Brighton & Hove Albion

Scott McCarthy
Fan writer

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It was such a routine win for Brighton over Leeds United that the Amex was never required to really find its voice and spur the players on.

There was the exception of one chant which spread through the West Stand Upper tier at one point – Welbeck for England.

The evergreen Danny Welbeck – or Danny Malbec as some are now referring to him for continuing to age like a fine wine – has six Premier League goals in 10 appearances this season. This makes him the leading English scorer in the division.

On current form, Welbeck deserves an England recall for the November internationals. But his case for inclusion goes beyond just a hot streak of goals.

In terms of playing style, Welbeck is probably the closest thing England have to Harry Kane. Two classic number nines who know where the back of the goal is and can link play brilliantly.

Should disaster strike and Kane be injured going into the World Cup, Welbeck would be an able deputy.

More likely is that Kane ends the season knackered from too much football, as was the case when he struggled in the latter stages of Euro 2024. Again, Welbeck provides an alternative.

But where Welbeck can really add value is what he brings off-the-pitch rather than on it. Thomas Tuchel has frequently said he wants more experience and leadership, hence the return of Jordan Henderson.

Welbeck brings those two traits in spades. His professionalism is second-to-none and that shines through in an astonishing work rate for a bloke in his mid-30s.

This young Brighton squad has benefitted from Welbeck significantly, and so too can a young England squad.

After all the injury problems Welbeck suffered between his last World Cup in 2018 and next summer's tournament, it would be quite the story for him to be on the plane to the USA, Canada and Mexico.

He deserves it though, just as the Amex told Tuchel on Saturday.

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Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney believes Danny Welbeck should be considered for a recall into the England squad.

Thomas Tuchel is set to name his squad for this month's World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Albania on Friday.

Welbeck is the top English scorer in the Premier League this season with six goals in 10 games.

"He scores goals, he works hard, he's having a purple patch and he's put himself in a position where Thomas Tuchel will definitely have to look at him," Rooney said on the latest episode of his podcast The Wayne Rooney Show.

"Behind Harry Kane he is the most in-form England striker. He's given himself a chance.

"He's been such a good player in the Premier League.

"I said last season Manchester United should have brought him back.

"He seems really settled at Brighton, he's doing well and scoring goals, and I hope he continues that and gives himself the best chance of trying to get back in the England squad."

Read the full piece

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Brighton and Leeds United.

Here are some of your replies:

Brighton fans

Stuart: All the stats indicated a typical Dr Brighton result. An early goal helped settle the nerves and ultimately we were never troubled. Leeds were poor and our players stepped up. Ferdi Kadioglu and Yasin Ayari were the stars. Also a big shout to the youngsters on their debuts. It's all very positive for the future.

Sarah: Fantastic game! With the exception of the 20 minute lull at the beginning and losing possession a bit too easily in midfield, we were strong and functioning as a team again. Danny Welbeck is on a brilliant roll, Diego Gomez got his first Premier League goal in style and sealed it with another corker, plus Yankuba Minteh and Mats Wieffer got assists. I'm really pleased to see Lewis Dunk doing so well again, especially after some suggested he should move over. There's a lot of life in him yet; he is a proper solid defender.

Dean: Good to see the Albion finish off a team in the bottom half of the league, as this had been a persistent problem for us. Welbeck on a free transfer from Watford has turned out to be a masterstroke.

Tim: Following from a hotel room in Turkey, it sounded like a far from perfect performance that we should've put to bed by half-time. We march on with three precious points and a spot back in the top half! If we can get Kaoru Mitoma, Jack Hinshelwood, Joel Veltman and Brajan Gruda back from injury, I think we'll be in a great place by this season's halfway point.

Leeds fans

Chris: Absolutely useless. They had no fire in their bellies. The front six were at another game. We were too slow in both movement and passing. Daniel Farke has to change his tactics for away games because we are not good enough to defend against quick attacking teams.

Kenneth: Poorest performance of the season so far, with too many players below par. Some are not good enough for Premier League football, Jayden Bogle and Dominic Calvert-Lewin to name just two. It's really coming back to bite us not buying a proven goalscorer.

Dave: Farke is living on borrowed time. The tactics and teamsheet were a disgrace. We were very poor.

Thomas: We have to be realistic and realise that it is so much harder to win games in the Premier League, especially away from home. The formation away from home is obviously not working so maybe a change would help. But, like all teams in Leeds' situation coming up from the Championship, it is a case of avoiding relegation. A long hard season in prospect.

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Brighton forward Georginio Rutter says it was "very special" to play against his former team Leeds United and believes the Seagulls' 3-0 win will be "very good for building confidence" after a mixed start to the season.

Speaking to BBC Radio Sussex after the win, Rutter said: "We got the three points and a clean sheet, which we have been waiting for a long time, so it is very good for building confidence.

