Joel Veltman
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Joel Veltman verdict after FA Cup defeat to ten Hag’s Manchester Utd #BHAFC

April 25, 2023
But he accepts a challenge still lies ahead to secure a top-seven spot. Veltman knows the ins and outs of European competition from his days with Ajax. READ MORE: SOLLY MARCH'S MESSAGE AFTER WEMBLEY PENALTY MISS He went on as sub in the semi-final against Manchester United. Asked whether the tie can benefit the Seagulls squad, Veltman said: “Yes, 100% it can be a good prep for next season if we make it to the European places. “The environment, everything is good experience for the younger lads. “We have the qualities to end in the top seven. I think we deserve it but we need to work hard for that. “It’s a good thing, I would say, that we have a game quite quickly. It’s another big game. “We’re doing well in the Premier League so we need to focus on that, we have to focus on that because we’re out of the FA Cup. “But I think we’re in a good place in the Premier League, we’re doing well, so time to focus for European places now.”   Get more Albion stories delivered to your inbox every day by signing up to our Albion newsletter Veltman’s former boss was impressed by Albion in the 120-minute stalemate. The defender said: “Erik ten Hag, I spoke to him, he gave a lot of compliments – how we played, where we are now in the Premier League and how far we came in the FA Cup, so lots of compliments. “For now, I don’t care because I wanted to be in the final. “But I think we’re in a good place.” Veltman left the recent win at Chelsea holding his thigh but was a surprise inclusion in the Seagulls’ 20 at Wembley. He went on during the second half in a bid to keep Marcus Rashford at bay. The former Holland international said: “It was kind of a surprise for me as well. “We did some scans and it was not too bad so I was always thinking maybe I could make it. “I trained (on Saturday), which was all good and I said to the gaffer ‘I’m ready to not start but, when you need, I’ll be ready’. “So I’m happy. I was not happy with the extra-time, to be honest! But that’s fine.”
Roberto De Zerbi
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Roberto De Zerbi’s message to Brighton before Wembley FA Cup Semifinal against Manchester United #BHAFC

April 22, 2023
The Seagulls are preparing for an FA Cup semi-final against a Manchester United side beaten 3-0 at Sevilla last night. Head coach De Zerbi was told his side had been made favourites to reach the final in some quarters. He said: “We are excited to play the semi-final, to play in Wembley but we are focused only on the game. “We want to play respecting our own quality, our style, and with emotion because these are good things feel. “Emotion, because football is emotion first of all, but we have to be clear and relaxed to find the right to win the game. “If we want to progress (as a team), if we want to improve in mentality, we have to play naturally. We have to not suffer to the pressure, or maybe we have to love the pressure. “We must get used to feeling this pressure. Because to play this type of game, it has to be an honour not a problem. But I have no doubt. “We are ready to play a great game. In terms of mentality, we are growing, and I think we can show our quality.”
christian eriksen
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Christian Eriksen gives Manchester United setback warning to Brighton before FA Cup SemiFinal #MUFC

