Liverpool will travel to Brighton for the FA Cup on Sunday, hoping to book their place in the fifth round with a win away from home.
The last time these two sides met, Brighton & Hove Albion picked up a 3-0 win over Liverpool at the Amex Stadium about two weeks ago. The home side will be fairly confident of grinding out another positive result against Jurgen Klopp’s side.
Liverpool have had a disappointing season so far, and they are dreadfully out of form and lacking in confidence. It will be interesting to see if the Reds can step up and grind out a morale-boosting victory here.
The Merseyside outfit needed a replay to get past Wolverhampton Wanderers in the third round. Harvey Elliott’s goal made the difference in the return fixture. Meanwhile, Brighton reached the fourth round by easing past Middlesbrough.
The FA Cup is Liverpool’s best chance of winning a trophy this season, and it remains to be seen whether Liverpool can produce a strong reaction here. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Brighton & Hove Albion
EXCL: Moises Caicedo didn’t turn up for training today — he wants leave immediately. Caicedo could also miss tomorrow’s game. ⚠️ #BHAFC
🚨 Understand Arsenal are expected to improve their bid, after £60m revealed yesterday. #AFC
🔵 Chelsea offered £55m — rejected too. #CFC pic.twitter.com/Xzt2f43ACI
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 28, 2023
The home side will be without the services of Jakub Moder and Levi Colwill because of injury problems. Meanwhile, star midfielder Moises Caicedo is expected to miss out against Liverpool after skipping training.
The Ecuadorian midfielder is pushing for a move away from Brighton this month amid interest from Arsenal. And Caicedo will not feature again for the Seagulls before the January transfer window closes, according to The Athletic.
Roberto De Zerbi is expected to feel his side in a 4-3-3 formation, with Jason Steele in goal. Tariq Lamptey and Pervis Estupinan are likely to be deployed as the full-backs here. They will look to overload the flanks during counter-attacks and provide cover for the central defenders as well.
Lewis Dunk will partner with Adam Webster at the heart of the Brighton defense. In the midfield, Billy Gilmour is expected to deputise in the absence of Caicedo. Argentine international Alexis Mac Allister will start in the centre of the park and will look to control the tempo of the game.
Pascal Gross is set to start in the midfield as well, and he will look to add drive and creativity to the side. Solly March and Kaoru Mitoma were exceptional against Liverpool two weeks ago. And both players will start as the wingers here. Finally, Evan Ferguson Is set to lead the line for the home side.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Steele; Lamptey, Dunk, Webster, Estupinan; Gross, Gilmour, Mac Allister; March, Ferguson, Mitoma
Liverpool
The visiting side will be without the services of Virgil van Dijk, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Arthur Melo, and Roberto Firmino because of injury problems. Jurgen Klopp is likely to start in his preferred 4-3-3 formation as well.
Jürgen Klopp has offered an update on the progress of Luis Diaz, Roberto Firmino, Diogo Jota and Virgil van Dijk in their recovery from injury ⤵️
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 27, 2023
Caoimhin Kelleher is set to start in goal here with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kostas Tsimikas deployed as the full-backs. Both players will be expected to help create chances for their teammates and provide defensive cover as well. Ibrahima Konate will partner with Joe Gomez at the heart of the defence.
The midfield three pretty much picks itself, with Fabinho anchoring in the middle of the park. The Brazilian will look to break up play and win the ball back for his side. Thiago Alcantara and Naby Keita will look to add control and creativity from the middle.
Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho are expected to start here.. And both youngsters will look to add width and creativity from the wide areas. Finally, Darwin Nunez is set to lead the line for Liverpool against Brighton.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Konate, Tsimikas; Keita, Fabinho, Thiago; Elliott, Nunez, Carvalho
Key Stats
- Brighton have scored three goals in both of their meetings with Liverpool this season, having done so in just two of their first 35 against the Reds in all competitions. The Seagulls are looking to win consecutive games against Liverpool for the first time in their history, winning 3-0 in the Premier League earlier this month.
- Liverpool have progressed from three of their five FA Cup ties against Brighton, most recently a 6-1 victory in February 2012.
- Brighton have lost both of their FA Cup games against the holders of the competition, with both previous matches coming in the fourth round of the competition (0-2 vs Arsenal in 1979/80, 2-3 vs Arsenal in 2014/15).
- Brighton have won three of their last four FA Cup fourth round ties, although they did lose 3-1 away at Tottenham at this stage last season.
- In the current format of the competition (since 1925/26), only Wolverhampton Wanderers (30), Sheffield United (28) and West Ham United (27) have suffered more fourth round exits from the FA Cup than Liverpool (26), with the Reds losing four of their last six such ties.
Player to Watch
Darwin Nunez
Brighton will be without the services of a key defender in Levi Colwill. And the absence of Moises Caicedo could leave the centre-backs exposed. Darwin Nunez has the pace and directness to exploit Brighton’s vulnerabilities here, and the Uruguayan international will be our player to watch this weekend.
Despite not managing to find the net consistently, Nunez has caused all sorts of problems for the opposition defenses. And he could be the game-changer for Liverpool against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday.
Prediction
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 Liverpool
Both teams will be desperate for a win here, and this is likely to be a close contest. The Reds were comfortably outplayed when these two sides met each other earlier this month. But Sunday’s encounter is likely to be a close contest.
Despite the fact that Brighton are without a couple of key players, they have the quality to trouble Liverpool at the back. The Liverpool defence is simply devoid of confidence and form right now and the Reds are likely to fall short once again. The Hard Tackle predicts a narrow 2-1 win for Brighton at the weekend.
