Brighton & Hove Albion vs Crystal Palace Prediction: Seagulls to clip Eagles’ wings at the Amex

Old adversaries Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace face off in the 'M23 derby' at the Amex Stadium on Sunday afternoon (14:00, Sky Sports Main Event), with 11 points currently separating the sides in the Premier League table.

Read on for my Brighton & Hove Albion vs Crystal Palace prediction, complete with team news and match odds.

Team News

Brighton & Hove Albion head coach Fabian Hurzeler has rated the chances of Joel Veltman featuring on Sunday as 50/50, Jack Hinshelwood as 40/60, Ferdi Kadioglu as 20/80, and James Milner as 10/90.

Football Odds

Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner has confirmed that Adam Wharton will miss Sunday's trip to the Amex after suffering a "reaction" following Wednesday's and Thursday's training sessions.

Chadi Riad, Matheus Franca and Joel Ward are still sidelined, meanwhile.

Brighton & Hove Albion vs Crystal Palace Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Brighton & Hove Albion vs Crystal Palace page on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this match.

Brighton are 10/11, or a 52.4% chance, to beat Palace at home for the third season running, while the Eagles are 11/4 (26.7%) to win at the Amex for the first time since February 2021.

The draw is priced at 3/1, both teams to score at 8/13, and over 2.5 total goals at 4/6.

Match Result & Total Goals Over/Under 1.5 - Brighton & Hove Albion & Over 1.5 @ 5/4

After beating Manchester City and AFC Bournemouth (both 2-1) in back-to-back games last month, Brighton are now winless in their last three, drawing at home against Southampton (1-1) and away to Leicester City (2-2) either side of a 3-1 defeat at Fulham. The draws were particularly disappointing as they were leading in both matches and in the case of Leicester, they were two up at the King Power Stadium before Jamie Vardy stuck in the 86th minute and set up Bobby De Cordova-Reid five minutes later.

Palace, meanwhile, endured a dismal start to the season but are now enjoying a four-game unbeaten run and have lost just once in their last seven Premier League matches (eight in all competitions). Last Saturday was particularly pleasing for supporters as they drew 2-2 with reigning champions Manchester City at Selhurst Park, and the team now has confidence back heading into Sunday's crunch clash.

Despite the contrast in mood, I'm backing Brighton to show their class at the Amex and get back on the winning trail. The last few results have served as a real slap in the face and should have woken the side up ahead of the visit of their great rivals.

The Seagulls are yet to lose at home in this Premier League this season, winning four of their seven games at the Amex, and have beaten big clubs such as Manchester United (2-1), Tottenham Hotspur (3-2) and Man City (2-1), while they were only just edged out by Liverpool (2-3) in the Carabao Cup on October 30.

Palace, meanwhile, only won away from home for the first time earlier this month, beating Ipswich Town 2-1 at Portman Road, although a couple of 2-2 draws at Wolves and Aston Villa prior to that victory means they are now unbeaten in three road matches.

Their recent record at the Amex is poor, however, and the continued absence of Wharton does little to help their chances this weekend.

To get us over EVS, I'm adding in over 1.5 total goals, with 87 per cent (13) of Brighton's 15 Premier League games this season finishing with at least two goals, while it's 67 per cent (10) for Palace. However, only 40 per cent (six) have seen over 2.5, so perhaps play things safer here.

First Goalscorer - Joao Pedro (BHA) @ 9/2

Joao Pedro got his first taste of this rivalry in last December's 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park, where Jordan Ayew opened the scoring for the Eagles on the stroke of half-time before Danny Welbeck came off the bench to equalise for the Seagulls in the 82nd minute. The Brazilian was kept fairly quiet in south London, but it was a different matter on the South Coast in Brighton's 4-1 thrashing of their visitors.

The 23-year-old started the match and scored the final goal in the 85th minute before departing to a rapturous ovation from the home faithful.

Joao Pedro is 7/4 to score anytime on Sunday but I like his price of 9/2 to net the game's first goal at the Amex. The versatile forward has struck four times in nine Premier League appearances during an injury-hit campaign so far and one of his goals - at AFC Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium on November 23 - opened the scoring in a 2-1 win for Hurzeler's side.

Meanwhile, his last goal as a starter at the Amex - against Aston Villa on May 5 - was the first (and only) goal of the game, and as I don't expect a glut of goals on Sunday, backing Joao Pedro as the first goalscorer could be a shrewd move, especially as Palace have gone a goal down in 53.3 per cent (eight) of their 15 Premier League games so far this season.

Offers

We will be Top Price on either side to win on Brighton v Crystal Palace with selected bookmakers using Oddschecker for the comparison. (Available from 09:30 Sunday)

Place an In-Play single bet of £10 or more at odds of 1/2+ on any Premier League or Championship game on Friday or Saturday and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Sunday’s games. (Credited upon Bet Settlement)

Build your own Bet Builder bet (3/1+) of 4+ legs on any Premier League game on Saturday and get 50% of your stake back in Free Bets up to £5 if you lose. (Credited within 24 hours)

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down

You can read all our latest Football Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub.