Burnley vs Brighton: Premier League preview, team news, stats, prediction, kick-off time
Burnley without Dale Stephens but Nick Pope back; Brighton missing Danny Welbeck; Follow Burnley vs Brighton in our dedicated live match blog; Watch free match highlights on Sky Sports digital platforms and YouTube channel at 5.15pm
Saturday 14 August 2021 16:22, UK
Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Burnley vs Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday (kick-off 3pm).
Team news
Burnley will be without Dale Stephens and Kevin Long when they open their Premier League campaign by hosting Brighton on Saturday.
Midfielder Stephens, a former Brighton player, and defender Long remain unavailable as they continue their recoveries following surgery.
Nick Pope and Phil Bardsley are fit again after knee and hernia operations respectively, and Sean Dyche's matchday squad is also set to feature summer signings Nathan Collins and Wayne Hennessey.
Tariq Lamptey and Danny Welbeck are among five injured players unavailable for Brighton.
The pair, who have hamstring and thigh issues respectively, are joined on the sidelines by new goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen (ankle), defender Dan Burn and midfielder Moises Caicedo (both knee).
Zambia midfielder Enock Mwepu, signed from RB Salzburg last month, could make his Premier League debut.
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How to follow
Follow Burnley vs Brighton in our dedicated live match blog. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel at 5.15pm.
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Opta stats
- Burnley have won just one of their last seven home league games against Brighton (D4 L2), winning 1-0 in the Premier League in December 2018.
- Of the 517 Premier League fixtures to have been played at least eight times, Burnley against Brighton has the fifth lowest goals-per-game ratio, with just 12 goals being scored in the eight meetings between the sides (1.5 per game).
- After losing their opening fixture in each of their first three Premier League campaigns, Burnley have lost their first match in just one of their last four top-flight seasons (W2 D1). However, that loss did come against Leicester City last season.
- Brighton have lost their opening fixture in three of their four Premier League campaigns, beating Watford 3-0 in 2019-20 in the other.
- Burnley are winless in their last 10 home league games (D5 L5) since beating Aston Villa 3-2 in January. Only once in their league history have they had a longer run without a win at Turf Moor, going 11 games between April-November 1979 in the second tier.
Jones Knows' Prediction
It's all been very quiet at Burnley. Perhaps too quiet.
Sean Dyche has entered the last year of his contract and a lack of investment over the summer, despite the club boasting new owners, is a plotline that will undoubtedly thicken as the season progresses. However, we're accustomed to a lack of noise or drama emanating from the corridors at Turf Moor and it's predicted that Dyche will yet again make Burnley a tough nut to crack at this level, grabbing enough points along the way to keep them above trouble.
A return of supporters should be a particular boost for Dyche's boys who, if they fail to win here, will equal a club-record 11 home league games without a win, set in 1979. At the prices, I'm happy to invest in the Clarets to end this poor run of form with their crowd back in attendance, with the draw no bet angle at 11/10 with Sky Bet rating as more than fair.
Having the draw on your side as insurance makes sense as both meetings between these two last season were drawn, and eight of the last 11 meetings have ended in stalemate. Brighton are unlikely to seriously change their results output with no real star addition to their forward line. I'm expecting more of the same from them this season under Graham Potter. Easy on the eye but tame in front of goal.
SCORE PREDICTION: 2-1
BETTING ANGLE: Burnley draw no bet (11/10 with Sky Bet)
The Essential Football Podcast: 21/22 Premier League season preview
The Premier League is back! New signings, new teams, old rivalries resumed and fresh hope, all to the sweet sound of full stadiums. Kate Burlaga is joined by Nick Wright and Gerard Brand to preview another nine months of drama in the top flight.
PART 1: Are City still the side to beat? And who will challenge them? Man Utd, Chelsea, Liverpool assessed
PART 2: Will the north London gloom lift? Leicester in focus and surprise package: Leeds, Aston Villa and Everton tipped
PART 3: How will promoted trio Brentford, Watford and Norwich fare? Plus: New managers assessed, and can West Ham deal with European distraction?
