Brighton v Arsenal: Premier League betting preview, free tip & TV details

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Brighton v Arsenal in the Premier League on Saturday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 1, 3pm Saturday

Best bet

Draw
1pt 5-2 BoyleSports

Team news

Brighton
Graham Potter has a near fully-fit squad to choose from with Jose Izquierdo (knee) the only absentee.

Arsenal
Pablo Mari, Calum Chambers, David Luiz, Sokratis, Lucas Torreira and Granit Xhaka are all missing for Arsenal. Rob Holding could return from injury.

Match preview

Arsenal could not have imagined a much worse return from lockdown than Wednesday's 3-0 loss to Manchester City and they may find it hard to get back on track when they travel to Brighton.

Mikel Arteta was humbled by his old master Pep Guardiola on his return to the Etihad Stadium and their hopes of European qualification are in the balance.

Arsenal had made a promising start against City before the introduction of the calamitous David Luiz for the injured Pablo Mari but the end result wasn’t entirely surprising. While it was Arteta’s first defeat on the road, only Norwich have won fewer away games this season than the north Londoners, who have triumphed twice in 14 matches.

Wins and goals have been hard to come by for Arsenal on their travels, even with the dangerous Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up front, and they are averaging just one goal per away game.

That has lead to more than half of Arsenal’s away games ending in draws and the weekend’s encounter brings together two sides who love to share, recording a combined 24 draws from 58 matches this season.

If 2020 has been a year to forget for the vast majority, spare a thought for Brighton fans who have yet to see their side win. It has been 175 days since the Seagulls last tasted victory and in that time they have slowly slid down the table, resuming the season two points above the relegation zone.

The south coast outfit found themselves in a similar position last term before they clawed their way to safety, and they may have to do something similar if they are to survive again with a tough run-in, featuring games against Leicester City, Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United.

Graham Potter started the season wanting his team to play a more open and expansive brand of football but they have had to become scrappy just to keep their points tally ticking. That has lead to goals becoming infrequent, and they have failed to score more than once in nine of their last ten matches.

It’s not for the want of trying though, as Brighton have managed the seventh-highest number of shots on goal this season and a patched-up Arsenal defence missing Luiz and Mari could present the hosts with a few extra opportunities, although maybe not enough to secure all three points.

Despite Arsenal’s disastrous restart, their four-game winless run against Brighton and their issues on the road, it is tough to back a home win with any confidence, especially at the odds available.

Sitting on the fence could prove the smart choice and offers plenty of value given how often these two sides have settled for a share of the spoils.

Key stat

Arsenal have won two of their 14 away games in the Premier League this season.

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