Crystal Palace vs Brighton & Hove Albion Preview – Prediction, how to watch & potential line-ups | OneFootball

Premier League surprise package Brighton & Hove Albion make the 40-mile trip to Selhurst Park to encounter perennial bottom-half strugglers Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Despite being a man up for most of the second half, Palace suffered a 2-1 defeat at Manchester United last time out, extending their winless streak in the Premier League to five matches (D2, L3).

An abysmal run of form threatens to suck the Eagles back into a drop-zone drama as they enter this matchday only six points clear of 18th-placed Everton.

With that in mind, manager Patrick Vieira will be desperate to avoid going winless in six consecutive league fixtures for the second time during his tenure in south London.

The continued absence of talismanic forward Wilfried Zaha is unlikely to aid Palace’s cause, and neither is the fact they’re about to take on high-flying Brighton.

Roberto De Zerbi’s men left it late to beat relegation-fighting Bournemouth at home last weekend as in-form forward Kaoru Mitoma headed home in the 87th minute to hand his side a precious victory.

That dramatic win not only marked Brighton’s third triumph in four Premier League fixtures (D1) but forced their way into the top six, with fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur now just five points off.

Although De Zerbi has been at the helm for only 14 league matches (W6, D3, L5), his tremendous effort has helped the Seagulls amass their best top-flight points total (34) at this stage in their history.

Match Preview

Crystal Palace

As one of only three Premier League clubs yet to win a top-flight outing in 2023, Palace should be concerned about their bid to build on a six-game unbeaten league run against Brighton (W2, D4).

There’s more where that comes from, considering they’re winless in their last four league H2Hs at home (D3, L1), while they’ve not won a Premier League home match since a 1-0 triumph over Southampton in October (D2, L2).

But the Selhurst Park faithful should not lose hope even if their team falls behind early on, with Palace winning a league-high four fixtures after conceding the opening goal this season.

Brighton & Hove Albion

Brighton have racked up six victories in their last nine league games (D1, L2), and it’s worth noting that both of their defeats in that span arrived on home soil.

De Zerbi’s men had won three consecutive away matches in the Premier League by an aggregate score of 10-4 before fighting back to hold Leicester City to a 2-2 draw on their last travel.

Eager to return to winning ways on the road, Brighton can draw confidence from netting at least two goals in their last four league outings outside the Amex Stadium.

Crystal Palace vs Brighton & Hove Albion Potential Line-ups

Crystal Palace (4-2-3-1): Vicente Guaita; Nathaniel Clyne, Marc Guehi, Chris Richards, Tyrick Mitchell; Will Hughes, Cheick Doucoure; Michael Olise, Odsonne Edouard, Jeffrey Schlupp; Jordan Ayew.

Brighton & Hove Albion (3-4-2-1): Robert Sanchez; Lewis Dunk, Joel Veltman, Pervis Estupinan; Kaoru Mitoma, Billy Gilmour, Pascal Gross, Tariq Lamptey; Solly March, Deniz Undav; Danny Welbeck.

How to Watch?

Crystal Palace vs Brighton & Hove Albion, alongside all other fixtures in England’s top flight, is available to watch online via live Premier League streams.

Crystal Palace vs Brighton & Hove Albion Prediction

Brighton are miles ahead of their hosts in terms of form and confidence, so we back the visitors to pour more misery on Palace’s dreadful league campaign.

Crystal Palace 1-3 Brighton & Hove Albion