Bees, Seagulls eyeing upsets
Brentford boss inspired by Palace's win over City, Brighton's Lallana aims to shock Blues
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LONDON • After bright starts to the English Premier League season, both Brentford and Brighton have struggled of late and are hovering around mid-table.
Today's top-flight games will not get much harder - the Bees, in 14th, host leaders and reigning champions Manchester City while the 10th-placed Seagulls travel to Chelsea, who are third.
However, both underdogs will take inspiration from a combination of previous displays and seeing how other teams have performed against the odds.
Pep Guardiola's men are on a league-leading nine-game winning streak and have won their past three away league games against promoted sides by an aggregate score of 11-1.
They also only have doubts over the fitness of Kyle Walker, John Stones and Rodri after yesterday confirming the sale of injured forward Ferran Torres to Barcelona.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed but British and Spanish media reported the La Liga side would pay around €55 million (S$84.3 million) for the Spain international, with €10 million in add-ons.
"Hello Culers, I am very happy to announce that today I will join the club. See you soon," Torres said in a video statement.
The 21-year-old, who will officially move on Jan 3 when the transfer window opens, will be Xavi's first signing as Barca manager.
Brentford, on the other hand, have significantly more absentees than City.
At his pre-match press conference yesterday, Bees boss Thomas Frank confirmed Bryan Mbeumo, Christian Norgaard, Vitaly Janelt, Zanka, Mads Roerslev and Charlie Goode would miss the City game.
But having seen how Crystal Palace upset Guardiola's side away in October, the Dane is hoping his depleted side believe in themselves to pull off a similar upset.
"I take it game by game and I want to do everything I can to get three points from this game," he said. "I would have preferred not to be missing six of my normal starters, but it is what it is.
"We are playing against the team with potentially the biggest budget in the division and the greatest manager of the modern era.
"They have unbelievable players and a very specific style of play that makes it quite difficult for a team like us. In one game, anything can happen. We've seen this season that City lost to Crystal Palace at home.
"We are playing against the best offensive team in the world, lacking a few of our best defensive players, that is a little bit of a mismatch. We will find a way and find a plan. We have other players who will have to step in and be ready to perform."
Brighton will also travel to Stamford Bridge not in the best run of form but, having ended their 11-game winless run over the weekend, Adam Lallana is feeling more confident about his side's chances.
The former Liverpool midfielder, who is expected to wear the armband again, told the club website yesterday: "We've got a good platform with the three points on Boxing Day.
"We performed well at Chelsea last year (a 0-0 draw) and will take confidence... Hopefully, we'll have another couple of bodies back fit which will make the squad stronger. Why can't we go there and got a result as we did at Anfield (a 2-2 draw in October)?"
The Blues will be without Thiago Silva, Timo Werner and Ben Chilwell, with reports yesterday saying Chilwell is set to go under the knife, ending his season early. Brighton captain Lewis Dunk is also out with a knee injury.
REUTERS
