On Wednesday night, Brighton & Hove Albion and Liverpool will meet at the Amex in the fourth round of the English Football Cup, kicking off a double header of head-to-heads. A few days later, they will also meet in the Premier League.
A 5-1 thrashing of West Ham United in round three got the Reds' title defence off to a flying start, while Wolverhampton Wanderers were pushed out in a five-goal thriller by Fabian Hurzeler's squad.
Previous Matches and Head-to-head
Liverpool drubbed West Ham 5-1 in the EFL Cup quarterfinals on the way to winning their last title under Jurgen Klopp. Surprisingly, Arne Slot's side managed to pull off the same feat a little over nine months later.
All signs point to a team that hasn't lost an EFL Cup match since December 2022, and that resounding win was the third in a run of eight straight triumphs for the defending champions across all competitions as Slot tears up the record books.
On Sunday night, Liverpool's perfect away record under the Dutchman ended. Despite a thrilling 2-2 Premier League draw with Arsenal, in which they recovered from two goals down to earn a share of the spoils, it felt more like they dropped one point than two.
Not beating Arsenal puts Manchester City first in the Premier League, but Slot's men are only one point behind the Citizens. For the moment, Premier League concerns take a back seat as Liverpool look to end an unusual streak.
After losing in the fourth round, the away team has won the EFL Cup in the last four seasons. However, the upcoming hosts, Brighton, played to a less-than-ideal four-goal draw over the weekend. This pattern began in 2020-21 and continued in 2022-23 before the away team won in 2021-22 and 2023-24.
In Premier League game week nine, Hurzeler's squad conceded one of many goals in injury time, leaving Brighton supporters bewildered and Wolves fans in a state of delirium. Meanwhile, Liverpool fans undoubtedly left the Emirates as the more upbeat crew.
It looked like the Seagulls would cruise to victory against the Premier League's bottom-dwellers thanks to Danny Welbeck's and Evan Ferguson's goals. Still, a goal from Rayan Ait-Nouri doubled the lead, and Matheus Cunha scored the most unlikely of goals in the 94th minute to rescue a point for Gary O'Neil's team.
As a result of that tense draw, Wolves were able to exact some revenge for their third-round EFL Cup loss to Brighton; on September 18, Hurzeler orchestrated a 3-2 triumph that advanced the Seagulls to the round of 16 for the fourth year in a row.
Brighton will put this embarrassing streak behind them this week after losing their previous five EFL Cup fourth-round games (including three consecutive ones from 2020-21 to 2022-23). They last advanced this far in the cup in 1978-79, when they reached the quarterfinals.
However, the hosts' commendable Amex record against Liverpool could be advantageous. They have drawn their last three home matches against the Reds without losing, including a 2-1 FA Cup win in January 2023. The most recent meeting between the two teams was in March 2024, when the Merseyside giants won 2-1 at Anfield.
Brighton x Liverpool Team News
Given that Diogo Jota (abdominal), Alisson Becker (hamstring), and Harvey Elliott (foot) are all expected to sit this one out for Liverpool, Federico Chiesa (fitness) is questionable, and Conor Bradley (unspecified) is also in question, the injury situation should stay mostly the same.
If Slot thinks Real Madrid target Trent Alexander-Arnold needs a rest, he can still start the last two players, but Slot still has the option to start Joe Gomez at right-back.
In addition to Jarell Quansah and Wataru Endo, the visiting team might have Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo, who both received fresh legs up front; Gakpo, who Curtis Jones beat out for the starting position in advanced midfield against Arsenal, could now be helpful.
Meanwhile, Welbeck was declared fit to start against Wolves, much to the dismay of Brighton supporters, only one week after being stretchered off with a back injury in the victory over Newcastle United after being given oxygen.
Given that Leeds United loanee Georginio Rutter is cup-tied. Joao Pedro is still out with an ankle problem, along with Solly March (knee), Yankuba Minteh (muscle), Matt O'Riley (ankle), Adam Webster (thigh), and ex-Liverpool man James Milner (thigh), Welbeck's availability could be vital for Wednesday's game.
In addition to long-serving captain Lewis Dunk, who strained his calf during Saturday's warmup, the hosts are worried about the health of Jack Hinshelwood, who did not participate in Saturday's practice due to a minor issue.
Our Predictions
Liverpool to win @ 2.11 on Sky247.ng
As Slot pointed out, Arsenal had a day off to recuperate from their Champions League heroics before Sunday's stalemate; Wednesday's match against Brighton, who seldom struggle to score at home, will be no different.
Despite the lack of a resounding win for the travelling crowd on Wednesday, the Reds have become experts on away days in Slot's brief tenure as manager. Therefore, they should still be able to take the EFL Cup title for back-to-back seasons.
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