Premier League: Liverpool Out to Spoil De Zerbi’s Brighton Debut

Liverpool vs Brighton & Hove Albion

Amid postponements and the international break, Liverpool are finally set to return to Premier League action for the first time in nearly a month as they host Brighton at Anfield.

A lot has changed since the Seagulls last set foot on the pitch. Graham Potter has moved on to Chelsea, and Roberto De Zerbi has been hired as the new head coach.

The Italian will have quite the tough task ahead of him in his Brighton bow as the Premier League 2022 betting odds will have them as massive underdogs against the Reds, who are eager to return to top form.

Talking Points

Reds getting back to full strength

After a lengthy break, Liverpool are back to jumpstart their disappointing Premier League campaign. The Reds are down in eighth with just nine points from their first six games.

The last time Liverpool were in action in the Premier League, they were held to a goalless draw by Everton in the Merseyside derby. They since had matches against Wolves and Chelsea postponed due to the Queen’s passing.

The Reds did play a couple of matches in the Champions League, though; they were demolished 4-1 by Napoli, but they bounced back to beat Ajax 2-1 at Anfield.

While they needed a late Joel Matip winner, Jurgen Klopp’s side produced one of their best performances of the season against Ajax as they had a 24-3 advantage in shots.

Andy Robertson and Jordan Henderson were absent from that match, but the return of both Matip and midfielder Thiago Alcantara has been a major boost for the Reds.

Robertson is not yet ready to return from his knee injury, so Kostas Tsimikas will continue to deputise at left-back. Meanwhile, captain Jordan Henderson – who featured in England’s final Nations League match – could take Harvey Elliott’s spot in the starting lineup.

New Brighton boss finally set for bow

Brighton are finally set to play their first match of the Roberto De Zerbi era. The 43-year-old Italian was selected to succeed Graham Potter, who left to take on the Chelsea job, but he has had to wait to make his debut amid the recent postponements.

De Zerbi is a highly regarded coach who plays entertaining possession-based, attacking football. He was most recently coach of Shakhtar Donetsk, who were on top of the Ukrainian Premier League before the season was prematurely terminated due to the Russian invasion.

De Zerbi will take charge of a Brighton side that is flying high the season. The Seagulls are up fourth in the league and were last seen thrashing Leicester City 5-2, one of the most impressive Premier League 2022 results thus far. And despite conceding twice, Brighton still have the best defensive record in the league with just five goals conceded.

Striker Enock Mwepu was hospitalised while on international duty with Mali and has returned to England for medical tests, so he is a major question mark to play against Liverpool.

If Mwepu does miss out, it remains to be seen who De Zerbi picks to partner Danny Welbeck up front. Pascal Gross and Leandro Trossard both played as forwards under Potter and have combined for five goals this season.

Meanwhile, Alexis Mac Allister will likely continue to be a major part of De Zerbi’s system. The 23-year-old midfielder – who recently played in both of Argentina’s friendlies during the break – is the Seagulls’ leading scorer with four goals.

History

Liverpool have dominated Brighton over the years. The Reds hold a 20-5 edge in all-time wins, while there have been 10 draws. That advantage has been even more pronounced in the Premier League, where the Reds have won seven of 10 meetings, with just one Brighton win.

Although, that one Brighton win was at Anfield back in February 2021. Steven Alzate scored the only goal in a famous 1-0 victory for the Seagulls. And Brighton were again a thorn in Liverpool’s side last season as they stormed back from two goals down to hold the Reds to a 2-2 draw at Anfield.

However, Liverpool finally got the better of Brighton in the reverse fixture as they won 2-0 at the Amex thanks to goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah.

Betting Tip

SBOTOP odds have Liverpool installed as massive 1.35 favourites to make a winning return at Anfield. Brighton are priced at 7.80 to get a win in De Zerbi’s debut, while a draw is 5.00.

With Liverpool back close to full strength, they will be quite tough to beat at home. They showed signs of returning to their dominant form against Ajax, and with some of their key players spared from international duty – Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold – they should be relatively fresh.

Roberto De Zerbi had the benefit of extra time working with the squad during the break, but it will likely take more time to get his system up and running.

Look for Liverpool to get off to a fast start at home against Brighton en route to a much-needed home win.

 

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