Why unique Brighton defence is so tricky to unpick

“We have a great chance on Saturday to take revenge,” were Fabian Hurzeler’s words as Brighton exited the Carabao Cup at the hands of Manchester City.

The following Saturday, the 33-year-old’s dogged defiance manifested in a 1-0 victory over the same opponents, who failed to score at home for the first time in 23 matches.

Brighton now sit in third place, only behind City and Premier League leaders Arsenal, both teams they have beaten this season.

And they have done so with a bravery and front-footedness that the likes of Arsenal and City have not always been used to facing.

With 24 goals in nine games, Brighton are the league’s top scorers but it is their defensive work that has underpinned their underdog victories against the league’s best teams.

Notably, Brighton have conceded just seven goals this season – with only Arsenal conceding fewer.

From opposition goal-kicks, Brighton look to press high and in a man-to-man fashion. This is a common approach but Brighton’s intensity across the pitch makes them better at executing this than most.

The challenge is that the opposition will have an extra player in their build-up compared to Brighton’s 10 pressing outfielders, if they use their keeper as a passing option.

That potential issue is managed by one of Brighton’s attackers leaving the centre-back they began marking – curving their run as they press the opposition keeper.

In curving their run, the aim is to cut off the passing angle back to they player they are no longer marking, while the rest of the team are responsible for their direct, individual opponents.

In spite of generally opting to play man-to-man across the pitch, at points in their build-up the team in possession may have an unmarked player.

This player is usually in an area of the pitch that is hard for them to access – such as their full-back or winger on the far side.

This is often an intentional decision Brighton take, believing the benefit of an extra pressing player closer to the ball is greater than the risk associated with leaving that opposing player unmarked.

By ensuring the opposing unmarked player is far from the ball, they reduce the likelihood that player is found. By putting more bodies around the ball, they increase the likelihood of winning the ball back.

What makes Brighton so unique though is how they defend deeper.

Most teams who press high from opposition goal-kicks then settle into a more rigid defensive shape closer to their own goal. These defensive blocks are generally examples of zonal defending rather than man-to-man defending.

The most common defensive block for top teams tends to come in the form of a 4-4-2. Players are tasked with marshalling specific ‘zones’, aiming to make it harder for opponents to get into dangerous positions. There is often a focus on blocking the centre of the pitch, with the wider areas less congested for opponents to play in.

Brighton’s magic this season is in the form of continuing to use man-to-man ideas, albeit in a more measured fashion, when pushed closer to their own goal.

This more measured version of a man-to-man press is seen in Brighton’s use of an extra player, or a ‘plus-one’ (+1) in their backline. Put simply, if opponents commit four forwards high up the pitch, Brighton will defend with five.

As such, Brighton aren’t looking to go man-to-man everywhere, always, but they are looking to do it as much as they can while adhering to two key principles: trying to keep a plus-one in defence and while focusing on blocking the centre of the pitch.

These ideas were seen clearly against Manchester City too.

In possession, Enzo Maresca asked right-back Matheus Nunes to push up and move infield, into a position that resembled a right-sided striker.

City, as well as the likes of Paris St-Germain and Arsenal, have used their full-backs in these unorthodox attacking positions as it poses difficult questions to the opponent who tracks them.

These players tend to find space as opposing wingers are typically less willing to track an attacking full-back all the way into their own box.

Hurzeler has used Maxim de Cuyper as his left winger this season, but the Belgian has played the majority of his career at left-back. This has equipped him with the work-rate and defensive nous to deal with the modern, roaming attacking full-back.

In man-to-man fashion, De Cuyper followed Nunes all the way into his fixed position higher up the pitch, and ended up defending at left centre-back – as Brighton created a back five. When Brighton had the ball, De Cuyper was back playing at left wing.

Remember Brighton keeping a +1 at the back? Naturally, this leaves the other team with a spare player somewhere else. It is usually one of the opposition centre-backs who remain unmarked, finding themselves with time and space on the ball.

In an ideal situation, a centre-back less confident on the ball would be a good candidate to leave unmarked.

But even for impressive ball-playing defenders, the challenge is that every player they could pass to remains marked or could become marked in a fraction of a second based on how Brighton set-up.

Brighton are also continually shifting, looking to find moments in which one player can spring to press the unmarked centre-back on the ball. When this jump happens, Brighton will lock on to a full man-to-man press, looking to force a turnover or push the opposition back towards their keeper.

There are solutions to this organised yet man-oriented defending and Abdukodir Khusanov’s powerful ball-carrying from a wider position was perhaps the best Manchester City had on show.

But combining key principles in the form of blocking the centre of the pitch and not being baited into mindlessly tracking players looking to stretch their shape, while still locking on to individual players nearby, make Brighton an incredibly difficult puzzle for teams to solve.

For as potent as they have been in attack, it is their bravery in defence that has given them the platform.