Brighton flying high as the Seagulls make a stunning start | OneFootball

Amid celebrations for the 125th anniversary of their history, marked at the end of August, Brighton are once again in the spotlight as one of the standout sides in the Premier League at the start of the season.

Currently third, two points behind joint leaders Manchester City and Arsenal, the Seagulls swept aside the reigning English champions on Saturday, just three days after knocking Manchester United out of the League Cup at Old Trafford.

Based in the coastal city of Brighton and Hove, in the south of England, less than 100km from London, the club have caught the eye with an attack to rival Europe's biggest sides, an impressive transfer strategy and a manager who is even younger than some of the players in his squad.

Goal-fest

As well as ending Arsenal's perfect start to the season, Brighton ran riot against a defence that had looked almost impenetrable until then. Mikel Arteta's side had conceded just once, against Chelsea, but Brighton's three goals at the AMEX made it feel as though there could have been even more, such was their dominance.

They have comfortably the best attack in the Premier League, with 16 goals. That is at least double the tally of 80% of the teams in England's top flight. Arsenal, for example, have scored just eight, the same number as Manchester City, who play on Sunday.

That total would also be enough to give Brighton the third-best attack in La Liga, behind Barcelona's 28 and Real Madrid's 17, while it would be the highest tally in Serie A, Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga.

Across all competitions, Brighton have scored 23 goals in eight matches, an average of 2.87 per game. Among Europe's top five leagues, only Barcelona, with 36 goals in eight matches (4.5 per game), Bayern Munich, with 25 in seven (3.57), and the surprise package Freiburg, with 24 in seven (3.42), have a higher scoring rate.

Youth on the bench

The man calling the shots from the dugout is German Fabian Hürzeler, now in his third season as Brighton manager. His CV, which also includes a season and a half in charge of St. Pauli, becomes even more remarkable when you realise that he is younger than three players in his own squad, including compatriot Pascal Gross, who scored one goal and provided one assist on Saturday.

Hürzeler once tried to become a professional footballer and came through Bayern Munich's academy, representing Germany at youth level. He never managed to make the breakthrough as a senior player, however. After hanging up his boots at just 22, he decided to pursue a career in coaching.

At 29, he took charge of St. Pauli, becoming the youngest manager in Germany's second tier. In 2023/24, he guided the club back to the Bundesliga after more than a decade away, winning the second-division title in the process and catching Brighton's attention. The Seagulls decided to put their faith in the young coach.

In his first two seasons in charge, Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League on both occasions, staying well clear of the relegation battle while also securing European football.

Now, with a start to the season like this, Brighton's Seagulls can afford to dream of flying even higher.