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Brighton face Norwegian side Tromso in the second leg of their Conference League play-off tie on Thursday following a goalless draw 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle last week.

Seagull boss Fabian Hurzeler has a big decision to make on whether he should start a strong team just three days before his side play away at Chelsea. His side are huge favourites to make it through to the League Phase of the competition but won't want to be on the end of an embarrassing upset in their search for a first major trophy in the club's history.

Both former Seagulls players Warren Aspinall and Guy Butters believe Hurzeler should go strong against their Norwegian counterparts.

Speaking on the Albion Unlimited podcast, Aspinall said: "Get the job done and put the strongest side out. See if we can get a few goals in the first half then take players off. Man for man we're better than them. As a team, we're better than them but never underestimate them because they should've won that game at home.

"It'll be completely different at the Amex with our crowd. I assume they will bring a good following but we should be beating Tromso. It's a massive game for the football club. Six extra games in Europe, financially as well, so I think he has to go very strong."

Butters agreed with Aspinall's thoughts, saying: "I think it's a good chance to get people game time again. Alright, we won at the weekend, but I still think the minutes you play with each other, when you're a player, you want to play every game, every minute.

"He will have one eye on Sunday as well but I'd go for it in this game."

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Brighton have signed a "modern" left-back blessed with "pace" in Jaouen Hadjam, says sporting director Mike Cave.

The Seagulls secured Hadjam in a deal with Swiss Super League champions Young Boys.

The 23-year-old has signed a five-year deal and brings experience early in his career having made 98 appearances across the Swiss League and Europa League, as well as appearances for Algeria during the group stage of the 2026 World Cup.

Cave said: "We believe Jaouen will be a great addition to the group, adding to our already strong options in defence.

"He is a modern left-back known for his pace, attacking output and technical abilities which fits our style of play well. He has proven himself to be a versatile player in Switzerland and we are looking forward to working with him."

Jonty Colman
BBC Sport journalist

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The third-round draw for the 2026-27 Carabao Cup will take place on Wednesday, 26 August following the conclusion of Preston North End vs Everton.

Nine Premier League clubs taking part in European football join the 23 first-round winners from across the English Football League.

Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Liverpool, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Brighton and Crystal Palace will enter the competition at this stage, as the top eight Premier League clubs from the 2025-26 season plus Crystal Palace as Conference League winners.

It will be broadcast live on Sky Sports following the conclusion of the third round tie between Preston North End and Everton, kicking off at 20:00 BST.

Unlike the opening two rounds of the competition, the third round draw is not regionalised.

However, before the match at Deepdale there will be a pre-draw determining which of the Champions League and Europa League clubs will play at home or away in round three.

In order to avoid potential scheduling issues, the eight Champions League and Europa League clubs cannot be drawn against each other in round three.

When the draw takes place, the first eight fixtures decided are the ones involving clubs in the Champions League and Europa League. The remainder of the draw will be an open draw as usual.

Due to clashes with opening weeks of the Champions League and Europa League seasons, the third round will be played across two different weeks. They are the weeks commencing Monday, 7 and Monday, 14 September, 2026.

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

It is anticipated Yankuba Minteh will leave for Liverpool, which might create space at Brighton for another forward and Carlos Baleba's impending exit for Manchester United may mean the Seagulls move for midfield reinforcements.

It is possible there may be other exits but, as usual, Brighton will stick to their data-driven recruitment plan.

"We must continue to evolve, invest and innovate while remaining true to the principles that have brought us this far," was chairman Tony Bloom's message to fans before the 4-0 win over Aston Villa.

Maz Mirzadeh, Brighton fan

With Baleba's anticipated departure and it looking likely Minteh might leave as well, we need to bring in a defensive midfielder who provides a physical presence in our midfield and a winger proven at the top level.

We have a lot of games this season with European football, so we need to have the squad depth to compete on all fronts if we want to secure a top-10 finish again.

