Brighton will defend their third place in the Premier League when they host Brentford in the 10th round. At the same time, Bournemouth will visit Ipswich in pursuit of an eighth consecutive victory in all competitions.
Both matches are scheduled for 14:00 British time, or 16:00 Bulgarian time.
Brighton head into the match after wins over Arsenal and Manchester City
Brighton occupy third place with 19 points from nine matches. Fabian Hürzeler’s side have six wins, one draw and two defeats, with a goal difference of 24:7.
The “Seagulls” defeated Arsenal 2:0 at home, and in their most recent league match they won 1:0 away to Manchester City. Between those two successes, the team also recorded a convincing 5:0 victory over Sunderland.
One of Brighton’s defining features this season has been their effectiveness from set pieces. The team have scored seven goals from corners, direct free-kicks and throw-ins, which is the best record in the Premier League.
Their upcoming opponents, however, are also in the top half of the table. Brentford are seventh with 14 points and ended their winless run with a victory over Nottingham Forest in the previous round.
Keith Andrews has no new serious selection problems. Yehor Yarmolyuk returns from suspension, while Fábio Carvalho and Rico Henry remain unavailable.
Bournemouth arrive at Ipswich on a seven-match winning run
Bournemouth have climbed to eighth place with 12 points after three consecutive league wins. The team beat Sunderland 2:0, Manchester United 3:0 and Leeds 2:0.
Their run in all competitions now stands at seven matches. During that spell, Bournemouth have scored 19 goals and conceded just one. Thursday’s Europa League victory over Sparta Prague further boosted the confidence of Marco Rose’s side.
Evanilson is among the key figures in attack. The Brazilian has scored six times in his last seven matches in all competitions, including in three consecutive away games.
Ipswich are 14th with 11 points. Gary O'Neil’s team have not won any of their last three matches, but they have already scored 14 goals after nine rounds, their best tally at this stage of a season in their last seven Premier League campaigns.
“This is a difficult test. They have obviously found a good way of playing at the moment and have excellent players,” Gary O'Neil said about Bournemouth.Ipswich have won two of their four home matches this season. Bournemouth, for their part, have scored in eight consecutive away league matches, but have only one win in their four away games during the current campaign.
The results put Brighton and Bournemouth in different positions ahead of their matches, but both games offer a serious test for teams pursuing a place in the top half of the table.
Sources: fourfourtwo.com, sports.yahoo.com, thestatszone.com