Brighton vs Crystal Palace Prediction, Odds and Betting Tips: Back this 10/1 cards double

Rivalries reacquaint at the AMEX as Brighton host Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon, live on Sky Sports Main Event at 2pm.

The Seagulls have had the beating of their rivals in recent years, with the Eagles last getting one over Albion in 2021. Brighton ran out dominant 4-1 winners in this fixture last season, with the away end emptied half an hour into the game.

Matthew O’Regan has 10/1 and 7/5 bets for the big game. 

The sides have had contrasting starts to the season. Despite a winless three-game blip, Brighton come into this game in seventh, still firmly in European contention. Fabian Hurzeler’s side are unbeaten at home, but the German will be disgruntled with the manner of some of these games. Despite wins against Manchester City, Tottenham, and Manchester United, the Seagulls dropped points to all three sides in the bottom three, so they will be nervous about the prospect of facing another struggling team in Crystal Palace.  

A strong end to last season under Oliver Glasner had Palace fans dreaming of Europe this campaign, but their hopes came crashing down with a poor start. Things have picked up recently for Palace, with their two wins coming against Ipswich and Tottenham. 

The Eagles know they head into this game outside the relegation zone, so they may play with some freedom on the South Coast - an approach lacking the visitors in recent years.  

Brighton have been decimated with injuries since the start of last season but are slowly getting numbers back. However, Solly March, Jack Hinshelwood, Joel Veltman, James Milner, Ferdi Kadioglu and Adam Webster are likely to be absent again. Crystal Palace are missing Mathues Franca, Chadi Riad and Adam Wharton through injury.

The emergence of Adam Wharton and the form of Cheick Doucoure and Jefferson Lerma looked like it would spell the end of Will Hughes’ Palace career, but the 29-year-old has stepped up in the absence of the aforementioned trio and has made the midfield starting berth his own. 

A tough-tackling, tenacious holding midfielder, Hughes does tend to overstep the mark, shown by his six yellow cards in eight starts, coming at a rate of 0.67 yellows per 90. He is also making a mammoth 2.35 fouls per 90. In last year’s drubbing at the AMEX, Hughes avoided a yellow after two fouls but was booked in the fixture at Selhurst Park.  

The season before, he was subbed after 56 minutes after being booked at Selhurst and was booked in the reverse fixture. Therefore, he has booked in three of his four starts against Brighton, showing he is a player who understands the rivalry and will play into the crowd.  

Academy graduate Lewis Dunk returned from injury and started in the 2-2 draw at Leicester. He will captain the side once more against Crystal Palace after silencing the away crowd after just three minutes last season. The 33-year-old has made no secret of his disdain towards The Eagles, and he has been sent off twice against them, so he will be extra motivated this year.   

While the skipper has only averaged 0.50 fouls per 90, he has been booked three times in ten starts and tends to pick up bookings for dissent often.

Daniel Munoz has been a revelation since signing in the 2023 summer. The marauding Colombian Wing-Back has won the hearts of Palace fans with his passion and endeavour, while he also shows fantastic attacking intent.  

The 28-year-old scored the opener in the 2-2 draw with Manchester City, as well as scoring the last-minute equaliser in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle. Munoz has had a shot in his last seven Premier League games, averaging 1.14 shots and 0.50 shots on target per 90. His direct opponent will be Pervis Estupinan – a player who loves to go forward, which could potentially leave space behind.  

Estupinan’s willingness to attack also makes him valuable in the shot markets. The Ecuadorian is an attack-minded full-back with a key eye for goal. While Fabian Hurzeler uses his full-backs as ‘decoys’ in attacking scenarios, he has given Estupinan more attacking freedom in recent weeks. The 26-year-old is averaging 1.12 shots per 90 and had three shots, two on target in the draw at Leicester and two shots against Fulham.  

While he has shown more attacking prowess in recent weeks, he also sits on the edge of the box from corners and isn’t afraid to let fire when the ball falls to him.

Brighton vs Crystal Palace Lineups

The starting lineups for Brighton vs Crystal Palace will be displayed in the graphic below once the team news has been announced.