Burnley vs. Brighton
Venue: Turf Moor
Kick off: 3PM
Burnley welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to Turf Moor this afternoon for their opening Premier League game of the 2021-22 campaign.
As the lowest survivors from last season, both teams will be keen to improve on their final positions, after the Clarets ended in 17th place, while the Seagulls finished one spot above them in 16th.
For the sixth successive year, Burnley will be competing in the Premier League and Sean Dyche is hopeful that he will have the resources to steer the club clear of the relegation zone once again.
Aside from an impressive seventh-place finish in 2017-18, the Clarets have spent the majority of their time battling to keep their top-flight status intact and last year was no different.
Burnley endured a disappointing end to the previous campaign – losing seven of their final 10 league games – which resulted in a 17th-place finish, and so Dyche will be keen for his side to hit the ground running this time around.
The Clarets will need to address their home form if they are to have a strong campaign this year.
Dyche’s men are currently winless in their last 10 league games at Turf Moor – drawing and losing five each – with a 3-2 victory over Aston Villa in January their last success on home soil.
Only once in their league history have they had a longer run without a win at Turf Moor, going 11 games between April and November 1979 when they were in the second tier.
Burnley also have a poor record against today’s opponents Brighton, having won just one of their last seven home league games against them, a narrow 1-0 Premier League win in December 2018.
After a 17-month absence, the Clarets will welcome the return of home fans this afternoon and hope that their support can drive the team on to end their miserable run of form.
Burnley head into their opening fixture after winning five of their six pre-season friendlies, albeit against lesser opposition, with their only defeat against Spanish side Cadiz in their final game last weekend. With the return of a few key players, Dyche is set to name a strong side that he will hope can secure all three points against a potential relegation rival.
Entering their fifth consecutive Premier League campaign this season, Brighton & Hove Albion will be looking to steer themselves clear of the drop zone once again, with head coach Graham Potter also hopeful that they can push themselves much further up the table.
The Seagulls are yet to show any real progression in terms of league position, with their highest finish being 15th place in 2017-18 and 2019-20.
Last season, Brighton often failed to string a good run of results together, winning just nine of their 38 league matches and suffering 15 defeats.
One positive was that they never dropped into the relegation zone, consistently maintaining a fairly comfortable gap between themselves and the bottom three and eventually finishing 13 points above Fulham in 18th place.
While being praised for their progressive style, Brighton failed to consistently deliver in the final third.
With plenty of attacking options at his disposal, including the likes of Neal Maupay, Danny Welbeck, Aaron Connolly and Leandro Trossard, Potter needs to see their form in the final third improve if the club are to enhance their chances of Premier League survival.
Heading into the opening weekend, the Seagulls – who won just one of their three pre-season friendlies – will be hoping for a repeat of their previous two away campaign openers in the top flight, which they won 3-0 against both Newcastle United and Watford.
Brighton are also unbeaten in each of their last four encounters against Burnley, so they can take confidence to Turf Moor this afternoon.
With only one of their first eight matches against a team from last season’s top six, Potter will fancy his chances of a strong start to the new campaign.
Burnley possible XI: Pope, Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Taylor, Gudmundsson, Westwood, Cork, McNeil, Barnes, Wood.
Brighton possible XI: Sanchez, Webster, Dunk, Veltman, March, Bissouma, Mwepu, Gross, Trossard, Mac Allister, Maupay.