Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall believes Everton's upcoming run of fixtures could prove season-defining, starting with Saturday's trip to Brighton.

The Toffees sit 10th in the Premier League table after recovering from 1-0 down to draw 1-1 with Leeds United on Monday, with Thierno Barry cancelling out James Justin's opener.

David Moyes' side have a superb record on the road, having kept five clean sheets in their last six away Premier League games, winning four, drawing one and losing one.

They could achieve three successive shutouts on the road for the first time since doing so in April and May 2021, while they could also win three in a row without conceding on their travels for the first time since December 2008.

Everton were beset by injuries at the start of 2026, and though they are unlikely to recover Manchester City loanee Jack Grealish until at least April, many of their other key players are now available again.

Dewsbury-Hall feels that will stand them in good stead, telling the club's website: "We've got a lot of important games coming up, a lot of winnable games, and if you look at the league table, we could be sitting in a very favourable position if we get some good results.

"That's two games unbeaten now and the next four or five games are massive for us. It can really put a stamp on where we want to finish this year. 

"We've got a lot of players back now and most of the squad's pretty much fit. A lot of players have played a lot of minutes now because of injuries, so people are wanting to try and play for their place."

Brighton, meanwhile, lost 2-1 to Fulham last Saturday, with Harry Wilson scoring a stunning free-kick in second-half stoppage time to condemn Fabian Hurzeler's men to defeat. 

Midfielder Yasin Ayari felt the Seagulls let their guard down in that match, telling BBC Sport: "I think we deserved the three points, but this is the Premier League, and you have to stay focused until the final whistle and in that game we did not.

"The most painful thing is knowing we could have walked away with all three points, which are vital in this moment because the table is so tight."

PLAYERS TO WATCH 

Brighton – Danny Welbeck

Against no other team has Welbeck been involved in more Premier League goals than he has against Everton (10 – five goals, five assists). 

His first brace in the competition came against the Toffees (for Sunderland in November 2010), while two of the three times he has provided multiple assists in a match have come against them (April 2012 and May 2017).

Everton – Thierno Barry 

Barry has scored in his last two Premier League away games. 

The last Everton player to score in three in a row was Dominic Calvert-Lewin in December 2020, while the last to do so in their debut campaign with the Toffees was Romelu Lukaku in October 2013.

MATCH PREDICTION: BRIGHTON WIN

Brighton are winless in their last five home league games against Everton (D2 L3), since a 3-2 victory in October 2019.

And following their 2-0 win in August's reverse fixture, Everton are looking to complete the league double over Brighton for just the second time, after 1980-81.

Since the start of December, only the Premier League's bottom two sides – Burnley (five) and Wolves (six) – have earned fewer points in the Premier League than Brighton (eight).

But despite only winning one of their last 10 Premier League games (D5 L4), the Seagulls are still favoured by the Opta supercomputer on home soil.

Only Burnley (68) and Wolves (70) have had fewer shots on target than Everton (72) in the Premier League this season, and the Toffees' average of 3.1 shots on target per game is their lowest on record (since 1997-98) across a league campaign.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Brighton – 51.8%

Everton – 23.6%

Draw – 24.6%