Wolves host Brighton & Hove Albion this weekend, with the home side hoping to get off the mark in their second Premier League game of the season.

They were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Manchester United at Old Trafford on Monday evening, but it was an encounter marred by a controversial decision.

Fans and pundits within the media thought the West Midlanders were the better side and unlucky not to at least come away with a point.

There was a stoppage-time collision between United goalkeeper André Onana and Wolves forward Sasa Kalajdzic, which many believed should have constituted a penalty. But after a brief VAR check, the penalty was not awarded, to the surprise of many.

Meanwhile, the Seagulls opened up their account with a thumping 4-1 victory over Premier League new boys Luton Town.

Roberto De Zerbi's side, who finished sixth last term, are expected to be back in and amongst the European spots once more, so they'll be a difficult test for Wolves on Saturday.

Ahead of the clash, Football FanCast has decided to take a look at the stats between the pair and how they've fared against each other over the years.

Wolves vs Brighton: Who has the better head-to-head record?

The pair have only faced each other 40 times throughout their long histories. Often, they've been in different divisions, so there have been periods where they've had long stints without meeting.

Perhaps quite surprisingly, Brighton dominate this statistic. The Seagulls have only conceded defeat on eight occasions – with 18 meetings resulting in victory.

What's perhaps even more surprising is that their first meeting didn't come until a League Cup third-round fixture in September 1969.

So considering Wolves had a lot of their success in the 1950s when they won three top-flight titles, this stat begins to make more sense.

Wolves wins: 8 Draws: 14 Brighton wins: 18 Wolves vs Brighton: Who has more wins at Molineux?

Considering the overall head-to-head statistic, it should come as no surprise that the south coast club come out on top in this one, too.

Though, you would expect the majority of Wolves' wins to have come at Molineux – but that isn't the case.

Just three wins from 19 games for Wolves have come at their home ground. It appears the Seagulls are most definitely their 'bogey team'.

Wolves wins: 3 Draws: 7 Brighton wins: 9 Wolves vs Brighton: Who has more wins on the south coast?

Brighton's home turf – be it at the Amex, Withdean Stadium or the Goldstone Ground – has produced a slightly more even affair between these two sides throughout the years. Of course, it is again the Seagulls who win this head-to-head statistic, but they only just edge it.

Wolves have picked up more of their victories on the south coast, so on Saturday, they'll be hoping to balance this out with a win at home.

Gary O'Neil's side will want to get off the mark as soon as possible as they bid to avoid a second successive relegation battle.

Brighton wins: 9 Draws: 7 Wolves wins: 5 Wolves vs Brighton: Who has the better domestic cup record?

It's the West Midlanders who win this statistic. There has been just the two meetings between the pair in domestic cup competitions, with one coming in the FA Cup and the other in the League Cup.

Interestingly, both affairs ended in 3-2 away victories for Wolves, with the first dating back to the 1969/70 campaign and the other in 1978/79.

Brighton have never won either the League or FA Cup, whereas Wolves have won the latter on four separate occasions. However, they are yet to win the former throughout their 146-year history.

If there come up against Brighton this year, though, history would at least be on their side.

Wolves wins: 2 Draws: 0 Brighton wins: 0 Wolves vs Brighton: What were the last five meetings?

29th April 2023 – Brighton 6-0 Wolves: De Zerbi's side recorded the club's biggest-ever top-flight victory and continued their push for a European spot.

They carved the away side open with ease as three players in Denis Undav, Pascal Gross and Danny Welbeck all registered braces.

Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui offered an apology to his fans following the match.

5th November 2023 – Wolves 2-3 Brighton: 10-man Wolves, managed by interim manager Steve Davis, suffered a sinking defeat on Bonfire Night after Gross netted the winner for Brighton with seven of the 90 minutes remaining.

The result left the West Midlands club in 19th, two points adrift of 17th-placed Aston Villa in safety.

30th April 2022 – Wolves 0-3 Brighton: Wolves' boss at the time, Bruno Lage, said this was his side's 'worst performance' of his tenure.

Brighton romped their way to a comfortable away victory thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister, Leandro Trossard and Yves Bissouma, all of whom no longer play for the club anymore, interestingly.

