Brighton & Hove Albion will be hopeful of returning to winning ways when they welcome Aston Villa to the Amex Stadium on Saturday.
Graham Potters side beat Bournemouth before coming from behind to claim an impressive draw with Chelsea on New Year’s Day. But an FA Cup defeat to Championship outfit Sheffield Wednesday was followed by defeat to Everton in their last league game.
The Seagulls find themselves in fourteenth following a run of one win in seven games. However, three draws in that time have kept Brighton clear of the relegation zone.
On the other hand, Aston Villa have dropped into the bottom three after winning just two of their previous nine league games. Villa sit eighteenth in the standings – three points behind Brighton.
A humiliating 6-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City last time out means that only bottom club Norwich have conceded more goals than Dean Smith’s side in the Premier League this season.
Villa have also struggled for goals, and their away form has been poor. Smith’s men have lost eight of their eleven away games in the Premier League this term and have only picked up seven points on their travels.
By contrast, Brighton’s home form has been excellent. Potter’s side have lost just three of their eleven home games in 2019/20 and just five teams have lost fewer home games in the division.
Still, Aston Villa beat Brighton 2-1 earlier in the season thanks to a late Matt Targett winner. Brighton will surely be out for revenge this time around as they look to steer clear of the drop zone.
Potter will be hoping that key midfielder Aaron Mooy recovers from a knee injury in time for this weekend’s clash. Dan Burn is likely to remain sidelined with a shoulder issue, but Jose Izquierdo could return for Brighton.
As for Villa, star man John McGinn is still a long way off full fitness, while striker Wesley and first-choice goalkeeper Tom Heaton are both set to miss the remainder of the campaign with ACL injuries.
Former Barcelona and Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has been brought in on loan from AC Milan to cover for the injured Heaton.
A win for Villa on Saturday would see them move level with Brighton on 24 points. However, Brighton will be desperate to claim all three points and move up the table.
Forebet predicts that Brighton will exploit Villa’s weak defence and score over 2.5 goals on their way to victory.