Overview
After a series of poor matches with only one win in 13 Premier League matches since the beginning of December last year (6 draws, 6 losses), Brighton has reversed the situation by winning three wins in the last 4 matches.
Their only defeat in this period was a 0-1 home defeat to league leaders Arsenal. Coach Fabian Hurzeler's team quickly regained their spirits when they defeated Sunderland 1-0 away last weekend. This result helps them rank 12th with 40 points, only five points behind the top 7 when the season is still 8 rounds.
Still hoping to win a ticket to European cups, Brighton entered the match against Liverpool with a fairly good home record against this opponent, winning two of the three most recent receptions (one draw). Before that, they only won one of the first 13 encounters. Notably, Brighton once won 3-2 at Amex in a match similar to last season.
However, defensive ability at the beginning of the match will be a key factor if Brighton wants to create a surprise. They are one of 3 teams in the Premier League - along with Burnley and Tottenham - to concede more goals in the first half (19) than in the second half (17) this season.
In the opposite direction, Liverpool just had an impressive performance when they came back to defeat Galatasaray 4-0 at Anfield in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16, thereby winning a ticket to the quarter-finals to meet defending champion PSG.
Coach Arne Slot called this a perfect match, especially in the context that he needed a convincing victory to reduce pressure after the disappointing 1-1 draw against Tottenham.
However, Liverpool's performance in the Premier League is still unstable as they have only won 4 in the last 12 matches (5 draws, 3 losses). The defending champion is currently ranked fifth, one point ahead of Chelsea but two points behind Aston Villa in the top 4 race.
Another worrying issue is the ability to preserve the score. Liverpool conceded 8 goals after the 90th minute this season - only Leeds has worse statistics - and all those goals conceded caused them to lose points.
However, Liverpool has a very good head-to-head record against Brighton this season, having won two matches with a total score of 5-0, including a 3-0 victory in the FA Cup. Since the 2021-2022 season, they have never won 3 consecutive clean sheets against the same opponent in a season. And this is an opportunity for The Kop to do that.
Personnel situation
Two Brighton players, Stefanos Tzimas and Adam Webster, are still long-term absent due to knee injuries, while Kaoru Mitoma (ankle) and Carlos Baleba (unidentified) have minor problems and need to be checked before the match.
If physically fit, Baleba can compete for a starting position in midfield with James Milner, along with other options such as Yasin Ayari, Jack Hinshelwood and rookie Pascal Gross.
On the Liverpool side, Alexander Isak (foot), Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni (knee) and Wataru Endo (ankle) are still unable to play due to injury.
The most notable is the condition of Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian star will be further tested after feeling a problem and having to leave the field early in the match against Galatasaray.
Salah is currently the player with the most goals (10) and the most assists (7) for Liverpool in matches against Brighton in the Premier League, so his ability to play will greatly affect the strength of the away team.
Hugo Ekitike is expected to continue to lead the attack, while Dominik Szoboszlai is likely to still hold the role of organizer behind.
Expected lineup:
Brighton: Verbruggen, Wieffer, Dunk, Van Hecke, Kadioglu, Ayari, Baleba, Gomez, Gross, Minteh, Welbeck.
Liverpool: Alisson, Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson, Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Salah, Szoboszlai, Wirtz, Ekitike.
The match between Brighton and Liverpool takes place at 7:30 p.m. on March 21 (Vietnam time).
