Arsenal vs Brighton & Hove Albion
Two of England’s in-form teams are set to do battle in the EFL Cup on Wednesday when Arsenal entertain Brighton and Hove Albion in a third-round tie at the Emirates.
It’s a meeting of first versus sixth in the Premier League, and it gives Mikel Arteta a chance to use some of his fringe players while the Seagulls aim to continue their momentum under new boss Roberto De Zerbi.
Arsenal come into the game on the back of a highly impressive 1-0 win over Chelsea while Brighton won 3-2 away to Wolves to make it back-to-back victories for the south coast club.
Both teams have a good chance of going deep into the competition if they negotiate this tie; the Gunners are at SBOTOP odds of 15.00 to win the trophy while the Seagulls are at 21.00.
Talking Points
Arsenal happy to fight on four fronts
If ever there was a case for sticking with a manager then Mikel Arteta’s progress at the Emirates is surely it. Pep Guardiola’s former number two has kept to his principles and his team is now playing an attractive brad of football with same spectacular results. Arsenal are top of the Premier League table with a third of the season completed and they won their Europa League group as some of the fringe players successfully stepped up.
The Gunners were totally dominant in their meeting with Chelsea on Sunday, a match expected to give Arteta’s team a serious test which they passed with flying colours. The success of Martin Odegaard as captain, Granit Xhaka’s superb form and Gabriel Jesus leading an exciting attack are three of the factors which have turned Arsenal from a team of also-rans to contenders.
But Arteta has been happy to use his squad to the full and he will rest some of his senior players for the clash with Brighton. Much like his ex-boss at Manchester City, Arteta wants to win every competition he is in and, with the FA Cup third round draw not too far away, he will have four pieces of silverware in view…providing his young guns can see off the Seagulls.
23-year-old striker Eddie Nketiah might well get a start, while Portuguese midfielder Fabio Vieira will also be pushing for a place. Centre-back William Saliba has settled well on his return to the Emirates and he could line up alongside Rob Holding.
Arteta wants to win this match and he’ll have plenty of experience on the bench.
De Zerbi beginning to make his mark
After enduring a tricky baptism as Brighton boss, De Zerbi has guided his team to back-to-back wins in a superb manner. The Seagulls hammered Chelsea 4-1 last week and they followed that up by edging a five-goal thriller away to battling Wolves.
The experienced Adam Lallana gave Brighton an early lead at Molineux, but goals from Goncalo Guedes and Ruben Neves put the hosts in charge. Kaoru Mitoma headed an equaliser to set up a grandstand finish as Pascal Gross blasted his late effort high into the net to take all three points.
The victory took Brighton above their old boss Graham Potter’s Chelsea. and it stayed that way when Arsenal beat the Blues on Sunday.
History
These two teams have met 12 times over the last decade and the Gunners have their noses in front in the head-to-head results with five victories to four, and there have been three draws. Brighton won the last meeting, a 2-1 victory at the Emirates in the Premier League in April, a result which gave Arteta concerns that his side had handed the initiative to Spurs in the race for the top four. He was right to be worried as the Gunners finished fifth.
In terms of recent form the high-flying hosts are in better nick, with four wins, a defeat (to PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League) and a draw in their last six games, while the Seagulls have won two, drawn one and lost three in the Premier League.
Arsenal have won 13 home matches in a row and that is a record they will be desperate to extend.
Betting Tip
The EFL Cup 2022 betting odds make the Gunners hot favourites to win this game at a price of 1.63, with the Seagulls at 3.97 and the draw at 3.49, and the most likely score line is 2-1 to Arsenal at a price of 6.37.
I suspect the Gunners will come through, but De Zerbi’s attacking Seagulls will take the game to their hosts and I am expecting plenty of goals, not to mention EFL Cup 2022 highlights.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT))
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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