Brighton 1 West Ham 0
West Ham are not the first team you think of as relegation candidates but nonetheless one which Brighton would seek to beat at home which we narrowly did. After playing Manchester City and Spurs we now have an easier run with only Chelsea of the big boys at home on December 15th. Brighton scored in the first half when the evergreen Glenn Murray converted Beram Kayal’s cross.
It was Murray 5th of the season, 6th against West Ham in the Premier , 99th in a Brighton shirt and he now stands second in the all-time Seagull scoring list. If he was younger than his 35 years he would surely be in the England squad. He is not quick nor that great in the air His greatest asset is he can convert a chance . There have been a few strikers like this , Gerd Muller and Toto Schillaci being the best of the breed.
West Ham dominated the second half but could not translate their supremacy into goals.
Shane Duffy and Lewis Dunk may not be the most ball-playing of defenders but they get the job done throwing their bodies on the line.
With 3 starting midfielders injured (Dale Stephens, Pascal Gross and now Davy Propper) we were all impressed by the vigour of Beram Kayal, the sponsor’s choice of man of the match.
I has heard good reports of West Ham’s midfielder Declan Rice but I was disappointed.
He plays in front of the back four a position where it is easy to look good.
His passing was short and often back. I was expecting him to launch long passes or thrust forward but he did neither.
Marco Arnautovic, the ex -Stoke forward, did impress with his control and link play but he missed an absolute sitter towards the end.
At 11-30 one and a half hours after the final whistle we were still stuck in the Amex car park and I was not home till midnight. A combination of car phobia as result of a green MP and former council, wholly inadequate alternative forms of transport to and from the stadium and deficient stewarding and traffic flow control all causes this gridlock. I am beginning to veer to the tv watchers in the Great Rust Debate.