Lampard may pay the price but Brighton prove Everton crisis runs deeper

As Everton's winless run extended to seven games following Tuesday's 4-1 thrashing by Brighton & Hove Albion, manager Frank Lampard cut a forlorn figure on the touchline with the Merseyside club hovering just above the relegation zone.

A valiant 1-1 draw away at reigning champions Manchester City over the weekend proved to be nothing more than a blip as Brighton ran riot while Everton capitulated at Goodison Park again.

Brighton scored three goals in six second-half minutes to seal the win but their authoritative performance and rise up the table was six years in the making.

Everton were once the club on the periphery of the top four looking to break into the elite, while Brighton were seeking a return to the top flight for the first time since 1983.

Tuesday's contest only underlined how far Brighton have come since sealing promotion thanks to the implementation of an effective coaching and recruitment structure at the club, while Everton stumble from one crisis to another every season.

It is Brighton sitting pretty in eighth place, while Everton, the team who have spent more years in the top flight than any other, are 16th - where they finished last season.

In September, Brighton lost arguably their biggest asset in Graham Potter when Chelsea prised away the manager who had guided the south-coast side to ninth in the Premier League last season - their best-ever finish.

But his successor Roberto De Zerbi has come in and overcome a couple of early hiccups to mastermind a mini-revival while playing an attractive style of football to lift them up to eighth, kindling hopes of playing in Europe next season.

Brighton even lost Neal Maupay - their top scorer from the last three seasons - to Everton but the attack has stepped up to