Premier League: Spurs Seek Revenge Over Seagulls

Tottenham Hotspur vs Brighton & Hove Albion

Tottenham Hotspur missed out on the chance to record three consecutive Premier League wins for the first time this season as they were handily dispatched 2-0 at home by Chelsea.

Jose Mourinho’s men will now look to bounce back from that setback as they host Brighton on Boxing Day.

Graham Potter’s side have hit quite a rough patch in recent weeks and will be desperate to pick up some points to avoid getting sucked into a relegation scrap.

The Premier League 2019 betting odds will be against them at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Spurs will be equally eager not to drop points in back-to-back home games. But the Seagulls have already beaten Spurs this season and will be confident in scoring another huge scalp.

Talking Points

Spurs still a work in progress

The Jose Mourinho era at Spurs is now a month old, but despite four wins in six league matches, it’s clear that they are still a work in progress under their new boss.

The defence, in particular, continues to be a concern. They’ve kept a clean sheet just once in those six games thus far. Serge Aurier continues to be a liability at right-back, but Mourinho has opted to stick with the Ivorian for his attacking prowess.

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Premier League

Meanwhile, their attack has struggled to get going, particularly against top opposition. They failed to get going in their loss to Manchester United. They were outshot by 10 away to Wolves and needed a stoppage-time winner. And more worryingly against Chelsea, they could only muster five shots at home.

That unimpressive attack could be limited even more with the absence of Son Heung-Min. The South Korean was sent off against Chelsea for lashing out at Antonio Rudiger and will be suspended for the next three matches.

With Son out, the likes of Christian Eriksen, Tanguy Ndombele, and Ryan Sessegnon will be in line to make the start for Spurs against Brighton along with Harry Kane, Dele Alli, and Lucas Moura.

Brighton need to bounce back

Brighton have not tasted much success in recent weeks. They’ve won just once in their last seven Premier League matches, with four defeats and two draws.

It’s somewhat understandable that they didn’t take many points after facing five of the current top six sides and Manchester United during that span.

But nevertheless, they will be disappointed not to come away with three points against Crystal Palace and to lose at home to Sheffield United.

On the bright side, Neal Maupay has been in fine goalscoring form. The Frenchman had scored in three consecutive matches before they were kept scoreless by Sheffield United.

Maupay has proven to be a brilliant signing thus far with seven goals in his debut season in the Premier League.

Premier League: Son Heung-Min was given a red card during Tottenham Hotspur's match vs Chelsea — Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-Min reacts after receiving a red card in their match against Chelsea

With Tottenham’s recent struggles in defence of late, Brighton should fancy their chances at getting at Spurs and scoring a goal or two. Brighton have scored in each of their last five away matches.

However, their Premier League 2019 results away from home have been concerning. They’ve lost five of their nine away matches to date, with two wins and two defeats. That away record is fifth-worst in the league.

History

Tottenham have dominated their historical head-to-head matchup with Brighton. In their eight matches against one another, Spurs have won six of them, with one defeat and one draw.

That one loss, of course, came earlier this season. Spurs, still under then-manager Mauricio Pochettino, had one of their worst performances of the season as they slumped to a 3-0 defeat.

Maupay opened the scoring in that match after just three minutes before 19-year-old Aaron Connolly bagged a brace to seal the win for the Seagulls.

Betting Tip

	Tottenham Hotspur vs Brighton & Hove Albion	Over 2.75 Goals @ 1.73
	December 26, 20:30 (GMT+8)

SBOBET odds have Spurs as big 1.56 favourites to score the home win, while Brighton are priced at 5.40 to pick up a surprising away victory. A draw is 4.10.

Despite Son’s absence, I anticipate there to be goals in this match. Spurs still have a number of capable attacking weapons with Kane, Dele, and Lucas, while Maupay is in fine form and will test a shaky Spurs defence.

At the very least, I expect there to be three goals, which would still win you a decent amount if you bet over 2.75 goals scored. And if there are four or more goals — which is quite realistic given that there have been five in two of Spurs’ last three games — then you win the full amount for your bet.