Sussex

Jordan Butler
BBC Sport journalist

An inconsistent Brighton host promoted Leeds on the south coast this Saturday. BBC Sport explores some of the key themes surrounding this fixture.

Evergreen Milner to face first side

Brighton will certainly welcome a return home after a loss at Old Trafford last Saturday and a League Cup defeat at the Emirates on Wednesday.

Fabian Hurzeler's side are on an eight-match unbeaten run at the Amex Stadium in the top flight, with four wins and four draws.

They have also kept a clean sheet in their past seven home league games against visitors Leeds, their longest run without conceding against a single opponent in the club's history.

Brighton's James Milner was born and bred in Leeds and made his top-flight debut for the Elland Road club in November 2002 when he was just 16.

Now 39, the evergreen utility player is still contributing at the highest level and his assist for 18-year-old Charalampos Kostoulas's goal against Manchester United set two unique Premier League records.

Not only was it the biggest gap in age between a player setting up a team-mate – a whopping 21 years and 146 days – but it was the first time in Premier League history that a player assisted another after making their debut in the competition before the scorer was born.

Milner is also nine games away from setting a new Premier League appearance record. If he were to feature on Saturday he would sit just seven matches behind Gareth Barry's total of 653. If he plays at Elland Road in the reverse fixture in May, the chances are he will already have broken it.

Positive start for Leeds

Leeds head to the south coast seeking to register consecutive Premier League victories for the first time since November 2022.

They've lost three of their four away trips so far this season but their sole victory at Wolves in September means they've already gone one better than Howard Wilkinson's team during the inaugural Premier League campaign in 1992-93. That side failed to win any of their 21 games on the road during a 42-game season but still finished two points above the relegation zone in 17th.

The positive start that Daniel Farke's side have made has gone somewhat under the radar due to Sunderland's charge towards the top of the division. But recent history suggests that his team is doing enough, as every promoted side in the last 10 seasons with 11 points or more after 10 games has survived. Leeds have amassed 11 points from their first nine matches.

The last promoted side to have at least 11 points after 10 games and be relegated was Cardiff City in 2013-14 – the Bluebirds mustered 12 points from their first 10 fixtures but finished the season bottom with 30 points after taking a meagre 18 from their remaining 28 matches.

A similar fate could still befall Leeds and, when asked about his side's return from their opening nine games, Leeds boss Farke said they deserved far more. "We should be on 15 to 17 points already," he said in his pre-match press conference. "We're on a good path, but survival isn't a guarantee. We need around nine or 10 wins to stay up."

Image source, Getty Images

Mats Wieffer spoke to BBC Radio Sussex about Brighton's start to the season: "As a team we are not satisfied with how it [the season] is going. It's not that bad, but overall we want more points.

"We speak a lot and watch clips about what we can do better defensively and attacking-wise. It is hard to put a finger on one [reason why it's not going to plan]. At this moment, we are still figuring out how we can play at our best.

"Against Arsenal, we played with three at the back instead of four - I don't know if that is going to be for a longer period, I don't think it is."

On the difference between the Premier League and other leagues, he said: "The intensity and you can get punished directly. It doesn't matter what team you play against, you can have the ball for a long time with lots of chances but if you don't score then they will. You can never drop your intensity as the team.

"In my opinion, you face the best wingers in the world [in the Premier League]. They are fast, and it's really difficult. I am trying my best and trying to help the team."

Listen to Wieffer's chat in full here

Millie Sian
BBC Sport journalist

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Leeds United at Amex Stadium (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• There are no fresh injury concerns following the midweek Carabao Cup fixture, so "the squad will be the same". A few players have "small issues" and might not be available, but he didn't name those affected.

• Kaoru Mitoma is "back on the pitch and training" after recovering from an ankle injury. It is possible that the winger could be back in action before the next international break.

• When asked if 19-year-old Tom Watson could be in line for a first Premier League start in Mitoma's absence, Hurzeler replied: "It's definitely an option."

