By Tim Hodges from the Amex press briefing
Gus Poyet said this morning that there was no pressure for Albion to get promoted. He said that Albion do not have the same massive expectations of teams like Birmingham, West Ham and Leicester City.
Poyet also appeared delighted to have so many players available for selection for the games ahead.
He thought that the team that beat Leeds on Saturday was effectively like a new team with loan signings Joe Mattock, Gonzalo Jara Reyes and Sam Vokes all added to it in place of some regulars.
He is aware that certain first team players may miss out all together in up and coming matches. But thinks that in the long run this may be a good thing for the club.
Lewis Dunk will be available again tomorrow (Tuesday 14 February) after missing out against Leeds.
Poyet described tomorrow’s opponents Millwall as a tricky propostion. Even though they have won only one league game in six, they did beat Southampton in the FA Cup.
However, the Albion boss considers that if the Seagulls can get control of the match and all players do their jobs, the team will have a great chance.
He praised his players’ tenacity and attitude in the way that they again scored a last-minute winner, saying that they keep performing after key incidents and have a belief in themselves. This is the type of the thing that they work on in training every day.
Poyet told Brighton and Hove News that he does not envisage any first team players going out on loan in the immediate future. He also believes that one who has, Will Hoskins, still has a future at the Albion, even though he is at Sheffield United until the end of the season.
Poyet showed his humourous side towards the end of the briefing as his watch alarm went off during one of his responses – “It’s not my heart!” quipped the Albion boss.