CHRIS HUGHTON is delighted to see Brighton & Hove Albion sitting top of the Championship table and feels that the international break has come at the right time.He said, “I’ve got no complaints at all [about position in the table]. At the moment we’ve got a very competitive squad and no injuries.
“We’ve had a few kicks and bruises in the game, but hopefully we’ll come through unscathed.
“I couldn’t have asked any more from the players and it’s good for this league at this particular moment to have a break because it’s been a very hard stint over these last few weeks.
“All of the Championship teams will welcome this break and we need to continue where we are come the Hull game.”
The Albion boss explained the decision to play Liam Rosenior on the right wing and praised Tomer Hemed for his two goals.
“We’ve been playing with two wingers and two up front recently, but I thought that might leave us too open coming to a team in such good form.
“Liam has done that role on numerous occasions and has that nice balance of being a defensive player and breaking forward very well. I just felt that we needed a bit of stability in that midfield four.
“Tomer deserved those goals; particularly the second one which I felt was a super goal. He’s such a good lad and he wants to do well, as does Sam [Baldock], who worked incredibly hard.
"We needed that because if you’re going to play two up front then you need to have a work ethic from them, because it’s very difficult away from home. But I thought they were two good performers in a good team performance..”
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Mick McCarthy was magnanimous in defeat but praised his players for a much-improved second-half performance.He told Ipswich Player HD, “It was a cracking game of football, but it was obviously a disappointing result for us.
“They started better than us and we got caught for the first goal and then the second can happen like that, with the great delivery from the free-kick going straight in.
“We changed it around at half-time and the response from the players was fantastic.
“We deservedly got back in it. I know they had chances. We were winging it a bit, but their third goal has taken a deflection off the cross and that has taken the ball away from Tommy [Smith].
“They are a good side Brighton. Sometimes you have to say that. They had chances and played very well.”
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Piotr Malarczyk came on to make his Ipswich debut in the second half and McCarthy admitted he will have to get used to the style of play in the Championship.
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“All he has been doing is driving or being on a plane over the last three days.
“I think he was amazed by the pace of the game. He said it was 50 per cent quicker than in Poland but he has all the tools to deal with that.”
[h=3]ALBION V HULL CITY*
[/h]SATURDAY 12TH SEPTEMBER, KICK-OFF 3PM
[h=3]ALBION V ROTHERHAM UNITED*
[/h]SATURDAY 15TH SEPTEMBER, KICK-OFF 7.45PM
[h=3]ALBION V CARDIFF CITY
[/h]SATURDAY 3RD OCTOBER, KICK-OFF 3PM
Original article