Brighton predicted line-up vs. Everton: three changes made as five players ruled out of Premier League clash

Seventh-placed Brighton & Hove Albion will have a chance to strengthen their grip on a European place this weekend when relegation-threatened Everton make the journey south to the Amex Stadium – but Roberto de Zerbi will have to make do without several important players against the Toffees.

Brighton have been deeply inconsistent in recent weeks, with impressive victories over Sheffield United and Crystal Palace sandwiched between defeat to Tottenham Hotspur and a devastating defeat away to Luton Town, but their opponents haven’t won any of their last five matches in all competitions.

We’ve brought together all of the latest team news and injury updates ahead of Saturday’s showdown, and ventured our best guess at a predicted starting line-up – not that trying to guess what De Zerbi will do is an easy task. We've predicted that he will persist with the 4-2-3-1 formation used against Spurs and Sheffield United, but he may well revert to a 3-4-3 if he hasn't enjoyed what he's seen.

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Goalkeeper & Defence

The good news for Brighton is that, after a long period in which injuries were very much the norm, they finally have a fully fit back line to choose from, barring any late training injuries – although two players who sometimes operate as wing-backs, Jack Hinshelwood (foot) and James Milner (thigh), will miss out.

No return dates have been set for either player, but the injuries are not believed to be serious. Seagulls fans may also get to take a first look at January signing Valentín Barco, who joined the squad in training this week after finishing a run of games with Argentina’s Under-23s squad. Barco is understood to be fully fit but it remains to be seen whether De Zerbi will put the former Boca Juniors man in the matchday squad straight away.

Midfield

Hinshelwood and Milner will be joined on the sidelines by two long-term absentees, Julio Enciso and Solly March (both knee) – but Paraguayan international Enciso, who hasn’t featured since the second game of the season against Wolverhampton Wanderers, is back and training and reportedly making good progress. The Everton game will come too soon, however, according to local media reports.

Elsewhere, Adam Lallana - who missed the 5-0 win over Sheffield United - is back in full training and should be available. The visitors have three players likely to miss out, all in midfield, with André Gomes (calf), Arnaut Danjuma (foot) and Dele Alli (hip and groin) all ruled out.

Forwards

Record signing João Pedro is the only striker expected to be absent this weekend, as the Brazilian striker continues to recover from a hamstring injury that has forced him to miss the last two matches. He is expected to return in March, although an exact date is unknown at this stage. Danny Welbeck, who has started the last two games and registered a goal and an assist in the process, may get the nod ahead of Evan Ferguson once more.

Full predicted line-up vs. Everton

Steele; Estupiñán, Van Hecke, Dunk, Lamptey; Groß, Gilmour; Adingra, Lallana, Mitoma; Welbeck.