• Brighton will need to "do the basics right" in order to get a result against their opponents. He added: "We have to commit to each other. We cannot be lazy. We have to be very clear in our positioning and good with our passing. We accept that it will be a fight, but I'm sure we'll have the quality to outplay them."

• Former Leeds United player Georginio Rutter could be the "gamechanger" on Saturday afternoon because of his "behaviour, attitude and positivity". Hurzeler highlighted that the forward has already been a "big win" for Brighton.

Hear more from Hurzeler on Rutter on BBC Sounds

• He praised Daniel Farke for doing a "really good and really impressive" job at Elland Road: "They have a clear style of play, they are very disciplined, and they don't give away a lot of chances. They are a hardworking team and they try to be there for each other. It will be a big challenge for us."

• On whether he expected Leeds United to be doing as well as they are this season, he said: "For me, it's not a surprise. If you saw them playing in the Championship last season, they were already impressive." It furthers his belief that the Premier League is getting "more competitive and equal" after the past few seasons.

• Brighton are "100 percent still in this season", after taking 12 points from their first nine league games, but he does recognise their results "could've been better".

• Hurzeler added: "I'm 100% convinced that we have the right characters, right personalities and right qualities in our group to get the results we want long-term."

• When asked if he believes Danny Welbeck - last capped in 2018 - should receive an England call-up, he replied: "I'm very convinced with my players and I have a big belief that he is able to play for England. I asked the squad if they think he can play for England and they all agreed, so let's see what happens."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Hear more from Hurzeler on the Leeds game on BBC Sounds

This - it seems - is the season of the set piece.

The Premier League debates are more about dead balls than ever before, with some sides enjoying immense success from corner kicks, throw ins or well-worked free-kicks.

What fine timing then for BBC Sport to launch a column with former manager Tony Pulis, a man who seemed to finely extract the fine margins from the game.

You can take in Tony's column on set pieces here

Image source, Getty Images

Substitutes have scored 16 Premier League goals for Brighton in 2025 - only Brighton themselves in 2023 (20) have ever had more goals scored by subs in a calendar year (excluding own goals).

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your thoughts after Wednesday's Carabao Cup game between Arsenal and Brighton.

Here are some of your replies:

Arsenal fans

Banda: Arsenal's young players stepped up impressively while Brighton seemed to run out of ideas in the final third. It wasn't the flashiest performance, but it was professional, efficient and mature. It's the kind of win that shows Arsenal's growth and their hunger for silverware this season.

Peter: It was interesting to see Arsenal's young blood. They really have a team for the future!

Alan: Max Dowman is an unbelievable talent. Yet another clean sheet.

Donpapi: At this rate, Arsenal should be able to field a full team of academy players in the near future. Arteta is doing a great job and will save the club a lot of money in the future. Long may it continue.

Irfan: It seems like this Arsenal side, regardless of who plays, cannot do anything wrong. I really hope they continue doing the same throughout the whole season and end it on a high note as well. From the looks of it, aiming for a Treble is not too unrealistic.

Brighton fans

Fran: We started off well and should've scored a couple of goals before half-time but, as is so often the case, we just didn't take our chances. Arsenal stepped it up in the second half and were the better side. We didn't really look like troubling them.

Jake: Very encouraging, particularly after the Manchester United performance at the weekend. Hurzeler has come in for some criticism, but he had the team playing well and creating clear chances. It does sadly expose the limitations of the Brighton model and, if we are to properly compete, we need to recruit proven over potential in the final third.

Graham: I'm afraid that we create chances but we just can't finish. 2-0 at half-time wouldn't have been unrealistic in my view. It's good to see Baleba playing well, which is a bonus I guess. Bring on Leeds.

Kevin: Poor finishing again. You have to give fringe players a game in the cups, otherwise they don't get game time. We move on to big game against Leeds.