Fabian Hürzeler – Brighton – Tactical Analysis

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There was a point last season where Fabian Hürzeler was treading dangerous ground. The club sat as low as 17th in the table, winning just one of eleven games after Christmas. But even during that time, there was a sense that Brighton were performing better than the results indicated. That rang true when the Seagulls climbed all the way up to 8th place by the final day – securing European football for just the second time in club history.

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This summer was a weird one for the Seagulls, losing Danny Welbeck, Jan Paul Van Hecke, and Carlos Baleba among others; and having to rebuild much of their squad. But that hasn’t bothered them one bit.

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Every time they lose a Moises Caicedo or an Alexis Mac Allister, they always find a way to replace them, and come back just as strong. It’s been no different this time around.

Brighton have been one of the best teams in the Premier League so far in 2026-27, topping the charts on goals, xG, and clean sheets. They’re also second in the possession table behind only Manchester City, as one of the only remaining ‘press and possess’ teams in the league. Along the way, they’ve been tactically flexible and complex, making for one of the most fun teams to root for right now. Here is an analysis of Fabian Hürzeler’s Brighton so far in 2026-27.

SYSTEM OF PLAY: 4-2-3-1

Like most Premier League teams, Brighton have begun this season in a 4-2-3-1 formation. There’s is a bit more complex, given that players will interchange (i.e. run around like mad), and it’s not always a true representation of the exact positioning of pkayers.

What is clear from a tactical perspective is that the Seagulls have a clearly defined, physical back-four, two wide men, and 19-year-old Greek forward Charalampos Kostoulas up front.

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The complexities revolve mostly around their midfield, where Pascal Groß has become some sort of superhero, capable of playing as a ‘6’, ‘8’, and ’10’ all within the same match. He’s often been partnered by the Swede Yasin Ayari, and a more advanced running machine in Malick Yalcouyé.

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However, Chema Andrés has come into the team over the past two games and looked incredible as a clearly defined ‘6’, giving Groß more space to float ‘raumdeuter’ styled. My prediction is that this will stick, and Yalcouyé will spend more time fighting for positions on the wing.

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As we’ll come to discuss, Pascal Groß is at the heart of every tactical nuance. He’s dropping into the back-line to pick up possession and play passes forward. Moments later, he’s creating the chance from the half-spaces. Then, he’s the most active player in leading the press. He’s been absolutely everywhere so far this season, covering the most distance of all Brighton players so far.

Before continuing, let’s just all take a moment to remember that Brighton secured his signature from Dortmund for just £1.7 million in January. Enzo Fernández cost Manchester City 74 times that amount. It’s 1/59 of Florian Wirtz’s fee to Liverpool last season. Don’t even ask how much Spurs spent on their midfield this summer. To get a player of his immense quality for pennies by today’s standard is outrageous.

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Their shrewd business in 2026 doesn’t stop there. Pascal Struijk signed from Leeds for just over £15 million. So too did Chema Andrés, who looks like the exact player Manchester United needed in replacing Casemiro. Someone who is physical, imposing and reads spaces well.

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Even their higher-price buys are cheap by today’s standard. £30 million for Kostoulas will go down as one of the biggest bargains of the summer if he carries on like this; and Luka Vušković will undoubtedly be sold on for more than the £46 million by the time he’s in his twenties.

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This is another stop-down moment to talk about how two of Brighton’s best players this season are still only 19-years-old. Yikes.

There is so much to be positive about when it comes to Brighton right now, and so much of it has to do with their tactical IQ.

ATTACKING PRINCIPLES

Brighton attack with sharp, quick, short passes. They love to bounce passes forward and then back, triangulating the ball around the pitch. Every carrier will always have three to four short passing options at any given time.

But that won’t stop them from switching the play or playing in-field passes from the wide areas.

Bocagli in particular likes a long switch of play with his left-boot, and Kadioglu and Groß are often cleverly playing passes into the centre from the right side.

They can go long and be physical in their approach, but they prefer to have the ball at their feet. Lewis Dunk especially, who has completed 90 passes per match so far (23 more than his next highest teammate). Without Lewis Dunk, it’s been Pascal Groß controlling much of the early possession, as he drops to the left of the two centre-backs to pick up the ball.

This then pushes Olivier Boscagli further forward, and allows Groß to dictate either long or short passes out from the back.

