Brighton & Hove Albion

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Liverpool at Anfield (kick-off 14:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Hurzeler confirmed Pascal Struijk will be assessed before a decision is made on his availability for Sunday: "It's not a big issue, but it's something that can get bigger if you risk it too early. We have to make wise decisions."

• Yankuba Minteh and Mats Wieffer are close to a return, with the Brighton boss "quite convinced" they will be back in the matchday squad next week if not on Sunday.

• He also confirmed Jason Steele missed Thursday's trip to Jablonec through illness, while a decision was made to rest Diego Gomez and Maxim de Cuyper before travelling to Liverpool.

• Hurzeler said they "have a lot of confidence and belief" following recent results, but it's about taking it "game-by-game" and not getting carried away with the league positioning.

• In response to whether he encourages fans to dream this season, he said: "I love our fans and if you have ambitions and a dream, then you should visualise it. It's important that our fans have these type of expectations, ambitions and dreams because then we get even more out of them and more connection. They should dream, and we will focus on the game."

• On Pascall Gross, who has missed less than 60 minutes of football so far this season: "There are some players who need this rhythm. We always want to have a player like him on the pitch and at the moment he seems to cope really well with this intensity and rhythm."

• He said he has "a really good team" around him that will help with the challenge of the next five games being away from home, adding: "Travel wastes time and energy. It's really important that you manage it well and we take care of recovery."

• On facing Andoni Iraola's Reds: "We know what we can expect from Liverpool. Very intense pressing so a very intense game. Anfield is always a very special environment and atmosphere. We have to be prepared mentally and physically, but we seem to be in a good place."

Hit play above to hear more from Hurzeler or listen on BBC Sounds here

Listen to live commentary of Liverpool v Brighton on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2 from 14:00 GMT on Sunday

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We asked for your views on Thursday's draw with Jablonec in the Conference League.

Here are some of your comments:

Phil: Always tricky away from home in Europe. Jablonec parked the bus and nearly stole a goal at the end on the break. A point was fair.

James: This makes sense after a really strong start to the league that we are a bit tired - but, again, what a start this season it has been.

James: Brighton fans have been spoiled recently with fantastic flowing football. This was a sobering reminder that our squad may not have enough quality. Too many poor performances, dull football and zero goal threat with this much-changed line-up. Need to play a stronger team in the next European game. Still, you can't win them all and the season has been brilliant so far.

Steve: Disappointing, disjointed performance where if truth be told we were fortunate to have gained a point. But we move on, dust ourselves down and get ready for three very difficult matches in the next week.

Jerry: This was a nice opportunity to switch some things up and give some players playing time while focusing on the domestic table ahead against Liverpool. Brighton know they can eke into the play-off tournament so there is no urgency here.

Simon: Just like Tromso away we always struggle to break down park-the-bus teams. Some 26 shots and only four on target sums it up. Ran out of steam and almost lost it, so take a point and move on. Was mostly our second string anyway. Sunday will be different.

A new episode of BBC Radio Sussex's Albion Unlimited podcast is available to listen to and download now on BBC Sounds.

Johnny Cantor and former Seagulls defender Warren Aspinall react on the whistle in the Czech Republic after Thursday's goalless draw with Jablonec, plus, hear from fans.

"They will be very disapointed as a team," said Aspinall.

"They got the clean sheet but attacking-wise they were very poor. There was poor decision-making, poor shots on target.

"The fans behind the goal are delighted but, for me, you have to do much better in front of goal - 23 attempts and five on target is not good enough.

"It's like the balloon has been popped and all the air has come out of it."

Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

Explore all Brighton content on BBC Sounds

Listen to every Brighton game live on BBC Radio Sussex, with all the build-up and full commentary with Johnny Cantor and Warren Aspinall, and there is a full preview of all Seagulls' matches on Fridays at 18:00 in The Weekend Warm-up

Manchester United would likely have to pay a world record fee if they want to replace Michael Carrick with Fabian Hurzeler and prise the German away from Brighton. (Telegraph - subscription required), external

However, Hurzeler would not be interested in the United job if it became available. (Talksport), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

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Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler speaking to TNT Sports: "We did not play on our highest level, Jablonec defended well and defend box well, good movement in transition. Overall not the result we wanted, but we have to keep going.

"If you play 0-0 then you didn't create enough, that's definitely something we have to get better at. We have to understand what it needs to play in this cup, understand we have to be brilliant at the basics. We weren't good at the basics today, that's something we have to improve."

On why his team couldn't find a way through: "Good defending, crosses not where we wanted to have them. The precision in the last action was missing, that's something we have to improve.

