Match preview - Brighton v Wolves

Wolves will hope the beginning of 2016 reflects the end of 2015, both for them and their hosts.

Kenny Jackett's team won two on the spin to finish the year on an unexpected high - and relieve the pressure on both the team and the boss.

Meanwhile Brighton have endured a slump of late. They're winless in five and have lost their first two games of the season in that run, both at home to Middlesbrough and Ipswich.

Sadly for Wolves their two victories, which came gift wrapped with clean sheets, brought them no nearer to the play-offs in terms of points.

They're comfortably clear of the bottom three, but remain nine points off sixth.

With 22 games of 2015/16 to go, their season can still go either way.

Brighton's poor form has coincided with Chris Hughton being deprived of half his team through injury.

Captain Gordon Greer, Kazenga LuaLua, Solly March, Gaeten Bong, Liam Rosenior, Sam Baldock and Uwe Hünemeier are all in the treatment room.

And of course Rajiv van La Parra is ineligible to face his parent club, ahead of his loan deal at Brighton ending this weekend.

On-loan Manchester United striker James Wilson, openly courted by Wolves, was on the bench for this week's 1-0 home to defeat to Ipswich with illness but should be okay to start.

Talking of illness, that's what's kept midfielder Jack Price out of the Wolves side of late.

He is touch and go to return at the Amex, although Kenny Jackett is likely to name an unchanged XI for the third successive game if fatigue isn't an issue.

Emiliano Martinez (thigh) should be back for next weekend's FA Cup trip to West Ham and Kortney Hause (hamstring) is out until the end of January at the earliest.

And although both Brighton and Wolves have signed new players (Liam Ridgewell for Brighton and Michal Zyro for Wolves), neither can play as the transfer window doesn't open until January 2.

LIKELY LINE UPS

Brighton (4-3-3): Stockdale; Bruno, Goldson, Dunk, Calderon (c); Crofts, Kayal, Stephens; Wilson, Hemed, Murphy. Subs: Mäenpää (gk), Forster-Caskey, Manu, Akindayini, Ince, Zamora, Chicksen.

Wolves (4-5-1): Ikeme; Iorfa, Batth (c), Ebanks-Landell, Doherty; Henry, Coady, McDonald, Edwards, Graham; Afobe. Subs: McCarey, Golbourne, Byrne, Wallace, Ojo, Sigurdarson, Le Fondre.

FORM GUIDE

Brighton are in the midst of their worst run of the season.

Their last victory came on December 5 when Van La Parra teed up a late winner as they came from behind to beat Charlton 3-2.

Tomer Hemed scored that goal and surprisingly it was his first strike since squandering a penalty in the reverse fixture at Molineux (a 0-0 draw, when Conor Coady was sent off).

At that point of the season, back in September, he was among the league's top scorers with five goals, but his form has tailed off alarmingly since.

Wolves have won two in a row for the second time in 2015/16.

A back-to-basics 4-5-1 approach might not please the purists but it has dragged them clear of the relegation zone.

Player-wise, their most in-form man by a distance is winger Jordan Graham, who has provided six assists in eight matches and scored his first Wolves goal at the Valley on Monday.

MATCH ODDS

Brighton are 6/5 and Wolves 5/2.

Last season the sides played out a 1-1 draw (Van La Parra scoring his only Wolves league goal to date against his future loan side) and the odds of a repeat result are the shortest available, at 5/1.

Add James Wilson to score first in that scenario and the odds jump to 25/1.

You can get up to 18/1 for Wolves to repeat their Valley scoreline and win 2-0, while for Wolves to win and Jordan Graham to score again is 12/1.

For the more adventurous, how about Matt Doherty to score the game's only goal? That'll be 175/1.

And even more unlikely according to the bookies is Conor Coady, man of the match at Charlton, to open the scoring with his first Wolves goal and Kenny Jackett's team to go on and win 3-0. Odds of 375/1 on that one.

March 14, 2015 (Championship), Brighton 1 Wolves 1. The game was goalless until the 70th minute when right-back Bruno put Brighton ahead, only for Van La Parra to equalise four minutes later.

May 4, 2013 (Championship), Brighton 2 Wolves 0. Oh dear. One of the bleakest days in Wolves' recent history. Kazenga Lua Lua scored twice in the first half as Wolves were relegated to League One with a whimper. Jamie O'Hara sarcastically applauded the away fans, Roger Johnson couldn't even give his shirt away, and Kaspars Gorkss was in defence. Pretty bad.

November 1, 2005 (Championship), Brighton 1 Wolves 1. Colin Cameron came off the bench to rescue a point in the 82nd minute. Glenn Hoddle's team (so no surprise it finished 1-1) had earlier fell behind to an Alexandre Frutos goal at the Withdean.

September 14, 2004 (Championship), Brighton 0 Wolves 1. Kenny Miller struck to give Dave Jones's Wolves their first victory of the season over Mark McGhee's Brighton.

February 8, 2003 (Division One), Brighton 4 Wolves 1. After a recent upturn in results, which included that famous FA Cup win over Newcastle, Wolves were hammered with Brighton's goals including one from Bobby Zamora, who is of course now back with the Seagulls. Kenny Miller scored Wolves' consolation. However, they would lose just one more game that season on their way to promotion to the Premier League.

Chris Hughton: "By our standards this season, it's a very difficult period for us.

"But the good thing about this division is you've very quickly got another opportunity to change that.

"We'll look forward to an exciting game tomorrow and it's a home game.

"We've still lost only two games this season and we still haven't lost away from home.

"There are certainly more positives than there are negatives."

Kenny Jackett: "I'm sure confidence is a lot higher than it was perhaps before the (Reading and Charlton) games, but confidence is hard earned and easily given away.

"I'm pleased with the players, with their reaction, with their character and effort. They've addressed the problems in the right manner.

"It's our determination to make sure it is a turning pint. We've been a mid-table side and we want to be a top side.

"In recent weeks or months we've looked closer to being a bottom side than a top side.

"I do feel they're a real spirited bunch which does help you."

THE REF

Christopher Kavanagh (Lancashire): Only shown the one red card in his 19 matches this season.

His last Wolves game was for the 3-0 home win over Huddersfield in October, the most controversial moment being when he denied Adam Le Fondre a second half penalty.

PREDICTION

It's got 1-1 stalemate written all over it. Wilson and Afobe on the scoresheet.