Whether Brighton & Hove Albion can absorb the sale of Billy Gilmour to Napoli will become clearer over the first half of the season.
The midfield options for head coach Fabian Hurzeler should have increased appreciably by the time the winter window comes around at New Year.
Paraguay international Diego Gomez is set to complete an £11million ($14m) move from Inter Miami in January, after the 2024 MLS season finishes in early December. This week, the versatile 21-year-old gave a glimpse of his potential via a stunning goal with the outside of his right foot, earning Paraguay a 1-0 home win against Brazil in a World Cup qualifier.
Even before Gomez arrives, Hurzeler’s choices will be strengthened by Matt O’Riley’s return from injury, assuming the recovery of the £25million summer signing from Celtic goes according to plan.
O’Riley underwent surgery on September 2 on the left ankle ligament damage suffered in a controversial tackle by Crawley captain Jay Williams. The Denmark international was hurt six minutes into his debut in the 4-0 win in the Carabao Cup at the Amex Stadium on August 27.
Owner-chairman Tony Bloom, speaking to the club podcast, said: “We are hugely disappointed with that horror challenge on Matt O’Riley. He had his operation, and that has been successful. We are all really looking forward to seeing him back at the later part of the year.”
Two other summer signings, midfielder Mats Wieffer and full-back Ferdi Kadioglu, were also ruled out with thigh problems before Gilmour’s sale. Kadioglu can also operate in midfield.
Earlier in the summer, Pascal Gross moved to Borussia Dortmund. An unfortunate set of circumstances were exacerbated by 38-year-old James Milner’s 17th-minute exit from his central midfield role in the 1-1 draw at Arsenal — the day Gilmour left. Milner (hamstring) faces an unspecified short-term period out of action.
Brighton initially rejected bids from Napoli that started at £8million for Gilmour. They ended up getting £12m, plus potentially £4m more in add-ons, for the Scotland international — more than double what they paid Chelsea for him two years ago. However, in a window in which Tottenham Hotspur, for example, sold Oliver Skipp to Leicester City for more than £20m, it feels like a good deal for the Italian side.
Gilmour, having waited patiently for his chance, established himself last season under then head coach Roberto De Zerbi.
However, Hurzeler prefers a different profile: he wants his midfielders to be athletic, tall, and capable of covering both boxes while chipping in with goals and assists.
Gilmour, although technically gifted, is 5ft 8in (173cm). He plays in a deep-lying role for Scotland and, previously, did the same for Brighton. He has never scored a club goal in a career spanning more than 100 first-team appearances.
Conscious that he was facing limited game time once more, Gilmour pushed for the move to Napoli. Brighton did not want him to go, but they had to balance that against keeping a disappointed player.
Bloom, speaking in an interview involving The Athletic, said: “We wish him well in Italy, it’s a great opportunity. Really good players leave really good clubs. Players come in and you need a certain amount of churn and as a group, you’re always looking to improve. We’ve really done that this season with the business we’ve done.”
Whether or not the financial return on Gilmour is a few million pounds light is not as significant as where his departure leaves Hurzeler’s options. The players forming the main midfield partnerships in the past two seasons have all moved on in the ensuing window: Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister in 2022-23, and Gilmour and Gross in 2023-24.
Against Arsenal in their final match before the September international break, Brighton relied on an alliance between two 20-year-olds: Carlos Baleba, who was making his 16th Premier League start, and Yasin Ayari, on for the injured Milner and making his sixth league appearance for the club sooner than expected.
There are not many tougher tests of the engine room than a trip to the Emirates Stadium, even if the task for Baleba and Ayari became less onerous with the hotly-disputed dismissal of Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice.
Hurzeler, responding to The Athletic about the midfield state of play in his post-match press conference that day, referred to “the positive things, how Yasin came into the game, how Baleba performed”.
The head coach expanded on his faith in the young duo later in the press conference. Asked if Baleba can be a regular starter and how much faith he has in the powerful talent signed from French club Lille last summer, Hurzeler said: “I have a lot of trust, to him, to every player. We have a big squad with a lot of competition, so nobody can rest.
“He has to be there every training, he has to improve in every training, then of course it is also our way to give chances to young players, to improve them. Young players can only improve by playing on the pitch, getting experience on the pitch. It was a great experience for Carlos. He played a good game.”
Ayari’s composed contribution to that 1-1 draw was followed by a first competitive start for Sweden in a 3-1 away win against Azerbaijan in the Nations League. The £5million signing from Stockholm-based AIK in the January 2023 transfer window spent last season on loan in the Championship at Coventry City and then Blackburn Rovers.
Hurzeler said: “I don’t think he missed one training (session) in the whole of pre-season. Also, during the season, he is always there. He is a top, motivated player, he plays with high intensity as well as his quality in possession, especially with his deep runs. Now it is up to him to continue at this level, keep going in his development and we will try to help him.
“I love players who give everything for the club — the last percentage they have for the performance of the team. I also like team players. He is a team player and you need team players to be successful. You can’t only have creative players or leaders. He is a team player and very helpful for the balance.”
Brighton have started with three different central-midfield partnerships in their opening three league games this season: Wieffer and Milner in the away win against Everton; Gilmour and Milner in the home victory over Manchester United; Baleba and Milner at Arsenal.
Without Gilmour in that mix, they still also have Ayari and Kadioglu as part of the equation in the immediate future, along with Jakub Moder, a player Hurzeler is happy he can still call on. The Poland international has been a fringe member of the squad after spending 19 months out with serious knee damage from April 2022 to November 2023. That group will be joined in time by O’Riley and Gomez.
There is also the possibility of Kadliogu being used at full-back to release Jack Hinshelwood as a central midfield option. That was Hinshelwood’s position as he developed through the club’s academy and is where the long-term future of the England Under-21 international lies.
The scope of the midfield choices that will be available to Hurzeler as the season progresses puts a different complexion on the sale of Gilmour.
(Top photos: Baleba, left, and Ayari; Getty Images)