"The longer the game got, the more space they had to make transitions. We tried to push hard for scoring the goal and of course they had the space to make counter movements. In certain moments we were lucky.

"We always learn, I think it's important to take things away from this game and improve in the next game. There is no time for a lot of disappointment, we have to focus on the next game."

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Get in touch with your views here

Come back to this page on Friday to find a selection of your replies.

There are 18 games in both the Europa League and the Conference League on Thursday - with Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Sunderland involved in the former, and Brighton the latter - and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Jablonev v Brighton (17:45)

• Lech Poznan v Sunderland (17:45)

• Besiktas v Crystal Palace

• Bournemouth v AC Milan

Kick-off times 20:00 BST unless stated. See the fixture list in full here

Follow all of the action and reaction here

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Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Thursday's Conference League game against Jablonec at Stadion Steelnice (kick-off 17:45 BST).

• Pascal Struijk is out but will be back in contention "quickly", while Femi Azeez is still injured and his return remains unclear at this stage.

• Asked about the wider health of his squad, the Brighton boss said "everything is fine".

• Hurzeler said his side will not "underestimate anyone" as they face Czech side Jablonec in their second Conference League match, adding: "We know we have to play at our highest level. Jablonec won against Rangers and played a really good game last week against Freiburg."

• Excluding the Conference League qualifiers, Jablonec are winless in their last six games in the third tier European competition, conceding at least once in each of those games. But Hurzeler said: "We watched these kinds of games, and we saw that they are a team that try to build from the back. They want to play football, and they have good individual quality."

• Asked if Premier League clubs are a big target when playing in Europe, Hurzeler offered: "For a lot of opponents, playing us might be the game of their lives. Our mindset has to be right. If you think 90% is enough, you have no chance. The mindset must be that this is another great opportunity to show our principles, style of play and standards. Every individual must go onto the pitch wanting to play the best game of their life. If we get a good team performance, we have a chance to win."

• The German boss praised his staff for Brighton's emphatic start to the season, as they have scored 23 goals in their last seven games, stating: "All my staff do a great job in the shadows because I think no one sees how much effort they put into planning these kinds of trips so well."

• Hurzeler added: "Hopefully, we have a lot of games, so there has to be a long-term plan, there has to be a mid-term and also short-term plan, and therefore, I'm really pleased with how everyone sticks together, how everything is planned. Of course, there has to be a lot of planning in different departments, not only regarding organisation, also my analysis department, the medical department. Everyone who's involved in our journey has to play a big part in it, and they all do a great job so far. Hopefully we can keep it like this and the most important thing will always be our performance on the pitch, but all the people who do the work in the shadow contribute to the performance on the pitch and that's very important for us."

Chelsea have joined Galatasaray in the hunt for Brighton's 23-year-old Sweden midfielder Yasin Ayari. (Teamtalk), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

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Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

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The Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel has supported Pascal Struijk's red card against Sunderland - despite the Brighton defender having his suspension overturned on appeal.

Struijk was sent off after 57 minutes at the Stadium of Light when he was adjudged to have fouled Sunderland forward Wilson Isidor as he tried to run on to a through-ball.

Referee Thomas Bramall did not give a foul initially, but he was sent to the pitchside monitor by the video assistant referee (VAR), Neil Davies, who deemed the Dutch defender had denied Isidor an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.

Brighton successfully challenged the red card at a Football Association disciplinary commission, meaning he was available for Sunday's 5-0 win over Crystal Palace - though he missed the game through injury anyway.

The three members of the FA commission unanimously determined that Isidor "had not taken control of the ball and the pass was clearly going to run through to the goalkeeper".

Yet the KMI Panel, upon which five people sit, came to the opposite conclusion, with both votes split 3:2.

It decided Bramall was incorrect not to give a foul and a red card, and the VAR was right to intervene.

Only two panellists felt the intervention was "incorrect due to the subjectivity of whether Isidor would gain possession" before goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.

The KMI Panel features three former players or coaches, plus one representative each from the Premier League and Pro Ref.

Image source, Getty Images

Goals from the halfway line are etched into football fans' minds across the globe - David Beckham against Wimbledon in 1996, Xabi Alonso against Newcastle in 2006 and Wayne Rooney against West Ham in 2017.

Now, Brighton's Diego Gomez's name will be added to that list after his spectacular finish to beat Crystal Palace's Walter Benitez.

On the latest Albion Unlimited podcast, former Seagulls forward Warren Aspinall said: "Diego Gomez has driven it and he meant to do it. It is a wonderful strike.

