Brighton & Hove Albion meet Everton at AMEX Stadium in a crunch clash at opposite ends of the Premier League table.
Victory would see Brighton return to sixth in the table, whilst Everton can climb out of the relegation zone with a win.
Team News
Pascal Gross could return for Brighton after he missed their tense victory over Manchester United with a muscle injury.
Evan Ferguson (ankle) won’t be risked unless manager – Roberto De Zerbi believes the Irish striker is at maximum fitness.
Tariq Lamptey, Jakub Moder (both knee), Jeremy Sarmiento (foot), Joel Veltman and Adam Lallana (both hamstring) remain absent.
Everton will be without defender, Ben Godfrey who is struggling with a groin injury.
Seamus Coleman (knee), Ruben Vinagre (Achilles) and Andros Townsend (knee) remain absent.
When is Kick-Off
Brighton face Everton at AMEX Stadium in a 5:30pm BST kick-off on Bank Holiday Monday 8 May, televised live in the UK on BT Sport 1.
Stat Attack
- Brighton have claimed seven points from their last six meetings against Everton (W2, D1, L3).
- Everton have won just one of five previous Premier League visits to Brighton (W1, D2, L2).
- Brighton are looking to record three consecutive wins against Everton for the very first time.
- Solly March has registered more shots on target in the Premier League this season than any other Brighton player, having converted 33 shots onto target in 32 appearances.
- Coming into this matchweek, Everton’s James Tarkowski has produced more blocks than any other Premier League player this season (74).
Prediction
With five games left after this match – including two games in hand, Brighton know that they can’t afford any sort of slip-up if want a top-four finish so it is imperative that they continue to play with the renewed confidence which saw them keep clean sheets in their last two matches.
Roberto De Zerbi’s Seagulls however are in unchartered territory because this is their first proper fight for European qualification, so managing nerves could become crucial on top of their injury issues but there is no reason why they can’t continue their form.
It is also worth noting how impressive De Zerbi has handled Ferguson’s recovery given the Irish striker’s importance, whilst remembering that he is still young and maturing in his development and that it is important to have him back fully fit rather than risk aggravating his ankle injury.
Everton meanwhile showed proper fight to snatch a 2-2 draw at Leicester in which they started and finished well with two clinical goals, yet a mixture of sloppy defending once in the lead and brilliant saves denied them victory.
Sean Dyche though should be seriously worried about Everton’s away form with just two wins on the road in all competitions, especially when they’re the top-flight’s lowest goalscorers and are visiting a team who have scored seven goals in their last two games alone.
In fact, Everton better hope that Jordan Pickford avoids a pre-match injury or illness otherwise it could be a rough trip for away fans if Asmir Begovic is in goal, because they’re facing one of the league’s most dangerous attacking teams.
Brighton however are yet to win three consecutive league games on the bounce this season but something in me feels like that statistic will change here, especially because De Zerbi’s Seagulls realistically must win all of their remaining games if want Champions League football next season.
Prediction: Brighton 2-1 Everton
Result: Brighton 1-5 Everton
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