At A Glance
Steven Gerrard made the perfect start to his Aston Villa tenure by beating Brighton & Hove Albion at Villa Park in November.
Another win against the Seagulls on Saturday would be very welcome for the head coach, who has seen his side lose their last two Premier League games 1-0 to Newcastle United and Watford.
Villa have won three of Gerrard’s six top-flight away games in charge thus far, picking up their last win at Everton in January.

Brighton’s recent form has a similar look to Villa's following a run of one win in five games, including consecutive defeats.
Burnley left the South Coast with all three points last weekend after stunning the hosts 3-0, while Manchester United prevailed 2-0 a few days prior.
Brighton have picked up 14 of their 33 points on home turf, winning three of 12 league games at the Amex Stadium this season.
Standout Stats
Brighton are winless in their last five home league games against Aston Villa. However, the last four of these meetings has ended level, including both such games in the Premier League.
Following a 2-0 win in November in Steven Gerrard’s first game in charge, Aston Villa are looking to complete the league double over Brighton for the first time since 1981- 82.

Aston Villa limited Brighton to just six shots in this season’s reverse fixture in November (a 2-0 win). Only against Brentford in September (4) have the Seagulls had fewer attempts in a Premier League game this season.
Brighton have lost their last two Premier League games by an aggregate score of 5-0, having lost just two of their previous 14 in the competition (W3 D9). The Seagulls last lost three in a row in March 2021, while they last lost three in a row without scoring in April 2019 (a run of four).
Brighton have scored just 10 goals in their 12 Premier League home games this season, with four of the Seagulls’ six league defeats this term coming at the Amex Stadium.
After winning four of their first six Premier League games under Steven Gerrard, Aston Villa have won just one of their subsequent seven (D2 L4) – a 1-0 away win against Everton.

No side has scored fewer Premier League goals in the opening 15 minutes of games this season than either Aston Villa or Brighton (2 each). Meanwhile, Aston Villa have conceded the highest share of their goals in the competition this term in the same timeframe (22% - 8/37).
Brighton’s Danny Welbeck has scored five goals in 10 Premier League appearances against Aston Villa – his most against a single opponent in the competition. Four of those have come in his most recent four league games against them.
Neal Maupay’s has scored 26 goals in the Premier League for Brighton – one more strike will see him become the Seagulls’ highest goalscorer in the competition (currently level with Glenn Murray).
Since their Premier League debuts for the club on 15th January, no Aston Villa player has had more shots in the competition than Philippe Coutinho (12), while no player has created more chances for the club than Lucas Digne (10). Coutinho also has the joint-most goal involvements for the Villans since he joined (2 goals, 2 assists).
The Last Meeting
Ollie Watkins was the catalyst behind Aston Villa’s 2-0 victory against Brighton at Villa Park back in November.
The forward made great ground down the left before cutting inside and sending an unstoppable shot past Jason Steele after 84 minutes.
Riding on a wave of relief inside the stadium, Tyrone Mings sealed the victory to get Steven Gerrard’s reign off to a winning start.
Team News

Villa welcome Ezri Konsa back into their ranks after a two-game suspension.
Marvelous Nakamba and Bertrand Traore remain sidelined.
The Seagulls have captain Lewis Dunk available again after a one-match ban.
Fellow centre-back Adam Webster and Enock Mwepu are doubtful, while Jeremy Sarmiento is also likely to miss out.
The Boss
“They’ve had a terrific season and I’ve think they’ve been the surprise package, along with Wolves, who people didn’t expect to be operating in the top half of the league. They’ll want to change their form as well. It’s going to be a good game. The first game we came in was tough until a certain point when the breakthrough came. I’m sure both sets of players believe this is the game where they can turn their form around.”
Steven Gerrard
