Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Sheffield United Sunday Premier League Betting Odds, Picks & Predictions (Dec. 20)
Mike Hewitt/Pool/AFP via Getty Images. Pictured: Brighton & Hove Albion star Neal Maupay, right, battles for the ball with Crystal Palace standout Gary Cahill.
- Clubs in dire straits go at it Sunday when Brighton & Hove Albion hosts Sheffield United in a crucial Premier League match.
- Can the Blades snap an eight-game losing streak on the road in league play?
- Jeremy Pond delivers his insight and two plays for this showdown below.
Brighton vs. Sheffield United Odds
| Brighton Odds | -143 [BET NOW] |
| Sheffield United Odds | +440[BET NOW] |
| Draw | +265[BET NOW] |
| Over/Under | 2.5 (+112/-139) [BET NOW] |
| Time | 7 a.m. ET |
| How To Watch | Peacock Premium |
Odds updated as of Saturday night and via DraftKings. Get up to a $1,000 sign-up bonus at DraftKings today or see more offers and reviews for the best online sportsbooks.
Clubs in dire straits get Sunday's Premier League card going bright and early when Brighton & Hove Albion hosts Sheffield United in a crucial showdown.
The Seagulls, who are skating on thin ice just above the relegation zone, only have nine points and sit in 16th place on the table. They're coming off a truly disappointing scoreless draw against Fulham this week.
On the other side, the Blades are on course to break all sorts of league records they don't want to be associated with as a club. Winless through 13 games, Sheffield United has just one point in hand at the bottom of the standings.
Suffice it to say, these sides need to flip the script real quick if they're going to keep their places in England's top flight next season.
Brighton
I have said this before and will say it again. The Seagulls might be the best team the bottom five has seen in several years.
Brighton might be winless in its last four matches (two draws and two losses), but it's a much better side than its performances show. The Seagulls seemed to have turned the tide via their 2-1 win over a solid Aston Villa outfit on Nov. 21 at Villa Park, followed by a 1-1 stalemate with defending champion Liverpool.
However, losses against Southampton and Leicester City followed before the tie with Fulham. Neither side did really anything of note in that match at Craven Cottage, with the hosts holding a 0.8-0.7 xG edge on home soil.
Neal Maupay continues to lead the Brighton offense, boasting a team-best four goals this season. Lately, Maupay and his teammates have not found their rhythm up top, recording just one goal in the Seagulls' last three outings.
When it comes to statistical data, Brighton has actually put together some strong overall numbers that are better than or match up relatively evenly against the majority of the clubs in the top half of the standings.
The Seagulls sit on a solid 17.4 expected goals and an impressive 13.5 expected goals against, resulting in a respectable +3.9 xGDiff and +0.30 xGDiff/90 minutes.
Brighton's xGDiff is better than Southampton, Leicester City, Everton and Manchester United, which occupy the No. 3 through No. 6 spots on the table. Bottom line, the Seagulls' record doesn't tell the entire tale of their season.
Sheffield United
To put things bluntly, the Blades are a hot mess.
Sheffield United has that lone point, which came in a 1-1 draw against fellow relegation-zone neighbor Fulham back on Oct. 18 at Bramall Lane. Outside of that, the Blades have suffered a whopping 12 defeats and scored just five goals in their last eight contests.
Yet, not all is not terrible for Sheffield United at the moment. The club put together a solid effort in a 3-2 home loss to Manchester United last time out, really putting up a fight throughout the game.
Obviously coming away with no points didn't provide much solace, but it had to at least give the Blades some sense of hope that all is not lost just yet.
As for Sheffield United's advanced metrics, your assumption was in all likelihood correct. The stats align with its placement in the standings.
The Blades have generated a poor 13.1 xGs and subpar 21.0 expected goals against, resulting in a -7.9 xGDiff and -0.61 for xGDiff/90 minutes. Their xGDiff and xGDiff/90 minutes rank 18th out of 20 teams, with Burnley and West Bromwich Albion the only clubs worse in the categories.
Betting Analysis & Picks
Bottom line, something has got to give in this match.
Sheffield United has lost eight consecutive road tilts in league play, which gives me little to no confidence in it ending that drought at The Amex.
At the same time, I don't have much belief in Brighton when it comes to its chances of bagging all three points. The Seagulls, who were shut out in their last two games, are winless in their last 10 home fixtures.
That said, I am going to stay off a side and back the total to stay under the number. There have been less than three goals scored in Brighton's last three home matches against Sheffield United across all competitions, which has me confident in this play.
If you're looking for something another wager, sprinkle a little on the match finishing in a draw at plus-265 odds, considering that these teams have two wins combined in their last 25 matches.
Picks: Draw +265 | Total Under 2.5 Goals (-139)
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