Brighton and Hove Albion vs Luton Town. Premier League.
Amex StadiumAttendance31,872.
Match report and highlights as goals from Solly March, Joao Pedro, Simon Adingra and Evan Ferguson did the damage for Roberto De Zerbi's side; Carlton Morris scored from the spot for Luton.
Saturday 12 August 2023 22:55, UK
Luton Town suffered a 4-1 defeat to Brighton in their first Premier League game with Roberto De Zerbi's side starting where they left off last season.
De Zerbi's side showed little problem in adapting to life without Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo, in a typically swashbuckling attacking performance.
Caicedo is in London for talks with Chelsea over a £115m move but Brighton played without distraction as Solly March got the show on the road with a close-range header before new signing Joao Pedro scored from the spot.
Luton, who competed well for large parts but were eventually outclassed, got the game back to 2-1 with nine minutes to go when Carlton Morris scored a penalty of their own but late goals from Simon Adingra and substitute Evan Ferguson secured the Seagulls a comfortable win.
The last league meeting between these two upwardly mobile clubs was Brighton's 2-1 win at Kenilworth Road in 2008 - a League One fixture. Both have undergone meteoric rises with Luton winning the Conference just nine seasons ago while Brighton secured European football for the first time in their history last season.
Pedro, purchased for £30m from Watford in the summer, should have had Brighton ahead inside four minutes but he somehow scuffed a close-range chance wide.
After a few early nerves, Luton settled into the game, conjuring some clever counters down the flanks without ever looking likely of creating a big chance. That big opportunity did fall to Brighton on 36 minutes and March gobbled it up. Kaoru Mitoma provided the quality from wide and March, showing an improved desire to get into the danger area, headed home from six yards out.
Morris stung the palms of Jason Steele moments later with a header as Luton continued to look dangerous.
Such is Brighton's relentless nature, Luton were constantly being asked questions of their defenders and that pressure told when Tom Lockyer was adjudged to have taken down Joao Pedro. The new signing found the net from 12 yards, and it looked game over.
However, Luton kept trying to get down the side of Brighton and won a penalty of their own when Lewis Dunk slid in but handled Morris' cross. Morris dusted himself down and scored the club's first Premier League goal from the spot.
The increased pressure on Brighton's lead only seemed to spur them on further as they battered Luton in the final 10 minutes. Ferguson smacked the post before a horrendous error from Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu gifted Adingra a debut goal.
There was still time for Ferguson to slide home a fourth as Brighton yet again showed they are more than capable of coping just fine despite selling key players.
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi: "It was a difficult game especially against this type of team, newly promoted. We aren't at our best yet because there are new players. They need time to understand our idea but I'm happy."
On Joao Pedro's performance: "He played well. He could've scored more and he has to want to score more. Everyone has to push, if they get a chance to score they have to score."
Luton boss Rob Edwards: "I thought we competed well and were in the game at 2-1, they then killed us off when we had opportunities to clear the ball. That shows the ruthless nature of the league. In the first half we were solid, compact and aggressive and managed to retain a counter attacking threat. We were disappointed to go in 1-0 down. I thought the penalty was soft but it's never going to get overturned. They started smelling blood at 2-1 with us going for it to try and get back in the game. They deserved to win but I'm proud of the players, we're going to get better. We have to learn quickly."
Sky Sports' Lewis Jones:
"Caicedo ranked among the best midfielders in the Premier League last season for recoveries, tackles and interceptions. His importance to Brighton without the ball in stemming potential counters against them was a key reason in why Roberto De Zerbi's relentless football flourished as teams couldn't break out from their defensive shape. It's why Chelsea are willing to pay £115m for his services - the job he does is critical for sustaining attacks. Although it's a small sample size of 90 minutes, that task did look easier for Luton without Caicedo patrolling the midfield.
"Luton managed 36 entries into Brighton's final third and 22 touches in their box. That is a huge spike in terms of the numbers usually associated with relegation threatened teams playing away at Brighton. For instance, Southampton managed just five final third entries and just five touches in the Brighton box during the 3-1 defeat in May. With a little bit more care and quality, Luton could have taken advantage of such promising positions and the narrative of what looked a routine win for Brighton on paper would have been very different.
Brighton face Wolves next Saturday, kick-off 3pm while Luton are not in action next weekend as their clash with Burnley was postponed due to Kenilworth Road undergoing a programme of extensive ground improvements. Next up for them will be Chelsea, live on Friday Night Football on August 25.
