Leeds United welcome Brighton to Elland Road this afternoon with the visitors the favourites to continue their immense season under Roberto De Zerbi.
Javi Gracia inherited a tough task at Leeds this season as he joined the club in the midst of a relegation battle spanning all the way from 20th to 12th in the Premier League.
His third league game in charge comes again at home as he prepares to take on a Brighton side that are pushing for a European place under impressive manager Roberto De Zerbi.
The Seagulls have gone from strength to strength since Graham Potter left for Chelsea, with their side continuing in rich form and looking to maintain their strong record against Leeds.
Here, we look at two players from the Leeds squad that we think would get into Brighton’s starting lineup…
Rodrigo over Evan Ferguson?
There is no denying whatsoever that Evan Ferguson is going to be a very good player in the future if he continues performing as he is right now at the age of 18.
He can do almost everything to a Premier League standard already, which is scary for Brighton in the long-term.
For this season, though, Rodrigo’s goalscoring form has him as one of the best strikers in the league, and he deserves more credit than he’s getting.
10 league goals while suffering two long-term injuries is not talked about enough, and only four players in the division have a better goals-per-90 rate than the Spaniard.
Predictions for the Brighton game?
Leeds win
Brighton win
Draw
Is Luke Ayling a better right-back than Brighton’s options?
Almost two seasons have past since Ayling’s blistering form in his maiden Premier League season earned him outside shouts of the England Euro 2020 squad.
However, it highlights just how good the Leeds vice captain is on his day, and when playing in a system that compliments his strengths.
Ayling contributes more than most in the Leeds side in the final third, and has been great since wrestling his starting place off Rasmus Kristensen, while the opposite has happened to Tariq Lamptey of late.
The former Chelsea man has become a bit-part player at the AMEX while Joel Veltman deputises out of position, normally a centre-back, now playing on the right.
The Seagulls are likely to need investment in that position soon, and with that, you’d think Ayling would be an improvement on their current crop.