Brighton welcome Aston Villa to the Amex Stadium in this afternoon’s Premier League opener. Both teams have ambitions – but both also have question marks to answer.
Brighton have already been served European Cup football this season. In midweek, they drew away in the first round of the Conference League play-offs. Now the league awaits – and a new challenger in Aston Villa, who have undergone major changes this summer.
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Several of Villa’s mainstays are gone, and Unai Emery’s side will have to find a new identity. Brighton, on the other hand, will be hoping to capitalise on the uncertainty and secure three points in front of their own crowd.
This is how the teams line up
Brighton (XI): Verbruggen – Dunk, Hinshelwood, Georgino, Gross – Boscagli, Gomez, Ayari – Wieffer, De Cuyper, Vuskovic
The bench: Steele, Struijk, Promise, Osman, Kostoulas, Costinha, Svoboda, Yalcouye, Yohanna
Aston Villa (XI): Bizot – Cash, Lindelöf, Barkley, McGinn – Kamara, Buendía, Pau – Maatsen, Gomes, Hemmings
The bench: Suzuki, Mings, Ruggeri, Garnacho, Bogarde, Rowe, Alysson, Burrowes, Lynch
How to watch the match
Kick-off is at 14:00. The match will be broadcast on Sky Sports Football and streamed via Sky Go.
Our verdict: A close game – we believe in points sharing
This is one of the most difficult to predict this round. Brighton did not impress much in the European Cup on Thursday, but Villa are also a team in change under Emery. New faces, new relationships – and both teams need time.
Our tip: Brighton 1-1 Aston Villa – a shared dividend that neither will be completely happy with, but which both can live with.
