a young man,
12:00but not a young coach. And Ayari's a young man, but he's not a young player in terms of the way
12:06that he's able to play and to press the team. And he made some of those Arsenal defenders a
12:12little bit shaky at times. And it was good to see.
12:15He had a big chance, didn't he? I think he admitted it in his interview post-match that
12:19he probably should have scored it. I think he didn't realise how much of the goal he had to
12:23aim at, I don't think. And he did look back at that as a big chance miss, I think. Yeah,
12:28it was a bit of a shame that he didn't put that one away. But yeah, no, I agree. He's
12:31been really impressive.
12:32Yeah, because he's a good finisher, isn't he? He can finish.
12:36Yeah, 100%. I think he definitely would have backed himself to score that on another day.
12:39I don't think he looked up. I think it all happened quite quickly. It all came in front
12:43of goal. He felt like he just had to get on target, but he put it into the one area that
12:47Rye could save it. It was quite similar, not similar, to how good the save was against
12:52Aston Villa when Watkins was putting back Rage and he felt he just had to get on target. But
12:57he put it into the one area that Rye could save it pretty dramatically. Yeah, a little bit like
13:02that, really, where if he'd have put it into the bottom corner of right-hand side, the
13:06goalkeeper wouldn't have stood a chance of saving it.
13:08Yeah, yeah. No, it's looking good. And also, they've had obviously three major exits from
13:15the club this season. Denis Sundar first, Sam. It was good money, wasn't it, they got
13:20for him? £30 million, brought him in for £6 million a couple of years ago.
13:24Yeah, really good deal. I think it was one that was dragging along for a long time, wasn't
13:29it, where he was making all sorts of comments in the press. He was really kind of haggling
13:32for that move. He obviously had a great loan spell in Germany and he obviously wanted to
13:38make that move permanent. Because it was a strange one, wasn't it? When you consider
13:42the injuries that Brighton had last season, they really could have probably done with
13:45him in the team. He probably could have made a huge difference, especially in that last
13:50stretch of the season. But he was obviously away at Stuttgart, really impressive for them.
13:55Brighton maybe probably would have wanted to bring it back because of that, but he wasn't
13:58having any of it. He really wanted to stay, obviously, in his native country, which you
14:02completely understand. And he obviously got his way in the end. And I think it was a deal
14:06that worked out for all parties in the end. And Brighton really got a good transfer fee
14:10for him. And now when you look at the talent they've signed this summer, they probably
14:14wouldn't have been a space for him. Especially Danny Welbeck's form, he's made a brilliant
14:19start to the season. And Evan Ferguson hopefully will get back to where he was at before his
14:24injury. So, yeah, I think a good move for Endav and it was a really good transfer fee
14:29that Brighton got for him.
14:30Good, good transfer fee. Yeah, yeah. And Pedro's obviously started so well, isn't he, as well?
14:36Yeah, of course. Yeah, Pedro.
14:38Yeah, really good. Really good. And then, you know, Pascal Gross, Henry, I sort of understand
14:44that one. Six million, 33 years old, and he's going to his boyhood club. You know, legend
14:49for Brighton. Good luck to him. Billy Gilmore, I'm still struggling to get my head around that
14:54deal. I just don't quite get it, especially for the size of the fee that Brighton received
15:02for him. When you think that they got 30 million for Endav, I know he's a striker, a different
15:06area of the pitch, but Gilmore's 23, two years left on his contract. Did you get that one?
