Chelsea have the chance to secure European football for next season later today when they take on Brighton in their penultimate game of the campaign.
Late drama saw Chelsea come from behind to beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 on the weekend, with Reece James marking his return to the squad with an assist as the Blues made it three wins on the bounce. The victory moved Mauricio Pochettino's side up to seventh in the table, and a win tonight will confirm a top-seven finish at least.
Seventh place will book Chelsea a spot in the European Conference League as long as Manchester United finish below them and lose the FA Cup final to Manchester City, and if the Blues have results go their way and end up finishing in sixth or fifth, they will quality for the Europa League. Pochettino's side have won both games against Brighton so far this season, 1-0 in the FA Cup before the 3-2 victory in the Premier League.
So, could Chelsea pick up a vital three points on the south coast? Let's take a look.
Brighton vs Chelsea simulated to get a score predictionTo complete this simulation, we used EA FC 24 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We predict that Villa could set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Verbruggen; Lamptey, Webster, Dunk, Igor; Gross, Gilmour; Buonanotte, Enciso, Adingra; Welbeck.
We predict that Chelsea could line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their starting XI as follows: Petrovic; James, Chalobah, Silva, Cucurella; Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Sterling; Jackson.
Brighton were on top in the opening stages at the Amex Stadium, but Dorde Petrovic was at his best to keep the hosts out, making four saves in the first 10 minutes. After riding the wave, Chelsea started to gain some confidence going forward, and with 24 minutes on the clock, the Blues went ahead.
Marc Cucurella set Raheem Sterling free down the left with a long ball forward, and the winger did fantastic to cut inside and drive at the heart of the Brighton defence. Sterling evaded two challenges before poking the ball into Nicolas Jackson's path, and a composed finish from the striker saw him find the far corner to make it 1-0.
Moments after the opener, Chelsea grabbed a second when Cole Palmer scored from the penalty spot after being tripped inside the box. It was the perfect first half for Pochettino's side, and just nine minutes after the restart, the Blues made it 3-0.
As the hosts attempted to play out the back, Moises Caicedo intercepted a pass in midfield to claim back possession against his former club, and the midfielder quickly launched the ball forward to send Jackson through on goal. One-on-one, the striker calmly slotted his shot into the bottom corner, putting Chelsea in a comfortable position.
Three goals to the good, the Blues started to take their foot off the accelerator, and this invited Brighton to pull a goal back with minutes to go and wipe out the clean sheet. Pascal Gross' run from midfield wasn't tracked, and he met Typiq Lamptey's cross at the front post with a powerful header to grab a consolation goal for the Seagulls.
EA FC 24 predicted final score: Brighton 1-3 Chelsea
Sign up to our Chelsea WhatsApp service and get all the latest breaking news and in-depth stories from football.london's dedicated Chelsea writers direct to your phone.
By signing up to this free service you will be the first to know the news from Stamford Bridge as it happens.
To join our Chelsea community, all you have to do is click this link to join and you're in!
