Brighton & Hove Albion meet arch-rivals Crystal Palace in the third round of the FA Cup as the two sides battle in another important fixture of their respective seasons.
The last time these two teams met was in the Premier League at the AMEX, where it was a 0-0 draw. This time around, both managers Chris Hughton and Roy Hodgson will be looking for a solid cup run as they attempt to keep their respective clubs in the top flight.
Hodgson with multiple injury concerns ahead of M23 derby
Hodgson's selection options are slim at the moment. The former Three Lions boss has seven key players out injured including the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mamadou Sakho, who have been key performers for the Eagles this season.
Hughton, on the other hand, does not have any injury concerns to deal with. Veteran Steve Sidwell continues his recovery on the sidelines as the Brighton boss confirmed that he would rotate his team for the derby.
The Eagles flying higher than the Seagulls ahead of cup clash
December was a lot kinder to Hodgson's side as they gained some valuable points to sustain their push for Premier League survival, however, Hughton's Seagulls lost a considerable number of points and yet find themselves in a mid-table place thanks to their good early season form.
Palace have won three out of their last six games in the league, with their only loss in December coming at the hands of Arsenal, in a 3-2 loss at Selhurst Park.
As for Brighton, they managed to pick up three points just once at home in December. A 1-0 victory against Watford was enough to help them finish the first half of the season in 12th place on the table.
Brighton will look to change history against Palace
In terms of past results, the Seagulls haven't always had the happiest of days against their arch-rivals.
Previous meetings in the Championship have been better for Palace, with two wins out of six for the Eagles. As for Brighton, they have managed to beat their rivals on just one occasion, six years ago, in a Championship fixture.
Veteran forward Glenn Murray scored twice on the day in a 3-0 victory for the Seagulls. Since then, Murray has left Brighton, joined Palace and re-joined Brighton in 2016. It will be interesting to see if he does start the game for Hughton's team, will certainly add a bit of drama to the derby.