Brighton, like Brentford and Bournemouth, still has a small chance of playing in the Conference League next year. In fact, exceptionally, eighth place this year would be enough to secure a place in a continental competition, in this case the third most important. However, their chances have suddenly diminished following Crystal Palace’s sensational FA Cup victory, which saw them surprise Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City last Saturday to win their first title in their history and qualify directly for the Europa League (despite finishing 12th in the league).
This means that whether eighth place will actually qualify for the Conference will depend entirely on Chelsea and their final position, as the Blues, in addition to being in the Conference League final, can still finish in the top six, effectively freeing up an additional spot. In any case, Brighton will certainly have more motivation than Liverpool in the postponed match of the 37th round. The Seagulls, ninth with 55 points, seem to have lifted their heads in recent games, picking up two wins against Newcastle and Wolverhampton and ending a nearly month-long drought that had seen them drop out of the top seven.
Liverpool, on the other hand, are rightly relaxing after winning the title well ahead of schedule. Salah and his teammates already have their minds elsewhere, and it is no coincidence that since they crushed Tottenham 5-1 with the mathematical certainty of becoming champions, they have failed to win, losing 3-1 at Stamford Bridge to Chelsea and drawing 2-2 with Arsenal. Arne Slot, the Reds’ coach, will continue to give minutes to those who have played little at Brighton, while his colleague Hurzeler will welcome back three starters in Joao Pedro, Dunk, and Veltman.
Odds comparison
Brighton’s victory is priced at 2.55 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and 2.60 on Snai. The “Over 2.5” bet is priced at 1.40 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and 1.42 on Snai.
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Prediction
In this match, the difference in motivation is likely to be decisive, despite Liverpool having won the two previous encounters between the two sides this season in the League Cup and the league (2-3 and 2-1). Brighton, who still have hopes of finishing eighth, could prevail over the Reds in another game with more than two goals in total.
Probable line-ups for Brighton-Liverpool
BRIGHTON (4-2-3-1): Verbruggen; Wieffer, Dunk, van Hecke, Estupinan; Baleba, Ayari; Minteh, Joao Pedro, Mitoma; Welbeck.
LIVERPOOL (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Bradley, Quansah, van Dijk, Tsimikas; Endo, Mac Allister; Salah, Jones, Gakpo; Luis Diaz.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-1