New signing Uwe Hunemeier is aiming to replicate a "very special" achievement with former club SC Paderborn and help Brighton & Hove Albion win promotion to the Premier League.
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The 29-year-old defender, who signed a three-year deal with Albion yesterday, captained unfancied Paderborn as they won promotion to the German Bundesliga for the first time in their history in 2013 - and likened it to Bournemouth's iconic promotion to the Premier League last May.
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He told seagulls.co.uk, "It was a great feeling to lead Paderborn into the Bundesliga and it was a great experience for us to play against teams like Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, who had some the best players from Germany and world football.
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"Sometimes it was very hard to play against them because they are such good players, but we did our best and we can be proud of what we achieved last season. I hope they have a good season and I wish them all the best.
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"As captain of the club it wasn't an easy decision to leave, but it’s definitely the right one. It will be a great experience for me to play in England and hopefully I can help Brighton achieve what we did there."
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"It is a good chance for me to play in English football and that is something I always wanted to do. I'm glad I'm here and hopefully I'll have a great time.
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"I like English football; I've seen a lot of the Championship on television. In my opinion, it's the best second-tier league in the world.
"There are some big traditional teams with big stadia and some really good players. Hopefully I can play a big role in this league."
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The centre-back spoke about the attributes he hopes to bring to the team and is relishing the prospect of playing in front of a packed Amex.
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"I am a strong character who takes my responsibilities to the team very seriously. I will do my best to bring my qualities to the team and my targets are the same as what the club wants to achieve.
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"I am looking forward to seeing the stadium in person. I have already seen it on video and I know the Amex attracts big crowds and hopefully we'll win a lot of matches at home."
[h=3]ALBION V NOTTINGHAM FOREST*
[/h]FRIDAY 7TH AUGUST, KICK-OFF 7.45PM
[h=3]ALBION V BLACKBURN ROVERS*
[/h]SATURDAY 22ND AUGUST, KICK-OFF 3PM
[h=3]ALBION V HULL CITY*
[/h]SATURDAY 12TH SEPTEMBER, KICK-OFF 3PM
Original article