After playoff semi-final exits in the previous two seasons, Brighton & Hove Albion fans were again expecting a top-six challenge this season after the appointment of Sami Hyypia.

The former Liverpool defender had enjoyed two successful seasons as manager of Bayer Leverkusen and his appointment continued the international trend at Albion following the effective jobs done by Gus Poyet and Oscar Garcia.

Hyypia's cause wasn't helped by losing three of the club's key players in Matthew Upson, Will Buckley and Leonardo Ulloa, and Hyypia struggled to sign any players to fill the void.

Despite his experience managing at the very top of the Bundesliga and Champions League, Hyypia didn't adapt well to managing in England and resigned earlier this month.

He has since been replaced by Chris Hughton, whose task will be to steer the Seagulls away from the relegation zone and up towards mid-table in 2015. Here, Sports Mole looks back on a season to forget so far for Brighton.

August

Pre-season was far from perfect as the Seagulls entered the campaign on the back of three defeats and no wins in four games. However, a home match in front of an expectant crowd against Sheffield Wednesday surely offered a nice gentle opening.

It would turn out to be a nightmare start as the Owls took the lead in the first half before Andrew Crofts was shown a straight red card not long into the second period. Next was a trip to Birmingham City, a game Brighton would have again expected to win given Birmingham's winless run at home that stretched back to October 2013.

However, it would be defeat by a single goal once more as the Seagulls were one of four teams to lose their opening two matches.

Between the two defeats was a first win of the campaign in the first round of the League Cup against Cheltenham and they soon broke their duck in the league with a 2-0 victory at Leeds United. It was followed by a first home win of the season over Bolton Wanderers before they were taken to extra time and came through in the second round of the Cup at Swindon Town.

Hyypia might have been worried about the 120-minute excursion, but his side showed great character to equalise in injury time against Charlton Athletic to make it four games unbeaten in all competitions, ending the month only out of the top half on goal difference.

September

The loss of top scorer Ulloa was a huge blow to Brighton, but Hyypia found his replacement at the end of the transfer window when Sam Baldock was brought in from Bristol City after leading League One's scoring charts the previous season.

Baldock made his first start at Brentford, but his arrival wouldn't bring goals or wins as the Bees came out on top 3-2 before another away defeat at Ipswich Town.

A visit from Blackpool would have had some fans purring and even though the losing stopped, they couldn't score against the league's bottom side in a goalless draw. It was from bottom to top as up next in the league was first-placed Nottingham Forest, but not before the third round of the League Cup.

The Seagulls reached the fourth round thanks to a 3-0 win at Burton Albion and they followed it up by holding Forest to a goalless draw.

It was three stalemates in a row as the Seagulls and Cardiff City scored a goal each on the final day of the month, with Brighton winless in six.

October

Make it two straight winless months for Hyypia's side as October failed to bring about a change of fortunes. The 10th month started with a fourth consecutive draw and another impressive result against a high-flyer as joint-top Watford had to settle for a point.

Following a second international break, Brighton suffered their first defeat in over a month as Middlesbrough visited The Amex and won 2-1 before two more draws, making it six ties in seven games, against fellow bottom-half sides Huddersfield Town and Rotherham United.

Incredibly, by the end of October Brighton had only scored a single goal via one of their strikers, with centre-back duo Gordon Greer and Lewis Dunk contributing six goals between them. Brighton still had just those two August wins to their name and they were hovering just above the bottom three.

They had a chance to raise the fans' spirits with a fourth-round Capital One Cup tie at White Hart Lane against Tottenham Hotspur, but the Premier League side edged them out 2-0 in North London.

November

Baldock ended his goal drought with one of Brighton's two at Bournemouth in the first game of November, but it was another defeat for the Seagulls as they were beaten 3-2 along the South coast.

On-loan midfielder Gary Gardner scored inside the opening minute against Wigan Athletic three days later, but this time they were able to hang on for a first league win in 12 games.

Up next were two of the division's promotion hopefuls and Brighton managed a point against both Blackburn Rovers and Norwich City. However, they led both games and failed to hold onto their advantage like they had against Wigan.

Elliott Bennett and Greg Halford had arrived on loan earlier in the month before Brighton completed the loan signing of Darren Bent from Aston Villa.

It was the first time he had played in the second tier since leaving Ipswich almost 10 years ago, but he found his feet straight away with the opening goal on his debut against Fulham. Unfortunately for the Seagulls, Fulham rallied and took the points back to the capital, dropping Brighton into the bottom three in the process.

December

A trip to league leaders Derby County meant that it was the hardest possible start to December and Brighton didn't give themselves a chance at the iPro Stadium by conceding three goals in the opening 20 minutes. In the end, that was as bad as it got, but the pressure was mounting heavily on Hyypia.

Friday night under the lights at The Amex against Millwall was seen as a big chance for Brighton to leapfrog the Lions and climb out of the bottom three. It wasn't to be, though, as the Seagulls fell behind early and never recovered.

Many called for Hyypia's head, but he would stay for one more game and it looked like he would get a second win in 18 games before Danny Batth's last-gasp equaliser for Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Molineux heartbreak proved to be the final straw for Hyypia as he quit the job two days later. Nathan Jones took over and guided the club to a pair of impressive results - a come-from-behind 2-2 draw with Reading and 2-0 victory over Fulham - before Hughton signed a three-and-a-half year contract on New Year's Eve.

Tony Pulis was one of the names linked with the role, but the Premier League managerial merry-go-round at the end of December opened up opportunities for him in the top flight. Hughton takes over with the club only outside the drop zone on goal difference.

Albion fans will be hoping that his presence will attract some new faces who can have a big impact in January as they target a mid-table finish.

Star man: Lewis Dunk

Must do better: Sam Baldock

Where to strengthen in January: Attack

Position at start of 2015: 21st

Mid-season grade: D

To see Brighton's remaining fixtures in 2014-15, click here.