Dewsbury-Hall contested seven duels and committed a foul in Everton’s opening game of the season against Leeds which the Toffees lost 1-0. He was also fouled twice in the game which would indicate that he will be involved in quite a lot of duels this season in the middle of the park for Everton.

He didn’t play regularly for Chelsea in the Premier League last season but was a reliable performer in the Conference League. Dewsbury-Hall committed eight fouls across his 11 appearances in the competition (0.70 per 90) and will be up against a young and vibrant Brighton midfield here.

Carlos Baleba is likely to be Dewsbury-Hall’s main opponent here, the promising midfielder won two fouls in the opening game of the season against Fulham and also averaged 1.62 fouls won per 90 across his 34 appearances for the Seagulls last season, making him a real danger for the former Chelsea man.

Matt O’Riley looked to be on his way out of Brighton just a few weeks ago, but now could look to stay at the Amex Stadium following his strong performance on the opening day of the season against Fulham. He scored from the penalty spot and created three chances in the game, the penalty goal may not seem significant but Brighton had all sorts of issues with their penalty takers last season so at the very least he can be reliable from that point of view.

O’Riley had 22 shots across his 11 Premier League starts last season (2.11 per 90), an injury right at the start of the campaign meant that we never quite saw the best of the 24 year old last season but he’s certainly a player that can deliver regularly for Brighton as his numbers from his time at Celtic show.

O’Riley had 109 shots across his 37 appearances for Celtic in the SPFL during the 23/24 season (3.02 per 90) with this shot rate returning 18 goals for the Danish midfielder. The Premier League is obviously a massive step up from that level, but his shot volume is still significant over that total number of games and one that he can replicate for Brighton here.

We can expect an intense atmosphere here as it is Everton’s first ever game at the Hill Dickinson stadium which is likely to bring a lively and expectant crowd. Admittedly Everton are not the most exciting side in the world, but Brighton can be a really chaotic side.

Brighton scored 36 goals across their 19 away games last season (1.89 per game), only Liverpool (44) scored more goals on their travels than the Seagulls last season. However, Brighton conceded 33 goals across these games (1.73 per game) which was a total only eclipsed by Wolves and the three relegated sides on the road last season.

This would indicate that Brighton are far from a settled side on the road but do carry a significant goal threat. They’ll be encouraged by Everton’s spineless performance at Elland Road on the opening day of the season which was a game that saw David Moyes’ side concede 21 shots and an xG of 2.13.

Everton received two yellow cards in their 1-0 defeat to Leeds on the opening weekend of the Premier League season and should be in line to pick up a similar number of cards here.

Everton picked up 80 yellow cards across their 38 Premier League games last season (2.10 per game) and received two or more cards in both clashes against Brighton last season, including a red card on the opening day of the season against Brighton last year.

Brighton drew three cards from Fulham on the opening day of the season and have plenty of players that can look to disturb Everton’s stubborn set up which should see the Toffees go down in the referees notebook on at least two occasions here.

Ndiaye was Everton’s most effective attacking player last season, Beto may have scored the most goals but it was Ndiaye’s ability to create something out of nothing which helped to drag Everton through a lot of games in which they struggled to create chances consistently.

Ndiaye scored nine goals across his 29 Premier League starts for Everton last season. Five of these goals came at Goodison Park in front of the home fans so this is an occasion that should suit the Senegalese forward.

Ndiaye should see an increase in his goal contribution numbers this season due to the quality that Everton have added to their squad in forward areas during the summer window. The likes of Grealish and Barry should aid Ndiaye and ensure that he isn’t the only threat Everton have when they come forward. Ndiaye scored from the penalty spot against Brighton at the Amex Stadium last season.

Wieffer lined up at right back for Brighton in their opening game of the season against Fulham. He’s naturally a central midfielder so this role is a little alien to him, but he has shown plenty of competence in this role and his positioning there also allows Brighton more options when they are in possession.

Wieffer contested 15 duels against Fulham, winning nine of these which was the most of any player on the pitch. He also won the most tackles of any player (3) which would suggest he is going to have an active role off the ball here up against Jack Grealish.

Wieffer picked up six yellow cards across just 10 Premier League starts during the 24/25 campaign. Jack Grealish is one of the most consistently fouled players in the Premier League and averaged 3.15 fouls won per 90 in the top flight last season. Grealish was fouled once in the 20 minutes he was on the pitch against Leeds which would further suggest that Wieffer will have a tough assignment here up against the 29 year old.

Brighton saw 69 goals across their 19 away games in the Premier League last season (3.63 per game). Their games tend to be very chaotic and often end to end, Everton will do their best to prevent this with their stubborn and structured system, but their hand is likely to be forced seeing as only Liverpool (44) scored more goals on the road than Brighton last season (36).

Brighton scored three goals in this fixture last season which was actually the first game of the season, Everton were reduced to 10 men halfway through that game so it isn’t the best match to draw comparisons to. Brighton should be able to score here which should force Everton to come out of their shell a little in front of an expectant crowd in Everton’s first Premier League game at their new stadium.