LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 09: General view outside the stadium prior to Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2024 at Stamford Bridge on June 09, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Chelsea are set to host Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge on September 28th, Saturday, at 15:00 local time in their matchday six meeting of the Premier League. The Blues are in terrific form and having struck eight times in their last two games in all competitions, they are hoping to continue their good run against the Seagulls, who come into the fixture off the back of five unbeaten matches.
Enzo Maresca’s men are finally starting to look like a well oiled unit with the manager also getting an idea of his primary starting eleven in recent weeks. While the team always had a solid defensive foundation, Chelsea had a year-long story of being inefficient in attack but even those concerns seem to have alleviated themselves with the offensive department firing on all guns blazing.
Chelsea will not be expected to have it easy against Brighton on Saturday, but at the same time, a win against them could significantly bolster their chances of securing a Champions League berth for 2025-26 although it is still very early in the season.
Chelsea are finally starting to see the better days after the season started with a number of injuries. Three players still remain missing for the visit of Brighton, however, with Omari Kellyman, Reece James and Romeo Lavia still serving time on the treatment table. Lavia’s participation is still subject to assessment on a day by day basis and thus, he has not been fully confirmed as an absentee. Chelsea have no suspension for the fixture.
Enzo Maresca’s side is on the lookout for a fourth straight clean sheet in all competitions, third in the Premier League, and to that note, they are expected to have Malo Gusto back at right back. Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo were not in the starting eleven against Barrow in the Carabao Cup and will come in fresh for the Brighton game to lay a solid defensive foundation.
Christopher Nkunku scored a hat-trick in the EFL Cup midweek but even with a treble, he is likely to remain behind Nicolas Jackson in the pecking order. The 23-year-old scored twice and assisted a goal against West Ham last weekend and will be hopeful of continuing his fine run of form when the Blues return to home turf in the Premier League against Brighton.
PREDICTED CHELSEA XI (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella; Fernandez, Caicedo; Sancho, Palmer, Madueke; Jackson
Brighton’s injury woes are graver than Chelsea’s with as many as six players risking exclusion from the trip to west London. Brajan Gruda, James Milner, Joao Pedro, Matthew O’Riley, Solly March and Yasin Ayari are those whose participation in the game is either ruled out or an uncertainty. Like the Blues, there are no suspension problems in the Seagulls’ camp.
Fabian Hurzeler’s charges are one of only four unbeaten teams so far in the Premier League and it will be interesting to see how they square up against Chelsea with their fine defensive record set to be tested to the limit. Offensively, they need to better as they have more draws than wins in the campaign and have averaged just 1.6 goals per game so far.
If Brighton are to get a third win of the season, Danny Welbeck will need to be important. The former Manchester United forward has three goals and an assist in the Premier League already in 2024-25 while the likes of Kauro Mitoma and Simon Adingra continue to be Brighton’s danger men as well.
PREDICTED BRIGHTON XI (4-3-3): Verbruggen; Veltman, van Hecke, Dunk, Estupinan; Baleba, Hinshelwood; Adingra, Rutter, Mitoma; Welbeck
Nicolas Jackson has been the in-form man for Chelsea in recent weeks and will need to be on top of his game for the Blues to overcome Brighton on Saturday. His challenge will be among the most difficult ones he has faced this season when he comes up against Jan Paul van Hecke.
How his movement is against the Dutchman as well as work on the ball when dropping deep will prove instrumental in determining the result of the match.
The match will be a good watch between two solid sides, especially at the back, but Chelsea should have the cutting edge in front of their home fans to clinch a narrow win over the visitors on Saturday.
Both teams are defensively strong so neither side will be easily breached but the hosts’ individual quality is likely to make the difference.
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