How Brighton could line up with Ansu Fati

It was Brighton & Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi, rather than Ansu Fati, who felt the most pressure when the Seagulls pulled off the coup of securing a loan deal for the Barcelona forward.

"If you work with this talent," De Zerbi explained, "you have much responsibility because it's our football heritage and we can't make mistakes with these players because football needs this talent and you have to manage it in different ways."

Fati toppled a score of club records when he broke into Barcelona's first team as a prodigious 16-year-old. However, successive injuries nudged him down the pecking order in Catalonia, allowing Brighton to swoop in.

De Zerbi, for one, is excited. "Especially for the big, big talent, I feel the responsibility to help this talent to become great players," the Italian gushed.

Here's how Brighton could line up to get the best out of Fati.

Fati in rotation with Kaoru Mitoma

Fati's natural position is on the left wing, cutting on to his dominant right foot to unleash a lethal shot - the teenager scored 12 goals from the first 20 shots on target of his senior career.

However, the left flank is a berth that Kaoru Mitoma has owned on the south coast over the last nine months. Since Christmas Day, Mitoma has started 25 of Brighton's 27 Premier League matches - all but one on the left wing.

The fleet-footed forward didn't score in any of his final 12 top-flight appearances for Brighton - perhaps some of the Premier League's defenders read his diploma on dribbling - but Mitoma has started the current campaign strongly.

Fati will certainly not relegate Mitoma to the bench for any extended period of time but he gives De Zerbi the option of resting the Japanese international.

Potential lineups

March - Ferguson - Fati (4-2-3-1)

March - Welbeck - Fati (4-2-3-1)

Fati up front

Less than 10% of Fati's career appearances for Barcelona came as a striker but De Zerbi is hardly unwilling to mould a player to his needs. Fati's greatest strength is his scoring prowess. Despite limited minutes punctuated by injuries, Fati averaged a goal every 152 minutes across his Barcelona career.

Fati's outspoken father Bori, who advocated a move away from Barcelona long before his son was keen, lauded Ansu's current condition. "He is even quicker and more explosive than before," Bori Fati explained. "When Fati has confidence, he gets faster. He’s as strong as a bull."

The slight forward may stand at 5'10 but would be relying upon pace rather than power up against the Premier League's physical centre-backs.

Potential lineups

March - Fati - Mitoma (4-3-3)

March - Pedro - Mitoma; Fati (4-2-3-1)

Fati behind the striker

Brighton could hardly turn down the chance to snag such a promising player but Fati's arrival morphed from nice to necessary after Julio Enciso picked up a knee injury in August. The Paraguayan forward is unlikely to return before December and had just begun to chisel his way into De Zerbi's setup.

The Italian has almost religiously stuck to his familiar 4-2-3-1 system and could slot Fati into the number 10 role that Enciso had occupied. Evan Ferguson and Danny Welbeck offer more natural centre-forward options for Fati to bounce the ball off while Brighton's record signing Joao Pedro can also play through the middle.

Potential lineups

March - Fati - Mitoma; Ferguson (4-2-3-1)

March - Fati - Mitoma; Welbeck (4-2-3-1)

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