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Brighton take on Manchester United at the Amex Stadium on Thursday night in a game that presents the home side with the perfect opportunity to gain revenge on the Red Devil’s for their FA Cup semi-final defeat at Wembley less than two weeks ago.
In addition to retribution, the Seagulls also know that a win would give them a legitimate shot at finishing inside the Premier League’s top four at the end of the season. As things stand they are 11 points adrift of United in 4th but have a game in hand. If they win that, and win tomorrow night, then the gap would be just five points.
Erik Ten Hag’s men, on the other hand, will look to avoid the same fate they met when they last played a team out for revenge after a Wembley defeat. At the start of last month, Newcastle beat the Red Devils 2-0 at St James Park just weeks after losing the Carabao Cup final to them at Wembley.
If United left the Amex with at least a point then they will effectively be home and dry in regards to securing Champions League football for next season.
The match is due to kick off at 20:00 UK time and viewers will be able to watch all the action unfold on SkySports Main Event and SkySports Premier League.
Brighton Team News: Evan Ferguson to face late fitness test
Brighton look set to take on Manchester United without Adam Lallana, Tariq Lamptey and Jeremy Sarmiento while Joel Veltman is “unlikely” to make it after aggravating a muscle injury during the 6-0 thrashing of Wolves at the weekend.
Despite the 6-0 victory, Brighton Boss Roberto de Zerbi is likely to make several changes to his starting lineup to take on Manchester United. Moises Caicedo, Alexis Macallister and Kaou Mitoma were all rested at the weekend but will surely start on Thursday night given the magnitude of the match.
Another potential change for the home side depends on the fitness of teenage striker, Evan Ferguson. The Irish centre forward, who has reportedly rejected a move to Manchester United in the summer, was forced off against Chelsea three weeks ago and is yet to have fully recovered. If he doesn’t make it, then Danny Welbeck will once again lead the Brighton attack against his boyhood club.
Been told Brighton are waiting on the fitness of Evan Ferguson but Joel Veltman is likely to miss the Man United game.
Roberto De Zerbi is hoping to be on the touchline but it's too early to confirm atm due to being unwell. #bhafc #mufc— RichieMills (@RichieMills2) May 3, 2023
One other potential issue for the Seagulls revolves around the manager. De Zerbi was too ill to conduct his pre-match press conference for the fixture and there are now doubts about whether he will be well enough to be in the dugout on Thursday night.
Manchester United Team News: Thursday night comes too soon for Garnacho
Erik Ten Hag is set to once again be without a number of key players for the trip to Brighton on Thursday night. In addition to those who are out for the season, Donny van de Beek and Lisandro Martinez, the likes of Scott Mctominay and Raphael Varane are also still out.
Talking about how far away the two of them are as things stand, the Dutchman said: “Rapha is closer than Scott Mctominay in this moment but still for the coming two games they are not available.”
Ten Hag: “I think Rapha [Varane] is closer [to returning] than Scott McTominay in this moment. But still they are, for the coming two games [Brighton and West Ham], they are not available.”
— UtdDistrict (@UtdDistrict) May 3, 2023
With Varane still out, Ten Hag will likely stick with the Lindelof-Shaw pairing at centre back that has been quietly impressive in recent weeks. It means that club captain, Harry Maguire, will once again have to settle for a place on the substitutes bench.
Another player who is nearing a return to action is Alejandro Garnacho. The 18-year-old was recently rewarded with a new five-year deal at Old Trafford but it looks like this game has come just too soon for him, despite him being back in training. The match against West Ham at the weekend, however, is firmly on the table as a potential return fixture.
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