Chelsea will look to clinch the first win in Frank Lampard’s second stint at the helm when they welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The games continue to come thick and fast across Europe, with Gameweek 31 kicking off in the Premier League. The latest round of fixtures kicks off with the match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United at Villa Park. And the action will continue in the capital, with Chelsea hosting Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge.
For Chelsea, 2022/23 has been an unprecedented season, with Frank Lampard the fourth manager in charge of the club. Thomas Tuchel bit the dust less than one month into the campaign, while Graham Potter left nearly two weeks ago.
Bruno Saltor was the interim boss for the game against Liverpool before Frank Lampard returned for a spell as the caretaker coach. However, Lampard’s second stint has not started as well as he would have liked, with Chelsea losing both games thus far. And as the Blues’ search for a new manager continues, they will hope to end the season strongly.
On the other hand, Brighton & Hove Albion have been on a roll thus far this season. They lost Potter when he joined Chelsea, replacing him with Roberto De Zerbi. And the Seagulls have improved considerably under the Italian tactician, whose stock has also risen as a result. They are seven points behind fifth-placed Tottenham, having played two games fewer than the North London club.
Brighton & Hove Albion blew Chelsea away in the reverse fixture, cruising to a 4-1 win at the Amex Stadium. The match featured two own goals, while Leandro Trossard and Pascal Gross found the back of the net for the Seagulls. Meanwhile, Kai Havertz netted the consolation striker. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Chelsea
Watch Frank Lampard look ahead to #CheBha. https://t.co/M3U3Y8R0Ta
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 14, 2023
Frank Lampard has a new injury concern hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. Against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, the Chelsea manager will be bereft of the services of three first-team players.
Kalidou Koulibaly is the latest absentee after sustaining a hamstring injury against Real Madrid this week. The Senegalese defender will be unavailable for the foreseeable future. Koulibaly has joined Carney Chukwuemeka (knock) and Armando Broja (knee) on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, the quick turnover of games means Lampard will likely make rotations to keep his troops fresh. Chief among these players will be N’Golo Kante, whose fitness has been a major issue for Chelsea this season.
Kante will not start against Brighton on Saturday, with Mason Mount likely returning to the eleven in his place. The English international should join Mateo Kovacic and Enzo Fernandez in the middle of the park.
Meanwhile, Lampard should shift to a 4-3-3 formation after preferring the 3-5-2 system against Real Madrid. And amid all the shuffles, Lampard should rest Thiago Silva, with Benoit Badiashile pairing up with Wesley Fofana in the central defensive partnership. Reece James and Ben Chilwell should be the two full-backs.
Meanwhile, Lampard is considering changing his goalkeepers. And with Edouard Mendy enjoying the best phase of his Chelsea career under Lampard, the Senegalese shot-stopper should replace Kepa Arrizabalaga between the sticks. Finally, the attacking unit should see Kai Havertz returning, with Raheem Sterling and Joao Felix completing the numbers in the final third.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Mendy; James, Wesley Fofana, Badiashile, Chilwell; Mount, Fernandez, Kovacic; Sterling, Havertz, Felix
Brighton & Hove Albion
Unlike his counterpart in the Chelsea dugout, Roberto De Zerbi does not have any new issues to deal with ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge. But the Brighton & Hove Albion manager will have one extra player unavailable this weekend.
Levi Colwill will not travel to London with the squad as he is ineligible to face his parent club. So there is no looking past Lewis Dunk and Adam Webster in the central defensive partnership this weekend.
Meanwhile, Colwill will accompany four other players on the sidelines. These include former Chelsea defender Tariq Lamptey (knee), Adam Lallana (thigh), Jakub Moder (knee), and Jeremy Sarmiento (ankle).
"I don't think I made a mistake last weekend. I am clear, I am honest and I like speaking face to face.
"I don't want to speak to much but I have no regrets. I didn't say bad words and I was respectful always." #BHAFC pic.twitter.com/CW61lrNdLS
— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) April 14, 2023
As for the rest of the defensive unit, Joel Veltman and Pervis Estupinan should start as the two full-backs. Jason Steele will continue to pip Robert Sanchez to the goalkeeping berth. And Brighton will line up in the usual 4-2-3-1 formation in front of the experienced shot-stopper.
Moises Caicedo and Pascal Gross have forged a solid central midfield partnership in the last few months. And with Caicedo no longer unsettled at Brighton & Hove Albion, he will be the key to keeping Chelsea quiet on Saturday.
Alexis Mac Allister is going from strength to strength, with Chelsea among the clubs chasing him amid an excellent season. The Argentine international will reprise the no. 10 role, with Kaoru Mitoma and Solly March being the two wide men. Finally, Evan Ferguson will spearhead the Brighton attack against the Blues this weekend.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Steele; Veltman, Dunk, Webster, Estupinan; Gross, Caicedo; March, Mac Allister, Mitoma; Ferguson
Key Stats
- Chelsea have never lost a home league game against Brighton & Hove Albion, conceding just once in seven previous meetings at Stamford Bridge (W5 D2).
- Chelsea have lost just three of their last 18 home Premier League games under Frank Lampard (W11 D4), with those defeats coming against Manchester United (0-2 in February 2020), Liverpool (0-2 in September 2020) and Manchester City (1-3 in January 2021 – Lampard’s last home league game in charge of the club in his first stint).
- Brighton & Hove Albion have lost just two of their last 12 Premier League games (W6 D4). But both of those defeats came against London clubs (vs Fulham in February and Tottenham last week). The Seagulls will be hoping to avoid back-to-back league defeats, something that has happened just once this season (vs Tottenham and Brentford in October).
- Chelsea have failed to score in their last three Premier League games, despite attempting 52 shots with an expected goals total of 5.5. The West London club last went longer without a league goal in September 2007 (4 games). Overall, the Blues have failed to score in 12 different Premier League matches in 2022/23: the most they have managed in a single campaign in the competition.
- Raheem Sterling has scored four goals in his last six Premier League appearances against Brighton, with one of his five hat-tricks in the competition coming against the Seagulls in July 2020.
Player to Watch
Mason Mount
It will be an understatement to say that Mason Mount has endured an underwhelming 2022/23 season. The English international has set high standards since establishing a foothold at Chelsea in the 2019/20 season. But amid long-dragging contract renewal talks and the Blues’ never-ending struggles, his performance levels have dipped.
The 24-year-old has been a talismanic figure for Chelsea for a long time. So with Mount not being at his best, it is hardly surprising that the Blues have been inconsistent. But with Frank Lampard at the helm for the next six weeks, Mount will hope to regain top form. If now, a summer departure might be on the cards.
Prediction
Chelsea 0-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
Stamford Bridge has not been a ground that has seen bucketloads of goals this season. The famous stadium has seen fewer strikes than any other Premier League arena this season (28 from 15 games) and over 11 fewer than expected (39.3 xG) based on Opta’s expected goals metric (the biggest negative difference for a Premier League venue this term).
Saturday’s match should not feature a lot of goalmouth action either. And with Chelsea struggling to create many opportunities, Brighton will fancy keeping a clean sheet. In addition, they will be in contention to trouble whoever takes his place between the posts.
At the same time, after an unfair defeat to Tottenham last weekend, Brighton will be desperate to set the record straight. In the end, the visitors should continue marching towards European qualification. The Hard Tackle predicts a 1-0 win for Roberto De Zerbi’s men.