Despite the sizeable defeat, Wolves remained in a healthy league position, as they sat eighth, five points clear of their opposition. Though, they ultimately ended that season in 10th, behind Brighton on goal difference.

15th December 2021 – Brighton 0-1 Wolves: Romain Saïss ended Wolves' five-game run without a win as his side picked up a 1-0 away victory at the Amex to fire themselves up to eighth.

They hadn't actually scored in the previous four matches, remarkably, so this victory was certainly needed.

Meanwhile, Brighton, who were managed by Graham Potter, may have just started to look over their shoulders, as they dropped down to 13th, nine points above 18th-placed Burnley and having played a game more – while going winless in 13 games across all competitions.

9th May 2021 – Wolves 2-1 Brighton: Wolves midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, who now plays for Nottingham Forest, scored a 90th-minute winner to clinch the three points in a dramatic encounter.

Brighton were down to 10 men for much of the second half after Lewis Dunk received a red card for pulling back Fabio Silva as he ran through on goal.

It was the West Midlanders' first top-flight win over the Seagulls in the club's history.

Who has played for Wolves and Brighton?

Rajiv van La Parra (Wolves 2014-2016; Brighton 2015-2016): The Dutch winger had a 57-game career at Wolves after signing on a free transfer in 2014 from SC Heerenveen. He scored two goals for the club whilst laying on 11 assists.

Meanwhile, he spent less than two months on loan at the Seagulls from Wolves, making six appearances and scoring two goals.

Perhaps his most memorable spell in England was during his stint at Huddersfield Town, where he helped the West Yorkshire club to a shock promotion to the Premier League.

Keith Andrews (Wolves 1999-2005; Brighton 2013-2014): The 32-cap Republic of Ireland international began his career at Wolves after graduating through the academy. He made a total of 72 appearances for the club.

He had a season-long loan spell at Brighton during the 2013/14 season, where he made 37 appearances, helping the club reach the play-off semi-finals before suffering a thumping 6-2 aggregate defeat to Derby County.

Sam Vokes (Wolves 2008-2012; Brighton 2012): The towering centre-forward was on Wolves' books for four years, but much of that time was spent out on loan. He was shipped out to six separate clubs before Burnley signed him on a permanent deal in 2012.

Brighton were one of those six clubs, but his short time on the south coast wasn't particularly fruitful, as he netted just three times in 15 appearances.

Ade Akinbiyi (Brighton 1994; Wolves 1999-2001): The Nigerian forward had a short spell on loan at Brighton, where he scored four goals in seven appearances.

His two-year stint in the West Midlands saw him find the back of the net 16 times in 40 outings before he was snapped up by Leicester City, who paid a club-record £5.5m to sign him.

Steve Claridge (Wolves 1998; Brighton 2004): The forward made a total of six appearances during his five-month spell at Wolves and only five during a one-month stretch with Albion.

What is Wolves' biggest win over Brighton?

28th December 1991 – Wolves 2-0 Brighton: It's been over three decades since Wolves' biggest victory over the Seagulls, which was actually not a thrashing by any means.

Mark Burke opened the scoring in the second minute before Andy Mutch, who was well known for his strike partnership with Steve Bull, added a second.

The victory came during the 1991/92 season in the second tier. The West Midlanders finished the campaign in 11th, whilst Albion suffered relegation, finishing 23rd.

What is Brighton's biggest win over Wolves?

29th April 2023 – Brighton 6-0 Wolves: Unsurprisingly, the aforementioned 6-0 drubbing last season is Brighton's biggest win over Saturday's opposition.

It was a result that continued Brighton's assault on the European places, with the victory keeping them within touching distance of the likes of Aston Villa and Tottenham, who they would eventually usurp come the season's end.

The gap in quality between the two sides over the last 12 months has started to widen, and it could be another tough afternoon for Wolves at the weekend if the current trends continue.

Key match stats

It will be the 41st meeting between the pair Wolves have only beaten Brighton once in the top flight Brighton have won their last four matches against Wolves The last three fixtures between these two sides have produced 14 goals