EFL Cup: Chelsea vs Brighton Odds, Preview
Seagulls Head to London
Brighton Kick off EFL Cup Campaign
Brighton have quickly become the darlings of English football under Roberto de Zerbi. The Seagulls are playing in European competition for the first time ever this season and it feels like they have a real shot to win their first major trophy this season. One such opportunity is in the EFL Cup but Chelsea stands in their way on Wednesday. In a high-profile EFL Cup match, let’s run through the Chelsea vs Brighton odds and preview the match.
Chelsea vs Brighton
Date & Time:
Location: Stamford Bridge, London, England
Head-to-Head:
Brighton got the better of Chelsea last season in both Premier League meetings. Shortly after Graham Potter left Brighton to coach Chelsea, the Seagulls destroyed the Blues 4-1 under Roberto de Zerbi. After Potter was sacked, Chelsea fell 2-1 to Brighton at Stamford Bridge as well.
Brighton finished ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League standings for the first time last season and the Seagulls are unbeaten in the last five meetings of this fixture. Both teams have scored in each of the last four head-to-head matchups. Three of the last five meetings have also finished in draws.
Struggling Chelsea Lose Again
In years past, a three-game stretch vs. Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, and Aston Villa would come with the expectation of three wins. In 2023, even one win would be preferred to the reality. The Blues are 0-1-2 since September started and fell 1-0 at home to Nottingham Forest to kick off the month. Then, they failed to score once again at Bournemouth as the match finished scoreless.
On Sunday, Chelsea hosted Aston Villa and the EPL odds priced the Blues at -105. However, once again Chelsea couldn’t find a breakthrough. Things became more complicated as right back Malo Gusto picked up a second-half red car, leaving the Blues with ten men. Just 15 minutes later, Villa capitalized on a Thiago Silva mistake and Ollie Watkins slotted home past Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez, who otherwise had an excellent match.
With the 1-0 loss a look at the Chelsea standings shows they’re in 14th place in the Premier League. It’s certainly not the start new coach Mauricio Pochettino imagined but he is dealing with lots of injuries to his players. Benoit Badiashile, Wesley Fofana, Christopher Nkunku, Trevoh Chalobah, Reece James, Carney Chukwuemeka, Romeo Lavia and Noni Madueke are all dealing with injuries.
Striker Armando Broja just returned to the fold after being out since last December. Regardless, Chelsea hasn’t won, or scored, since defeating AFC Wimbledon 2-1 in the EFL Cup second round in August.
Brighton Back to Winning Ways
Roberto de Zerbi’s Brighton made their debut in European competition just days ago when they hosted AEK Athens in the Europa League. Things didn’t exactly go according to plan as star teenage striker Evan Ferguson missed out on the match. The Greek champions spoiled Brighton’s UEFA debut as AEK Athens came away from the AMEX Stadium with a 3-2 win.
With a heavily-changed lineup, and Ferguson back, Brighton took on Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday. The Seagulls fell behind as goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen made an error while trying to play a pass. Bournemouth scored an own goal just before the half and De Zerbi made the bold call to put on Ansu Fati and Kaoru Mitoma right on the stroke of halftime.
His substitutes made an instant impact as Mitoma scored from a Fati pass just 16 seconds into the second half. Mitoma completed his double on a header and Brighton came away with a 3-1 win to jump to third in the EPL standings. Now, the Chelsea vs Brighton odds price the Seagulls as underdogs for this match at Stamford Bridge.
Brighton’s team on Wednesday could look a lot like the side that lined up in the Europa League vs. AEK Athens. De Zerbi has been rotating goalies, between Verbruggen and Jason Steele and it appears to be Steele’s turn once again.
Match Analysis & Odds
Brighton are simply one of the best teams in England at present. They shouldn’t be underestimated in any match at this point, least of all vs. a struggling injury-laden Chelsea side. The Blues come in as +125 moneyline favorites but they shouldn’t necessarily be trusted here. After all, they haven’t scored a goal for nearly a month.
The Chelsea vs Brighton odds also list Brighton as +200 underdogs and they picked up a win at Stamford Bridge last season. Both Chelsea pk, -0.5, and Brighton pk, +0.5 display -115 odds for Wednesday’s match. Brighton have simply proven to be the more dangerous team as of late. With players like Ferguson, Mitoma, Fati, and Joao Pedro, who scored two penalties vs. AEK, Brighton pose a huge attacking threat.
In fact, they’ve scored at least twice in each of their last three games, in all competitions. No team has shut out Brighton yet this season and Chelsea are unlikely to become the first. A draw would mean penalties and a deadlock is priced at +250 odds for this one. Over 2.5, 3 goals show -120 odds for this one as Chelsea look to simply get on the scoresheet.
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