Struggling West Ham Look to Pluck Seagulls | OneFootball

Mired in deep relegation trouble, West Ham United welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to the London Stadium looking to stop the rut that could see their time in the Premier League come to an end.

The Hammers sit in 18th place in the league table on 13 points, five points behind 17th place Nottingham Forest, after their 11th defeat of the season against Fulham. Nuno Espírito Santo’s arrival at the club has failed to stop the east Londoners’ spiral towards the Championship, and their last win was against relegation rivals Burnley on November 8. To put it bluntly, lose this one and there are rumours Nuno could be looking for a new job in January.

Prognosis Is Dim

Their next opponents could not come at a worse time. West Ham has not beat Brighton at the London Stadium in the Premier League in eight attempts (D2 L6). Only Manchester City has played more times there without losing (nine games). It’s also the most games Brighton have played in the league at one stadium without losing in their entire history.

Despite the demoralising late defeat to Fulham, West Ham defender Kyle Walker-Peters has called on his side to right their wrongs against the Seagulls to round off 2025 on a positive note. To date, they have lost 11 Premier League games at home, with only Wolves losing more (12). It’s the Hammers’ joint-most home defeats in a calendar year in their league history (tied with 1967).

“We played a good game against Fulham, defended well, had some big chances that the boys have said they think they could have scored. These games happen and we have to regroup now and get ready for Brighton.

“It’s just one of those days. All the prep we put in throughout the week, everything went to plan and unfortunately we just weren’t able to get it over the line.

“With this period, there are a lot of games so we’ve got a chance to put it right pretty quickly so we’ll be looking to do that on Tuesday.”

Opposition Is Creaky

Brighton’s season has been one of inconsistency. After 18 games played, they have six wins, six draws and six defeats. Fabian Hurzeler’s men started the season strongly and were in the mix for European football just a couple of weeks ago.

However, one win in six has seen the Seagulls slip to 13th place, albeit only five points away from fifth-placed Chelsea and a potential spot in the Champions League going into this week’s round of matches. Brighton have only won their final league game in one of the last five calendar years (D2 L2), beating Tottenham 4-2 at the Amex Stadium in 2023.

Despite the South Coast side’s mixed form this campaign, in comparison to last season’s impressive run to eighth place in Hurzeler’s first season in charge, the German has the full backing from the Brighton hierarchy. Sporting director Jason Ayto and technical director Mike Cave both believe the club’s form will improve and become more consistent and are adamant 32-year-old Hurzeler is the right man for the job.

Seagulls Fully Back the Gaffer

Ayto said: “Fabian is a student of the game, someone who loves the detail and works incredibly hard. Conversations with him are always constructive; he’s open minded and values input, which makes working with him a pleasure.

“Fabian has an ability to balance tactical detail with man management. His work rate and drive are incredible, and he is meticulous in preparation. He is equally strong at building trust and confidence within the squad. Players respond well to him because he communicates clearly and understands what motivates individuals.

“His record in his first 50 matches was the best of any Brighton manager or head coach at this level. He was really unlucky when you reflect on last season; in most other seasons his points return would have taken us into Europe.”

Victory for Brighton could see them rise to as high as eighth in the table, with a win for West Ham potentially moving them within two points of safety.