"I was very happy with the performance and I think the manager was as well. We take it, but we have to keep going. If we get a clean sheet in every game then we cannot lose.

"In some games this season I've seen some players not wanting to run for their team-mates, but I saw everybody running so that made me very happy."

On Danny Welbeck's recent performances, he added: "He is very good for this team because of his experience. He is also very clinical in the box.

"From my point of view, he helped me a lot when I first got here. If he's called up to England I'll be very happy for him and I believe in him on that front.

"Our partnership is natural. He doesn't force it and I don't force it. We just have this connection, even in training. I don't know why, but it works."

Listen to Georginio Rutter full post-match interview on BBC Sounds

Plus catch up on Danny Welbeck's chat with BBC Radio Sussex here

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Former England striker Alan Shearer on Danny Welbeck's England prospects: "If you look at the forward options in Tuchel's last squad there aren't many obvious stand-ins for Harry Kane.

"Anthony Gordon, Jarrod Bowen, Bukayo Saka aren't going to fill that role and Ollie Watkins hasn't been firing for Aston Villa, so any English striker scoring goals in the Premier League is going to be talked about.

"It's seven years since Welbeck's last cap and he's 35 this month but Tuchel isn't worried about the future. His only focus is the six weeks of the World Cup so there's no reason why Welbeck couldn't be involved if he keeps scoring and stays injury free."

Read more on Welbeck's chances here

Sam Ashoo
Final Score reporter

A lot of the talk in the build-up to Brighton-Leeds was about Georginio Rutter.

The forward was a fan favourite at Leeds before joining Brighton for £40m in January 2023 and makes no secret of his affection for his former club. In fact, he even owns a racehorse named BriLee, a nod to both Brighton and Leeds.

There was, however, no horsing around on Saturday. Rutter played the 10 role perfectly, breaking lines, dropping deep when needed and creating extra space for Danny Welbeck and Diego Gomez. His assist for Gomez's second goal capped off an excellent performance, driving into the box and offering a perfect cutback.

The Frenchman described the occasion as "special" and it was nice to see many of the 3,000 travelling Leeds fans applaud him after the game.

Pundits Alan Shearer and Ashley Williams join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Burnley 0-2 Arsenal

• Nottingham Forest 2-2 Manchester United

• Tottenham 0-1 Chelsea

Adwaidh Rajan
BBC Sport journalist

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Brighton rediscovered their ruthlessness in attack and returned to winning ways in style as they overcame Leeds United 3-0 in the Premier League.

Fabian Hurzeler's men headed into this game on the back of a challenging week on the road where they were beaten by Manchester United in the league and knocked out of the League Cup by Arsenal.

The Seagulls attempted more shots than their opponents in those games - 15 to Manchester United's 13 and 17 to Arsenal's 13 - but were outscored by four goals.

The back-to-back defeats came after a five-game unbeaten run across all competitions from Brighton, who have have struggled for consistency during the 2025-26 season.

However, Danny Welbeck's sixth goal of the league campaign pulled Brighton ahead early in front of their supporters at the Amex on Saturday.

Though Leeds stayed alive in the game past the hour mark, Diego Gomez's quickfire double - his first Premier League goals of the season - sealed the victory that helped the Seagulls move into the top half of the standings.

While the commanding win will come as a huge fillip for the Seagulls, a second clean sheet in 22 Premier League games will be further source of optimism for Hurzeler as a tough challenge at Crystal Palace awaits them next Sunday before the international break.

Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day following the win: "It was good performance from the start, especially the first 20 minutes. We lost a bit of control after that, but in the second half we got it back. We kept a clean sheet which was important, scored some good goals and created a lot of chances. I'm happy.

"It is really about getting consistency with our results. Winning is always the best feeling, but a clean sheet gives you a high percentage of winning the game. Everyone worked hard and everyone was there for each other. We deserved the clean sheet."

Brighton goalscorer Danny Welbeck also spoke to Premier League Productions about the performance: "They were top performances from both Yankuba Minteh and Diego Gomez. Minteh was dangerous all day long and Diego popped up with two great goals. It was some great work from Georginio [Rutter] to create it too."

On whether he is expecting an England call-up next week: "I just control what I can control. I'm enjoying playing my football here at Brighton, so my focus is always on Brighton and doing the best that I can. Getting the goals is important for me and the team, and getting the three points."

Did you know?

• Brighton are unbeaten in their past nine Premier League home games (W5 D4), their best unbeaten home run since between September and March in the 2023-24 season (12 games unbeaten).

• Danny Welbeck has scored six goals in his past five Premier League appearances for Brighton - two more goals than he had netted in his previous 26 games combined.

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

Have your say on Brighton's performance

What did you make of Leeds' display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has made one change to the side that suffered a 4-2 defeat at Manchester United last Saturday.

