Under pressure Chelsea will hope to get back to winning ways as they travel to Brighton for a crucial Premier League match on Tuesday.
Chelsea’s Champions League hopes took a big hit on Saturday when they lost their match against Manchester United, which leaves them in sixth. Meanwhile, the form is with Brighton who secured a 2-2 draw against Tottenham and are still in contention to play in Europe next season.
Here’s all you need to know about the match:
How to watch
The match will be broadcast on Sky Sports in the UK, NBC in the U.S., JioHotstar in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN’s live coverage here.
Key Details
Kick-off time: Tuesday, April 21, at 8 p.m. BST (3:00 p.m. ET; 12:30 a.m. IST; and 5 a.m. AEST, Wednesday).
Venue: American Express Stadium, Brighton.
Referee: Craig Pawson.
VAR: James Bell.
Team news
Brighton
Adam Webster – knee, OUT
James Milner – muscle, OUT
Stefanos Tzimas – ACL, OUT
Chelsea
João Pedro – thigh injury, OUT
Levi Colwill – ACL, OUT
Reece James – hamstring, OUT
Jamie Gittens – hamstring, OUT
Estêvão – hamstring, OUT
Talking Points:
Chelsea’s struggles continue with latest loss
At a stage where Chelsea need to show their best, they come up with their worst. They are now in real danger of missing out on the Champions League next season after losing their last four Premier League matches. In fact, they didn’t score a single goal in those four defeats, it’s five if their Champions League second leg round of 16 match against PSG is also included.
It’s a terrible run under Liam Rosenior, who admits the team has a mountain to climb in their objective to achieve Champions League football, with chants of “we want our Chelsea back” heard during the match against United.
There’s no denying that Rosenior is under serious pressure. Even when he was appointed, there were a few doubts whether he was equipped to deal with the pressure that comes with coaching a club like Chelsea. The ownership might be convinced, citing chances of long-term success, but missing out on Champions League will have big repercussions for the club.
What has happened to Cole Palmer?
Chelsea have also suffered this season because their most influential player in the past two seasons has struggled with inconsistency.
His body has let him down with a persistent groin injury that prevented him from playing regularly but Palmer was ineffective in two big games against Manchester City and United.
Palmer admitted that he has only recently started playing freely again, however, Chelsea will need him at his absolute best in the upcoming matches. Even in a tough season, the 23-year-old has hit double-digits in goals.
Brighton still pushing for Europe
Brighton went behind twice against Tottenham but still managed to get a point from the game. Georginio Rutter‘s last-minute goal secured a 2-2 draw for the visitors, keeping their European ambitions for next season alive.
Brighton are just a point behind seventh placed Brentford and are undefeated in their last four league games. In their last home game, they defeated Liverpool and will fancy their chances on Tuesday. Fabian Hürzeler’s team will face competition from the likes of Brentford, Bournemouth, Everton and of course Chelsea themselves for European qualification, but it seems they have hit a good run of form at the right time.
Pascal Gross’ signing a big win for Brighton
Brighton’s recruitment has been one of their biggest strengths in the past few years and an example for other teams in the league.
Joining the likes of James Milner and Danny Welbeck, Pascal Gross’ signing this term has proved a masterstroke.
Gross, who was with Brighton for seven years before departing for Borussia Dortmund, came back to his old club in January and quickly made his impact. The 34-year-old has assisted thrice in 14 games, including a superb cross to Kaoru Mitoma‘s for his equaliser against Tottenham. He’s second behind Yankuba Minteh (39) in total chances created (28) despite only joining the club in the winter window.
His attacking contributions will be key as Brighton aim to end the season on a high.
What do the numbers say?
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Brighton have won their last two league games against Chelsea, as many as they had in their previous 19 matches against the same opponent.
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Danny Welbeck has been involved in seven goals for Brighton in eight league matches against Chelsea (5 goals and 2 assists).
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Cole Palmer has five goals in his last three league games against Brighton.
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Brighton head coach Fabian Hürzeler has never lost a league match against an English manager in nine matches (7 wins, 2 draws).
