Burnley welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to Turf Moor on the opening weekend of 2021-22 Premier League season.
Having escaped relegation last season despite occupying the last two safety spots, Burnley and Brighton will both be eager to kick-start this season with a win.
Team News
Matt Lowton is in contention to feature for Burnley after recovering from Coronavirus in recent weeks.
Dale Stephens (ankle) and Kevin Long (calf) remain ruled out after failing to make full recoveries over summer.
Brighton remain without Danny Welbeck and Tariq Lamptey after the pair failed to fully recover from respective hamstring and thigh injuries suffered last season.
Michal Karbownik (ankle) is a doubt but Dan Burn, Moises Caicedo (both knee) and Kjell Scherpen (ankle) are ruled out.
Stat Attack
- Burnley have lost just one of eight Premier League meetings against Brighton (W2, D5, L1), with three of their five draws finishing goalless.
- Brighton have won just one of four Premier League trips to Turf Moor (W1, D2, L1).
- There is yet to be a red card in this Premier League fixture after eight previous meetings.
- Burnley have lost two of their last five opening fixtures in a new season (W2, D1, L2).
- Brighton have won just one of their four previous opening fixtures to a Premier League season (W1, L3).
Prediction
Despite having not really done much business in the transfer market this summer, Burnley have done a great job to retain the core of their squad so I expect to see them continue to play their traditional 4-4-2 style and the return of fans will give their players a considerable lift compared to last season.
Sean Dyche though will need to sort out his defensive issues which was evident throughout much of last season, with Nathan Collins’ arrival hopefully providing fresh injection of energy in defence if they’re to improve.
Brighton meanwhile showed considerable improvement in their play towards the end of last season with a series of strong attacking performances, although defending still was a huge issue and Ben White’s departure to Arsenal only exposes their defensive issues further.
This game therefore should be interesting given that both teams will be looking to start this campaign on a high, although I can see a draw coming here given the quality of both sides.
Prediction: Burnley 1-1 Brighton
Result: Burnley 1-2 Brighton