United Review's guide to Brighton

 Here we pick out six nuggets of info from United Review’s expert opposition section…  

• As a starting point, it’s worth remembering that Brighton finished the 2014/15 season in 20th place in the Championship table, one point ahead of Rotherham and just six points clear of relegation to League One. Last year they finished sixth in the Premier League, so it’s a vivid snapshot of just how far they’ve come in the past decade.

• Keen observers of the Fantasy Premier League may have taken notice of Brighton’s Ecuadorian defender Pervis Estupinan, who has already contributed one goal and two assists in his four PL appearances from the left-back position so far in 2023/24.

• In Evan Ferguson, Brighton can boast the player with the best goals-per-90-minutes ratio in the entire league so far this season (1.74), as well as the most shots on target (nine).

• Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi – who caught the eye with a brilliant spell managing Italian minnows Sassuolo – was an attacking midfielder for Napoli (plus a dozen other clubs) in his playing days. Talking of De Zerbi, the Italian currently averages more goals-per-game (3.52) than any other manager in the Premier League’s 31-year history.  

• You may be surprised to learn which player has made the most key passes in this season’s Premier League, but full marks if you said Brighton’s defensive midfielder Pascal Gross. 

• Away from the pitch, Brighton-born punk-poet John Baine – better known as Attila the Stockbroker – is a co-founder of Albion’s independent supporters’ association, and once wrote a poem entitled ‘And Smith Must Score…’ about the United v Brighton FA Cup final in 1983 and the moment when Brighton’s Gordon Smith missed a sitter in the closing seconds of the match. A pertinent passage read:

'Five yards out, an open goal, and not a man in sight; The memory of that awful miss, still haunts me late at night; Ten seconds left in extra-time, and history in the making; But Smith’s shot hit the goalie’s legs, and now our hearts are breaking...'

For more info on this weekend’s opponents (and plenty more on the Reds!), pick up a copy of this weekend’s United Review at the stadium, or order online via manutd.com/programme to have a copy delivered to your door.