Brighton and Hove Albion fixtures announced

The Premier league has published the fixture list for the coming season – and Brighton and Hove Albion are due to play their first match at home to Aston Villa while ending the season at Champions Arsenal.

Villa are due visit the Amex on Sunday 23 August followed by a trip to Chelsea on Saturday 29 August.

The champions Arsenal are scheduled to visit on Saturday 19 September – a week after a trip to newly promoted Coventry City – and then comes the first international break.

The Seagulls are down to host Crystal Palace on Saturday 17 October, with the return fixture next May. The month ends with trips to Liverpool on Saturday 24 October and Manchester City on Saturday 31 October.

December looks like being the busiest month for league games, with six on the fixture list, including a trip to Carven Cottage to face Fulham on Boxing Day (Saturday 26 December) and the final match of the year away to Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday 30 December.

The new year is set to start with the visit of Manchester United on Saturday 2 January.

Easter coincides with an international break but the league season looks like ending with a couple of tough matches in May when five fixtures are listed.

After a trip to Selhurst Park to play Crystal Palace on Saturday 15 May, the season is expected to culminate with the visit of Liverpool on Sunday 23 May and a trip to the Emirates to play champions Arsenal on Sunday 30 May.

Brighton’s first competitive fixture of the new season is expected to be on Thursday 20 August in the play-off round of the UEFA Conference League. The second leg is scheduled for Thursday 27 August.

The draw for the play-off round is set for Monday 3 August, with a place among the 36 teams in the league phase at stake.

And fans won’t need reminding that the current Conference League champions hail from south London although this season they will be playing in the Europa League.