The key points from Brighton manager Chris Hughton's pre-match Watford press conference

Brighton manager Chris Hughton held his pre-match press conference for Saturday's Premier League opener at Watford this afternoon.
Chris Hughton. Picture by PW Sporting PhotographyChris Hughton. Picture by PW Sporting Photography
Chris Hughton. Picture by PW Sporting Photography

Here are some of the key points, including the transfer latest, looking ahead to the new season and what the aims for the campaign are.

TRANSFER LATEST

Asked about Wigan defender Dan Burn: "Nothing to say on that one. You'll have to wait for another three and a half hours for us to confirm anything.

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"There will be speculation and reports. All I can do is give information that is correct."

HAPPY WITH THE SQUAD

"We've brought in from the club's point of view a few young players who will feature in the 23s and in the first team we've brought seven players in but on the other hand we have lost players.

"It's not as if we're bringing in a bigger number than what's going out or potentially going out as well. I'm happy with the work we've done this summer and the work we've done in particular positions."

STRONGER SQUAD

"We're a stronger squad, which is down to our recruitment this summer. Very good players and very influential players left us who were approaching the end of their careers and we've certainly brought down the average age.

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"Bernardo is 23, (Alireza) Jahanbakhsh is mid-20s, (Florin) Andone again is mid-20s, (Yves) Bissouma is 21.

"This is nothing detrimental to any players we've had in the past but I think we're a stronger squad."

SURVIVAL THE GOAL

"My responsibility to this football club is come the following season we are playing Premier League football. This is only our second season.

"We have to get enough out of the team to have a decent season and that can mean finishing where we did last season or slightly higher."

TOUGH START

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"It's a difficult start, with four of the top six in our first seven games.

"But the first one we have to think about is Watford and trying to get a result there, that means getting a win or a draw.

"That is our priority. We will go into every game looking to get something."

ROOM TO IMPROVE

"The team challenges we have are to concede less goals from set-plays because we conceded too many last season and improve away to the top six.

"We were very good at home but can we improve away?

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"There's a lot of good challenges and they start in the first game."

TEAM NEWS

Jurgen Locadia is available after limping off in the pre-season friendly with AFC Wimbledon last month. Summer signing Florin Andone is set to return to training on Monday, while Jose Izquierdo is not ready to feature just yet.