Last updated & checked: 10/08/2021
Both Everton and Brighton find themselves in the middle of the pack in the Premier League and have travelled similar paths to get there. For the most part, their performance quality has been just about where you’d expect, even with Brighton’s huge headline-making victory.
Brighton & Hove Albion, of course, have been best known this season for that utterly shocking 3-2 victory over Manchester United: something that would have seemed unthinkable a few months prior. While Everton have made fewer headlines, they’ve actually performed better than Brighton overall. That’s even considering Brighton’s three-match winning streak heading into this match and the fact that Everton lost their last match against – you guessed it – Manchester United.
Everton vs Brighton & Hove Albion Prediction: Everton 1-0 Brighton
If you were to purely look at the results, you’d barely put much between them in this contest. Brighton have arguably earned bigger wins: in addition to that Man United victory, they’ve also bested Wolves, Newcastle and West Ham. On the other hand, Everton have been much more consistent.
What really matters in a tournament isn’t winning but winning consistently, and quite honestly – without taking too much away from all the positives we’ve seen since Brighton moved into the Premier League – the away side’s results have sometimes been better than the performances behind them. The gap in performance in our eyes is greater than the gap in points and for that reason, we think Everton will walk away with the win here. It’ll be a tough win but a win nonetheless.
Considering most of Brighton’s losses this tournament have been against an opponent with a clean sheet at the final whistle, we think we’ll see the same here, with Everton managing a 1-0 win.
Our recommended tip: Everton win to nil
One peculiar thing about Brighton this season is that they’ve often been in games where either they have won with a clean sheet, or their opponents won with a clean sheet. In a way, this reflects the seesaw like nature of their season and performances thus far. Keeping in mind that we predict that Everton are going to win, plus this all or nothing pattern emerging from Brighton, and we think a good bet in these circumstances is for Everton to win to nil. Ladbrokes are offering medium risk odds of 31/20 on this result.
Previous matches
We’ve already mentioned how Brighton have only recently returned to the Premier League – last season in fact. Well, that shows in the history between these two sides because there are only two matches recent enough to be relevant to this upcoming contest. They played earlier this year, once in 2017 and before that, they hadn’t met since all the way back in 1983.
Their 2017 encounter will provide some hope for Brighton fans, as they managed a 1-1 standstill against Everton. This is another confidence booster alongside their Premier League upset victories. However, this year’s 2-0 loss will likely bring them back down to earth and reaffirms Everton’s position as favourites.
Top 3 Premier League Bookies
Players to watch: Theo Walcott & Glenn Murray
Everton: Theo Walcott
This is an unusual pick because Theo Walcott is one to watch but for all the wrong reasons. The Arsenal transfer started off well with Everton but has since consistently failed to deliver to the point where many consider his starting position to be under pressure. When Walcott is on fire, he is on fire, but frankly, it’s just not been happening often enough. So, this is one to watch for the future of Everton, alongside Ademola Lookman as a potential replacement.
Brighton: Glenn Murray
Striker Glenn Murray cemented his status as a legend for Brighton when he slipped a goal past Wolverhampton Wanderers last Saturday. This not only pulled victory from the jaws of defeat but also netted his 100th goal for the club, becoming the second man to do so. A huge factor in the side’s climb up the Premier League, the 35-year-old shows no signs of slowing down and is the difference maker Brighton need if they want to keep defying the odds.