"It's a beautiful goal. It will be up there as goal of the month in October, if not goal of the season."

Before Sunday, the Paraguayan's last Premier League goal was in March against Nottingham Forest.

Fabian Hurzeler remained a calm presence when asked about Gomez's goal at the weekend, and the German's focus was on the upcoming ties in the Europa League and Premier League.

"We have to stay very humble. The season will be long," said Hurzeler.

The 33-year-old will hit the 100-game landmark as Seagulls boss against Europa League opposition Jablonec on Thursday.

In charge since June 2024, Hurzeler has won 46 games, drawn 27 and lost 26.

"Hurzeler is miles better since he started off," added Aspinall. "He is willing to learn, and that is all you can ask for."

Listen to Albion Unlimited in full on BBC Sounds here

Chris Adams
BBC Sport

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After seven Premier League games, Brighton sit third on 16 points behind reigning champions Arsenal and table-toppers Manchester City, who have a 100% record. But can the Seagulls maintain their momentum and mount a serious title challenge?

"Why not?"

That's the opinion of Match of the Day pundit Dion Dublin, who played in Manchester United's 1992-93 title-winning side. "Because what we've seen of them this season is just togetherness, harmony... the manager's making good decisions.

"[Pascal] Gross is leading the line in regards to what goes on on the pitch and what is the right kind of way they want to play. And everybody's chipping in with goals. The look a very, very frightening team at the moment."

In the summer of 2025, Brighton lost their top scorer Joao Pedro to Chelsea, and history repeated itself this year when the Blues lured veteran forward Danny Welbeck to Stamford Bridge.

Once again, however, the Seagulls' enviable data-led recruitment model, aided by club owner Tony Bloom's close links to Jamestown Analytics, appears to have found a promising replacement.

Having been used primarily as a substitute last season, Greece striker Charalampos Kostoulas has been entrusted to spearhead the attack, and the 19-year-old has repaid the faith shown in him by Fabian Hurzeler with three league goals and two assists.

Only Lamine Yamal has more goal involvements among teenagers in Europe's top five leagues this season.

Kostoulas has a strong supporting cast, including Jack Hinshelwood, Yasin Ayari, Malick Yalcouye and Maxim de Cuyper, not to mention a rejuvenated Gross pulling the strings from a deeper position.

With 11 league scorers already - while also being the beneficiaries of three own goals - Hurzeler's men are sharing the load impressively. As well as being the division's top scorers, Brighton have had the most shots on target and sit second for xG, shots and big chances.

In the top five European leagues, only Barcelona, with 39 goals from nine La Liga matches, have more domestic league goals than Brighton.

Read the full piece here

On the latest Albion Unlimited podcast, BBC Radio Sussex's Brighton reporter Johnny Cantor and former Seagulls Warren Aspinall and Guy Butters analyse the 5-0 win over Crystal Palace, the upcoming Conference League tie against Jablonec and the following game against Liverpool.

Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

Explore all Brighton content on BBC Sounds

Listen to every Brighton game live on BBC Radio Sussex, with all the build-up and full commentary with Johnny Cantor and Warren Aspinall, and there is a full preview of all Seagulls' matches on Fridays at 18:00 in The Weekend Warm-up

Former Brighton defender Adam Webster says he is a little surprised by their success early on this season.

"I think in the summer it was quite a bit of a transition," he told BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club.

"A lot of senior players left, new players coming to the league, Andrew Crofts left who is a big character in the coaching team. So it has surprised me but at the same time it hasn't as I know how hard everyone at the club works in terms of bringing in all these players you have never heard of and all of a sudden they are superstars."

Asked how aware players are of the plans in place for them at Brighton given a tendency to loan players out, Webster said: "As players you want to play every game so sometimes, players want to go elsewhere to get that. Caicedo trained with us a few times, he was young and we were really impressed with him. Suddenly he goes on loan to a team in Belgium. He goes there, comes back in and was our best player.

"The chairman and manager all know there's a plan for these players to come in."

Watch clips of the show above and below or listen in full on BBC Sounds

Ex-Premier League striker Chris Sutton pointed to Brighton's lack of reliance on a single source of goals. "They have scored every type of goal - 11 different scorers. For Liverpool it's Isak, for Man City it's Haaland and yet for Brighton - have a guess? Top scorers there are three on three goals. They are spreading it about. They load the box brilliantly."

Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

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Exactly a month ago on this page I wrote glowingly about Brighton, saying this:

"Arsenal's three-goal capitulation was initially a shock, but should it still be a surprise down at Brighton? This season the Seagulls have also scored three against Chelsea and Manchester United, four against Tromso and Aston Villa, while slapping Coventry with five.