April 21, 2023
The Red Devils were reeling after their 3-0 defeat by Sevilla in the Europa League on Thursday. They go into their FA Cup date with Albion missing defenders Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire. But they pride themselves on responding to setbacks this season and expect a big reaction against the Seagulls. Eriksen said: “We had a few of the bigger setbacks this season but in the end, we can see where we are. “I mean, we were in a quarter-final in the Europa League after everything else and now in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. “So we can still be proud of where we are but obviously we want to achieve more. Sunday’s now where we can prove our point.” Asked if playing such a huge game is the best thing to get over Thursday’s humbling, Eriksen said: “Yeah, I think so. “I mean, it’s definitely going to change our feelings towards the next game. “Whoever we’re going to play after this, we want to show that we’re better than what we did today, want to give something back to the fans, and to the club. “It’s a big disappointment but there’s a new focus in three days’ time, and that’s another very big game so I’m sure we’ll be up for that as well.” United’s hammering in Spain ranks alongside the 4-0 defeat at Brentford and 7-0 hammering at Liverpool as lowpoints of the campaign. They followed the defeat by Bees, which itself came after losing at home to Albion, by beating Liverpool 2-1. United have not lost consecutive matches since then, a trend Albion must halt if they are to get to the final. The seven-goal Anfield nightmare was followed by a 4-1 win over Real Betis. There was also a bad experience this term at Manchester City, where the 6-3 margin of defeat flattered them. They bounced back from that game by winning at Omonia Nicosia and Everton in quick succession. United will look to those results to boost them for Sunday, as well as the return in Seville of Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw as half-time substitutes. United boss Erik ten Hag said: “I think we showed in the past we can quickly bounce back. “We did it between games many times this season but what we have to learn is to start games better, with more desire, more composure on the ball and when you get the setback you have to deal with it and carry on.” United’s Europa League exit will be compounded if they put in a similar performance on Sunday. Ten Hag’s side lost at home to the Seagulls in his first game in charge and knows he has a big job to lift them for Wembley. He said: “I already started. We lift them and we have to pick them up. “But also we have to face that we let ourselves down, we let the fans down and if you want to win trophies, if you want to be successful, you need other character.”
Roberto De Zerbi
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Roberto De Zerbi reminds players about taking remaining FA Cup games seriously #BHAFC

March 18, 2023
But the Seagulls head coach does not see that being an issue. Town have beaten five clubs above them in the pyramid – Plymouth, Cambridge, Burton, Luton and Southampton – to get this far. Nevertheless, De Zerbi admits that on paper his side have a huge opportunity to reach a Wembley semi-final. He said: “It will be a difficult game but I want (the) players to give 100% of possibilities. “I want our fans to support our players because Sunday is a difficult game. We have to not think, ‘We are Brighton from the Premier League and Grimsby are in the fourth division’, because we would make a big mistake. “We have to play seriously, because for us it is a big opportunity to go to Wembley.” De Zerbu said there would be no lack of motivation among his squad. He added: “The players want to go to Wembley, the atmosphere inside the dressing room is as if we’re preparing for a normal game in the Premier League.”
Ruben Selles
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Southampton’s Ruben Selles ‘very disappointed’ after loss in FA Cup to minnows #SAINTSFC

March 2, 2023
Gavan Holohan scored twice from the spot to dump the Premier League outfit of the fifth round of the competition in their home stadium. Duje Caleta-Car netted one to bring Saints within contention but they could not avoid a seventh defeat in nine matches in all competitions. Selles, taking charge of his second match as the new permanent Saints boss, admitted his disappointment but was still keen to apportion blame across everyone fairly. “I’m very disappointed with the performance and the result, we didn’t expect that as we prepared and dominated the opening part of the game, but it is difficult when you concede those two penalties,” he said. Don't miss a moment with our Saints morning briefing email. “The first one, there is some errors in the build-up. We then set up everything to come back, because in a cup game this sometimes happens, but when you concede another penalty that shouldn’t happen it is difficult. We tried, we scored a goal and had one disallowed, but it was not enough from us. “Both penalties were very, very frustrating for me and the staff. You should not allow this to happen because you do not allow yourself the opportunity to win football matches.” Selles made nine changes to his team that were defeated last time out at Leeds United, as fringe players in his 30-man squad were given a chance to make a point to the Spaniard. “I am disappointed with the whole team, it is not about one player or more. They have been working well but when the moment has come to perform they are not there,” Selles said. “We were not robust enough to go through moments in the game and come back, I will not change because I think the players are working well but the disappointment is big for all of us.” Selles revealed that firm conversations had been had in the dressing room following the shock defeat, but insisted it will become a period of group reflection. “We’re upset so we have had a conversation and made some points clear, from them to them and from me to them,” he said. “Then, it is a period of reflection. Everybody needs to reflect and tomorrow we will see where we need to continue going. “We didn’t lack purpose, we didn’t create enough chances but we had a couple of situations and we know in these cup games it is hard no matter the opponent. You need to be composed but the two penalties put us out of the cup and out of the game.”
Alan Connell
Posted in2022-2023-Season Daily News