15:14No, I was scratching my head at that one, as was quite a lot of Brighton fans thinking
15:19we've got someone that is Premier League proven, a young player, you know, still got so much time
15:25to grow, and we've let him go for so cheap. And I think that that will be a big miss for Brighton,
15:32I really do, because although we've signed this amount of players, I think it's the case of
15:37you've got to get them familiar with the Premier League. Obviously, Matt Swyfer, he's a really
15:42promising player, but as you said, Darren, when you watched him at Everton, there were a few
15:47patchy displays here and there. And I think that was the same with, I've got to say, when
15:51sort of Verbruggen was being rotated with Steele, and he still is, to be fair, but when he first
15:56came in, there were a few sort of patchy spells there as well. So, in terms of the plays we have
16:04got, you've got that value and that sort of potential, but that does come with the risk
16:10that they might be making big mistakes in big games, and especially with the aim that Brighton
16:15have of getting back into Europe, getting into those competitions, then this could be
16:20a big loss, having someone as cool-headed and as calm as Billy Gilmore. And I think that
16:26the Euros for him, although Scotland didn't do too well, I thought that his performances when he
16:31was given time on the pitch was outstanding, and the first comments that the pundits were giving
16:36were all about him and the way he was able to drive the ball forward, a bit like how Pascal
16:41Grosz would do it for Brighton, even if it was a poor performance overall from the team. It seemed
16:45like Pascal Grosz was one of those players that was just able to keep positive and keep the ball
16:51rolling and having an opportunity there for Brighton. So, I do think that this will be a
16:56big miss for Brighton, and I feel like if we do have some issues in midfield, then it may come
17:02back to the fact that we've made a mistake selling Gilmore. Yeah, when you look at it, Sam,
17:08sort of 25 for Matt Swiffer and 25 for O'Reilly as well, and then Gilmore at 15. It just doesn't
17:16sort of seem to stack up, and the only thing I can think is that him and his agent were really
17:21pushing for the move. He really wanted to go. That's the only thing. Yeah, it must be that, really,
17:26because it was obviously one that was being spoken about for a long time, wasn't it? I remember
17:29when the first news broke that Napoli had had an £8 million bid rejected, and you just
17:36couldn't believe it, the cheek of it, kind of thing. You thought they wouldn't accept anywhere
17:40close to that, and it proved it. It wasn't actually too far off the mark, was it? I think it was
17:44an initial £12 million with £4 million add-on. So, yeah, really bizarre when you consider how
17:50long he had left on his contract and his age and the fact that he's a proven Premier League player,
17:54and he was so impressive against Manchester United only last week. Only last week, yeah,
18:01and Brighton don't usually let players go on a cheat, do they? They get maximum value for their
18:06players, don't they, normally? Yeah, yeah, exactly. So, it was a weird one. I think, yeah, he probably
18:12corrected saying it was one that the agent and the player were perhaps pushing for, and it might
18:16have been an opportunity that he couldn't turn down to go and play in, obviously, a huge Italian
18:21club. Obviously, yeah, a really big opportunity for him. I think Jose said that in his press
18:27conference after the Arsenal game, that perhaps after the injuries, he can look a little bit
18:32unlucky at this point, and he's obviously letting go. But in a similar way to Pascal Gros, having a
18:37huge opportunity to go to British Dortmund, Gormall could have looked at that thinking,
18:40it's such a good thing for his career to play away at Napoli in another country and see what
18:46he can do out there. So, yeah, it probably... With his mate, John McTominay as well. He's,
18:50you know, all Scottish midfield in... Yeah, yeah, probably not a midfield partnership that
18:56he was expecting to see at Napoli only a few weeks ago. So, yeah, so I really hope he does
19:01well over there. He was brilliant for Brighton. And, yeah, it's a real shame that Brighton have
19:05obviously lost him. But, yeah, wish him the best. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But overall, though, it's,
19:11you know, from transfer window, it's been... I don't think any fan could have imagined what was
19:18going to happen. I think it caught people at the club by surprise. I think people who work within
19:22the club and, you know, they kept seeing all these new signings coming in. I just think it caught
19:28most of Albion's competitors, you know, their rivals, their teams by surprise and even people
19:33within the club as well. So, Hazard has got a bit of a challenge, hasn't he? Because it's
19:38to integrate all these players and to keep them all happy. Now, that is a challenge. But
19:44from the way he speaks and how he sort of looks at the players as a whole and treats them as
19:51individuals and differently from different cultures, different backgrounds,
19:55you know, he's going to manage it quite well, wouldn't you, Henry?
20:00I think so. I think that from seeing him speak, not just in press conferences, but also the way
20:07that he speaks, especially during the pre-season tour in Japan and the videos that came out
20:14subsequently from that, from the official Albion YouTube channel, you can just see
20:19that he's just so in touch because of his age. And I think that that's a massive thing because
20:25he can understand a little bit more the players' desires, the needs. And although we're, you know,
20:32sat here speaking about the fact that there's a few players that we may think, you know,
20:36could have stayed at the Albion in the fringes on, you know, and instead of going on loan like
20:41Koisadoubri, for example, maybe he just knows that, you know, these players need a certain thing.