As they advance closer to goal, Brighton attack with a mix of intensity and intelligence. They’re not afraid to strike from distance or get on the end of crosses. They’re also not afraid to use their intensity on the counter attack. Charalampos Kostoulas’ goal against Arsenal is a great example of how clinical they can be on the break.

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That variety at which they can score goals and attack is pivotal, and it’s often led by – you guessed it – Pascal Groß. The German midfielder is great at picking up pockets of space to receive unmarked, and equally savvy at playing forward passes into narrow gaps for runners.

He acts like a creative ’10’ in the final third of the game, getting himself into dangerous areas of the pitch to both score and create. 3 goals and 3 assists so far this season is a testament to just how much he’s dominated Brighton’s attacking moves. But he’s not the only one capable of contributing.

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Maxim De Cuyper can whip in a delightful cross. Kostoulas can drive forward and impose himself in the final third. Malick Yalcouyé loves to have a strike at goal.

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On paper, it seems like nothing special. A mid-table attack, at best. But through their intensity and fitness, it’s been the best attack in the league.

It just so happens that this is exactly the same reason why they’ve also had one of the best defensive records so far this season.

DEFENSIVE PRINCIPLES

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When defending, Brighton play as though they have an endless supply of caffeine. They’re supercharged all the time, running around like crazy to pressure the opposition into mistakes.

It took about fifteen minutes against Arsenal for me to realize that the entire match was being played in Arsenal’s half. The Gunners tried and tried to play through Brighton’s press. But time and time again, Brighton forced them into mistakes. They could never get out.

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This Brighton press is one of the best we’ve seen in the Premier League, and mainly down to its relentlessness. Most teams these days will pressure for a bit, and then fall back into position when that pressure amounts to nothing. Brighton never stop.

All it takes is one player (usually someone like Pascal Groß or Malick Yalcouyé) to step on the gas, and the rest of the players follow suit. It doesn’t matter if their right-wing ends up in the striker’s position or vice versa, they just want the nearest player to the situation to step up and pressure at every single moment.

This is where Pascal Groß will often be the highest player on the pitch – leading the press. He’s been seen clearly urging his teammates on and telling them to come with him.

He’s been seen initiating pressure on every back-pass or pass to a goalkeeper. He’s always leading by example with his energy and work-rate, allowing everyone else to follow suit.

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One novel note about Brighton’s defense is that it’s not necessarily concerned by shape or formation. Their wingers might be tracking someone man-to-man all the way toward their own defensive line. Diego Gomez and Charalampos Kostoulas will interchange. Ayari will step here and then Andrés will step there. It doesn’t matter if it’s a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3, it’s just finding an opposition player close to you, and tracking their movement.

This is what the tactics community calls a “man to man press”. It’s orientated around players, not spaces. It’s not “man to man” in the sense that everyone has their specific, designated man to track. It’s man to man in that everyone has someone to watch out for whenever they’re defending.

The player being tracked can also change quite quickly depending on the priority of the moment. In the image below, Yasin Ayari initially prioritizes stepping up on Andrey Santos, leaving Mason Mount free. The body shape of the pressing players means that Mount can’t be found, and so it’s okay to leave him in open space.

As Manchester United then switch the play to the other side of the field, Ayari realizes the priority has shifted to dropping toward Mount.

It’s not just about the intensity behind the press, but the intelligence of the players – knowing who to track at what specific moment.

Their success is evident. No team has won possession in the final third more than Brighton (7.2 per game). But it’s not about winning the ball high up the pitch, or even winning the ball at all. Brighton simply want to force errors. They want to force stray passes. They want the ball to go out of bounds. They want the opposition to kick it long where Struijk and Vušković can leap high into the air and win it back.

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They want the opposition to feel like there is no breathing room. They want them to feel the weight of that. How frightening it is to be surrounded by these diamond shapes at every single moment.

For the Seagulls, it’s worked. They’ve maintained control of the game by winning the ball and then keeping it (65% possession). They’ve kept 3 clean sheets in 5 matches. And they’ve won three matches to help them into third in the table.

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It will be interesting to see if Brighton keep up this relentless press every match, or if it’s something they prioritize against the bigger clubs. They’re clearly incredibly fit, but it’s hard to see how that much running and intensity will be sustainable across a whole campaign, even in an era where five substitutes are allowed. Either way, Fabian Hürzeler has enjoyed a fantastic start to the season with the Seagulls, with arguably the most attractive football in the entire league.

Thanks for reading and see you soon!

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