Bournemouth vs Brighton preview, team news and predicted lineup

Two Premier League sides aiming to build on impressive pre-international break victories will meet at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as Bournemouth welcome Brighton & Hove Albion. The Cherries and the Seagulls face off once again, seven months after Brighton edged a 2-1 win in their last encounter at the Amex Stadium.

Bournemouth bounced back from a 4-2 opening weekend defeat to reigning champions Liverpool by ending August with consecutive 1-0 wins over Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur. Evanilson’s fifth-minute goal proved decisive in a dominant display against Spurs two weeks ago, and Andoni Iraola’s side could have won by a larger margin, having registered 20 shots on goal against a lackluster home team.

Brighton, meanwhile, found themselves trailing Manchester City with 25 minutes remaining in their final match before the international break. However, they produced a dramatic turnaround to claim a 2-1 victory over the Premier League champions. James Milner, at 39 years and 239 days old, became the oldest penalty scorer in Premier League history when he converted the equalizer against his former club. Substitute Brajan Gruda then calmly finished in the 89th minute to secure Brighton’s first league win of the season, following a 1-1 draw with Fulham and a 2-0 defeat at Everton.

Bournemouth will be without Adam Smith for several weeks after he sustained a hamstring injury in the win over Spurs. Enes Unal also remains sidelined with a long-term knee issue, while Lewis Cook faces a late fitness test for a knee problem of his own. Julian Araujo is available again after serving a two-match suspension and is expected to compete with deadline day loan signing Alex Jimenez for the right-back spot in Smith’s absence.

Ryan Christie is pushing to make his first league start of the season in central midfield, potentially replacing either Alex Scott or Tyler Adams. Meanwhile, new arrivals Amine Adli and Ben Gannon Doak are both in contention to make their first starts for the Cherries in attacking positions.

For Brighton, Adam Webster and Solly March remain out with knee injuries. Mats Wieffer, who has been filling in at right-back, is nursing a knee issue but is expected to be available, pending a late assessment. Gruda, fresh off scoring the winner against Manchester City, will be hoping to earn his first league start of the season and could challenge Diego Gomez for an advanced midfield role, though Georginio Rutter is likely to get the nod from manager Hurzeler.

This would allow Danny Welbeck to continue leading the line up front, while new signings Charalampos Kostoulas, Stefanos Tzimas, and Tom Watson—who have been gradually integrated into Hurzeler’s first-team plans—could be included in the matchday squad this weekend.

Bournemouth: Petrovic; Araujo, Diakite, Senesi, Truffert; Adams, Scott; Brooks, Tavernier, Semenyo; Evanilson

Brighton: Verbruggen; Veltman, Van Hecke, Dunk, De Cuyper; Baleba, Ayari; Minteh, Rutter, Mitoma; Welbeck

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