On January 5, Beijing time, in the 20th round of the English Premier League, Brighton and Arsenal fought to a 1-1 draw. After the match, Brighton defender Van Hecke gave an in-depth analysis of the whole game in front of the camera.
Van Hecke was outspoken in his opinion that his team did not play at the level they should have on the day. He emphasized that the team's goal was to win the game, even though it was not easy to get a point against the league's top team. In particular, he pointed out that the team made a lot of mistakes in the first half, and that the goal he conceded should not have happened at all. But in the second half, the team's performance improved significantly.
Van Hecke looked back at the whole season and said that Brighton showed top strength at certain moments and were expected to be the top team in the league. However, in certain halves or phases, the team played as if they were the weakest in the league. He believes that consistency is a pressing issue for the team.
Talking about the intensity of the match, Van Hecke said that Brighton and Arsenal had a close duel with equal strength. He mentioned that his team could have extended the score, but the 1-1 draw was a good contest.
Van Hecke said that he had not watched the video yet and that it was difficult to make a judgment on the penalty. However, he mentioned that there was minor contact on the penalty and a similar situation against Aston Villa last week, where the penalty went against Brighton.
Finally, Van Hecke spoke highly of the performance of teammate João Pedro. He thought that João Pedro played well that day, not only in the penalty kicks, but also extremely efficient on the field. Van Hecke said that the team needs João Pedro to keep playing because he is a key player of the team and can lead the team forward.
