Updated Introduction: Hinshelwood’s Emerging Role Under Hürzeler
This article was updated on 17 September 2026 to reflect where the Jack Hinshelwood position debate now stands at Brighton and Hove Albion. Fabian Hürzeler ended last season using the 20-year-old as his preferred No.10, and that decision still shapes how supporters view Hinshelwood’s long-term role in the side.
Our original analysis on Hinshelwood first set out the case for that central attacking role back in July. The evidence from Brighton’s late-season run has only strengthened that case since, and it remains the clearest picture available of where Hinshelwood fits best.
Hinshelwood’s rise through the academy has made him one of Brighton’s most closely watched young players. A tactical question that once had several possible answers has, over the closing weeks of last season, turned into a much firmer one.
Hinshelwood’s Tactical Versatility and Impact
Hinshelwood has featured across midfield and defence during his time at Brighton, showing the kind of positional adaptability clubs value in academy graduates. It was his shift into a central attacking role, though, that defined the closing stretch of last season and gave Hürzeler a genuine selection headache in the best possible sense.
Playing as Hürzeler’s No.10, Hinshelwood found space between opposition lines and looked far more comfortable creating and finishing chances than he had in deeper roles. That shift produced a real goalscoring run: three goals in three matches during Brighton’s late-season improvement, a return few would have predicted from a player more often associated with tidy passing than clinical finishing.
The standout moment came against Wolves on 9 May 2026, when Hinshelwood scored after just 35 seconds. It remains the fastest Premier League goal in Brighton’s history, and it showed how quickly he can affect a match once given licence to attack from central areas.
According to Squawka’s analysis algorithm and metrics, those three goals came from an expected goals value of just 1.2 xG. That figure suggests Hinshelwood outperformed the underlying chances by some distance, adding sharp finishing to a game built primarily on movement and link-up play.
His impact in that role also eased pressure on Brighton’s recognised forwards. With Hürzeler’s attacking options still developing chemistry up front, Hinshelwood’s goals from a central midfield position gave the team a second scoring threat it had lacked earlier in the campaign.
What Is Jack Hinshelwood’s Best Position at Brighton?
Jack Hinshelwood’s best position at Brighton is as a central No.10 in Fabian Hürzeler’s attacking system. That is where he finished last season, and it produced his most productive spell in a Brighton shirt to date.
The evidence supports that conclusion directly. Three goals in three matches, including the 35-second strike against Wolves that stands as the fastest Premier League goal in the club’s history, all came while Hinshelwood operated centrally rather than in a deeper midfield or defensive role.
Squawka’s 1.2 xG figure for that run adds further weight to the case. Even allowing for the small sample of matches involved, Hinshelwood’s finishing exceeded what the underlying chances alone would have suggested, and that kind of end product from central areas is hard for any manager to overlook.
It is worth remembering that Hinshelwood remains a versatile academy product who can be trusted across several areas of the pitch. But based on everything Brighton have seen since Hürzeler moved him forward, the No.10 role looks like the position where he offers the club the most.
What Happens Next for Hinshelwood and Hürzeler
There is no confirmed change planned to how Hürzeler uses Hinshelwood this season, and nothing in the available evidence points to a different role being considered for him. The No.10 position remains the one most closely associated with his best form.
Supporters should expect Hinshelwood to keep occupying that central attacking role while it continues to deliver results, rather than any immediate switch back to a deeper part of the pitch. Hürzeler built his side’s late-season improvement partly around that decision, and there is no reported reason to abandon it now.
Hinshelwood’s progress also sits within a broader story about Brighton’s academy production. His path from youth football to a regular first-team role mirrors Brighton’s academy pathway, which continues to produce players capable of competing at Premier League level.
For now, the club’s focus appears to be on building on last season’s late improvement rather than reshaping the side around one player. Hinshelwood’s central role gives Hürzeler a proven option, and unless form or fitness forces a rethink, supporters can expect to see him continue there when Brighton need a spark from midfield.
