England Round 13

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Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Chelsea Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Brighton & Hove Albion:
Sanchez; Veltman, Dunk, Webster; March, Caicedo, Mac Allister, Estupinan; Gross, Trossard, Welbeck

Chelsea:
Kepa; Azpilicueta, Chalobah, Thiago Silva; Loftus-Cheek, Jorginho, Kovačić, Chilwell; Mount, Sterling, Aubameyang

Brighton & Hove Albion welcome Chelsea in the most interesting Saturday's Premier League clash. There will be lot of emotions at American Express Stadium as Graham Potter will return to Amex as an opposing manager. It would be very interesting to know the sort of reception Brighton fans will give to Potter. They loved him there, but he left the club last month and became Chelsea manager. Some of the fans are angry, but they should respect the fact Chelsea are club with Champions League ambitions. It wasn't an easy decision for Potter, but the reality is very simple - You do not reject offers from Stamford Bridge unless you are at a club bigger than them. But according to the former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin, the fans' reaction is very important for Potter: "There are plenty of heartless people in football, but Graham Potter isn’t one of them", he said. However, the new manager Roberto De Zerbi is already under big pressure as he is still looking for his first win as Seagulls boss. In addition, he has some injury issues ahead of this match. Kaoru Mitoma remain sidelined with an ankle injury, while Jakub Moder is long-term absentee. Joel Veltman, who came off injured against Manchester City, is rated as doubtful. Levi Colwill is ineligible to play against his parent club Chelsea.

Chelsea will try to return to winning ways in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon. The Blues are in mini-series of two draws in their last two league encounters, which have left them in 5th place in the table. The draw with Manchester United is quite acceptable, but dropping two points against Brentford is a disappointing result. Nevertheless, Chelsea will enter this match off the back of a victory, having recorded a 2:1 win over Salzburg in the Champions League on Tuesday. The goals were scored by Mateo Kovačić and Kai Havertz were enough to end Salzburg's 40-match unbeaten home record. As Milan beat Dinamo Zagreb 4:0 in the later game on Tuesday, Chelsea will finish first in Group E regardless of the last round's results. The atmosphere in the squad is positive, while the players confidence is higher. Furthermore, the Blues haven't lost any of their last 10 competitive matches against Brighton, picking up six victories and four draws. But Potter has some injury worries ahead of this match. Kalidou Koulibaly, who missed out the match against Salzburg due to a knee issue, is rated as doubtful. N'Golo Kante will be out until February 2023 after undergoing surgery on a hamstring injury. Reece James suffered a knee injury against Milan at San Siro and will be sidelined until after the World Cup, as well as Wesley Fofana. Finally, Kovačić is rated as doubtful after the Croatian was forced off against Salzburg with a calf issue.

Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Chelsea Prediction:

It is important match for the hosts as they have suffered three defeats on the last four matches. Even the only game in which they remain unbeaten could be rated as failure as they played a goalless draw with the bottom-placed Nottingham at home. The Seagulls are in poor form and the players confidence is lower. This is a big problem for the new coach Roberto De Zerbi. And I don't think this match could be a turning point. Chelsea are in good form at the moment, plus they have somebody that could make the difference in this clash - Graham Potter. He know Brighton players, their strong and weak sides. This fact should not be underestimated. Knowing the actual form and the players quality, I expect the guests to celebrate at Amex.

Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Chelsea Pick: Chelsea to win @ 2.55 with Pinnacle