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• Brighton boss Hurzeler predicts swift return for injured O'Riley

  Matt O'Riley is in good spirits and could come back "quite fast" as he recovers from ankle surgery, so says Brighton coach Fabian Hurzeler.

  Brighton signed Denmark international O'Riley from Celtic last month, but the midfielder sustained an injury on his debut.

  O'Riley was on the end of a poor challenge from Crawley Town's Jay Williams, and subsequently had to undergo surgery.

  Ahead of Brighton's meeting with Ipswich Town on Saturday, Hurzeler said O'Riley could return ahead of schedule.

  "He's in very good spirits. He has a great character, a great attitude, so immediately after the surgery he was very, very positive," Hurzeler said of the 23-year-old.

  "He is around us in the training ground, he is doing his rehab already and I think he will be coming back quite fast."

  Brighton have made a strong start to the season, going unbeaten in their opening three Premier League matches.

  And for new boss Hurzeler, the international break provided an opportunity to reflect on the first weeks of the campaign.

  "For me it was time to reflect, to re-analyse the first few weeks," said the 31-year-old, who is the youngest coach in Premier League history.

  "I think it is very important to reflect on what is going good so far and where we can improve. That was the first thing I did.

  "The second thing was to plan the next phase and the next week because now we have a lot of games in the next period of time. We have a lot of home games so we want to use this chance.

  "For me it was more reflection and planning. Of course, I also had one or two minutes for myself."

  Brighton v Ipswich will be the 936th different fixture to be played in the Premier League. They met eight times in the top flight between 1979 and 1983 (four Ipswich wins, two Brighton wins, two draws), with the Tractor Boys winning 2-0 in the most recent thanks to goals from John Wark and Alan Brazil.

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  Brighton - Simon Adingra

  Excluding own goals, Adingra has scored five of Brighton's last eight Premier League goals against newly promoted opponents. This accounts for 71% of the Ivorian's Premier League goals (5/7).

  Ipswich Town - Leif Davis

  Davis was a star for Ipswich in the Championship last season, and he leads the way for the Tractor Boys for chances created (three).

  That being said, he will be tested defensively on Saturday, with Yankuba Minteh likely to start down Brighton's right flank.

  MATCH PREDICTION: BRIGHTON WIN

  Ipswich have had the fewest shots (19), shots on target (seven) and the lowest expected goals total (1.2) of any side in the Premier League so far this season. 

  And in a run stretching back to March 2002, Ipswich have lost each of their last five Premier League away games by an aggregate score of 18-3. They are winless in their last eight on the road in the top-flight (D1 L7) since a 2-1 win at Everton in February 2002.

  Meanwhile, Brighton have won six of their last eight Premier League matches in September (D1 L1), scoring 3+ goals in each of their last four such victories. However, their last September match ended in a 6-1 defeat at Aston Villa.

  Brighton have lost just one of their last 13 Premier League home games against promoted sides (W5 D7), going down 1-0 against Fulham in February 2023.

  Ipswich have won two of their last four away league games against Brighton (D1 L1), with those wins coming in March 2014 (2-0) and December 2015 (1-0). They had been winless in their previous eight league visits to the Seagulls before this (D5 L3).

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Brighton - 65.7%

  Ipswich - 15.3%

  Draw - 19%

• Pulisic hopes Pochettino can improve USA mentality and culture

  Christian Pulisic hopes the arrival of new head coach Mauricio Pochettino will improve the United States' mentality and culture, following their 1-1 draw with New Zealand.

  The Stars and Stripes were denied a first victory in four matches after Ben Waine's fortuitous equaliser in the 89th minute cancelled out Pulisic's opener in Cincinnati.

  Pochettino was officially announced earlier in the day as the successor to Gregg Berhalter, who was dismissed following the United States' poor Copa America campaign.

  The former Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea boss will pick up the baton from interim coach Mikey Varas, and Pulisic hopes the Argentine's arrival will spark the nation back into life.

  "Hopefully, a culture that is willing to fight, that is willing to take risks, you know, win," the Stars and Stripes skipper said when asked what he wants Pochettino to bring to the role.

  "There are a lot of things that need to change, just the mentality and the culture of the group. I think we have the quality, but hopefully that's the first thing he's going to want to change."

  Pochettino will also be tasked with improving the United States' results, having now won just one of their last seven matches. And Pulisic issued a rallying cry to his team-mates.

  "Obviously, [these are] difficult results for us, and it's not a great feeling," he added.

  "But I think moving forward, it's time to turn a page, and we really have to pick up a level - I mean everyone that's a part of this. It feels pretty low right now, but I know there are better times ahead."

• Vinicius apologises to Brazil supporters after Paraguay defeat

  Vinicius Junior apologised to Brazil's supporters following their defeat to Paraguay, acknowledging "it is a difficult time" for the Selecao.

  The five-time world champions were beaten 1-0 in Asuncion, with Diego Gomez's 20th-minute strike condemning them to a fourth defeat in five qualifying games.

  Dorival Junior's side occupy fifth place in the CONMEBOL section - in which the top six nations automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup, with the team finishing seventh entering the Inter-confederation play-offs.

  Already eight points adrift of leaders Argentina, Brazil are now just one ahead of eighth-place Bolivia, and Vinicius knows he and his team-mates must do better.

  "We apologise to the fans, who are always on our side," the Real Madrid forward told Sportv. "But this is a difficult time, we just want to improve.

  "I know my potential, I know what I can do for the national team. Of course, it's been a very difficult process, because when you don't have confidence, you don't get goals, you don't get assists and good performances.

  "We know the situation we're in, we want to get Brazil out of this situation at any cost, we all have to go home now and start thinking about what we can do to get back to playing well.

  "We cannot come here, lose these points and play the way we did. It is a difficult time, we must take on board all the criticism and return as quickly as possible to put Brazil on top."

  Meanwhile, Marquinhos believes Brazil are going through a transitional period, and that they are not brimming with belief as a result. 

  "The coach is still figuring out the best way for us to play and that's reflected in the result," the defender told Brazilian TV Globo. "There are a lot of new players, we are lacking confidence.

  "Qualifying isn't easy, it's a difficult time, and we have to know how to manage it. It's a time of transition, we're not feeling confident. We're going to work hard, getting results on the pitch is the best answer."