- Chelsea have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five matches, with a 3-0 win over AC Milan and 3-1 win over Real Sociedad showing their bite.
- Brighton & Hove Albion have won four and drawn one of their last five, so the Seagulls are unbeaten in their last five.
Seagulls have a good record against the Blues
Xabi Alonso took over as Chelsea head coach on 1 July 2026 and has introduced a control-first approach based around a back three, with proactive pressing and overloading the wings with wing-backs. In their five fixtures under the Spaniard, Chelsea have won twice, drawn once and lost twice, which isn't quite the record they need to secure top-four football.
In contrast, Fabian Hurzeler has been in charge of Brighton & Hove Albion since 15 June 2024 and his high-tempo, high-press approach has led the Seagulls to some incredible performances. Brighton & Hove Albion keep the ball at their feet when they have it, but their game plan is all about maintaining pressure and fast transitions, as their recent results show.
Chelsea will need to work for this
Brighton & Hove Albion have won four and drawn one of their five matches since Chelsea last faced them at the start of November, when the Seagulls beat the Blues 3-0, to complete a hat-trick of wins in this fixture. This is a close match, so the odds are a little surprising with Chelsea 97/100, Brighton 49/20 and the draw 27/10.
At home, Chelsea have won four and lost two of their six fixtures in all competitions, but they have also conceded nine goals in that time. While that won't please Alonso, Brighton have also been leaking goals, with seven scored in their last five and Jack Hinshelwood has been the main man with three of them.
Both teams can strike
Both of these sides are good going forward, but their defensive weaknesses mean they both concede goals. Chelsea have scored 14 goals in their last five with Joao Pedro bagging seven of them, while Brighton will try to get their foot in the game, so both teams to score at 31/50 is the best play here.
Over 2.5 goals at 7/10 also looks excellent. Across five previous head-to-heads, Chelsea have averaged 2.5 goals in their home meetings, while Brighton have hit the same average away at Stamford Bridge, so this should be a lively encounter.
