Brighton's brilliant Danny Welbeck replacement proving everyone wrong

The were concerns at Brighton when Danny Welbeck moved to Chelsea in the previous window.

The 35-year-old had been Albion's top scorer for the past two seasons but moved to Stamford Bridge on a lucrative two-year contract for around £7m.

Many felt Brighton didn't have an adequate replacement as £40m man Georginio struggled last season and his best position often seems to be the No 10 role.

Stefanos Tzimas was sidelined following last season's ACL injury and Evan Ferguson continues his lengthy recovery from ankle surgery, sustained while on loan at Roma.

Brighton brought in Canadian international Promise David on loan from Belgian club Union SG but the 25-year-old is completely untested in the Premier League.

Fabian Hurzeler though did have a wildcard up his sleeve. Greek striker Charalampos Kostoulas showed brief flashes of his potential last term after his £30m arrival from Olympiacos.

Kostoulas made 21 Premier League appearances in the 2025-26 campaign but only two of those were starts. His two top flight goals came as a substitute at Manchester United last October and also from the bench in the 1-1 home draw against Bournemouth in January.

He looked like a player with bags of potential but his form did little to suggest that he could lead line on a regular basis in the Premier League this season. His performances in training had also been openly criticised by Hurzeler last term.

The Brighton boss had made his point and Kostoulas responded. An injury to Georginio at the start of this season saw him promoted to the starting XI and the Greek grasped his chance.

He performed well in the 1-1 draw against Leeds United without reward, but then netted an excellent opener in Brighton's 5-0 away win at Coventry. Kostoulas is a player capable making something from nothing and also scored at Manchester United in the 3-2 Carabao Cup third round triumph at Old Trafford.

The Greece international followed that with Brighton's second in their memorable 3-0 win against Premier League leaders Arsenal at the Amex last Saturday.

The day before, Welbeck started his first Premier League match for Chelsea and drew a blank as they were battered 3-0 at Brentford. The former Brighton striker was replaced on 70 minutes by Geovany Quenda.

Hurzeler on Kostoulas

The Brighton boss is delighted with his young striker and not only praised his goals and creative spark, but also his work against the ball.

“Yeah, I think we always knew that he was capable of scoring goals out of nowhere,” said the Geramn after the Arsenal match.

“He just has a really good finish with his right foot. But more important for me, he really understands how to work hard against the ball, and he has a good understanding of when to press and how to press.

“I’m very pleased with how he’s doing. He needs to understand that if he does the basic things right, he will get the rewards by scoring goals. That’s what he proved this week.”

Hurzeler added: “Definitely. I see improvement, and that comes back a lot to himself because he has this intrinsic motivation to really improve every day.

“He gets more and more professional. He understands what he needs to do to be a professional player.

“He understands the demands of the Premier League more. He understands our demands, what we need to see from him on a day-to-day basis, his behaviour. He just has a great development.”

Kostoulas must stay humble

Despite the recent success for Kostoulas, the young Greek has a long way to go if he wants to have a long career similar to his predecessor Welbeck.

“I think it’s very important for him and for everyone to stay humble now,” said Hurzeler. “To keep working hard and not take these things for granted.

“Of course, enjoy the moment, but always understand that we have to get back to the basics. We have to get back to our roots, to our foundation.

“And that doesn’t only count for the whole team. It also counts for him individually.”