#PLStories- AFC Bournemouth’s Alan Connell comments after getting knocked out in FA Cup #AFCB

January 29, 2023
ALAN Connell believes he received “everything we asked” from his young charges as they were knocked out of the Premier League Cup by QPR, losing 3-1. Cherries’ development squad travelled to Hanwell Town to face the Hoops knowing that victory was required to advance into the knockouts from the group stage. Kian Tydeman’s second-half strike was scant consolation following three QPR goals from Hamzad Kargbo, Joesph Ajose and Elijah Dixon-Bonner. Reflecting on the encounter, Connell told afcb.co.uk: “I was disappointed to lose but what we saw from the players was everything we asked – a desire, a spirit and a togetherness along with some really good moments in the game. “We had six under-18s starting against a strong, probably more experienced and physically capable QPR side and I was really proud of our performance. “I thought we started well in the first half and had two big moments. We could have gone 1-0 up but didn’t take those chances and got done with their first effort on goal. “But we stayed in the game for the rest of the half and had another decent opportunity and could have equalised before half-time. “The message at the break was to try to make sure the players believed as much as the staff because we were really pleased with the first-half performance. “We tried to be even more front foot, which suited the attacking players we had on the pitch. “We had no recognised centre-halves available to us across the age groups so the challenge for us as staff was to get as many attacking players on the pitch in a balanced way. “Conceding the second goal so early in the second half quickly followed by the third was a decisive blow but the response from everyone was admirable. “We knew we had to win to progress and I thought the attitude to keep going was outstanding along with some real moments of quality. “As the game wore on, we started to get in their final third more and caused them more problems. That was helped by the impact of the substitutions and I thought they all had a positive impact on the game. “It was a great experience for Ollie Morgan, at 16, to come on and perform how he did and I was delighted for Kian to carry on his recent good form with a really well-taken goal. “Overall, I was disappointed to lose but my main feeling is pride in what is I feel is going to be a great night for their development.” Cherries: Terrell, Genesini, Greenwood, Winterburn (Williams, 75), Tonks, Trialist (Popoola, 58), Johnson (Morgan, 80), Brown, Pollock (Tydeman, 75), Dacosta Gonzalez, Adu-Adjei. Unused sub: Allan (g/k).
Ralph Hasenhuttl
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Ralph Hasenhuttl says English schedule ‘a little strange’ after midweek fixture reschedule due to FA Cup #SAINTSFC

May 3, 2022
RALPH Hasenhuttl admitted the English football schedule “is a little strange” as Saints will now play their final home game of the season midweek due to the FA Cup final. They had been due to host title-challengers Liverpool on Saturday, May 14, but that match has been moved due to the Reds’ qualification for the domestic cup final that same weekend. They will face Chelsea at Wembley Stadium for the FA Cup, and will now visit St Mary’s for Saints’ final home match of the season on a rearranged date of Tuesday, May 17. It is a disappointment for some supporters, who may not be able to make the match due to work or travel commitments but would have otherwise attended on the weekend. “As long as you have the FA Cup blocking game weekends from the Premier League, it will always end up like this that you have an end of season game during the week,” Hasenhuttl said. “It is unique from European leagues, I have not known it before like this. The Premier League sometimes also struggle finding dates for the games so it is not so easy. “I have heard in the past that teams end up with four games in the last week so this is a little bit strange. But if you want to have two cup competitions then it will end up like this, English football wants to see us more often.” The Austrian continued: “It is amazing, I must say, what teams like Liverpool and Man City are doing, you see the games where players are being substituted in the 70th minute when the game is decided and they look like they don’t understand it. “It shows how much they want to play every game and how fit they must be. This is amazing for me, but you as a manager have to take care of them because nobody else does it. “It is amazing what they do, they perform on the highest level and this challenge is one of the characteristics of English football what everybody loves.” Saints have just three matches left of the 2021-22 season, with Premier League visits to Brentford and Leicester City sandwiching the Kop clash. A message from the Editor Thank you for reading this article - we appreciate your support in reading the Daily Echo. Subscribing to the Echo means you have unrestricted access to the latest news, features and Saints coverage - all with an advertising-light website. You will also have full access to Saintsplus, your new home for Southampton FC tactical analysis, features and much, much more. Don't take my word for it - subscribe here to see for yourself. Follow the latest breaking news in the Southampton area by joining our Facebook group - Southampton News - Breaking News and Incidents Follow the latest court and crime news on our dedicated Facebook group - Hampshire Court and Crime News
Pep Guardiola
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Pep Guardiola reveals big problem in squad after Atletico Madrid battle #MCFC

