Brighton have sold their top talents to the likes of Tottenham, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool
Brighton and Hove Albion have had some remarkable players through their doors in the past few years.
The Seagulls have been shrewd operators in the transfer market and have invested heavily in young talent and then sold on for vast profits.
It's a data-driven transfer model that has allowed them to compete in the top half of the Premier League – but one that can also leave fans frustrated as their best players move on.
Sporting Lisbon's Swedish forward Viktor Gyokeres struggled to make an impact at Brightonplaceholder image
Sporting Lisbon's Swedish forward Viktor Gyokeres struggled to make an impact at Brighton
Here' a Brighton starting XI that could do some serious damage in the Premier League...
Rob Sanchez - GK: The Spain international progress through the ranks at Brighton and was handed his first team debut by Graham Potter. Fell out of favour with Roberto De Zerbi and moved to Chelsea for around £25m.
Ben White - RB: The classy defender enjoyed loans at Newport, Peterborough and Leeds before his one season with Brighton in the Premier League. He then moved to Arsenal in 2021 for £50m.
Dan Burn - CB: The left sided defender was an extremely under-rated player at Brighton. He developed superbly under Graham Potter and moved to Newcastle in 2022 for £13m.
Marc Cucurella - LB The Spain left back joined Brighton for around £15m. He had one excellent season before moving on to Chelsea for £63m.
Moises Caicedo - CM: One of the best deals in football history as the Ecuadorian was brought for around £4m and sold for more than £100m to Chelsea. Great player.
Yves Bissouma – CM: The Mali international was an absolute powerhouse of a midfielder during his time with the Seagulls but has never really fulfilled his potential at Tottenham following his £25m switch.
Pascal Gross – CM: One of Brighton’s best players in the Premier League following his £2m arrival from FC Ingolstadt in 2017. Left Brighton for around £7m in 2024 to join boyhood club Borussia Dortmund. Class act on and off the pitch.
Alexis Mac Allister - CM: The World Cup winning midfielder joined Brighton for around £7m and devloped into one of the best midfielders in world football. Joined Liverpool for an initial fee of £35m.
Viktor Gyökeres - CF: Joined Brighton for a small fee in 2018 from IF Brommapojkarna. The Sweden striker had loans at St Pauli, Swansea and Coventry. Brighton sold him to the Sky Blues for around £1m. He then joined Sporting CP and is one of the most in demand strikers in world football. A rare transfer blunder.
Deniz Undav - CF: Another excellent piece of business from Brighton. They brought him for around £5m from Union SG and sold the Germany international to Stuttgart for around £30m in 2024.
Leo Trossard - No 10: The Belgian international playmaker signed in 2019 from Genk for around £15m. The classy operator then fell out with De Zerbi before his £30m switch to Arsenal.
Verdict
Selling at the right time has been key to Brighton’s success and often a player exit creates a pathway for a another young talent to make their mark.
When Cucurella left, Pervis Estupinan arrived. Kaoru Mitoma grabbed his chance when trossard departed for Arsenal and Bart Verbruggen offered a safe pair of hands as Sanchez left for Chelsea.
Carlos Baleba came in when Caicedo, Joao Pedro for Undav and so the list goes. Gyökeres is clearly one that slipped that the net but you can’t win them all.
The past sales have Brighton in a very healthy position in terms of squad depth and FFP as they head to the 2025-26 Premier League season.
So far Brighton have played the transfer market game very well.
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