Potter on Liverpool: "You're thankful you're not playing them every week because if you're facing Liverpool every week you've got problems"
Thursday 28 November 2019 14:36, UK
Brighton boss Graham Potter admits it is a "little strange" to get a new six-year contract because "we haven't done anything".
The 44-year-old and his staff got lengthy new deals just six months after joining the club from Swansea.
Potter, assistant Billy Reid, first-team coach Bjorn Hamberg and assistant head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay, were given four-year contracts in March but earlier this week signed extensions until 2025.
The former Swansea manager admitted he was very surprised to be asked to extend his stay at the Premier League club by the chairman Tony Bloom.
He said: "I was pretty much 'Oh ok, thanks and yeah ok.' There was not too much to think about to be fair, we've had a great welcome here, nice feeling at the club and nice feeling in the city.
"We've still got a lot to do, from my perspective it's a little bit strange because we haven't done anything.
"I'm not one of those people that feels that secure by the length of the contract. I know the business we're in.
"It's a fantastic gesture and symbol and signal from the club that they believe in the potential that we're showing ... so we're delighted."
Potter revealed he had not had time to celebrate because of the busy football calendar with Brighton's next match against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday.
"I wasn't celebrating because we've got games coming up, it's nothing to celebrate, you celebrate in football when you achieve what you want to achieve and do what you want to do," he said.
Potter told reporters he believes Liverpool are the best team in England.
He said: "They're a wonderful team, rightly have our huge respect, champions of Europe and the amount of points they've got over the last season and a bit is incredible.
"They've got danger all over the pitch, on the one hand it's really really good, and you're thankful you're not doing it every week because if you're facing Liverpool every week you've got problems.
"They've got pretty much everything you need in a team. So the boring answer is we have to play really really well, they have to play not so well and we have to be lucky."
Brighton go into the clash in 12th place after 13 Premier League games, and Brighton's boss is expecting their toughest test of the season so far.
"You're going to Anfield, it's a tremendous football environment and we're playing against the best team so it doesn't get any better for us in terms of a challenge," he said.
"We need to go there and be brave and try to be ourselves and get something from the game."
