The evening Boxing Day game comes from the south coast, as Arsenal look to gather form once again and avoid a repeat of last season's result at the Amex.
Brighton v Arsenal (Amex Stadium, 1715 GMT, Sky Sports Main Event)
A lot has changed since these two sides met on the south coast in March. Mostly for Arsenal and, so far, mostly for the best.
A Seagulls victory made calls for Arsene Wenger's tenure to end even louder. It eventually happened and his replacement Unai Emery is picking up the plaudits this term.
His side went on a long unbeaten run before it was ended by Southampton - then another defeat in the Carabao Cup followed at the hands of Tottenham - but they responded well with a convincing victory over Burnley on Saturday to be well in with a shout of a top four finish. Even Mesut Ozil impressed!
Brighton, meanwhile, have progressed nicely since last season. The threat of relegation still looms, but their away form has picked up under Chris Hughton this time around and, going into the Boxing Day fixtures, they are nine points clear of the bottom three. That is despite losing their last three matches in succession and it does not get any easier here.
Betting guide
Score prediction: Brighton 1-3 Arsenal (Sky Bet odds: Price Boosted to 14/1)
The Gunners have arguably made strides under Spanish tactician Emery. On Saturday the Arsenal of old could easily have lost again after going unbeaten for so long, but they hit three against Burnley and are expected to continue in the same fashion as they look to keep the pressure on Chelsea for the final top four place. This sort of fixture is a bit of a free hit for the Seagulls, but they did beat Manchester United here earlier in the season so a surprise result is not out of question.
Best bets: Corners taken: Arsenal on -1 handicap at 21/20
With plenty of chances expected for the visiting side, set pieces could be crucial. Brighton have taken the second-fewest corners in the Premier League this season while Arsenal average around six per game. Backing Arsenal to take more is heavily odds on, so this on a -1 handicap looks like great value.
RequestABet: Arsenal to score 2+ goals, Murray and Aubameyang both to score at 7/1
Opta facts
- Brighton have lost five of their last six games against Arsenal in all competitions, however did win the most recent meeting between the two (2-1 in March 2018).
- Arsenal have scored at least two goals in five of their last six games against Brighton in all competitions (W5 L1), netting 14 goals in total.
- Brighton have won each of their last three home games against Arsenal in the top-flight, after losing the first two such meetings.
- Arsenal have kept a clean sheet in six of their 10 games against Brighton in the top-flight, conceding just six goals in total in this run.
- Brighton haven’t won any of their last nine league games played on Boxing Day (W0 D3 L6), since beating QPR 1-0 in 2005-06.
- Arsenal have lost just one of their last 13 Premier League played games on Boxing Day (W10 D2), losing 0-4 at Southampton in 2015-16.
- Brighton have lost their last three Premier League games. They’ve never lost four in a row in the competition, last doing so within the same top-flight season in 1982-83.
- Arsenal have scored at least twice in all eight of their away Premier League games this season – they could become the first team to score 2+ goals in their first nine away games in a single top-flight campaign.
- Brighton striker Glenn Murray has scored two goals in 125 minutes played against Arsenal in all competitions (four appearances), including the winner for the Seagulls in this fixture last season (2-1).
- Since his debut in February, Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored at least twice in six different Premier League games, twice as many as any other player.
Odds correct at 1310 GMT on 24/12/18
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