Dear Santa, these are the two statement signings I would like Brighton and Hove Albion to make - Ian Hart

A penalty shootout away from an FA Cup final, although to be fair Sanchez could still be at Wembley and still not got near one! But a top six finish making the European dream a reality.

An amazing turnaround in the Europa league group, given the first 110 minutes, sees the Albion start 2024 in legitimate contention for not one but two trophies.

Seeded in the last 16 of the Europa league, and after last seasons near miss at Wembley, RDZ will almost certainly want to go one better in the FA Cup.

But is the squad strong enough at this stage for a two-pronged assault for silverware?

Possibly not, especially in light of the plethora of injury issues we seem to have suffered in the first half of the season.

Don’t get me wrong, this is without doubt overall the greatest squad in the club’s 122-year history, but there’s perhaps the footballing ‘elephant in the room’ with the stark realisation that we effectively haven’t replaced the departed duo of Alexis MacAllister and Moises Caicedo?

With the season full of potential is now the time for Tony Bloom to splash the cash in the January window and lay down a huge marker?

There are two prime candidates, both current England internationals but allegedly unsettled at their respective clubs, but with the upcoming Euros in Germany in the summer need quality game time with a decent team.

Just how much it will cost to sign Kalvin Phillips from Manchester City and Connor Gallagher from Chelsea is open to question?

As supporters we’ve clearly been spoilt in recent years, but signings of this magnitude would send expectation even through Gus Poyet’s glass ceiling.

But before that it’s off to Palace for the ‘M23 Derby’ this Thursday (December 21) so hopefully Xmas will come for the Albion faithful a little bit earlier this year.

And on that note, I’m signing off again for another year, thank you all for not only reading these weekly offerings but all the feedback, both negative and positive.

I’d like to wish each and every one of you a very Merry Xmas and a prosperous New Year.