Southampton vs Brighton prediction: ENGLAND: Premier League betting tips on match 2022-12-25 15:00.
Premier League (PL) action returns to St Maryâs after the World Cup break as new boss Nathan Jones oversees his first PL game in front of the Southampton home faithful. Jones began his tenure with a 3-1 defeat at Liverpool, and despite recently conceding that it âwill take time to play how I wantâ, he will surely want to drag the Saints out of the relegation zone sooner rather than later.
Southampton could end the day outside of the relegation zone with victory, and their fans may be expectant too with their solid record across the last ten Boxing Day games raising hopes (W7, D2, L1). That accompanies an unbeaten record at home on Boxing Day this century (W4, D2), so Jones will seek to keep that record alive against the side that gave him his first managerial opportunity!
That 2014/15 season, when Brighton & Hove Albion scraped second-tier safety with the help of Jones, is but a distant memory as they now fly high in the top-flight with a newly crowned World Cup winner amongst their ranks. Current boss Roberto De Zerbi hailed Alexis Mac Allister as âone of the best at the tournamentâ, although that could play into the oppositionâs hands as the talented midfielder now has two weeks off!
Currently sitting in seventh place with ambitions of breaking into Europe, Brighton may no longer feel a Christmas curse after âsleighingâ their 11-game winless Boxing Day run with a 2-0 victory over Brentford in 2021. The Seagulls now look to end their six-game hoodoo of Boxing Day away trips without a win (D1, L5), a stretch which began 20 years ago with a 1-0 win over Norwich.
Players to watch: After their midweek EFL Cup win over Lincoln, Che Adams has now scored all three goals in the Jones era. Although thereâs no Mac Allister, Japanese World Cup star Kaoru Mitoma should feature for Brighton, not long after assisting in a group win over Spain and contributing to goals in each of his last three club appearances (G2, A1).
Hot stat: The home side on the day has never won a PL encounter between these sides (D6, L4).