20:47And like you say, it is going to be a big challenge for him, especially with a big squad now
20:52that we have to sort of keep everyone happy, keep morale high, especially when there's difficult
20:57times. And we haven't seen that yet. It's been a really good start to the campaign with two wins
21:02and a draw against some really, really tough opposition, you must say. And I mean, even that
21:07first game against Everton away, I was thinking to myself, this is going to be a real big challenge.
21:12We've had quite a few topsy-turvy results against them with, you know, us actually thrashing them
21:18and then vice versa. So this will be a real big indication to see what we're like as a team, how
21:23Herzler challenges, you know, in these certain situations. And he's thrived. He's thrived in
21:28these first three games. And it's even the way that he's looking to do more because one of the
21:33questions I asked, one of the questions I asked was just about the fact that he, you know, what
21:40would he like to improve? And he said everything. And then he sort of went into the detail about how
21:45he wanted set pieces to be different offensively, but defensively he was really happy. So I think
21:50he's a perfectionist and the way that, you know, his age has been used in the media maybe to sort
21:55of discredit him maybe is advantaged with the players. Yeah, yeah. No, there has been that
22:03narrative. Obviously, it's the obvious sort of angle, isn't it, to look at his age. But
22:09I think everything he's done, Sam, in the press conferences and you can't argue with the results
22:14either. And as Henry was saying, after the Arsenal game, you could see there was a lot of frustration
22:19in him that he thought that was an opportunity missed, that they didn't quite create enough
22:24chances when they were down to 10 men. And I think that shows a lot, doesn't it? He's looking
22:31for improvements all the time. Yeah, he's clearly a perfectionist, which obviously
22:35De Servi was as well. And there's some big differences in style between De Servi and
22:40Mosella. But he is similar in the sense that he's obviously a good manager and he really wants to
22:45get the best out of each of his players. And as you mentioned before, he does see the players as
22:49people rather than footballers at the end of the day. And he's really going to try and help them
22:54out on a personal level to ensure they're giving the best of themselves on the pitch. And yeah,
22:58as you say on that on the Arsenal performance, he wasn't happy with the first 10 to 15 minutes where
23:03it felt like Arsenal really could have run away with it, with the kind of amount of pressure
23:07they were putting on. Jack Hinshaw in particular really struggled to deal with Saka in those
23:11opening moments. But you saw some tweaks and it was towards the end of that first half where you
23:16saw some real threat from Brighton and they were pressing in the right way and they were able to
23:20start to put the Arsenal fans under a little bit of pressure. And obviously that red card at the
23:24start of the second half really did swing the momentum and Brighton were able to take control
23:28of the possession. So yeah, I think there's some real positive signs so early on from
23:34Hazard really of what he can get his Brighton team doing. And as time goes on, you feel it's
23:38only going to get better and better as the players get used to his style of playing,
23:41the way he wants them to play. And as some of these signings come back from injury and
23:47they start to get into what they need to do and obviously adjust to the Premier League and their
23:52teammates. And it does bode really well for the future. And yeah, I've been really impressed by
23:57the early signs of Hazard and the way that he speaks and the way that he kind of handles the
24:02press and everything like that. He's been very impressive so far. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Would you
24:06agree with that, Henry? We were just saying before the pod that when even little things like when
24:11you come into the press room for the press conference, he will come around and sort of
24:15shake everybody's hand. I see, you know, speak to the in the pre-match press conferences, he will
24:20sort of, you know, shake every journalist's hand and say hello. And it doesn't feel
24:24it doesn't feel false either, does it? It's not like it's a forced thing. It feels though he's
24:28just like a, it feels he brings that good thing into the room. Yeah, he seems very personable.
24:35And I think that that, you know, might just be a little flavour of what he's like with the players.
