Graham Potter’s willingness to pick Marc Cucurella in every game since he has arrived has given the Spanish defender the belief he can shine for Albion.
The 23-year-old has only missed an hour of Albion action since his arrival at the end of August, starting all 29 Premier League games since then.
The one-cap Spain international wasn’t impressed by his own performance on his debut in the 1-0 win over Brentford, but being selected for the following game against Leicester City gave him plenty of confidence.
“Moving to Brighton has been a big change for me because I am playing in a new league, a new country and in my last two teams we played more direct football,” he said.
“I played in a 4-4-2 on the left of midfield and now I play at left back and at centre-back. At first it was difficult because the league is very different but the gaffer has given me confidence. I played badly in the Brentford game but the next time he put me in the line-up and that was very important for me.
“During the week after Brentford I thought I’d start on the bench in the next game against Leicester, but the gaffer put me in the line-up, the team won and that is the best outcome.”
Such has been Potter’s confidence in the Spaniard, Cucurella has played at wing-back, left-back and in a slightly unexpected position of centre-back.
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“It's strange, I have never played at centre-back before. Sometimes I have played there in the last few minutes when we’ve been losing, but I have never started there and one day the gaffer in the training explained to me that he wants me to play there and I said, “yeah, it's good.” Sometimes I'm worried when the team attack because I need to stay at the back.
“The gaffer says it’s a good position for me because with the ball I look for good passes and I help the centre-backs in the build-ups.
“I like playing there. Sometimes when the team attack I am a little bit worried because I need the stay at the back but it's fun.”