Diego Gomez returns to the starting line-up, after being used as a substitute in the past two games, as Maxim De Cuyper drops to the bench.

Brighton XI: Verbruggen, Dunk, Van Hecke, Wieffer, Rutter, Minteh, Baleba, Wellbeck, Kadioglu, Gomez, Ayari

Substitutes: Steele, Tzimas, Watson, Kostoulas, Boscagli, De Cuyper, Coppola, Knight, Oriola

Leeds United manager Daniel Farke has named an unchanged starting line-up following their 2-1 win against West Ham last weekend.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin leads the line alongside Noah Okafor and Brenden Aaronson while captain Ethan Ampadu, Ao Tanaka and Sean Longstaff make up their midfield

Leeds XI: Perri, Bogle, Gudmundsson, Ampadu, Rodon, Longstaff, Calvert-Lewin, Aaronson, Bijol, Okafor, Tanaka

Substitutes: Darlow, Struijk, James, Piroe, Nmecha, Stach, Harrison, Justin, Gruev

There are seven games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Brighton v Leeds

• Burnley v Arsenal - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• Crystal Palace v Brentford

• Fulham v Wolves

• Nottingham Forest v Manchester United - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Tottenham v Chelsea (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Liverpool v Aston Villa (20:00)

Kick-off times 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Burnley v Arsenal" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Tottenham v Chelsea", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

Leeds have made a great start and I am pleased for Daniel Farke.

He took a lot of stick when he was at Norwich, when I kept hearing how he wasn't a Premier League manager, but apart from their heavy defeat at leaders Arsenal, his side have been competitive in all of their games so far.

I am still going with a Brighton win here, though.

The Seagulls did not play well when they lost at Manchester United last weekend, then went out of the Carabao Cup at the hands of the Gunners on Wednesday, but they are unbeaten at home so far and I am expecting them to bounce back.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Jordan Butler
BBC Sport journalist

An inconsistent Brighton host promoted Leeds on the south coast this Saturday. BBC Sport explores some of the key themes surrounding this fixture.

Evergreen Milner to face first side

Brighton will certainly welcome a return home after a loss at Old Trafford last Saturday and a League Cup defeat at the Emirates on Wednesday.

Fabian Hurzeler's side are on an eight-match unbeaten run at the Amex Stadium in the top flight, with four wins and four draws.

They have also kept a clean sheet in their past seven home league games against visitors Leeds, their longest run without conceding against a single opponent in the club's history.

Brighton's James Milner was born and bred in Leeds and made his top-flight debut for the Elland Road club in November 2002 when he was just 16.

Now 39, the evergreen utility player is still contributing at the highest level and his assist for 18-year-old Charalampos Kostoulas's goal against Manchester United set two unique Premier League records.

Not only was it the biggest gap in age between a player setting up a team-mate – a whopping 21 years and 146 days – but it was the first time in Premier League history that a player assisted another after making their debut in the competition before the scorer was born.

Milner is also nine games away from setting a new Premier League appearance record. If he were to feature on Saturday he would sit just seven matches behind Gareth Barry's total of 653. If he plays at Elland Road in the reverse fixture in May, the chances are he will already have broken it.

Positive start for Leeds

Leeds head to the south coast seeking to register consecutive Premier League victories for the first time since November 2022.

They've lost three of their four away trips so far this season but their sole victory at Wolves in September means they've already gone one better than Howard Wilkinson's team during the inaugural Premier League campaign in 1992-93. That side failed to win any of their 21 games on the road during a 42-game season but still finished two points above the relegation zone in 17th.

The positive start that Daniel Farke's side have made has gone somewhat under the radar due to Sunderland's charge towards the top of the division. But recent history suggests that his team is doing enough, as every promoted side in the last 10 seasons with 11 points or more after 10 games has survived. Leeds have amassed 11 points from their first nine matches.

The last promoted side to have at least 11 points after 10 games and be relegated was Cardiff City in 2013-14 – the Bluebirds mustered 12 points from their first 10 fixtures but finished the season bottom with 30 points after taking a meagre 18 from their remaining 28 matches.

A similar fate could still befall Leeds and, when asked about his side's return from their opening nine games, Leeds boss Farke said they deserved far more. "We should be on 15 to 17 points already," he said in his pre-match press conference. "We're on a good path, but survival isn't a guarantee. We need around nine or 10 wins to stay up."

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Mats Wieffer spoke to BBC Radio Sussex about Brighton's start to the season: "As a team we are not satisfied with how it [the season] is going. It's not that bad, but overall we want more points.

"We speak a lot and watch clips about what we can do better defensively and attacking-wise. It is hard to put a finger on one [reason why it's not going to plan]. At this moment, we are still figuring out how we can play at our best.

