The Premier League weekend gets up and running on Friday as south coast rivals Brighton and Southampton clash at the Amex Stadium.
The Seagulls will be confident of making it a south coast double a week after they beat Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
Fabian Hurzeler and his side know that victory will hoist them as high as second in the table, albeit perhaps only temporarily before the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City get the chance to respond across the weekend.
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Seagulls can leave Saints sorry
Southampton put up a fine showing against Liverpool at St Mary’s on Sunday, coming off second-best in a five-goal thriller.
There were encouraging signs at times but also familiar frustrations. The opening goal was entirely preventable, with Saints caught over-elaborating inside their own final third, while Mohamad Salah’s winning effort followed the simplest of long balls behind a static defence.
Only Wolves have conceded more Premier League goals than Southampton. Brighton, for their part, have scored 21 league goals, a tally bettered by just five teams.
They followed their come-from-behind win over Man City by dominating Bournemouth and might have won by more had Carlos Baleba not been sent off before the hour when they led 0-2.
Russell Martin may argue that his side haven’t got as many points as their performances have merited but that won’t change the table.
Brighton did the Premier League double over Southampton in 2022/23, winning 3-1 home and away, and something similar looks probable now.
Life of Reilly just getting started
Matt O’Reilly’s Brighton debut lasted only nine minutes in September as he hobbled out of the EFL Cup win over Crawley following a crude challenge.
He had to bide his time to get fit but a second-half cameo in the win over Man City was crowned with the winning goal as he meandered in behind the Citizens and applied a cool finish.
That was the first sign for the Brighton faithful that the money paid to Celtic for his services will be well spent.
The Danish international, still only 24, was the Bhoys best player last season, scoring 18 top-flight goals north of the border and standing out as a quality operator when he played in the Champions League.
He got another run out against the Cherries and will soon be pushing for a start. He should see game-time here regardless and his clever, roving movement in the final third is exactly what Southampton have to fear.
Armstrong a candidate caution
Saints forward Adam Armstrong is perhaps being overlooked at 9/2 for a booking.
The 27-year-old pint-sized frontman was cautioned for the third time in five games in the loss to Liverpool and it brought him to five yellows already for the season in all competitions.
Leading a Saints line that has managed just nine Premier League goals in 12 games likely brings frustration with it. Armstrong has committed multiple fouls in the recent games against Liverpool, Wolves and Everton.
This could be a fiery affair and Armstrong likes to be in the thick of it, working hard for his team. There is also the chance he finds the net and gets a caution via his celebrations.
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