West Ham United vs Brighton & Hove Albion

London Stadium is the venue as West Ham United and Brighton & Hove Albion go head-to-head in a tasty-looking Premier League fixture.

Julen Loptegui’s heavily scrutinized tenure at West Ham suffered another heartache earlier this week. Bournemouth grabbed a last-gasp equalizer in a dramatic 1-1 draw at the Vitality Stadium, condemning the Irons to a third winless league outing in their last four (W1, D1, L2). Stranded in 14th place in the Premier League table, Lopetegui’s charges sit closer to the top seven than the drop zone. However, a 31% win ratio in the opening 16 rounds can’t inspire much confidence around the London camp (W5, D4, L7). Neither can West Ham’s negative home league record this term (W3, D1, L4). The hosts have blown hot and cold across their last three home league matches (W1, D1, L1), with each seeing both teams on the scoresheet and two featuring 3+ goals.

Meanwhile, Brighton’s rough patch continued last weekend with a dismal 3-1 home loss to Crystal Palace, leaving them four points off the top-four pace. Fabian Hurzeler’s men have alternated between draws (2) and defeats (2) in four league matches since a 2-1 win at Bournemouth in mid-November, conceding at least two goals in the last three. Any hope of halting that unenviable run rests on Brighton’s ability to defy an indifferent road form (W3, D2, L3). Confidence stems from the Seagulls’ unbeaten Premier League record on West Ham’s home ground (W2, D5). They’ve kept a clean sheet on their last two visits to the London Stadium (W1, D1), suggesting a first away league shutout since mid-October could be on the cards.