Hughton: Massive Victory Well Deserved

Brighton & Hove Albion manager Chris Hughton highlighted the positive start his team made to the game against Arsenal at the Amex Stadium, and believes it gave the Seagulls a platform to hold on for all three points as they won 2-1 in the Premier League.

The Seagulls claimed their first points of the season against one of the so-called top six, and Hughton felt his players produced a performance worthy of victory, as they moved seven points clear of the relegation zone.

He said, “For us it’s massive, our first win against one of the top six. We did really well at Manchester United, but we’ve found it very difficult against everybody else.

“We started the game really well and that’s what allowed us to sort of hold on towards the end of the game.

“Overall, I thought we deserved it. Our intent in the first half was good, but I was very disappointed to concede when we did.

“That gave them a lift going into the half-time talk, and they showed in phases throughout that second half the quality that they’ve got.

“From the five games that we had left to play [against the top-six teams], I always felt that we’d need to get a win or some points from one of the big six - so it's very pleasing”

Albion extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to seven matches and won their fourth successive home game, and Hughton spoke about the healthy run of form his players have been able to produce in recent weeks.

“It’s a rhythm. We’ve got real good competition in the squad, and credit to the medical staff that we have, because at the moment we don’t have any injuries in our 25-man squad.

“The players are pushing hard and they know that to stay in the team, they have to perform.

“It’s probably a rhythm that we’ve gone into and that happens. Over a season you can’t be on top form or bad form all season - but at this particular moment, we’re in very good form.”

This afternoon’s visitors suffered their fourth defeat in a row, but Hughton was quick to switch the focus to Albion’s impressive display instead of Arsenal’s current form.

“We were able to exploit them because we’re in good form at the moment. Maybe at another time, we probably wouldn’t be able to.

“Probably on a day where we’re at home and it’s a really big result for us, it would be nice if some of the plaudits went on a performance from us, instead of a bad performance from somebody else.”