Brighton v Chelsea: Prediction, Tips and Odds

Brighton beat Chelsea in the FA Cup fourth round last weekend and they will be aiming to repeat the feat when the teams meet in the Premier League on Friday evening.

Brighton v Chelsea betting tips and predictions

Brighton to win @ 19/10

Brighton bounced back from their 7-0 Premier League defeat at Nottingham Forest with a 2-1 home victory over Chelsea in the fourth round of the FA Cup last weekend.

The teams meet again in Friday's league fixture at the Amex Stadium and the hosts look a tempting price to complete a swift double over the Blues.

After their mauling by Forest at the City Ground, Albion must have been fearing the worst when keeper Bart Verbruggen's own goal gifted Chelsea a fifth-minute lead.

However, the Seagulls swiftly levelled through Georginio Rutter, before winger Kaoru Mitoma's deft finish in the second half sealed a 2-1 win for the hosts.

Chelsea felt there had been a handball in the build-up to Brighton's winner, which came in the 57th minute, but they were unable to channel their sense of injustice into decent goalscoring chances.

Despite chasing the game for more than half an hour, Enzo Maresca's men mustered only one shot on target and centre-forward Christopher Nkunku struggled to impose himself.

Nkunku is likely to retain his place in the starting line-up as first-choice striker Nicolas Jackson has been ruled out until April and talented youngster Marc Guiu is also sidelined.

The visitors are clinging on to fourth spot in the Premier League, but they have won only two of their last eight games and both of those victories came at Stamford Bridge.

A home win would take Brighton to within six points of the Blues, setting up a push for European qualification and they are capable of seeing off the Londoners for the second time in six days.

Over 1.5 first-half goals @ 5/4

Both teams have scored in eight of the last nine meetings between Brighton and Chelsea and September's league game in west London was a dramatic encounter.

Chelsea won 4-2 with all six goals coming in the first 41 minutes, as Blues star Cole Palmer became the first player in Premier League history to score four times in the first half of a match.

Last weekend's cup tie also got off to a cracking start. Verbruggen's own goal in the fifth minute was cancelled out by Rutter's equaliser 10 minutes later, so backing over 1.5 first-half goals on Friday looks like a solid bet.

It has been a winner in three of Brighton's last four matches in all competitions. Their 3-1 victory at Manchester United was 1-1 after 23 minutes while they trailed Forest 3-0 after just 32 minutes at the City Ground.

Both teams have been short of clean sheets this season and that defensive frailty may lead to another lively opening period.

Marc Cucurella to be booked @ 15/8

Chelsea's contingent of former Brighton players can expect a hostile reception at the Amex Stadium, where midfielder Moises Caicedo has been booked on both of his appearances since leaving the Seagulls.

Left-back Marc Cucurella is another leading candidate for a card, especially as he is likely to be up against exciting Brighton winger Yankuba Minteh.

Cucurella has received six yellow cards and one red in the Premier League this season and one of those cautions came in September's home win over his former club.

The Spain international is a regular name in referees' notebooks, having been booked 10 times in just 20 league starts for Chelsea last season and he may struggle to stay out of trouble at the Amex.

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Brighton v Chelsea odds

Brighton - 19/10
Draw - 13/5
Chelsea - 13/10

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.