Skipper Lewis Dunk believes that the Europa League experience has been an important part of the development of the players as individuals and the team as a group.
Home and away matches against AEK Athens, Marseille and Ajax offered a different challenge to Premier League games, but it was one that he and the squad adjusted to with success, topping Group B after beating the French side 1-0 at the Amex.
“The stand-out moment for me was Marseille away,” he said. “In the first 20 minutes, our first experience for a lot of us of a European atmosphere, I’m not going to lie, we were like a deer in the headlights.
“If you had said to me at that moment that we would top the group, I would have laughed in your face. It shows the character we have in the group and how much we want to learn and improve each day. Credit to everyone in the dressing room.
"We know we are in this competition for a reason and we want to win it. We are in a good place, we have topped our group and skipped a round, and we are ready for the next round.
“You don’t go into a competition without wanting to win it. You are a footballer at the end of the day, and footballers want to win. We don’t like losing. So we are here to win it and at the moment we are on the right path.
“We know we are going to have to beat a lot of good teams if we want to, so we have to be ready for the next round. But we are slowly becoming a bigger team and we are on the rise as a group and we are going the right way as a club.”
The captain had an insight into the fan experience after the away game in Athens. “I saw many, many fans and it was nice to see that side of it, see the fans enjoying themselves. I’m glad they were having a good time and the journey continues.
“It is massive for the whole area. I don’t see the city before the games but I’m sure everyone is buzzing to have massive teams like Ajax and Marseille coming, and there will be more. Hopefully we are making everyone proud and we want to keep doing what we are doing.
“To think that the Albion are in the last 16 of the Europa League is hard to sum up as a Brighton boy and a Brighton player from 10 years old. It has been an incredible journey and I’m glad I’m part of it. Otherwise I would have been on the away trips having a drink, but it is good to be playing as well!”
And long may that continue. “I just do what I do every day, giving one hundred percent on the training ground or in games. It is nice to know that you can be rewarded for that sometimes. I’m just enjoying every moment and I’m going to carry on being myself and giving it my all for the team. It’s all I can do and all I will ever do until I retire.”