Although there is a fair distance between these two clubs, there’s a great rivalry between them. When the Premier League fixtures were released, most Brighton and Hove Albion fans would have been searching for when Palace make their way down to the south coast for what’s known as the M23 derby.
Both sides come into this game with some decent form. Brighton had a narrow 1-0 defeat at Manchester United on Saturday. The Lewis Dunk own goal ended a run of five league games without defeat, but they have only won one of their last four. Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho said the game was probably the hardest one his side has had this season and Brighton manager Chris Hughton can take great heart from that.
Home form has been good this season with nine points from five games since an opening day defeat to Manchester City. Since that 2-0 defeat they have only conceded five goals in five home games.
Pascal Groß put in another sterling display at Old Trafford and if Brighton can get hold of another striker in January, they have a good chance of avoiding a relegation battle. It’s games such as this though that they need to win. They must play Liverpool, Spurs and Chelsea before the end of the year so the more points they can earn against the lesser lights of the Premier League, the better.
Crystal Palace are still bottom of the Premier League, but their plight is looking a bit more promising than it was before Roy Hodgson took over. The 2-1 win over Stoke City – who earned a draw at Brighton earlier in the week – took them to eight points and only three away from safety.
Now all they must do is sort out their away form and there’s a fair amount of work to do. Six away games are yet to produce a goal or a point with 13 conceded. In all, Palace have played eight away Premier League games without scoring. The return to action of Christian Benteke is a step forward as are the recent goals from Wilfried Zaha and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Their defence isn’t such a concern when playing away. They may have conceded 13 goals but nine of them were in the two games at Manchester United and Manchester City, so just four in the other four games. With there not being such a big gap between Palace and safety plus the confidence that the win over Stoke City will bring can only be of benefit for Palace who start a run of six league games against sides currently outside the top seven.
Conclusion
Brighton and Hove Albion have surprised many since their promotion from the Championship. They start this game six points clear of the relegation zone and eight above their opponents. Brighton will be disappointed at not earning a point at Old Trafford on Saturday, but they put on a good enough display to boost confidence for the rest of the campaign.
Palace have fought hard in recent weeks and are within touching distance of getting out of the bottom three. They have started getting results at home but it’s on their travels that they need to start picking up some points, well any points really. This is an intriguing game, particularly with the rivalry between the two clubs in their first ever Premier League meeting and Palace look capable of getting a draw.
The Key Stats
Last Five Premier League Results – Most recent first
Brighton and Hove Albion – LDWDW
Crystal Palace – WDLDL
Head to Head – Last Five League Meetings
13/05/13 – Brighton and Hove Albion 0 Crystal Palace 2
10/05/13 – Crystal Palace 0 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
17/03/13 – Brighton and Hove Albion 3 Crystal Palace 0
01/12/12 – Crystal Palace 3 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
31/1/12 – Crystal Palace 1 Brighton and Hove Albion 1
- Crystal Palace have won three of their last four away games against Brighton.
- Brighton are undefeated in their last five home Premier League games.
- Brighton have only won one of their last four league games.
- Brighton have scored in each of their last six league and cup matches
- Four out of six Brighton home league and cup games have seen under 2.5 goals scored in them.
- Crystal Palace have failed to score an away league goal this season and in their last eight away league matches.
- Crystal Palace have only lost one of their last four league games.
- The Londoners have scored twice in three of their last four league matches.
- Both sides have won 37 games against each other with 24 draws.