Jahanbakhsh and Andone set to make Brighton debuts

Brighton's club record signing Alireza Jahanbakhsh and new striker Florin Andone are set to make their first appearances for Brighton in a behind-closed-doors friendly tomorrow.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh. Picture by Paul Hazlewood/BHAFCAlireza Jahanbakhsh. Picture by Paul Hazlewood/BHAFC
Alireza Jahanbakhsh. Picture by Paul Hazlewood/BHAFC

The Seagulls are playing a friendly in France and Iran winger Jahanbakhsh, who joined Albion for a club record fee from AZ Alkmaar last week, is set to get his first run-out.

Romanian Andone, who joined Albion from Deportivo in May, is also set to play having not yet featured in any pre-season friendlies.

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It is Brighton's penultimate friendly before they then host Nantes at the Amex on Friday in their final warm-up match. Their Premier League campaign gets underway at Watford on August 11.

Chris Hughton will hope the duo can aid the Albion in the attacking third. Brighton's boss says that is an area where the Seagulls need to improve, after scoring just eight goals in six pre-season matches so far.

Brighton have drawn 1-1 with St Gallen, Charlton and Birmingham and lost 2-1 at AFC Wimbledon. In behind-closed-door matches, the Seagulls beat Crawley 3-0 in an hour-long game and drew 1-1 with Portsmouth in a 75-minute match.

Talking about Albion's pre-season so far after the draw at Birmingham, Hughton said: "If I'm looking at the games we've played, I've not been happy with the lack of goals. That's probably the biggest area.

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"We've been up and down in some of the games. We've had some good pre-season games and some of the games we've got a fair amount from and have been quite happy.

"But ultimately we've got two more games and it's about how we are come pre-Watford and how we get on in that game.

"Would I have wanted the pre-season to go better as regards results and goals scored? Yes I would have done but that's not the most important thing.

"We are still two weeks away. We've got two more games and things can change by the first game of the season."