Winger Anthony Knockaert has said he feel the Brighton camp are more than capable of replicating Leicester City’s route to the top flight and the quick adjustment that saw them avoid relegation in the first season and then win the Premier League title the next.
Admittedly winning he title is probably not to be repeated, but avoiding the drop is something we should be able to more than repeat should we secure promotion this season from the Championship.
Speaking to the Official Site ahead of Tuesday evening’s victory over Birmingham City, Knockaert was already more than confident that Brighton could carry themselves to the Championship title this year and then maintain their status as a top flight club the next, so with a further three points under our belts this year that confidence will have only increased.
Knockaert of course knew that there were parellels with Leicester’s route into the Premier League – failing one season as we did last year but then having a far better stab at things the next, and he saw no reason why he couldn’t play a part in repeating that kind of history.
‘We had to win that last game of the season (Middlesbrough). You know when you are that close, you want to do it but we couldn`t. I was hurting but the same thing happened with me at Leicester. I missed a penalty against Watford and the year afterwards, we went up. It can be exactly the same situation this season and hopefully it will. That’s what we’re trying to do because of our experience last year. We want to do it so much; all the lads have got a big desire to do it, and with this team spirit and this group, it would be the best thing ever.’
Having taken victory over Birmingham in the midweek fixture – at the time of writing and putting in the timer function I don’t know the outcome of either Huddersfield’s or Newcastle’s tie yesterday evening – but Knockaert’s thrust was on solidifying our position in the top two as the main aim and then we’d see about the title itself.
‘We’re going to do everything we can to win this trophy but if we finish second, 15 points behind Newcastle, I will be happy. I’m not scared to say it, because you know how much this club would love to be in the Premier League. You know how long they’ve been trying to do it, they’ve been in the play-offs a few times recently and have always lost, so it doesn’t matter what position we finish. Whether it’s first or second, as long as we do it, the club will be happy.’
He also spoke about the need to be upbeat across a Championship campaign and he joked that his energy levels were a source of amusement for his colleagues.
‘I’m exactly the same. Beram Kayal was saying ‘How come you have this energy at 9am?’ But I’m like that. You are only going to live once and you just have to enjoy your life and be happy every day. That`s what I’m trying to do, especially in football when you have a great chance. We have to smile every day and realise the chance we have. If you don’t then, it’s not respectful to people who are not as lucky in their lives.’
