Former Celtic star makes bold claim for Brighton's clash with Brentford

Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi and Brentford boss Thomas Frank face off at the Amex on Wednesday night. Picture: Getty

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Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton believes Brentford will "make life difficult" for Brighton when they clash at the Amex on Wednesday.

Albion lost 3-2 to 10-man Chelsea at the weekend, whereas the Bees saw off Luton Town 3-1. A victory for the 11th-placed London outfit would see them draw level on points with the Seagulls, who sit eighth in the Premier League table.

Thomas Frank's men played out a thrilling 3-3 draw with Roberto De Zerbi's side on the south coast last season and beat Brighton 2-0 at Gtech Community Stadium right at the start of the Italian head coach's tenure. Now, Sutton is predicting a 2-2 draw and expects the Bees to soak up pressure and then hit Albion on the counter-attack.

"Brighton have only won one of their [last] eight league matches and Sunday's defeat by Chelsea must have been very frustrating after the Blues went down to 10 men just before half-time," he said in his BBC Sport column.

"This could be another awkward game for the Seagulls too. Brentford took four points from Brighton last season and I can see them making life difficult for Roberto de Zerbi's team again. The Bees will sit in and counter-attack well, and I can see them getting some reward."