"This does not look like a lucky run of form or a purple patch on the pitch; this looks like who they are now."

In that same newsletter, I reckoned they were comfortably capable of a top-six finish. Since then, they have scored seven without reply against Sunderland and old rivals Crystal Palace, while netting four more against Lithuanian side Kauno Zalgiris. My initial suggestion of top six sounds slightly less bold already, though I could argue that top six means anywhere from first to sixth, of course!

So I agree that they have the capability to stay up there, but can they overhaul Manchester City? Probably not, but then again, the question remains: will they need to? Any decent level of points deduction for City changes that dynamic immediately.

The next real challenger is, of course, Arsenal, which brings to mind the aforementioned three-goal capitulation by Mikel Arteta's men back in mid-September.

Even so, I am still not ready to call Brighton challengers for the title. The rigours of European football will not help them with limitations in their squad depth in comparison with City and Arsenal.

Brighton have five games in 14 very stressful days coming up; Liverpool away, Manchester City away twice (once in the cup) and two European trips.

If they are still on a winning streak after that gruelling period, no-one will be counting them out.

In simple terms, it would be a shock but not as big a shock as Leicester City being champions back in 2016.

Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.

Chris Adams
BBC Sport

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When Jack Hinshelwood unapologetically smashed home Brighton and Hove Albion's fifth goal of the game against bitter rivals Crystal Palace on Sunday, it completed a fourth straight Premier League win for the high-flying Seagulls - with an aggregate scoreline of 15-0.

Hinshelwood's volley from two yards out to wrap up a 5-0 victory was in stark contrast to his team-mate Diego Gomez's audacious effort from the halfway line that put Brighton two up in just the seventh minute of the A23 derby.

Fabian Hurzeler's free-scoring side have arguably been the most entertaining top-flight team to watch this season, but they have backed up their attacking flair with a robust defence. No team has scored more and no team has conceded fewer goals.

After seven games, they sit third on 16 points behind reigning champions Arsenal and table-toppers Manchester City, who have a 100% record. But can the Seagulls maintain their momentum and mount a serious title challenge?

"Why not?"

That's the opinion of Match of the Day pundit Dion Dublin, who played in Manchester United's 1992-93 title-winning side. "Because what we've seen of them this season is just togetherness, harmony... the manager's making good decisions.

"[Pascal] Gross is leading the line in regards to what goes on on the pitch and what is the right kind of way they want to play. And everybody's chipping in with goals. The look a very, very frightening team at the moment."

Read: Are free-scoring Brighton genuine title contenders?

Brighton are said to be "relaxed" about the long-term future of manager Fabian Hurzeler after an impressive start to the season, with the 33-year-old German linked to a possible move to Manchester United in recent weeks. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

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We asked for your thoughts after Sunday's Premier League game between Brighton and Crystal Palace.

Here are some of your comments:

Brighton fans

Kevin: Watching the game at home with my son, Josh, who commented, "blimey, it's like watching Barcelona". Summed it up rather well, I thought!

Alexander: What a time to be a Brighton fan. I'm one of only about 30 fans in our Scandinavian Brighton group on Facebook, but we are all ecstatic about this win. Surely only a matter of time until the continued success we are seeing will help grow the fanbase across Europe.

Mike: Electric. They chased down every ball - just like they did against Arsenal. A pure team performance.

Steve: Early days, but Fabian Hurzeler has the magic touch that the players are buying into. People are saying our squad depth will be a problem with Europe as well, but if he rotates properly and keeps everyone happy, this could be a defining season for Brighton. Hurzeler has his head screwed on. He won't be tempted by Manchester United yet, not while he's building something so special at Brighton. Tony Bloom recruits the right players, under the right manager, who plays the right system. Round pegs in round holes. It's brilliant and simple. Data analysis at its best.

Crystal Palace fans

Darren: The chickens have definitely come home to roost. Too many games, too many chances given to the opposition. We lack any defensive shape, and I'm sorry, but that's poor coaching. Pierre Sage needs to sort it out - quickly!

Ray: I feared we would be candidates for relegation right at the start of the season. Bad attitude in the camp where everyone half decent has been looking for a move away.

Terry: Sage needs more time, but Sunday and midweek is exactly why you cannot sell your two best centre-backs and not replace them with any experience or quality when you play a back three.

Adrian: Proper shocking. Sage has to change tactics and formation. We always give up an early chance. The defence is disorganised and the midfield needs help. We need leaders to grit their teeth and get about the opposition, and soon.