Everton-Brighton is a match for the nineteenth day of the Premier League and is played on Tuesday at 20:45: predictions.
Frank Lampard could breathe a long sigh of relief after his Everton side’s miraculous equaliser at home to Manchester City. The time-honoured trust granted to him by the Liverpool club will not be broken for the time being but the former Chelsea captain and coach is expected to make a decisive change of pace, starting in the next few games.
The situation of the Toffees, who managed to escape unscathed from the Etihad Stadium – where, according to initial predictions, they would have had to use the infamous abacus to count the goals they conceded – remains dramatic in any case. The league table says Everton are currently sixteenth, just one point ahead of the relegation zone. The numbers are also far from exciting when it comes to ball possession, with Lampard’s men struggling to create any noteworthy chances. In the Boxing Day defeat to Wolverhampton, the goal came from a set-piece, and against Manchester City, the first shot on goal came in the second half when Gray surprised Ederson with a real feat.
Brighton are going strong away
It remains to be seen whether, against Brighton, Lampard will decide to stick with the ultra-defensive 5-3-2 that worked so well against Guardiola’s battleship, or switch to a more unconventional 4-5-1, with the re-established Calvert-Lewin as the lone striker.
Brighton’s Gilmour
Suppose it will almost certainly be the Seagulls who will take the initiative, aiming to bring home their third consecutive away success. Roberto De Zerbi’s side tried unsuccessfully on Saturday to put the brakes on Arsenal’s race to the top, but it was a tricky task to retake a match that had already become complicated after the first minutes with Saka’s lead. At the start of the second half the Gunners were already 3-0 up, and the only thing that could be saved was the reaction in the second half, which in some ways made a 2-4 defeat less bitter. No drama, however, for the Italian coach. Who at the dawn of the second half of the season is ninth in the table, not far from Europe.
The prediction
Everton are likely to adopt the same attitude as in the Manchester game, in an attempt to counter a very offensive and swaggering team like Brighton. And it is by no means certain that they cannot succeed. However, we expect at least one goal from De Zerbi’s Seagulls, who should leave Goodison Park with a positive result.
Everton-Brighton’s likely line-up
- EVERTON (5-3-2): Pickford; Patterson, Godfrey, Coady, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Doucouré, Gueye, Iwobi; Gray, Calvert-Lewin.
- BRIGHTON (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Lamptey, Dunk, Colwill, Estupinan; Caicedo, Gross; March, Lallana, Mitoma; Trossard.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-2
