Welcome to The Draft Society’s team-by-team previews, a vital part of the 23/24 Draft Kit! These articles will provide a one-stop-shop for all the important Fantasy EPL themes from a Fantrax perspective. With players to watch, players to avoid, points projections and early season fixtures analysis, we've got it all covered. Our Draft Premier League Team Previews will help set you up to dominate your draft! On to Roberto De Zerbi's impressive Brighton team and their 23/24 draft outlook!
Check back often! Our team previews will be updated throughout the summer as any new transfer, injury, or rotation developments come to light.
Check out our 23/24 Draft Kit for all the pre-season information you could ever need. We've got a Live Draft Aide, Draft Rankings, Team Previews, Cheat Sheets, Strategy Articles, Draft 101, plus so much more!
Brighton Team Preview 23/24
Check out our in-depth look at Brighton's prospects for the new EPL season below. This information will form a key component to your draft prep and set you up to dominate your draft!
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Fantasy Flashback
Let's review how Brighton players fared in 22/23, with an emphasis on their Draft Premier League fantasy assets. But, we'll also discuss any pertinent info regarding managerial tactics, formation, injuries, etc. What can we learn from their performance in the last campaign?
Note: The following table is interactive. Desktop users can apply the Filter, Group, and Sort buttons to arrange the data to their preferences. Mobile users can tap on a player card to view all data points. The table can be reset to its default state by refreshing the page.
Brighton were everyone's undisputed 2nd favorite team in 22/23. Their attractive and attacking brand of football under Roberto De Zerbi skyrocketed them to the top half of the table and fantasy managers were gratefully showered with fantasy points. As the season concluded, the Seagulls even qualified for European football. That will, undoubtedly, bring some complications in 23/24, but let's first discuss just what went down last season.
As individual performances were concerned, we must start in the (fantasy) midfield where March, Gross, and Mitoma absolutely bossed things (both IRL and in fantasy footy). All 3 averaged over 11 points per start, which was enough to secure top 10 finishes amongst their midfield peers for March and Gross. Mitoma surely would have followed suit had he been in the XI to begin the season. It's worth noting here that Alexis Mac Allister also put up 11+ PPS last season, leaving the door open for another BHA player to produce from that spot this coming season. The major story of last season was ADP. All of these players were an immense value draft ight last season. While we do foresee all three of them delivering top 15 midfielder production, their draft price will be much more expensive this season. Check out our "5 Players Whose Situations Have Worsened" and "Overvalued Players" articles for a word of caution about overpaying for BHA players on draft day this year.
At the forward position, last year was a mixed bag. By the end of the season, the #9 spot appeared to be Evan Ferguson's spot to lose. Fitness issues aside, he was basically nailed-on down the stretch. The issue for our purposes is the glaring fact that he's not a great fantasy asset, relying heavily on goals for his fantasy points. He's over 50% reliant on goals and assists for fantasy points, scoring fewer than 4 ghost points per start, which puts him last of the players in the above table. Big Ferg aside, forward was a bit of a wasteland until the end of the season when Julio Enciso announced his presence. As you can see, his PPS figure in the 7 matches he started was impressive, and we like him for a high upside Brighton asset whose price tag will be much lower than the marquee MIDs we've already discussed.
Notice the fact that Pervis Estupianian is the only defender who cracks the 7.0 PPS threshold. He carries attacking threat and isn't overly reliant on clean sheets, which makes him the only BHA defender worth drafting in the early rounds. Every other Brighton defender is a late round punt and you shouldn't spend higher than a 12th round pick on any of them.
Overall Team Performance
There's not much that needs to be said in terms of Brighton's performance as a team last season. They wildly impressed and punched way above their weight. They made headlines far and wide because of their exciting, possession-based, quick passing style. More importantly for us, this Brighton team is a factory for fantasy points. We don't see that changing any time soon. However, the new season holds a good deal of mystery due in large part to rotation concerns. We'll dive into that as our preview continues.
Fantasy Forecast
Past is prelude, as they say. So, turning to the 23/24 season, we've got Brighton player projections, 3 key players to keep an eye on, 3 players we're staying away from, 3 question marks surrounding the club at this moment, and an analysis of the Seagulls' early-season fixtures.
