Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson believes Chelsea will beat Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League this weekend. The two teams will meet at the American Express Community Stadium on Saturday (October 29).
The game will mark Graham Potter’s return to Brighton, having left the club to join the Blues earlier in the season. Chelsea have enjoyed a good spell under Potter and are currently fifth in the Premier League, level on points with fourth-placed Newcastle United.
The Seagulls, meanwhile, are ninth and are yet to win a game under their current boss Roberto de Zerbi, with two draws and three losses in five matches. Lawrenson believes Brighton’s winless streak will continue on Saturday and predicted a 2-0 victory for the Blues. He wrote in his column for Paddy Power:
“Brighton go through these spells when they struggle to score, especially at home, and they’ve only taken two points since Graham Potter left for Chelsea. Chelsea are going well and they won again during the week. Potter looks like a good fit for them.”
Potter’s men will enter this game on the back of a 2-1 win over RB Salzburg in the UEFA Champions League. Their last Premier League match saw them draw 1-1 with Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.
Brighton, meanwhile, suffered a 3-1 defeat against reigning champions Manchester City in their last league outing.
Chelsea and Brighton played out two draws in the Premier League last season
Chelsea met Brighton & Hove Albion twice in the Premier League last season. Both games ended in 1-1 draws.
The two teams first met at Stamford Bridge in December 2021. Romelu Lukaku, who is currently on loan at Inter Milan, opened the scoring for the Blues in the first half. They seemed to be on their way to a narrow win, but Danny Welbeck scored in second-half stoppage time to ensure the Seagulls got a share of the spoils.
The second encounter between the two teams at the American Express Community Stadium took place in January this year. Brighton went behind on this occasion as well as Hakim Ziyech found the back of the net for the visitors in the 28th minute.
This time, however, the Seagulls were quicker to respond and equalized on the hour mark through centre-back Adam Webster. Both teams managed just five combined shots on target throughout the game and ultimately had to settle for just a point.