Brighton vs Liverpool: Preview, team news and predictions as Slot’s men eye UCL spot

Liverpool will travel to the Amex Stadium tomorrow afternoon to take on Brighton and Hove Albion in the English Premier League, Afrik Foot reports.

The Merseysiders are in good spirits, having overturned a one-goal deficit against Galatasaray in the Champions League to book their place in the quarter-finals.

The mood around Arne Slot’s camp is buoyant. Still, the Premier League table tells a more complicated story, and with a top-four finish far from guaranteed, Saturday’s trip to Brighton is anything but a routine assignment.

Match Preview: Brighton vs Liverpool

Liverpool sit fifth in the Premier League with 49 points from 30 games, a position that reflects a season defined more by inconsistency than the title-winning form of the year before.

The title is already gone, surrendered to Arsenal after a campaign of too many dropped points, but the race for Champions League qualification still has plenty of twists left in it.

Florian Wirtz, Liverpool’s record signing, has been finding his feet in English football, while Hugo Ekitiké has emerged as a credible centre-forward option in what has been a transitional campaign.

The prize for Slot’s side is a direct top-four finish, though a fifth-place finish could yet be enough if an English club’s strong European record unlocks an additional Champions League berth.

Brighton, meanwhile, are a team still shaking off the scars of a difficult run. Fabian Hurzeler’s side played 12 Premier League games with just one win at one point this season, a stretch that raised real questions about his future at the club.

Sitting 12th with 40 points, the threat of relegation has been comfortably seen off, but the Seagulls have not yet recaptured the form that saw them push into the top five earlier in the campaign.

A 1-0 win at Sunderland last time out provided some much-needed relief, even if one result cannot undo months of frustration.

The Amex has been Brighton’s great leveller throughout all of this. They are notoriously difficult to beat on home soil, and Hurzeler’s use of energetic younger players like Jack Hinshelwood and Diego Gómez alongside experienced heads such as Pascal Gross and James Milner keeps the side competitive even when the broader confidence is low.

Brighton famously beat Liverpool 3-2 at this ground in May 2025, and the Seagulls have claimed positive results here against the Reds in 2023 and 2024 as well.

Head to Head: Brighton vs Liverpool

Liverpool holds a commanding overall record in this fixture, winning 14 of the 22 Premier League-era meetings between the sides, with Brighton winning four and six matches ending level.

The Reds have averaged close to 2.2 goals per game across those encounters, reflecting the consistent gulf in squad quality between the two clubs over the years.

This season alone, the balance has been entirely one-sided. Liverpool won 2-0 at Anfield in December 2025 in the Premier League, then returned to beat Brighton 3-0 in the FA Cup in February 2026, also at Anfield.

Saturday is the first time the two clubs will meet at the Amex this season, and Brighton’s supporters will be hoping recent home history can tilt the narrative back in their favour.

Team News

Brighton

Hurzeler is not expected to make sweeping changes from the side that beat Sunderland, with continuity the sensible call after a positive result on the road.

Adam Webster (knee), Kaoru Mitoma ( ankle injury) and Stefanos Tzimas (knee) are all confirmed absentees, while Solly March remains sidelined after a long-term absence.

Danny Welbeck leads the attack with ten Premier League goals this season, though his output has slowed in recent weeks.

Yankuba Minteh is fit and represents Brighton’s most dangerous attacking outlet from the right, with his dribbling and directness a constant problem for defenders.

James Milner is set to partner Pascal Gross in the double pivot, having recently matched Gareth Barry’s record of 653 Premier League appearances, a milestone that underlines his remarkable longevity in the top flight.

Predicted Brighton XI (4-2-3-1): Bart Verbruggen; Matts Wieffer, Lewis Dunk, Jan Van Hecke, Ferdi Kadioglu; James Milner, Pascal Gross; Diego Gómez, Jack Hinshelwood, Yakuba Minteh; Danny Welbeck.

Liverpool

The major concern for Slot heading into this match is the fitness of Mohamed Salah, who was forced off during the Galatasaray victory and headed straight down the tunnel.

Slot acknowledged in his press conference that Salah will be absent from the game against Brighton after picking up a muscle injury.

Alexander Isak is out until April following surgery, Conor Bradley will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, Wataru Endo is out indefinitely with an ankle problem, and Giovanni Leoni is not expected back until next campaign after suffering cruciate ligament damage.

Stefan Bajcetic is also unavailable. Joe Gomez is a doubt, and definitely will not start tomorrow, but has the possibility of coming off the bench if need be.

Should Salah miss out, Slot has options in wide areas, with Szoboszlai capable of shifting and Wirtz offering creative threat from deeper positions.

Predicted Liverpool XI (4-2-3-1): Alisson Becker; Dominik Szoboszlai, Ibrahima Konaté, Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez; Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister; Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz, Cody Gakpo; Hugo Ekitiké.

The Managers

Fabian Hurzeler carries the weight of a season that has fallen some way short of the optimism that greeted his arrival.

The 33-year-old German inherited a Brighton project that had built serious momentum under Roberto De Zerbi, and while he oversaw an attractive eighth-place finish in his debut campaign, this season has exposed a fragility under pressure that his predecessor rarely showed.

The Sunderland win may have bought him breathing room, but this weekend is another test of whether the recovery is genuine or temporary.

Arne Slot walks into the Amex in an altogether different mood. The Dutchman delivered an emotional press conference after the Galatasaray comeback, and his ability to galvanise his squad in the biggest moments has been one of the defining features of his Liverpool tenure.

Yet even Slot cannot fully paper over the logistical cracks in his squad, with Isak, Endo and Bradley all absent for extended periods, his squad depth has been tested in ways he could not have fully anticipated at the start of the season.

Tactical Preview

Brighton set up in a 4-2-3-1, looking to dominate territory and build from the back under pressure.

Hurzeler’s system is at its best when it has the ball, but it carries a vulnerability on the counter, specifically in behind the full-backs during quick transitions, which is precisely where Wirtz and Szoboszlai thrive.

Liverpool are expected to line up in their familiar 4-3-3, with Ryan Gravenberch operating as the defensive anchor and Alexis Mac Allister providing mobility and press-resistance in central areas.

The key tactical duel could be down Brighton’s left, where Ferdi Kadioglu’s aggressive overlapping runs may cause problems for Gomez on Liverpool’s right side of defence.

Brighton will attempt to compact the central spaces and use Minteh and Gómez to stretch Liverpool on the flanks.

The question is whether the Milner-Gross midfield partnership has the energy to sustain the ball and maintain the press against a Liverpool side that applies intense pressure high up the pitch.

Whoever controls the opening 20 minutes is likely to set the tone for the entire match.