23/24 Player Projections
Below, you'll find our season projections for Brighton fantasy assets. Our projections are created using a number of contributing factors such as past performance, fixture difficulty ratings, anticipated minutes played, and more. PPS (Points Per Start) and ProjTotFPts (Projected Total Points) refer to Fantrax Default Scoring.
As mentioned at the end of the "Fantasy Flashback" section, the most pressing concern in this Brighton team in 23/24 will be rotation. That doesn't mean, however, that you should shy away from players like Mitoma, Gross, and March. But don't set yourself up for disappointment. Go into the next season knowing that you may be without these players for a game here and there. This shouldn't affect your draft day valuation too much, but it does mean that you shouldn't necessarily reach for them over more nailed-on alternatives.
When you reach the "3 Question Marks" section below, you'll see just how many midfielders this team currently employs. Take a dash of midfield congestion and a pinch of the Europa League and you've got a perfect recipe for a rotation nightmare. Hence, why you're seeing so few midfielders projected to start 20+ matches in our table above. This hints at what I believe will become a theme this Draft PL season: Brighton assets will become a streamer's paradise and an inactive manager's nightmare. Taking advantage of lineup changes and being quick on the trigger will award savvy managers many successful streams. Conversely, it will be immensely frustrating to hold Brighton midfielders. If you roster one of them not named Mitoma, Gross, or March when they hit a purple patch, you might be wise to cash in and trade high this season.
The final thing to note when looking at the projections above is the mere fact that @DraftLad (who curates our projections) has a lot of faith in Veltman securing the right back role (or atleast staying fit enough to hold onto it). If that's the case, I like him coming out of drafts because of the defensive matchups to begin the season (which I'll mention often in this preview). Keep an eye on the battle for RB between Veltman, Lamptey, and Milner.
3 Players to Watch
We've highlighted 3 players (and some honorable mentions) from Brighton that we're keeping an eye on. Some players mentioned below may be sleepers. Some may be up-and-coming youngsters. Some may be vying for a spot in the XI. Whatever the case, we'll tell you why we're watching these 3 in EPL Draft Fantasy this year.
João Pedro
Position: FWD
22/23 Points: N/A
22/23 Points Per Start: N/A
Recommended Draft Pick: 55-60 (12 Team League: Late Round 4/Early Round 5)
Analysis: In an impressive season with Watford in the Championship last year, Pedro posted a stat line featuring 11 goals and 4 assists. More importantly, though, if we convert his numbers to Fantrax Default Scoring, he was good for 10.1 ghost points per 90. Certainly, the Premier League tax means that those numbers don't directly translate. But, with several key departures at the Amex and Pedro's knack for counting stats, he's one to monitor in drafts. If you see him slipping past the 5th round, he's value there purely based on his potential and the prolific Brighton attack. He's one to be cautious with, too, however. The Joao Pedro hype train has well and truly left the station. If his draft price continues to climb, don't pay it. He's certainly not a value in the 3rd or early 4th round. He faces competition with Enciso and others in the 10 slot, Mitoma and March on the wings, and Ferguson, Welbeck, and Undav up top.
Facundo Buonanotte
Position: Midfielder
22/23 Points: 47 (111th best midfielder)
22/23 Points Per Game: 3.62 (6 starts)
Recommended Draft Pick: ~110 (12 Team League: 9th or 10th Round)
Analysis: Let's be very clear; Buonanotte's stats from last season are nothing to write home about. The reason that we're keeping an eye on him is largely because he passed the eye test at the tail end of 22/23. He looked lively and was involved in the attacking third. As with Pedro, the appeal of any attacker on Brighton is the preponderance of points in a De Zerbi system. So, the combination of a positive situation for fantasy footy and Buonanotte's promising cameos last season, we like him to be a decent MID 3 or 4. Take him late in drafts and hope he factors into Brighton's attacking rotation patterns. It may take a few weeks, but even sub appearances early season may be a good enough sign to hold and hope for future payoff.
