Sutton's predictions: Brighton v Bournemouthpublished at 08:50 25 February
08:50 25 February
With a couple of wins, Brighton have put themselves back in a position where they have got a real chance of making the top five - so this game is massive for both teams.
Bournemouth had Illia Zabarnyi sent off early on in Saturday's defeat by Wolves, and that really disrupted them. They need to find their feet again quickly, because I don't think anyone saw that result coming.
I am pretty sure the readers will go for a 1-1 draw here and, although I'd like to pick a winner, I also think it will end up honours even.
Brighton v Bournemouth: Did you know?published at 08:09 25 February
08:09 25 February
Image source, Getty Images
Brighton's Kaoru Mitoma has been directly involved in more Premier League goals against Bournemouth than he has any other side (four goals, one assist). He has either scored or assisted a goal in all four of his league meetings with the Cherries.
Hurzeler on Brighton's good form, Baleba and Bournemouthpublished at 10:55 24 February
10:55 24 February
Phil Cartwright BBC Sport journalist
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Tuesday's Premier League game against Bournemouth at Amex Stadium (kick-off 19:30 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Lewis Dunk will miss Tuesday's game, while Danny Welbeck and Joel Veltman - who both missed Saturday's 4-0 win at Southampton - are doubtful.
Brighton have won six of their past eight matches, having gone eight games without a win. Hurzeler said: "When you win games, there's always a good environment and a good atmosphere. We're grateful it's like this, but it's hard work. We have to keep the momentum and understand why we have this momentum."
On his side's position in the race for European qualification: "I never look that much at the table. We can only influence our games and how we play. At the end of the season we can look at the table - at the moment it's game by game to get the best performance out of the players."
On Bournemouth: "They play very intensely. It will be a challenge for us to compete against them. We have to be mentally and physically at the highest level to be ready for them. But I think we are able to do it because we proved in past weeks that we can run a lot and fight a lot. We have to keep the standards we've had in the past weeks and we have to improve to be ready for the challenge."
Hurzeler believes midfielder Carlos Baleba has learned from his red card in November's reverse fixture, which Brighton won 2-1: "A lot of times after, he has been on a yellow card and I have seen development and learning in his behaviour. He has behaved much more maturely and professionally after his first yellow card. It's a really good improvement in these things, and on top of that he's an unbelievable player."
Hurzeler added: "He has skills nobody else has in this team. But it's important for him to stay humble and grounded because there are still so many things he can improve and things where he hasn't reached his limit yet."
On Joao Pedro, who scored his first goal since 4 January at Southampton: "He's a player who has a little bit of self-confidence and knows he can decide a game with one action. He has the quality to do this but, besides that, it's more important how he behaves as a team player and he proved it in the past week. He really was supportive of his team-mates, although he was not starting. It showed me he is really committed to this club and he wants to be a team player."
Maggie: It was woeful. Players seemed unsure of what their job was; floundering around sticking the odd leg in for a challenge and worst of all, not looking like they want to be there. I really hope that the management are addressing what must be a huge physiological burden/barrier for these guys who run onto the field every week knowing they have been written off before they even start. Start planning for the long term in the Championship now and get a quality manager in urgently. We cannot keep paying for watching dropped shoulders.
Sammy: Absolutely abysmal. The owners need to be held accountable for some major lacklustre decisions as we are a joke. Teams can turn up and look forward to a guaranteed three points away from home. Cameron Archer one of the worst forward players I have seen. 3-0 down and we put Will Smallbone on sums Southampton up!!!. Get us back to the Championship.
Ryan: Far, far too easy for Brighton to play against us. Defensively shocking and no attacking impetus either. Starting to sound like a broken record but it's just not good enough and I can't see us bouncing back up next year either. Need a complete reset next year -manager, players and coaches - to clear the deadwood and rot hanging over the club.
James: It's just become a complete embarrassment now. No desire or passion to win. What difference has the new manager made?
Brighton fans
Steve; Dominant, aggressive, incisive, against, let's face it, a poor opponent. Still, three points against a lower-ranked team is a pleasant turnaround. Confidence abounds, so keep the foot on the pedal and perhaps we can secure another European challenge.
Anton: The naysayers who asked "is it time to change the manager?" will be eating their words. Let's face it - we were more or less a new team a short while ago with a new manager. This will need time to settle, time for the team to understand each other's individual nuances, and the manager to play to those strengths. It's looking a little more sixth sense on the pitch now - and this was a great result. Perhaps give this team the benefit of longevity to become more settled and robust.
Mike; A confident and controlled performance that should have resulted in more than a four-goal return. It was like a knife through butter, or the soft central belly of the Southampton team on numerous occasions. Yankuba Minteh probably should have scored a hat-trick and left the pitch with the match ball. Consistency is the key now, ahead of a much stronger south-coast challenge on Tuesday night at Bournemouth.
Paul: Superb win, and the past three games have been a joy to watch. We fear no-one on this form. Eighth position is good, but we can do better. We are in control of our own destiny, and have the players to take us to the top. Happy days!
Brighton's 'complete shift' in mentality - Symondspublished at 09:04 24 February
09:04 24 February
Emma Sanders BBC Sport women’s football news reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Maisie Symonds has been a key player for England's youth teams
Brighton midfielder Maisie Symonds said there was a "complete shift" in mentality at the club this season after signing players who knew what it took to win.
Among those to join in the summer was England internationals Fran Kirby and Nikita Parris, who were part of the squad that won Euro 2022.
Symonds also named Michelle Agyemang, her England under-23s team-mate who joined on loan from Arsenal, as a strong aquisition.
"In the last few years, we have been really building. This year, when our coach Dario Vidosic came in and big players, it showed we were attracting top [talent]," said Symonds.
"They have that win-at-all-costs mentality. You can feel it in our training sessions and in matches.
"It was a complete shift this season, at the beginning, that you could feel straight away."
Brighton have had a strong season overall, sitting fifth in the Women's Super League table - but they have dipped in form.
They have not won in their last five league matches and were knocked out of the Women's FA Cup this month.
"We've had a really tough period since Christmas. We've been wanting to pick up momentum but things have fallen against us," added Symonds, who is currently on international duty with England's under-23s, preparing to face France on Tuesday.
"We're still in a great position and we want to keep looking up. We need to find the mojo we had at the start of the season again."
'The perfect day'published at 08:31 24 February
08:31 24 February
Image source, Getty Images
Brighton forward Georginio Rutter says they were determined to go one better against Southampton after only managing a draw earlier in the season.
Speaking to BBC Radio Sussex about how he felt after Saturday's 4-0 victory, the 22-year-old said: "Satisfaction. The last game against them, we drew - we wanted to do better and we did.
"We enjoyed it, clean sheet and three points - the perfect day.
"We didn't think about [the goal difference] - 4-0 is really good and a clean sheet. The defence was very good. We are happy and have to work more in training around finishing and scoring more."
When asked about his individual goals for the rest of the season, Rutter replied: "I think about collective goals - and that is Europe."
