We have a massive six-pointer at the bottom of the Premier League table to get our teeth into on Saturday, with Brighton & Hove Albion hosting Newcastle United at the Amex Stadium.
Brighton currently find themselves sixteenth in the standings, just one point and one place ahead of Newcastle.
😁 Last time out against @NUFC.#BHAFC 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/tuexyiL7el— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) March 17, 2021
😁 Last time out against @NUFC.#BHAFC 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/tuexyiL7el
With eighteenth-place Fulham now only two points behind the Magpies, Brighton and Newcastle will be desperate to win this game and move away from the relegation zone.
Thankfully for Brighton, they head into Saturday’s six-pointer on the back of a crucial victory over fellow strugglers Southampton.
Despite seeing just 40% possession at St. Mary’s, goals from Lewis Dunk and Leandro Trossard saw the Seagulls beat the Saints 2-1.
Looking at the bigger picture, Brighton have only managed to win six of their 28 Premier League games this season, picking up 11 draws and 11 defeats along the way.
It is also worth pointing out that Graham Potter’s side have won just four of their previous 27 home matches in all competitions.
However, with four wins and three draws coming in their last ten league games, Brighton will be confident of avoiding the drop.
Meanwhile, Newcastle have failed to win any of their previous five league games, recording two defeats before three straight draws.
After losing to Chelsea and Manchester United, the Magpies were held by Wolves, West Brom and Aston Villa.
In the grand scheme of things, Newcastle have only managed to two of their last 19 matches in all competitions.
Worse still, Steve Bruce’s side have lost eight of their previous 13 Premier League games, winning just twice in that time.
Head-to-head: Brighton crushed Newcastle 3-0 in the reverse fixture back in September, extending their unbeaten streak against the Magpies to seven games in the process (three wins, four draws).
Remarkably, Newcastle have only managed to score one goal in their last seven games against Brighton, with the Seagulls keeping six clean sheets during that period.
Team news: Brighton have a number of notable absentees at the moment, with Adam Webster, Aaron Connolly, Florin Andone, Solly March, Tariq Lamptey and Dan Burn all sidelined through injury.
On the other side, Newcastle are currently without Callum Wilson, Allan Saint-Maximin, Miguel Almiron and Fabian Schar.
When you couple the current form of these two sides with the recent results in this fixture, all the signs point towards a low-scoring encounter on Saturday.
Forebet predicts that Brighton and Newcastle will produce a low-scoring draw at the Amex Stadium, with under 2.5 goals expected.