Simon Adingra
Position: FWD
22/23 Points: N/A
22/23 Points Per Start: N/A
Recommended Draft Pick: Round 16
Analysis: The young Ivorian has returned to the Amex after a successful loan spell for Union SG in Belgium, which saw him average .53 goals and .38 assists per 90 minutes over the course of 30 matches played (with 20 starts). And during this preseason, it sure didn't take him long to impress Brighton fans. He bagged a brace vs Brentford on 26 July in 65 minutes. And more generally speaking, he just looked absolutely electric over the course of his 138 preseason minutes.
We've got him projected to start 10 matches this season and average 9.1 points per start. It's a modest number, to be sure. But if he impresses, if there's an injury, or if RDZ rotates more than expected because of the Europa League, that number could rise. You can read even more about Adingra in our Deep Sleepers or Young Gems pieces, still upcoming.
Honorable Mention(s):
Brighton Defenders - on draft day, BHA DEFs represent a solid value, as their early-season fixtures are very friendly. You'll be able to get 3/4 of the Brighton defense (Estupinan obviously excluded) for a dirt cheap price. They may even fall to the last round or go undrafted, which is criminal considering they have the most favorable fixtures of any team at the defender position according to our Fixture Difficulty Tracker.
3 Players to Avoid
It's not all sunshine and rainbows at the Amex. At least, not as far as Draft Fantasy Football is concerned. Below, we will also highlight 3 fantasy assets that we're not so thrilled about. These are the 3 Brighton players you might want to avoid come draft day.
Evan Ferguson
Position: Forward
22/23 Points: 128.5 (39th best forward)
22/23 Points Per Start: 8.5 (10 starts)
Recommended Draft Pick: ~96 (12 Team League: Round 8 or later)
Analysis: Ferguson has the opportunity (and certainly the hype) to be one of the best young forwards in the league. He finds himself smack in the middle of a front-footed, attacking team. The issue I have with Fergie is not his opportunity, but what he's done with it in the past. If he scores you a goal every week, you'll be the happiest fantasy manager in all the land. If he doesn't, you'll wish you had started anyone else... even a 5th defender. Ferguson managed just 3.9 ghost points per start, meaning that he was 52% reliant on goals for his fantasy points, which is quite high. If you're getting him late, fine. He's a great depth piece for your FWD line. But if you're going to be starting him regularly as more than just a home run gamble, I fear you'll be let down more often than not.
Danny Welbeck (with a caveat)
Position: Forward
22/23 Points: 228.5 (19th best forward)
22/23 Points Per Start: 8.0 (21 starts)
Recommended Draft Pick: Round 15 or 16
Analysis: It's well and truly Dat Guy Welbz's time to step aside. Brighton know what they have in Ferguson. And while I don't like his fantasy prospects, he is one of England's premier prospects at the striker position. As such, Welbeck should take much more of a super-sub role this season after Ferguson's emergence at the end of 22/23. Undav or Joao Pedro may also even get starts in the 9 spot. He's much more of a streamer and shouldn't really be clogging up a roster spot on your team. The caveat, however, is that Brighton play Luton, Wolves, West Ham, and Bournemouth in the first 6 weeks. If you can get Welbeck in the last round of your draft, he may just start one or two of those matches and you'll be happy you already roster him rather than rushing to the waiver wire when lineups are announced.
Moises Caicedo (or Yasin Ayari)
Position: Midfielder
22/23 Points: 262 (37th best midfielder)
22/23 Points Per Start: 7.4 (34 starts)
Recommended Draft Pick: 12th Round or later (12 Team League)
Analysis: This will be fairly simple. Like so many of the CDMs around the league, Caicedo (or Ayari, should Caicedo leave) is absolutely instrumental to his team's success. However, his on-field contributions just don't translate to fantasy points. I would only draft Caicedo if you think he'll produce more on another team -- see Kante on Chelsea. And should he leave, I'm simply not all that interested in anyone else who occupies that role at Brighton. It will likely be a messy combo of youngsters (Ayari, Gilmour, etc) and new signings (Dahoud, Milner, etc) and none too productive.
