Manager Chris Hughton has given his thoughts on last night’s one all draw with Aston Villa.
Hosting Steve Bruce’s new side at the Amex Stadium for the first game of the campaign against last season’s relegated Premier League ever present, Brighton fell behind in the 20th minute to a goal from the visitor’s Nathan Baker, but as is so often the case, Glenn Murray got himself back on the scoresheet to tie things up seconds before the half time whistle went.
It proved crucial as whilst Villa arguably had the better of the first half, going in level saw us find new legs and we arguably had the better of the second period or large parts.
Speaking to the Official Site in his post game press conference, this was something that hadn’t been lost on the gaffer – so ultimately he was pleased with the point, as for him, that was a fair outcome based on the game overall – as neither side really had many golden moments in front of the net.
‘We were very unfortunate to go behind, but we got it back to 1-1 and I was reasonably happy with a point. I genuinely think a draw was a fair result. We were up against a very good Villa side that pressed well, but didn`t have much of a goal threat in the first period. But as the game grew on, they started to show their quality, especially with the players they were able to bring on. Our levels had to be good, and possibly on another occasion this might have been a game we`d have lost, but we certainly didn`t deserve to lose.’
To put the point in perspective, despite Villa’s struggles to adapt to the Championship that saw them dispense with the services of Roberto Di Matteo a short time ago, and then appoint Bruce with his Hull background, Hughton went on to say.
‘They have players that came in for big fees to play in the Premier League, so there`s no doubt we played a very good team tonight. They have a different level of player, and when you`re up against them, they show in periods what a big threat they are and why they`ll be there or thereabouts at the end of the season. I think most people would look at Villa and think they`re in a false position, as they didn`t start the season too well, but we have to look at every game as a difficult game.’
Moving back to Brighton more specifically, obviously Murray featured in the questioning as he found the net once more.
‘He showed some great quality at an ideal time, he was probably the only player in the first half that was going to break the lines. We had to show that little bit of creativity, there were other opportunities that we had that went wayward, but he came out with that important bit of quality we needed.’