April 15, 2022
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola admitted his treble-chasing side were in “big trouble” after picking up injuries in the Champions League. A 0-0 second leg draw in a fiery clash away to Atletico Madrid secured a 1-0 aggregate win and sent the Premier League leaders into the semi-finals. Their injury concerns will initially be seen in the context of their FA Cup semi-final clash with title rivals Liverpool at the weekend. But Albion fans will also be keeping an eye on the state of play with City given their team go to the Etihad next Wednesday when league action resumes. City saw Kevin De Bruyne and Kyle Walker both go off with injuries at the Wanda Metrropolitano and Phil Foden left the pitch heavily bandaged. “We are in big trouble,” Guardiola told BT Sport. BRIGHTON'S JAKUB MODER REPORTS SUCCESSFUL SURGERY “We cannot forget we played three days ago a tough game against Liverpool. "We came here, we have a lot of injuries. "I don’t know what will happen in the next weeks but today we are going to celebrate. “It is the third time in Manchester City’s history we are in the semi-finals of the Champions League and it is a big success for us to be there.” Guardiola did not mention how severe the injuries were, while he also claimed he had “nothing to say” on the ugly scenes which marred his side’s progression on Wednesday night. The match ended in rancour and bitterness with scuffles on the field and in the tunnel.
James Ward Prowse
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- James Ward-Prowse looks for positive end to Southampton season despite crashing out of FA Cup #SAINTSFC

March 23, 2022
SAINTS skipper James Ward-Prowse has insisted “we can still make the season a very positive one” following his side’s exit in the FA Cup quarter-final. The 27-year-old midfielder travels to join up with Gareth Southgate’s England squad off the back of a four-match losing streak with the St Mary’s outfit. Manchester City denied Ralph Hasenhuttl and his charges a second consecutive Wembley Stadium trip with a 4-1 victory last weekend, despite running a close contest for over an hour. Prior to that, Premier League defeats to Aston Villa, Newcastle United and Watford had put a big dent in the hopes of a top-half finish for the first time under the Austrian boss. Ralph Hasenhuttl faces a difficult task to land a top-half finish (Pic: Stuart Martin) All momentum of a seven-match unbeaten run was cut short with a humiliating 4-0 hammering at Villa Park, in which former star Danny Ings got on the scoresheet in his first meeting with Saints since leaving last summer. However, Ward-Prowse insists he is still ambitious of ending the season strong. Speaking to the Daily Echo, following the FA Cup exit, he said: “I think prior to the day we knew the position we were in - quarter-final of the FA Cup and 11th in the league. “Unfortunately, the cup competition has come to an end but we’re still 11th. “We still have a good handful of games to play and points to win and we can still make the season a very positive one and finish inside that top 10.” James Ward-Prowse is without a Premier League goal in over two months (Pic: PA) Nine Premier League matches remain for Saints to table a first top-half finish of Hasenhuttl's tenure, with Leicester City and Steven Gerrard's Villans one point ahead. Saints could have set themselves up for a Wembley date with Liverpool in the FA Cup semi-final, but for a second-half performance of real quality and intent from Pep Guardiola’s City. Kevin De Bruyne capitalised on a Mohammed Salisu error to bury a penalty and restore the English champions’ lead, before substitutes Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez made Che Adams’ close-range miss pay with goals of their own. City had not found a way to defeat Hasenhuttl’s side in the Premier League this campaign, with 0-0 and 1-1 draws respectively, but were able to turn it on for the big moment. Kyle Walker-Peters scored in the 1-1 draw between the two sides in January (Pic: Stuart Martin) “It’s disappointing to lose in the way that we did,” Ward-Prowse admitted. “I think we showed the strength that we’ve got against the ball and created some good chances ourselves. “Against the big teams, you have to be solid, you’ve got to have a bit of luck and you can’t give too much away either. And in the end we gave away too much and they punished us.” He added: “It’s a combination of a few things. When you create chances you have to take them - especially against the top teams. “It (the Che Adams chance at 2-1) was a key moment in the game. “Obviously the penalty changed the game completely but then we’ve had a chance straight after to hopefully get back into it.”
Ralph Hasenhuttl
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Southampton boss explains games against top teams like Manchester City need perfect play #SAINTSFC #MCFC

