Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has confirmed Mats Wieffer is set to return from injury against Liverpool.
A toe problem sustained in the 2-1 loss to Arsenal at the end of December has forced Wieffer to sit out Brighton’s last eight Premier League games and the FA Cup third round win over Manchester United.
In his absence, the Seagulls have won just twice in all competitions and are in danger of being dragged into a relegation battle as they sit seven points above the drop zone.
Brighton travel to Anfield on Saturday night in the fourth round of the FA Cup seeking to knock Liverpool out of the competition at the same stage for the second time in three years.
Hopes of repeating the 2-1 win from the 2022-23 season have been boosted after Hurzeler revealed that Wieffer will be available for selection and that there are no fresh injury concerns following the defeat to Aston Villa on Wednesday.
"There’s no new injury concerns,” Hurzeler told reporters in the pre-match press conference.
“Mats Wieffer will be back, so that's a positive one. But today it was calm, so maybe now we’ll always come after the game to St. George’s Park because no injury concerns is quite positive and we haven't had it so much in this season.
"Mats is a big player who has a big impact on our game. He has a big personality as well. So we definitely missed him and we are all happy that he's back now.”
In a further boost for Brighton, central defender Jan Paul van Hecke is fine to feature against Liverpool despite coming off after an hour at Villa Park.
Stefanos Tzimas and Adam Webster are long-term injury absentees, Solly March is not yet ready to return from a serious knee injury and the FA Cup tie comes too soon for Yasin Ayari following a shoulder problem.
Hurzeler added: "Jan Paul should be okay to start again.
“Yasin Ayari is still missing. He is doing rehab, but he's getting closer. We expect him to be back soon."
