Brighton vs Wolves Preview
Watch Brighton vs Wolves Preview, as both clubs meet on a Premier league contest at Amex stadium on Saturday. As Brighton is on the 8th position of the premier league contest, Wolves is on the 13th position of the points table.
On the back of their FA Cup semi-final heartbreak, the Seagulls’ misery was compounded in a 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, prior to which Julen Lopetegui’s side defeated Crystal Palace 2-0.
Nearly everything that could have gone wrong for Forest in the first half of their midweek clash with Brighton did go wrong. An injury to Moussa Niakhate, Jason Steele saving Brennan Johnson’s penalty and Facundo Buonanotte’s tap-in all served to dampen the spirits of the City Ground faithful.
However, a Pascal Gross own goal just before the break came at the perfect time for Forest, who turned the game on its head through a fine Danilo strike before Morgan Gibbs-White did what Johnson could not – convert from 12 yards in added time following a Lewis Dunk handball.
Perhaps still suffering from a Wembley hangover after their bitterly disappointing penalty-shootout defeat to Manchester United, Roberto De Zerbi‘s side remain on the coat-tails of European spots in eighth place, five points adrift of Tottenham Hotspur after the Lilywhites drew with Man United on Thursday.
Three defeats from their last four matches in all competitions is an unsightly record at a first glance, but Brighton still have the benefit of games in hand on the teams around them as they hunt down their fellow continental chasers, and the Amex turf has been relatively kind to the hosts in recent weeks.
Indeed, Brighton have cleaned 13 points from the last 16 on offer in front of their own fans – keeping clean sheets in all four of those wins over Liverpool, Bournemouth, West Ham United and Crystal Palace – but Wolves’ tails are up as they look to prey on the Seagulls.
Team News and Injury
Brighton striker Danny Welbeck was able to come on as a substitute in the loss to Forest following an injury scare in the FA Cup, but it remains to be seen if Evan Ferguson’s ankle problem will clear up in time for the Irish starlet – who has just signed a new long-term contract at the Amex to feature.
Adam Lallana (thigh), Jakub Moder (knee), Tariq Lamptey (knee) and Jeremy Sarmiento (ankle) all remain sidelined for the hosts, who could make a defensive alteration with Joel Veltman coming in at right-back, allowing Gross to push further forward.
Buonanotte’s reward for his opener at the City Ground could therefore be a demotion to the bench, while a fit-again Welbeck is poised to displace Julio Enciso at the tip of the forward line.
As for the visitors, Lopetegui is still coping without long-term knee victims Chiquinho and Sasa Kalajdzic, while Boubacar Traore is still building up his match fitness and is not being considered for selection just yet either.
Wolves are otherwise in good shape for the long journey south, and Lopetegui would ideally keep changes to a minimum given the manner of his side’s win at Palace, although Joao Gomes is a strong candidate to come in for Hwang Hee-chan.
Despite failing to add to his one-goal tally in the current Premier League season on Tuesday night, Diego Costa unsurprisingly made a nuisance of himself in a good way – and should link up with Matheus Cunha in the final third again.
Brighton vs Wolves Head-to-Head stats
In 17 head-to-head encounters between the two sides, Brighton & Hove Albion have won six games, lost three and drawn eight. Winger Solly March has 14 goal contributions in 30 league starts for Brighton & Hove Albion this season.
Japanese winger Kaoru Mitoma has 11 goal contributions in 18 league starts for Brighton & Hove Albion so far. German midfielder Pascal Gross has 12 goal contributions in 30 league starts for Brighton & Hove Albion this season.
Portuguese midfielder Ruben Neves has six goals in 29 league starts for Wolverhampton Wanderers so far.
Brighton vs Wolves Prediction
Without the Molineux faithful spurring them on, Wolves have consistently struggled to perform away from their headquarters, and their hopes of a first clean sheet on their travels since August are wafer-thin.
Brighton may not be ending the month with a flourish, but De Zerbi’s men have typically responded well to setbacks this season, and we have faith in the Seagulls to get back on track and keep their hopes of European qualification alive.
