Arsenal Women will be searching for a fourth consecutive victory in all competitions when they travel to the People's Pension Stadium for Women's Super League contest against Brighton & Hove Albion Women.
Although they face the daunting task of a meeting with the league leaders, the Seagulls will be buoyed by back-to-back victories.
Match preview
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Seventh-placed Brighton & Hove Albion will be looking for a third consecutive victory when they face Arsenal on Sunday.
After thrashing Reading 4-1, the Seagulls picked up three more points in their last outing, with a Maya Le Tissier goal proving enough to help Hope Powell's side claim a narrow 1-0 victory.
With a point separating Brighton from Reading in sixth position, Powell will be challenging her side to finish in the top half as they look to match last season's sixth-placed finish.
Powell will be concerned by the fact that Brighton have failed to score in four of their eight league matches this season, and they will need to be at their very best if they are to trouble Arsenal's defence on Sunday.
However, the Seagulls can take confidence from the valiant display that they put in against the Gunners in the reverse fixture, despite falling to a 2-1 defeat in that outing.
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Meanwhile, the Gunners are involved in a fierce title race, and they enter Sunday's contest five points clear of the defending champions Chelsea.
The concern for Arsenal will be that the Blues possess two games in hand, but with points on the board, Jonas Eidevall's side currently sit in pole position.
Not only have the Gunners won their last three games in all competitions, but they have also scored four goals in each of those victories, including in a 4-2 win over Birmingham City in their last outing.
Goals from Rafaelle, Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead all netted to give Arsenal a three-goal lead over Birmingham before quick strikes from Libby Smith and Lucy Quinn reduced the deficit to one, but a Caitlin Foord effort in stoppage time ensured that Arsenal added three points to their tally.
Eidevall's main concern ahead of Sunday's contest will be that Arsenal have won just once in their past five away league matches.
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Team News
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Inessa Kaagman could return to Brighton's starting lineup after dropping down to the bench for the game against Aston Villa.
Meanwhile, Danique Kerkdijk could also come back into the side with the 25-year-old set to partner Victoria Williams at centre-back.
Danielle Carter will lead the line for the hosts after returning to the starting XI for the Aston Villa clash.
As for the visitors, Tobin Heath will miss out after having an injection in her knee, which requires a rest period.
Following their victory last weekend, Arsenal could name an unchanged lineup for Sunday's contest.
Rafaelle scored her first goal for the Gunners against Birmingham, but her priority will be to restrict the Brighton attack on Sunday, when she partners Leah Williamson in the centre of defence.
Brighton & Hove Albion Women possible starting lineup:
Walsh; Le Tissier, Kerkdijk, Williams, Kullberg; Green, Connolly; Koivisto, Kaagman, Whelan; Carter
Arsenal Women possible starting lineup:
Zinsberger; Wienroither, Williamson, Rafaelle, Catley; Little, Miedema, Walti; Mead, McCabe, Blackstenius
We say: Brighton & Hove Albion Women 1-3 Arsenal Women
Brighton have fared well in their last couple of outings, but we think the Seagulls will be unable to trouble an Arsenal side that are desperate to win the WSL title for the first time since the 2018-19 season.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Arsenal Women win with a probability of 70.75%. A draw had a probability of 17.5% and a win for Brighton & Hove Albion Women had a probability of 11.74%.
The most likely scoreline for an Arsenal Women win was 0-2 with a probability of 11.59%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (10.02%) and 1-2 (9.58%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (8.28%), while for a Brighton & Hove Albion Women win it was 1-0 (3.58%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with an 8.9% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Arsenal Women would win this match.
