Brighton & Hove Albion
Burnley FC
Burnley FC
Brighton set their sights on bottom side Burnley despite winning hard to come by
Brighton to win 2-1
These are two sides in desperate need of a positive result as we head into November and towards the ever-crucial run up to Christmas.
Both teams are in dire form, with no win for either side in their past five matches and falling to defeats against Big Six sides last time out.
Brighton were beaten by slim margins, Gareth Bale’s first goal since returning to Tottenham enough to sink The Seagulls. Burnley were beaten more comprehensively, going down 3-0 to an in-form Chelsea side.
Brighton have looked the better of the two so far this season, scoring a respectable number of goals for a side near the bottom, but have struggled to convert good play into points.
Burnley, on the other hand, have been uncharacteristically terrible, showing none of their solidarity in defence from previous seasons, while finding it extremely tough to score at the other end.
This is must-win for both teams.
Form Guide (all comps): LLDDL
Reasons to be cheerful:
Tariq Lamptey likely to be fit after assumed injury last week
Top scorer Maupay could also return
Reasons to be fearful:
Early season form has disappeared
Neat and tidy play has not transferred into points
As in several of their games this season, Brighton came desperately close to gaining something out of their match with Tottenham last weekend.
They kept things tight for the most part and would have deserved a point. However, the same can also be said for their match against Manchester United, which they also left empty handed.
Although desperately small margins, these missed points add up and can mean the difference between survival and relegation at the end of the season.
Fortunately, Burnley are one of the few teams even more out of form that they are, and they must see this as an opportunity to claim three points.
Lamptey should be fit and Neal Maupay, their top scorer, could return after ‘attitude issues’ last weekend.
Star Man – Tariq Lamptey
Is going from strength to strength and scored a fine goal against Tottenham last weekend.
Form Guide (all comps): LLDLL
Reasons to be cheerful
Ben Mee and Phil Bardsley are fit again and could play a role
Chris Wood has three goals in this fixture
Reasons to be fearful
Form is terrible compared to previous seasons
Only scored three this season, and one in last five matches
Burnley’s awful start to the season has not been helped by the amount of injuries which they have had to put up with.
Slowly but surely key players have been returning to the fold – Tarkowski has returned to action recently and key defenders Ben Mee and Phil Bardsley are not far behind. They could play some part this weekend.
These returnees should bring improvements, but they will have to be rapid in order to help Burnley rise up the table, and ultimately save Sean Dyche from the sack.
Unfortunately, going forward is as much of a problem for them. With only three goals this season, and only one in their past five matches, Burnley are struggling to cause teams problems going forward.
Star Man – Chris Wood
Has three goals in this fixture in the past – can he kickstart Burnley’s season here?
Brighton will smell an opportunity here
If Maupay returns they could take three points
Both sides to score
Although Brighton have scored almost four times as many goals as their opponents this weekend, they have also conceded more than Burnley, too.
Their flowing attacking play going forward has left them open at the back, meaning it is likely that Burnley can get on the scoresheet.
However, Brighton will be favourites to claim three points, though it may not be easy.
Brighton to win 2-1
