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Brighton & Hove Albion vs Tottenham Hotspur: 05/10/2019 – match preview and predicted starting XIs

Brighton & Hove Albion vs Tottenham Hotspur

Date: 05/10/2019

K/O: 12:30

Venue: Amex Stadium

Referee: Jonathan Moss

TV: BT Sport 1

Tottenham travel to the South Coast to take on Brighton & Hove Albion in the opening game of matchweek eight, with the hosts seeking their first league win since the opening weekend.

Brighton’s only victory of the season remains an emphatic triumph over league strugglers Watford – the Seagulls scored more goals in that 3-0 win than they have managed in the following six fixtures. Graham Potter has encouraged his new team to press and attack against top teams such as Manchester City, but Brighton have struggled to find the net. Of their 83 shots this season, only 26 have been on target, suggesting that a clinical mindset is what is currently missing from Potter’s team.

After seven matches, the Seagulls are hovering low above the relegation zone on six points. The defence has not been overly leaky so far and a spell of goalscoring form for Neal Maupay or others in the squad could spark a change in fortunes for the south coast outfit.

With Spurs’ inconsistent run of results compounded by a heavily unorganised defence of late, Brighton will very much fancy their chances on Saturday and will see the match as a good opportunity to grab their first league goal since mid-September and maybe even three points towards the cause. With such a closely packed early-season league table, a win would certainly boost Brighton close to the top half.

Tottenham, despite a rocky start to the season, find themselves in sixth position and will hope to secure a spot in the top four before the international break by overtaking London rivals Arsenal and West Ham with a victory over Brighton. A select few had Spurs down as title contenders at the start of the campaign, but the Lilywhites already sit ten points behind leaders Liverpool.

The unconvincing results are not just limited to the league either. A Champions League demolition at the hands of Bayern Munich on Tuesday evening highlighted the defensive instability that is currently plaguing the Spurs back-four as they conceded seven goals on their own turf. No excuses can be made for the collapse that occurred in the final ten minutes of the match and, considering the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is a metaphorical safe space for Spurs given their away results of 2019, a 7-2 drubbing is a big source of worry for Pochettino.

On the topic of away games, a loss to Brighton would be the tenth straight defeat on the road for Tottenham in the league. The North London outfit have been struggling with away days since long before the start of the 2019/20 season and a trip to Brighton, who ultimately should be no task for Spurs, doesn’t seem much less daunting than any other away match Tottenham have faced.

Team News

Brighton & Hove Albion

Brighton’s extensive injury list means that Graham Potter has a number of unavailable players to worry about. This list includes Shane Duffy, who picked up a calf injury in the League Cup tie to Aston Villa and will be unavailable on Saturday. Balogun and Bernardo also look set to miss out on Saturday, although their respective injuries may not keep them out of action for too much longer. Meanwhile, Izquierdo continues to recover from his long-term knee injury.

On a more hopeful note, Davy Propper and Solly March look to be in the latter stage of recovery from their injuries and they could make an appearance against Spurs.

Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham have not been without numerous injury concerns of their own, but their list is slowly receding, with Ndombele and Alli now back in the squad full-time. Ryan Sessegnon’s condition continues to fluctuate, and the hamstring injury will keep the left-back out on Saturday. Meanwhile, Giovani Lo Celso will remain out until the end of October.

Serge Aurier’s first-half sending off against the Saints last weekend means that the Ivorian will have to watch from the stands with a one-match suspension.

Predicted Starting XIs

Brighton & Hove Albion (3-4-3): Ryan; Burn, Dunk, Webster; Alzate, Stephens, Propper, Montoya; Mooy, Maupay, Gross

Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-2-2): Lloris; Rose, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Walker-Peters; Winks, Ndombele; Eriksen, Lamela; Kane, Son

Score Prediction: Brighton & Hove Albion 1 Tottenham Hotspur 1

We are likely to see Brighton frustrate Spurs in a similar manner to Newcastle’s win at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium earlier in the season. Tottenham’s attackers have gradually grown more confident in recent weeks, but it seems unlikely that Lloris will even be able to keep low-scorers Brighton from hitting the back of the net.

Harry Mahon

90maat's team correspondent for Tottenham Hotspur, graduate of Loughborough University and current student at the University of Surrey.

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