Yves Bissouma powerhouse and Defensive howlers - Four things from Brighton's FA Cup loss at Tottenham
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Brighton crashed out of the FA Cup to Spurs following a disappointing 3-1 defeat to Antonio Conte's men in the capital.
A brace from Harry Kane and a Solly March own goal helped Spurs see off Graham Potter's Albion and into the fifth round of the cup.
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Hide AdYves Bissouma did pull one back for Albion to make it 2-1 with 30 minutes to go but Spurs were too strong for Brighton in the end.
Let's have a look at five takeaways from the cup clash.
Dodgy defending
Masters of their own downfall, Brighton.
Adam Webster, who's had an impressive season so far, had a night to forget in the capital after making two errors which led to two goals.
The English centre back fluffed his lines early on after being pressed and dispossessed by Kane, who still had a lot to do but finished with aplomb from the edge of the box. Mistakes against world class players very rarely end well.
The second error from Webster was similar to the first: dodgy touch, Kane pounced successfully, but this time he tapped it in from close range. Nightmare.
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Hide AdRobert Sanchez looked shaky at the back, too, nearly gifting Kane a goal himself just moments before Webster did.
It's unlike Brighton to look dodgy in defence, I think it may have had something to do with the tactical switch from the usual 3-5-2 formation to a 4-2-3-1.
Albion just did not look comfortable, especially in that first half.
Misfiring attackers
For all the poor defending, there was a bucket load of poor finishing to match.
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Hide AdAnd, according to one expected goals (xG) model, the team with the best xG whilst on the road in the FA Cup this season is Brighton, who were expected to score 2.02 goals per game in their opponent's stadium.
The fact is, for all the incisive build up play, there's a severe lack of quality finishing.
Jakub Moder, Neal Maupay, Pascal Gross, Solly March can't be relied upon to stick the ball in the net. It's as simple as that. They work hard, but they absolutely fluff their lines in front of goal.
Maupay's two clear goal-scoring efforts were absolutely abysmal. He's too hot and cold. One week he scores a worldie, the next he misses a sitter. There is no consistency. He puts in a lot of hard work off the ball, and fair play to him for that, but he is not an out and out striker like Danny Welbeck is.
Bissouma masterclass
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Hide AdWhat a performance from the man in the middle. He was rated an 8.6 out of 10 by WhoScored.com, which was the same rating as match winner Kane.
He has it all: an ability to dribble, cover ground, tackle, win headers and score. A proper midfield general and he showed that against Spurs.
The standout moment was his goal. He bought a ticket and won the raffle. The Malian took the game by the scruff of the neck and got Albion back into it with a lovely mazy run and finish.
Enjoy these performances while you can because he surely must be off to a Champions League side in the summer.
End of cup run
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Hide AdPremier League survival is always going to be Brighton's main focus, but you can't beat a cup run.
Albion fans will look fondly back at the memories of 2018/2019 FA Cup run which saw them take on Man City in the semi finals at Wembley.
It's those type of memories that make you love football. But, unfortunately, Albion will have to wait till next season to get stuck into another cup run.
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