Brighton midfielder Davy Propper knows what he’s in for this weekend as we make the trip to Stoke City and he’s more than aware of the importance of the game itself.
Having joined Stoke from PSV Eindhoven last August, Propper was in the starting eleven for the Amex encounter against Stoke, so he’s well aware of the kind of encounter it’s likely to be, but with both sides only three points away from each other in the table he knows the aim this weekend is to pick up another three points and start opening that gap on those below us.
Speaking to the Official Site as the players prepare for the meeting against new Stoke manager Paul Lambert, Propper wasn’t expecting the task to be much different than before given their threats.
‘I am aware of their threat because I went there once to visit my friend, Marco van Ginkel because he played for Stoke. I have seen them play there, so I know it’s windy, but I think we can handle it. I know they are struggling. It’s again a big game for us and a good opportunity to stay away from the relegation zone.’
Brighton fans will have an extra special eye on the game as January arrival Jurgen Locadia is in with a chance of making his debut in the match and showing us what he’s all about. Propper knows him well having played alongside him at PSV and he expects our record signing to impress.
‘So far he looks good. I think he is almost ready. We now have five strikers and they are not all the same. You can change them in a particular situation, which is good. That will be very important. We don’t concede much. It could make the difference.’
Adding.
‘He`s getting fit and he`s ready to play and we`re all excited, because he wants to score goals – he`s talented and he`s played wide at PSV Eindhoven and he`s scored a lot of goals in Holland and I think he`ll be able to do that here as well.’
Having struck up a decent partnership with Dale Stephens in the middle of the park, the Dutchman said he was pleased with how they had teams up together – both on and off the pitch.
‘I think me and Dale do well together, we know each other`s strengths and what we`re capable of and we compliment each other well going forwards. I`m playing slightly more defensive than I have in the past, but that`s not a problem for me because you have to be able to adapt and recognise when to attack and when to control the game. Away from the field the city is great and the people are very nice with everything you need, so I`m happy here.’