3 Question Marks
Not everything is crystal clear and predictable at Brighton. These are 3 questions surrounding the Gulls that we’re grappling with this preseason. We’ll try to note whether or not (and how much) these questions are affecting our perceptions of Brighton's fantasy assets.
Midfield Minefield - If recent reporting is to be believe, Brighton are looking to add yet another midfielder to their squad, which already includes Mitoma, Gross, March, Buonanotte, Alzate, Milner, Gilmour, Lallana, Dahoud, Sarmiento, Ayari, Moder, Peupion, Moran, Khadra, someone called "Marc Leonard," and (for the time being, Caicedo). As if we needed a further muddying of those waters...
The European Hangover - Many teams play their B squads in the group stages of the Europa League. But Brighton, who have never played in a European competition since their founding in 1901, will not be taking this for granted and will leave nothing to chance. Will the occasion of European Thursday nights under the lights fluster and fatigue this team come Sundays in the EPL? Will the usual starters get more rests than normal? Unfortunately, these seem like strong possibilities.
Transfer Takeover? - This is quite literally just a question mark going into the new season. For a club who have just finished highest in their history in league position and qualified for Europe, it stands to reason that they'll need reinforcements for the coming campaign. And, with more cash-flow than previously, reinforcements may actually be more talented than those currently occupying certain spots in the XI. I could see a center back, a right back, an attacking mid, or even a new striker walking right into a starting role. Keep your eyes peeled for any transfer movement in those departments.
Early-Season Fixture Difficulty
The way that teams come out the gate has big implications in EPL Draft. A red hot start creates red hot trade targets. A dismal start means plummeting player values and losses for your fantasy team. Check out our thoughts on Brighton's early-season fixtures and our analysis of the fantasy implications they will have.
The Seagulls enjoy a relatively favorable early fixture list, which gets immensely more treacherous as they face MUN, LIV, and MCI all in the first 9 weeks. After that, as we've mentioned multiple times already, Europa League group stages begin. There are a couple of ways to play this situation in terms of Brighton's fantasy assets as it relates to their fixtures:
Do Nothing - The above fixtures (even including those mentioned vs LIV and MCI) are nothing fantasy managers need to be overly concerned about. With enough favorable matchups sprinkled in between the heavy-hitters, I would recommend drafting Brighton assets without thinking too much about the fixtures. If anything, Brighton defenders could represent great value in the first 6 weeks of the season.
Sell High - If we cast our collective eye to week 6 of the 23/24 season, Brighton will have played Luton, Wolves, West Ham, Newcastle, Man United, and Bournemouth. This represents one of the easiest run of fixtures for any team in the league, barring Chelsea (who have a dream run-in to start the season). So, another approach would be to deal your Brighton assets after week 6 before the Villa, Liverpool, and City matchups. I'm much more inclined to keep my Brighton assets given what we've seen from them in a De Zerbi system. However, particularly if you're worried about UEL rotation possibilities, week 6 may provide you a great window in which to deal these players on a high.
23/24 Brighton Predicted Lineup
The following lineup represents our prediction for the most likely line-up for the long-term for Luton in the upcoming season. We can't account for injuries or new transfers, but this should provide a reasonable guide for who will be the preferred starters for the majority of Premier League matches this season.
RDZ has previously been touted as a rotational manager worse than anything we have seen in the EPL. That was not really the case last season, but now he has all the tools necessary to allow him to rotate and move around every player and position. He has a ton of similarly talented players and isn't afraid to drop talented youngsters in the deep end either. The already musky picture could get even worse if Kudus arrives. Estupinan seems the only player with no real backup in the squad, with the versatility of Gross helping him to us predicting a lot of starts for him be it at DM, CM, AM or RWB.
More Team Previews: Arsenal | Aston Villa | Bournemouth | Brentford | Brighton | Burnley | Chelsea | Crystal Palace | Everton | Fulham | Luton | Liverpool | Man City | Man United | Newcastle | Nottingham Forest | Sheffield United | Tottenham | West Ham | Wolves
Check out our 23/24 Draft Kit for all the pre-season information you could ever need. We've got a Live Draft Aide, Draft Rankings, Team Previews, Cheat Sheets, Strategy Articles, Draft 101, plus so much more. Dominate your draft!
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