24:40Just that little bit of extra non-forced generosity and kindness that makes you go,
24:46oh, and you actually notice it as well. And it makes the experience, especially as a journalist,
24:51you know, just that little bit nicer. It feels a bit more of a more relaxed atmosphere to
24:56ask questions, I can imagine. So in terms of that as a player, especially when you're trying to get
25:01points across that might dictate, you know, the outcome of a game, if it's trying to get the
25:06right tactics across at half time or trying to prove a point at full time about maybe something
25:11that might need to be improved on the way that that's portrayed in the way that that's sort of
25:16spoken to the players, you know, that's so important. And obviously De Zerby was no nonsense,
25:22quite, you know, few words at times if he didn't agree with, you know, maybe a question that you'd
25:27ask and he'd maybe even answer back. I remember conferences where I've asked him a few questions
25:32and he'd answer back. And not that that's anything wrong with that, but I feel like...
25:37No, not at all, but it's good fun, yeah.
25:39Yeah. Herzl has got a different character and I think that his kindness, you know,
25:45will put him a long way. And yeah, I think it's just really nice. It's refreshing and
25:50you don't expect it.
25:52Yeah. And what do you think about his style, Henry? Do you think it does differ to De Zerby's?
25:56I do. I think that in terms of the defensive attributes of the game, I think that if we
26:01were under De Zerby, especially with all that pressure that we faced with Arsenal,
26:06I do think that we could have gone one nil down early on in that game. I think in terms of the
26:11set pieces as well, some of the backroom staff and some of the staff that Herzl has got,
26:17you can see them sort of organising the set piece plays, especially defensively and literally
26:23going, yes, when Brighton had the ball away. And I think there's a big incentive on defence,
26:30obviously with the attacking breaks as well. And we've seen how well Brighton have been
26:34able to break in previous games, especially against Everton when Matoma scored that goal,
26:40which was fantastic, which literally came from him right from clearing the ball and then that
26:46run. So I think that there's a good mix. And I think that this defensive importance, not that
26:52De Zerby didn't have that, but I feel like it was all guns blazing and it would either be a
26:58three nil win for Brighton or a three nil loss to Brighton. This seems like a bit more modest
27:05in the way that we're playing football, breaking, but also making sure that we respect the Premier
27:10League and the opposition that we face. Yeah, I think if they can get that defensive
27:16structure right, which it looks as though it's on those right lines, they've just got so much
27:21attacking talent, isn't it, that they're going to score goals and hopefully win games if they can
27:27become more defensively sound. But yeah, just speaking of De Zerby, Sam, I saw Neil Mopé went
27:33to De Zerby in Marseille. That's a combination and a half, isn't it? Mopé, De Zerby and Marseille.
27:39That certainly is. Yeah, it was a move that I didn't see coming. And obviously Mopé is a
27:45massive character, isn't he? I think he was putting up posts on social media implying he
27:50just escaped from prison in Leeds and Everton. So yeah, it's certainly a fiery combination and
27:56we'll see if De Zerby can get the best out of Mopé at Marseille. But he's obviously playing
28:02back in his home country of France, so you might see the best in there. But yeah, I think Marseille
28:08have made a really good start to the season. I think last time I checked they were top of the
28:12league after playing an extra game in the PSG. So yeah, they've made a good start. And yeah,
28:17I think De Zerby should make a good impact over there in France. I think his style of play was
28:23obviously well received in Brighton and it could obviously go wrong. And when it did go wrong,
28:27it was quite dramatic at Brighton. I feel like we won't see those kind of results. I think
28:32Iserde definitely is more pragmatic. Yeah, I think I feel like if he was going up against a team that
28:41could potentially cause a lot of problems for Brighton, he will set up a bit differently and
28:45won't just play the same way each game, which we kind of saw with De Zerby. So yeah, time will tell
28:50how it all unfolds. Time will tell indeed. Time will tell indeed. And hopefully we'll see a few
28:55of these signings after the international break as well. So Brighton will have the Premier League
29:01pauses for a while and Brighton will be back in action after the international break against
29:05Ipswich Town at the Amex Stadium. So all a good start so far. Seven points from three games.
29:11Hurlitz is looking good. Good transfer window. So yeah, keep up to date with everything that
29:17happens at Brighton on Sussex World. And yeah, we'll see how they get on after the international
29:23break as well. Thanks, chaps.