Brighton v Crystal Palace: Attritional battle in store on south coast

Brighton & Hove Albion v Crystal Palace
Tuesday, 19:45

United loss unlikely to rock Brighton

Not all losses are created equal and Brighton should be able to take Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Manchester United in their stride. The Seagulls, who went into that game in fine form - five games unbeaten and two away wins on the spin - gave a good account of themselves at Old Trafford and only a Lewis Dunk own goal separated the sides at the final whistle.

The only bad news is that there's no real let-up in the fixture list this side of the new year. Brighton face Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea over the next month, so while they have exceeded expectations in the first third of the season, Chris Hughton must be wary of complacency over the festive marathon.

Hughton has been consistent in his selections, with the only ongoing dilemma on the left flank. Solly March got the nod at the weekend, but it would be no great shock if José Izquierdo - a scorer in Brighton's last home game against Stoke - returned to the side here. The only other changes would be to preserve fresh legs.

Palace boosted by timely win

After a run of encouraging performances but frustrating results, Crystal Palace finally returned to winning ways at the weekend. Yes, it took a last-gasp Mamadou Sakho strike to see the Eagles past Stoke, but that felt like just the kind of breakthrough moment the Eagles needed (and probably deserved) after a pair of 2-2 home draws and a pair of 1-0 away losses.

The victory could not have come at a better time, either, with Palace now making the trip to the south coast for... well, it's not quite obvious what it is, but 'long-distance derby' probably best characterises this rivalry. Roy Hodgson will be well aware what this game means to the Palace fans, so we can expect a steely performance from Palace here at the very least.

The big selection question is whether Christian Benteke will be deemed ready to return to the starting XI. The big Belgian played 45 minutes at the weekend and while he will take some time to find his form again, his presence gives Palace a focal point they lack when Wilfried Zaha leads the line.

Stalemate a real possibility

Brighton are unbeaten at home since starting their Premier League campaign with defeat to Manchester City and can be backed at 2.74 to claim three points on Tuesday night. But their last three at the American Express Community Stadium have all ended all-square (1-1 vs Everton, 1-1 vs Southampton, 2-2 vs Stoke), which will provide encouragement to Palace.

The Eagles have lost all of their away games so far, so we won't be backing them at 3.00, but they made a reasonable fist of trips to face Newcastle and Spurs, showing plenty of grit and determination. The draw could be worthy of attention at 3.20, therefore.

Don't expect a goal fest

Palace have scored one away goal all season. Four of Brighton's six home league games have gone under the 2.5-goal mark. With neither attack especially potent an attritional battle probably in store, the unders looks the way to go.

But 1.62 is a fairly measly price, so a better option is to back the 0-0 half-time score. This would have paid out in three of Palace's six away games (including the last two), plus three of Brighton's home games.

Murray aiming to down old friends

Brighton will be hoping for more heroics from Glenn Murray, who has four goals in his last five Seagulls games. He would likely experience mixed emotions were he to notch against his former employers, but looks the most likely option and should be priced at around 3.40 at kick-off.

Recommended Bets
Back the draw at 3.20
Back 0-0 half-time score at 2.50