Preview: Brighton & Hove Albion vs Kauno Zalgiris - prediction, team news, lineups

Brighton & Hove Albion will be aiming to begin their 2026-27 Conference League league stage campaign on a winning note when they host Kauno Zalgiris on Thursday night.

The Seagulls beat Tromso in the playoffs to book a spot in the league stage, while Kauno dropped into this competition after losing in the Europa League playoffs.

Match preview

Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League last season to qualify for the 2026-27 Conference League playoff round, and they breezed into the league stage of the tournament courtesy of a 4-0 aggregate victory over Tromso.

Fabian Hurzeler's side will enter this match off the back of four straight wins in all competitions, including their last three in the league, with a strong start to the campaign leaving them in third spot in the Premier League table on 13 points.

Brighton are fast establishing themselves as one of the strongest teams in England's top flight, and they will be among the favourites to win the Conference League this term.

The Seagulls played in the 2023-24 Europa League, reaching the last-16 stage of the tournament before losing to Italian giants Roma.

Brighton will take on Kauno, Jablonec, Getafe, Craiova, Monaco and Panathinaikos in the league stage of this season's Conference League.

Kauno started their 2026-27 European campaign in the Champions League, but they were beaten 7-1 on aggregate by Dinamo Zagreb, which saw them drop into the Europa League playoff round, coming up against Turkish giants Besiktas.

It was a tough assignment against Besiktas - they suffered a 3-1 defeat in order to drop into the Conference League, and the Lithuanian outfit are now preparing to take on Brighton, Brann, Lugano, Riga, Egnatia and Freiburg in the competition.

Zeljko Sopic's side will enter this match off the back of a 3-0 win over Minija in the Lithuanian Cup, while they won their last league game against FA Siauliai on September 20.

Kauno have never competed in the league stage of the Conference League, so history will be made on Thursday; in fact, it will be the club's first-ever European campaign beyond the qualification rounds of the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League.

Brighton & Hove Albion Conference League form:

Brighton & Hove Albion form (all competitions):

Kauno Zalgiris form (all competitions):

Team News

Brighton are currently without the services of Evan Ferguson, Stefanos Tzimas, Kaoru Mitoma, Yakuba Minteh, Mats Wieffer and Femi Azeez through injury.

Meanwhile, Jack Hinselwood and Zadok Yohanna both need to be assessed.

Lewis Dunk is expected to be brought into the side following the 2-0 win over Sunderland at the weekend, while there could also be an introduction into the midfield for Matt O'Riley.

As for Kauno, no injury issues have been reported, nor are there any suspension concerns for the visitors, so head coach Sopic could have a full squad to choose from.

Gabriel Debeljuh has scored once in four appearances this season and is expected to feature in the final third of the field for the away side on Thursday night.

Meanwhile, there should also be a spot in the team for Fabien Ourega.

Brighton & Hove Albion possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Kadioglu, Vuskovic, Dunk, Boscagli; O'Riley, Ayari, Gross; Gomez, Kostoulas, De Cuyper

Kauno Zalgiris possible starting lineup:

Mikelionis; Moutachy, Lekiatas, Hernandez, Iyobosa; Karashima; Ourega, Fiolic, Kalik, Ribeiro; Debeljuh

We say: Brighton & Hove Albion 3-0 Kauno Zalgiris

Brighton are flying at the moment, and we are fully expecting the Seagulls to be too strong for their opponents in Thursday's Conference League opener.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.