'Hurzeler told me' - Gary Lineker and Micah Richards hail Brighton's ‘extraordinary’ recruitment
Gary Lineker and Micah Richards have heaped praise on Brighton & Hove Albion for repeatedly managing to unearth young players, who are capable of performing at Premier League level.
The former England internationals were discussing Brighton’s impressive early-season form, on the latest episode of The Rest Is Football podcast.
Brighton briefly moved into the Premier League's top four with a 5-0 victory at Coventry City on Sunday, with five different players getting on the scoresheet.
Lineker highlighted a string of statistics which he said demonstrated just how impressive Brighton's start had been – including goals scored, expected goals (XG), big chances, open play crosses and possession.
"Brighton have had a really impressive start to the season," the former Match of the Day host said.
Lineker, 65, then asked whether Brighton could be considered a ‘dark horse’ for a Champions League place if they could maintain their form.
"They've got a lot of injuries as well,” the ex-Tottenham, Leicester and Barcelona striker said.
"They've got quite a big list, including [Michael] Svoboda, [Jack] Hinshelwood, Evan Ferguson, [Kaoru] Mitoma, [Mats] Wieffer, [Yankuba] Minteh, [Femi] Azeez, and [Georginio] Rutter.”
Former Manchester City defender Richards, meanwhile, was particularly impressed by the work of head coach Fabian Hurzeler.
"The manager's just outstanding, isn't he?" he said.
"We can talk about scouting and getting players in, but the manager's got to get his message across."
Richards, 38, singled out several Brighton players for praise, including Maxim De Cuyper.
“I just think he's a level above,” Richards said, of the Belgium international.
“He's so good on the ball when he's driving forward, the decision making.”
He also referenced Ferdi Kadioglu, saying: "I really like him. I talked about him 18 months ago.
"For some reason, they keep managing to get it right [in the transfer market].
"They play really good attacking football. They're not afraid to get on the ball.
"[Bart] Verbruggen, really good goalkeeper.
"He [Hurzeler] has got them playing terrific stuff."
Richards also highlighted the ‘pivotal’ influence of Pascal Gross, who scored once and provided two assists in the win at Coventry.
The pundit added: “The way he controls games, set pieces, he's so calm on the ball. His experience. He knows the team. They look like a real outfit."
Lineker then picked out another Brighton player who had caught his eye.
"I tell you who I liked, Micah – [Malick] Yalcouye. .
“They do find them, don't they. Their recruitment is extraordinary.”
Yalcouye, 20, scored Brighton's second goal at Coventry, racing through before calmly finishing past former Albion stopper Carl Rushworth.
Richards admitted he was baffled by Brighton's ability to repeatedly identify players and then develop them into Premier League performers.
"How do they do it? I don't understand how they do it," he said.
"It's one thing recruiting them. It's getting them into the team and performing at that level which the Premier League requires.
"When you have this data, it's a risk at the end of the day. To do it consistently, it's just brilliant."
Brighton have certainly been finding goals from across the team this season.
Their 5-0 victory at Coventry saw Charalampos Kostoulas, Yalcouye, Gross, Lewis Dunk and Yasin Ayari all score.
Lineker also praised the way Brighton have embraced the tactical demands of Hurzeler's football, specifically highlighting their counter-pressing.
"I said there because Hurzeler told me how important it was," he said.
"Whatever these phrases are, Brighton are doing them very well."
The Seagulls now face Manchester United at Old Trafford, in the Carabao Cup, on Wednesday – before hosting Arsenal at the Amex, on Saturday, as Premier League action returns.