BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton continues his season-long prediction series by teaming up with Royal Blood drummer Ben Thatcher, a lifelong Brighton supporter, to look ahead at two of the weekend's standout Premier League fixtures.
Sutton believes Arsenal are building serious momentum after their opening-day victory over newly-promoted Coventry, and he expects the champions to have little trouble with an Aston Villa side that has lost key players this summer and was thrashed by Brighton in their season opener. "There's only one winner with this," Sutton said of the Villa Park meeting on Monday. "Aston Villa had a slow start last season, they have lost big players and I just think Arsenal are going to run all over teams this season. I think they are going to get better and better which is ominous for everybody else."
Attention then turns to Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea host Brighton in a fixture Sutton expects Xabi Alonso's side to win. He pointed to Chelsea's opening-weekend derby victory over Fulham as evidence of their growing quality, noting that the Blues controlled the game efficiently even without dominating possession. With no European commitments this season, Sutton suggested Chelsea are well-placed to make a serious push in the league and predicted a 2-1 home win.
Thatcher, however, is sticking loyally with his boyhood club despite Brighton's usual summer turbulence. The Seagulls have again seen prominent figures depart, with striker Danny Welbeck and defender Jan Paul van Hecke both leaving this summer. Still, Thatcher remains confident in the club's model of reinvention. "We loved Danny, because he really fitted into our style of play and he had such a great season last year," he said. "We will miss Van Hecke at the back too, but the thing with Brighton is that we always bounce back. We always come through with the players we bring in that I've never heard of, but they get given this chance."
He credited owner Tony Bloom for the club's consistent ability to replace departing stars with lesser-known talents who go on to thrive. "I just trust in Tony Bloom. He knows better than anyone about these things, because he has done it so many times before," Thatcher said. "He has sold so many world-class players to other clubs and we have nurtured so many great players to replace them. So, I don't feel there is any need to worry right now."
Thatcher also expressed excitement about returning to European competition via the Europa Conference League, though he tempered expectations given the increased fixture load. "It's great to be back in Europe, but with us potentially playing so many more games, I don't expect us to get there again through our league position this time," he explained. "My hope is that we won't drop into the bottom half of the table. My thinking is that, as long as we finish in the top 10 again and have a good go at Europe, then that's a great season."
Despite Sutton's pessimism about calling Brighton results correctly last season, Thatcher predicted a narrow 1-2 away win for his side. He also highlighted several players he expects to shine this season, including goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, forward Georginio Rutter — who impressed with a standout goal in pre-season against Roma — and midfielder Yasin Ayari. He added that Greek duo Charalampos Kostoulas and Stefanos Tzimas, who saw limited action last season, could effectively serve as new signings for Brighton this year.
An AI model, Microsoft Copilot Chat, also predicted a 2-1 Chelsea victory when asked to forecast the weekend's Premier League results.
Based on reporting from BBC Sport.