"Against Arsenal, we played with three at the back instead of four - I don't know if that is going to be for a longer period, I don't think it is."

On the difference between the Premier League and other leagues, he said: "The intensity and you can get punished directly. It doesn't matter what team you play against, you can have the ball for a long time with lots of chances but if you don't score then they will. You can never drop your intensity as the team.

"In my opinion, you face the best wingers in the world [in the Premier League]. They are fast, and it's really difficult. I am trying my best and trying to help the team."

Listen to Wieffer's chat in full here

Millie Sian
BBC Sport journalist

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Leeds United at Amex Stadium (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• There are no fresh injury concerns following the midweek Carabao Cup fixture, so "the squad will be the same". A few players have "small issues" and might not be available, but he didn't name those affected.

• Kaoru Mitoma is "back on the pitch and training" after recovering from an ankle injury. It is possible that the winger could be back in action before the next international break.

• When asked if 19-year-old Tom Watson could be in line for a first Premier League start in Mitoma's absence, Hurzeler replied: "It's definitely an option."

• Brighton will need to "do the basics right" in order to get a result against their opponents. He added: "We have to commit to each other. We cannot be lazy. We have to be very clear in our positioning and good with our passing. We accept that it will be a fight, but I'm sure we'll have the quality to outplay them."

• Former Leeds United player Georginio Rutter could be the "gamechanger" on Saturday afternoon because of his "behaviour, attitude and positivity". Hurzeler highlighted that the forward has already been a "big win" for Brighton.

Hear more from Hurzeler on Rutter on BBC Sounds

• He praised Daniel Farke for doing a "really good and really impressive" job at Elland Road: "They have a clear style of play, they are very disciplined, and they don't give away a lot of chances. They are a hardworking team and they try to be there for each other. It will be a big challenge for us."

• On whether he expected Leeds United to be doing as well as they are this season, he said: "For me, it's not a surprise. If you saw them playing in the Championship last season, they were already impressive." It furthers his belief that the Premier League is getting "more competitive and equal" after the past few seasons.

• Brighton are "100 percent still in this season", after taking 12 points from their first nine league games, but he does recognise their results "could've been better".

• Hurzeler added: "I'm 100% convinced that we have the right characters, right personalities and right qualities in our group to get the results we want long-term."

• When asked if he believes Danny Welbeck - last capped in 2018 - should receive an England call-up, he replied: "I'm very convinced with my players and I have a big belief that he is able to play for England. I asked the squad if they think he can play for England and they all agreed, so let's see what happens."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Hear more from Hurzeler on the Leeds game on BBC Sounds

This - it seems - is the season of the set piece.

The Premier League debates are more about dead balls than ever before, with some sides enjoying immense success from corner kicks, throw ins or well-worked free-kicks.

What fine timing then for BBC Sport to launch a column with former manager Tony Pulis, a man who seemed to finely extract the fine margins from the game.

You can take in Tony's column on set pieces here

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Substitutes have scored 16 Premier League goals for Brighton in 2025 - only Brighton themselves in 2023 (20) have ever had more goals scored by subs in a calendar year (excluding own goals).

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your thoughts after Wednesday's Carabao Cup game between Arsenal and Brighton.

Here are some of your replies:

Arsenal fans

Banda: Arsenal's young players stepped up impressively while Brighton seemed to run out of ideas in the final third. It wasn't the flashiest performance, but it was professional, efficient and mature. It's the kind of win that shows Arsenal's growth and their hunger for silverware this season.

Peter: It was interesting to see Arsenal's young blood. They really have a team for the future!

Alan: Max Dowman is an unbelievable talent. Yet another clean sheet.

Donpapi: At this rate, Arsenal should be able to field a full team of academy players in the near future. Arteta is doing a great job and will save the club a lot of money in the future. Long may it continue.

Irfan: It seems like this Arsenal side, regardless of who plays, cannot do anything wrong. I really hope they continue doing the same throughout the whole season and end it on a high note as well. From the looks of it, aiming for a Treble is not too unrealistic.

Brighton fans

Fran: We started off well and should've scored a couple of goals before half-time but, as is so often the case, we just didn't take our chances. Arsenal stepped it up in the second half and were the better side. We didn't really look like troubling them.

Jake: Very encouraging, particularly after the Manchester United performance at the weekend. Hurzeler has come in for some criticism, but he had the team playing well and creating clear chances. It does sadly expose the limitations of the Brighton model and, if we are to properly compete, we need to recruit proven over potential in the final third.

Graham: I'm afraid that we create chances but we just can't finish. 2-0 at half-time wouldn't have been unrealistic in my view. It's good to see Baleba playing well, which is a bonus I guess. Bring on Leeds.

Kevin: Poor finishing again. You have to give fringe players a game in the cups, otherwise they don't get game time. We move on to big game against Leeds.