There was a real buzz around Brighton at the beginning of the season; a brand new stadium, in addition to funds to spend, pointed to a successful future.

That is without mentioning their charismatic boss Gustavo Poyet, and it all started so well for the League One champions from last season.

Their results have tailed off somewhat in the middle part of the season, but they are expected to spend in January.

On the players front, in came Vicente and Craig Mackail-Smith but both have so far struggled to live up to expectation.

Here is Sports Mole's take on how the club have fared this campaign.

August

Brighton got off to a fine start in the league when a Will Buckley double secured all the points against Doncaster.

Poyet's side also advanced in the Carling Cup against Gillingham and Sunderland, while successive league wins against the much-fancied Portsmouth and Cardiff propelled them to the top of the table.

Home points were dropped against Blackpool, however, but the club rounded off an impressive month with victory over Peterborough to leave them top of the Championship table.

September

September began with an impressive away win over Bristol City, but Leicester were too much for them at the King Power Stadium.

The club put on an impressive show in the 2-1 Carling Cup defeat to Liverpool, while Mackail-Smith struck twice in a 3-3 draw with Leeds in the penultimate game of September.

The month ended in disappointment with a home defeat to Crystal Palace, but their impressive start still left them high in the table.

October

October proved to be disappointing month for the club with a series of points dropped both home and away. Draws with Hull and Millwall sandwiched defeats to Ipswich and West Ham as the goals began to dry up.

The month ended with a low-key point at Birmingham, and with Poyet desperately searching for a winning formula.

November

Troy Deeney's late strike for Watford condemned Brighton to defeat once more early in the month and although the Seagulls responded with victory over Barnsley, they were brought back down to earth with a thumping 3-0 loss to Southampton mid-way through November.

The reaction to their poor form was impressive, however, with successive wins over Coventry and Derby moving them up the table.

December

Buckley's last-minute winner secured victory for the home side over Nottingham Forest early in the month, but three consecutive losses to Middlesbrough, Burnley and Reading has left the club in 11th spot at the mid-way point in the season.
Despite their inconsistent form, the club remain just four points outside of the top six, with Poyet admitting he is confident his team will respond in the second half of the season.