What business do you think still needs to get done before 23:00 BST on 1 September?

Get in touch with your views here

Lewis Dunk assesses the start to the season, the panel study the latest transfer reports and there's a look ahead to the games against Tromso and Chelsea.

Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

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Listen to every Brighton game live on BBC Radio Sussex, with all the build-up and full commentary with Johnny Cantor and Warren Aspinall, and there is a full preview of all Seagulls' matches on Fridays at 18:00 in The Weekend Warm-up

Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

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The season has started with a bang. With so many new coaches and major squad upheavals, I expected the unexpected and wasn't disappointed.

Hull City seeing off Manchester United raised the most eyebrows. Remember, United ended last season impressively and their hosts just about squeezed up from the Championship, via the play-offs. These are early days and Michael Carrick's side will improve, so need to panic yet. As for Hull, their performance hinted at something else.

Last season Brentford, Brighton and Bournemouth didn't have the slightest hint of an inferiority complex when facing the super-clubs. The Tigers have started in the same style and I suspect others have now seen the light and will follow their lead.

Many are now embracing the idea of chaos, following the control-based dogma that held sway for so long. Some suggest this is "Kloppism" eclipsing the Guardiola doctrine. This is a bit simplistic but there is change in the air and it is being helped by the recent rule changes.

The game is speeding up, encouraging a quicker, more open style that lends itself to this organised chaos. It's early days, but already a pattern appears set for the season; reputations might count for little when up against hungry, youthful, fearless opponents.

Spurs and Aston Villa are seen as "big" clubs but size doesn't matter when confronted by a hunger, desire to work and the ensuing mayhem.

Just look at the way Brentford and Brighton closed both of them down at the weekend; Manchester City were within six minutes of losing to Bournemouth; Liverpool were seconds away from losing to Newcastle, a team supposedly gutted of quality and experience after those brutal summer sales.

Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.

We asked for your thoughts after Sunday's Premier League game between Brighton and Aston Villa.

Here are some of your comments:

Brighton fans

Sam: I was concerned before the season started. Gaps across the pitch, especially in wide areas, but wow! The intensity in the press led to two great goals. Great performance and work done in the first half - then after, all about game management. Brilliant start to the season and a great atmosphere at the Amex. Roll on Thursday and Chelsea away.

Gordon: Villa have been our nemesis for a while so it's good to beat them.

David: A brilliant, aggressive, front-footed first half where the half-time score in no way flattered them. Every player seemed to want to go forward, which has never been the Brighton way. But what a difference in the second half, especially after the substitutions. Back to sideways and backwards passing - the fast, forward passing of the first half was forgotten. So let's be grateful for four goals, a clean sheet and top of the table.

Barry: What a fantastic performance from Brighton! A brilliant 4–0 victory over Aston Villa, with every player contributing. The team looked sharp, confident and dangerous throughout, and Danny Welbeck's absence was barely felt. A superb all-round display and a thoroughly deserved win.

Villa fans

Ian: Villa were really poor and embarrassing! They deserved everything they got from Brighton. Villa players giving the ball away in dangerous areas and no idea of any movement off the ball. Obviously there is a lot of uncertainty with things happening in the transfer window, but things need tightening up. I trust Unai Emery to sort it, especially when injured players are available again.

Dan: Such a worry to start the season like this. The team selected looked so short of quality - then then combine that with the very poor performance, gifting Brighton a number of goals, and it does not look good. Hope we have some signings coming, a few players to regain fitness and Emery can get them being consistent! Doesn't help to have the circus around Ollie Watkins!

Andy: One result should not define a season and clearly there's a rebuilding job to do at Villa. Let's not panic as there have been huge changes in players and the new players will take time to gel. Joao Gomes is quality and will only learn from Sunday, plus will be amazing for us! Keep the faith…

Rod: No striker, no midfield, no first-choice keeper. With the core missing, we did well to lose 4-0. Keep the faith - but I have a gut feeling Unai will depart soon.