March 21, 2022
SAINTS manager Ralph Hasenhuttl blamed costly individual “mistakes” for his side’s 4-1 defeat to Manchester City in Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final. Saints went into the break on level terms after Aymeric Laporte's own goal on the stroke of half-time cancelled out Raheem Sterling’s opener.  But Mohamed Salisu’s clumsy challenge on Gabriel Jesus gave Kevin De Bruyne the chance to regain City’s lead from the penalty spot just after the hour mark before Phil Foden and Riyadh Mahrez sealed the tie. The home side made City uncomfortable for large periods of the match but Hassenhuttl was left to bemoan individual errors for Southampton’s exit. “It was more the fact that we made mistakes like Sali’s penalty where he’s running out of the box,” he said. “There is no need to make this (tackle) and it’s a clear penalty for me. And if you give them such a chance, you can’t be surprised. Against such a team it’s not possible to give them chances like that.” Hasenhuttl and his team claimed a pair of draws against Manchester City in the league this season but the manager explained that Southampton needed a “perfect” performance to get those results - something he felt they didn’t quite match on Sunday. “The goal with such a game is to make it as difficult as possible. To make the top teams struggle a little bit. If you are perfect, you have a chance against them. In the other two games this season against them we managed to take a point. Today we didn’t have a perfect game. I must say that we have played much better against them. “We had multiple periods where they were really on the back foot today. You don’t see Man City very often kicking balls long from the goalkeeper because they don’t want to play out anymore. So that shows you how good we have been today.  “But you must take the chances you have without giving them easy moments to score. And twice we gave them the chance to score easy and this is not possible against this team. And this is where we lost today. Until 75 minutes when the third goal happens, it was a very equal game I think, this is what we wanted to show. Until then I think it was one of our best games against them.” Southampton are next in action following the international break when they face Leeds United at Elland Road on April 2nd.
Ralph Hasenhuttl
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories – Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl reveals being brave in attacking Manchester City is the only way to play against them #SAINTSFC #MCFC

March 21, 2022
RALPH Hasenhuttl insisted his Saints team can be proud of their performance despite a 4-1 defeat to Manchester City, suggesting that “everybody in the stadium enjoyed the game”. The St Mary’s outfit were denied a trip to Wembley Stadium after a second-half demolition by Pep Guardiola’s side, thanks to goals from substitutes Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez. Their strikes added to Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne, with an Aymeric Laporte own goal on the register for Saints. Supporters were filled with hope through some good passages and memories of the two draws with City earlier this season, but ultimately left deflated with no semi-final to look forward to. However, the defiant boss was asked if there was any risk of this defeat deflating the squad and responded: “No, not a minimum of damage I think because we can be proud today of what we have done, I must say. “I have not seen so many teams play against Man City like we did today to be honest. This is very positive for me and shows what we are able to do. “I think everybody in the stadium enjoyed the game, everybody saw a team fighting for everything, worked very good against the ball and tried everything, it is super tough against them and they never found the rhythm to play until the third goal.” He continued: “Then they break your mentality, and also in the first-half they wanted to go for the second goal immediately but we equalised and the game was open again. “This is what you have to do against them, you must try to be brave and play football in the right moments. Very proud of what they have done today.”