Carlos Baleba 'ready to play' for Brighton, but selection tight against Bournemouth | OneFootball

Brighton’s midfield faces a squeeze as Carlos Baleba returns from AFCON and Pascal Gross re-signed from Borussia Dortmund, leaving eight players for two spots in Fabian Hurzeler’s 4-2-3-1. Bournemouth visit next, and the question is whether Baleba starts.

According to NY Times, Hurzeler says Baleba is ready to play, but stressed competition and the need to learn from Gross, including calmness in possession, positioning and principles. He sees Gross as a central midfielder, so the question is who partners the 34-year-old or what the mix is if he rests.

During Baleba’s six-match absence Hurzeler rotated: Ayari with Hinshelwood for the 0-0 against Sunderland and 2-1 loss at Arsenal, Milner for 2-2 at West Ham, Gomez for 2-0 over Burnley, then Ayari with Gross in 1-1 at Manchester City, before Hinshelwood replaced Ayari in the 2-1 FA Cup win at Manchester United.

The squad is deep yet uneven, with Joel Veltman the only specialist right-back and limited No 9 cover when Danny Welbeck is absent. That should ease next season when Stefanos Tzimas returns from a ruptured ACL. Gomez has also featured on the left wing and at No 10, while Hinshelwood has filled in at right-back.

Before leaving, Baleba had not reached last season’s level that attracted strong interest from Manchester United. He has gone beyond 69 minutes in only four of 14 league starts. Brighton have been solid without him, losing at Arsenal, and he started all five of Cameroon’s matches before a 2-0 quarter-final defeat to the hosts.

Source: NY Times