Premier League: Have Brighton Already Mentally Checked Out This Season?

Brighton & Hove Albion vs Aston Villa

Brighton will not play European football next season, which is sad considering where they were one year ago. The wheels have fallen off for Roberto De Zerbi and co., as they haven’t won a single Premier League since March 10 against Nottingham Forest.

And this Saturday, the 12^th-place Seagulls have a date against the Villans, who are experiencing what Brighton had last season. Aston Villa are currently fourth in the English top-flight standings because they are unbeaten in their last four league matches.

The pre-game SBOTOP betting odds expect the Villans to win, but the Seagulls will hope to catch them off guard since Unai Emery’s men have a tough matchup against Olympiacos in the Europa Conference League semi-finals later.

Talking Points

Brighton in a major scoring drought

The Seagulls are on a seven-game winless run in all competitions (D2, L5) because their goals have dried up. During this brutal stretch, Roberto De Zerbi’s men have only scored three goals while conceding a whopping 13 goals on the other side of the pitch.

The last goal for Brighton was, in fact, an own goal by Arijanet Muric during their 1-1 draw against Burnley, and the last time that they scored on their own efforts was Danny Welbeck during their 2-1 loss against Liverpool in late March.

Injuries basically killed Brighton’s chance of competing for European football next season, as Kaoru Mitoma (back), Jack Hinshelwood (foot), Pervis Estupinan (calf), and Evan Ferguson (hamstring) are all confirmed out for the rest of the season, while Solly March (knee), James Milner (thigh), Billy Gilmour (knee), and Tariq Lamptey (hamstring) have yet to return on the pitch.

With all of them sidelined, Brighton will continue to rely on Joao Pedro, their brightest spot this season with 19 goals, Simon Adingra, Danny Welbeck, and Pascal Groß.

Meanwhile, Mark O’Mahony has been showing signs of promise ever since he was inserted into Roberto De Zerbi’s rotation. The 19-year-old academy player got his first career Premier League start in their 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth, and he might get another start this weekend.

Busy week for Aston Villa

The Villans couldn’t have dreamed that they would be fighting for a top four place in the Premier League while being in a European semi-finals. Yet, here they are, and most of the credit belongs to Unai Emery, who has been their game-changer.

The former Arsenal manager has been given a new extension that will keep him at Villa Park until 2027, and he deserves it.

Aston Villa will play three games in the next seven days, which would essentially make or break their 2023-24 campaign, but they have the requisite talent to see this through.

At the moment, Aston Villa have three double-digit goal scorers who could go off on any given game, as Ollie Watkins, Leon Bailey, and Douglas Luiz combine for 40 goals and 34 assists in all competitions this season.

And then there’s Moussa Diaby, John McGinn, and Jhon Duran, who are capable of wreaking havoc in the final third too, so Emery has options to choose from when he rotates his squad in the upcoming days.

History

Aston Villa defeated Brighton 6-1 the last time they met in September. The Villans benefited from Ollie Watkins’ hat-trick, Pervis Estupinan’s own goal, and more goals from Jacob Ramsey and Douglas Luiz, while Ansu Fati scored the consolation goal for the Seagulls.

Brighton’s last win over Aston Villa was a 2-1 result in November 2020, as Danny Welbeck and Solly March found the back of the net for the Seagulls while Ezri Konsa pulled one back for the Villans.

Since then, Aston Villa have recorded five wins and two draws in their last seven Premier League matchups.

With 73 goals at the moment, Aston Villa have scored their most number of goals in a single top-flight campaign since 1976-77 (76), and they’re poised to add to their total on Saturday.

Betting Tip

The Premier League 2024 odds are surprisingly close between Aston Villa and Brighton. The Villans have a slight advantage at 2.35 odds, whereas the Seagulls aren’t far behind at 2.59, and a draw is at 3.44 in the 1X2 market.

Both teams are expected to create entries in the Premier League 2024 highlights reel this weekend, with the visitors likely to score more goals.

So, other than our recommended bet above, you may also opt for alternatives like Over 3.25 at 2.01, Over 3.50 at 2.25, and Total Goals 4-6 at 2.40.

 

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