Match Preview
Brighton and Hove Albion vrs Fulham
Premier League Match Day 28 24_25 at American Express Stadium
Saturday 8th March 2025, KO: 15:00
Referee:
Samuel Barrott (West Riding)
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Fulham do battle at the Amex Stadium on Saturday afternoon with Brighton & Hove Albion with both teams harbouring realistic aspirations of securing European football for next season.
The Cottagers will be aiming to complete the double over their opponents after beating the Seagulls 3-1 in the reverse fixture at Craven Cottage three months ago
After winning four games out of five across all competitions in the month of February, Fulham kick-started March in positive fashion as they knocked out FA Cup holders Manchester United in the fifth round last weekend, winning 4-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw in 120 minutes at Old Trafford.
A quarter-final home tie with Crystal Palace, the only team to beat Fulham (2-0) over the last four weeks, awaits later this month and the Cottagers "deserve to be in the next stage" in the eyes of head coach Marco Silva, who is hoping to steer the club to their first-ever major piece of silverware.
Fulham are now focused on improving their position in the Premier League; they currently sit ninth in the table, just one point and one place behind Brighton, and they know that a win over the Seagulls this weekend could see them climb to as high as sixth if other results go their way.
The Cottagers have won each their last three Premier League away games against Leicester (2-0), Newcastle (2-1) and Wolves (2-1), last winning more consecutively in the top flight in March/April 1966 (five). Fulham's six away victories this season is already their second-most in a single Premier League campaign (seven in 2022-23).
Silva and co have come out on top against Brighton by 3-0 and 3-1 scorelines in their last two Premier League meetings; the only team Fulham have ever beaten in three successive top-flight encounters while scoring three or more goals each time is West Ham (between 1965 and 1966).
Since suffering a painful 7-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest at the beginning of February - the club's heaviest league loss for 67 years - Brighton have responded well and have put together a five-game winning streak in all competitions.
Premier League victories over Chelsea (3-0), Southampton (4-0) and Bournemouth (2-1) were bookended by FA Cup fourth and fifth-round wins against Chelsea and Newcastle United respectively, beating the latter 2-1 after extra time last weekend courtesy of goals form Yankuba Minteh and Danny Welbeck.
Fabian Hurzeler's side will renew acquaintances with Nottingham Forest in the quarter-finals later this month, but they will now shift their attention back to the Premier League and their quest to qualify for Europe.
The Seagulls currently sit eighth in the table and only four points behind the top four with 11 games remaining.
Brighton head into Saturday's contest seeking to win four consecutive top-flight matches for just the second time in their history, last doing so in April/May 1981. The only team in English top-flight history to have won four in a row immediately after a defeat by seven or more goals are Grimsby Town, who lost 9-1 to Arsenal back in January 1931 before winning their next four games.
The Seagulls will be required to achieve a club first if they wish to continue their winning run, as they have never beaten Fulham as a Premier League club in nine attempts (D4 L5), both the most times they have ever faced an opponent without winning and the most the Cottagers have faced an opponent without losing in the division.
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Brighton have never beaten Fulham in the Premier League, drawing four and losing five of the previous nine matches.
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The last three meetings at the Amex have produced a total of just three goals.
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Fulham have won four of their last six matches, losing once and drawing at Manchester United in last weekend's FA Cup tie, which they subsequently won on penalties.
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They are on course for their highest Premier League points total and need 11 from their remaining 11 games to surpass the club record of 53, set by Roy Hodgson's side in 2008-09.
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The Cottagers have also won three successive Premier League away matches for the first time since a similar run at the end of the 2007-08 season.
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They average 1.7 points per away game this season - only Arsenal, with 1.9, and Liverpool, with 2.3, have better records in the top flight.
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Marco Silva's side have scored in each of their last 12 Premier League away matches, netting exactly twice in the past six.
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However, the west London side have kept just one clean sheet since Christmas, in a 2-0 win at Leicester in January.
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Brighton are on a five-match winning streak in all competitions since their 7-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest last month.
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They have also won three league games in a row for the first time since September 2023.
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The Seagulls are seeking to win four successive top-flight matches for the first time in almost 44 years.
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Danny Welbeck has scored the winner in each of Brighton's last two matches – prior to those goals he had gone 13 appearances without finding the net.
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Welbeck needs one more goal to overtake Pascal Gross as Brighton's all-time top Premier League scorer. They have both scored 30 for the Seagulls in the competition.
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Joao Pedro is vying to score in three consecutive Premier League matches for the first time.
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Source Oliver Thomas at SportsMole/BBCSports