Albion can aim to take a huge step towards a top-ten finish on Wednesday night when they take on Chelsea, kick-off 7.45pm.
Should Albion beat the Blues at the Amex, Roberto De Zerbi’s team would move three points clear of Bournemouth, with a superior goal difference and one game left to play.
Chelsea on the other hand will look to secure their place in the top seven, having won three league games on the spin.
As we approach the final stages of the season, supporters must know that the pitch is for players and the stands are for spectators. It is against the law to enter the pitch at any time and anyone who does so will face a ban and police action.
Team news
Roberto De Zerbi confirmed in his press conference on Tuesday That Joel Veltman won't be available after picking up an injury at Newcastle.
"We have lost Joel Veltman, I don’t know if he can be available for the next game or against Manchester United. There’s no other news. I don’t know if he can play Sunday."
"The head coach also spoke of his focus on finishing in the top ten. "It’s important because after Sunday we go on holiday and when we’re on holiday if we have no points [from the last two games] it will be a problem for me. I want us to finish in the top ten."
Our last meeting
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Albion lost 3-2 at Stamford Bridge at the beginning of December. Enzo Fernandez put the Blues in front after 17 minutes, before former Albion man Levi Colwill added to their lead four minutes later. Facundo Buonanotte curled home to halve the deficit just before half-time, with the tide seemingly turning in Albion’s favour when Conor Gallagher was shown a second yellow card just before half-time. But Fernandez restoreed Chelsea’s two-goal cushion from the penalty spot with Joao Pedro making it 3-2 in the closing minutes.
Player to watch
Cole Palmer has had 31 goal involvements (21 goals, ten assists) this season, one more than Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland. The England international has been a revelation at Chelsea since his move from Manchester City last summer. His form for Mauricio Pochettino’s team saw him make his England debut in November and he looks a certainty to make the Euro 2024 squad.
How the table looks
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
MCI
|
38 | 28 | 7 | 3 | +62 | 91 |
|
2
|
ARS
|
38 | 28 | 5 | 5 | +62 | 89 |
|
3
|
LIV
|
38 | 24 | 10 | 4 | +45 | 82 |
|
4
|
AVL
|
38 | 20 | 8 | 10 | +15 | 68 |
|
5
|
TOT
|
38 | 20 | 6 | 12 | +13 | 66 |
|
6
|
CHE
|
38 | 18 | 9 | 11 | +14 | 63 |
|
7
|
NEW
|
38 | 18 | 6 | 14 | +23 | 60 |
|
8
|
MUN
|
38 | 18 | 6 | 14 | -1 | 60 |
|
9
|
WHU
|
38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | -14 | 52 |
|
10
|
CRY
|
38 | 13 | 10 | 15 | -1 | 49 |
|
11
|
Albion
|
38 | 12 | 12 | 14 | -7 | 48 |
|
12
|
BOU
|
38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | -13 | 48 |
|
13
|
FUL
|
38 | 13 | 8 | 17 | -6 | 47 |
|
14
|
WOL
|
38 | 13 | 7 | 18 | -15 | 46 |
|
15
|
EVE
|
38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | -11 | 40 |
|
16
|
BRE
|
38 | 10 | 9 | 19 | -9 | 39 |
|
17
|
NFO
|
38 | 9 | 9 | 20 | -18 | 32 |
|
18
|
LUT
|
38 | 6 | 8 | 24 | -33 | 26 |
|
19
|
BUR
|
38 | 5 | 9 | 24 | -37 | 24 |
|
20
|
SHU
|
38 | 3 | 7 | 28 | -69 | 16 |
Match stats
After a five-game unbeaten run against Chelsea between 2021 and 2023 (W2 D3), Albion have lost both meetings with the Blues in all competitions this season.
Chelsea lost this exact fixture 4-1 last season, but have never lost consecutive visits to Brighton in all competitions.
Chelsea have only won their final away league game in one of the last six seasons (D1 L4), beating Leeds United 3-0 in 2021-22.
Albion have failed to score more than once in each of their last 11 Premier League games, their longest such run in the competition. They last had a longer run without scoring at least twice in a league game between March and August 2015 (12), last having a longer such run in a single season in 2004-05 (a run of 15 between September and December 2004).
Chelsea have won 29 points in the Premier League in 2024 (P16 W8 D5 L3), with only the top three clubs Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool winning more since the turn of the year. Indeed, the Blues have lost just one of their last 13 league games (W7 D5), and will be looking to win four on the bounce for the first time since October 2022.
Chelsea have lost each of their last six away Premier League games played in midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) since a 0-0 draw with Brentford in October 2022. Their last such win was in May 2022 at Leeds United (3-0) – which was their final away league game of the 2021-22 campaign.
Brighton have won 16 of their 33 Premier League home games under Roberto De Zerbi (D9 L8). A win over Chelsea will mean the Italian has won more matches with the Seagulls at the Amex Stadium in the competition than any other manager, overtaking Graham Potter’s 16 wins in 60 such games (Chris Hughton won 13 of 38).
If James Milner features for Brighton in this game, it will be the 38th different time he’s played against Chelsea in the Premier League – the joint-most any player has faced an opponent in the competition’s history (Ryan Giggs also 38 v Liverpool).
Cole Palmer has had a hand in 31 Premier League goals this season (21 goals, 10 assists), with only three Chelsea players contributing more goal involvements in a single season in the competition: Didier Drogba in 2009-10 (39 – 29G, 10A), Frank Lampard in 2009-10 (36 – 22G, 14A), and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in 2000-01 (32 – 23G, 9A).
Nicolas Jackson has been directly involved in five goals in his last three Premier League games for Chelsea (4 goals, 1 assist), as many as in his previous 11 such games (3 goals, 2 assists). Indeed, with 14 league goals already this term, none of which have been penalties, he could be the first player for the Blues to score 15 non-penalty goals in a Premier League season since Tammy Abraham in 2019-20.
Match officials
Referee: Michael Salisbury.
Assistants: Richard West, Derek Eaton.
Fourth official: Andy Davies.
VAR: Peter Bankes.
Assistant VAR: James Mainwaring.