Chris Hughton is targeting Brighton’s fourth successive Premier League victory when they travel to Everton but has warned his players of how quickly their fortunes can change.
The 59-year-old could be rewarded for their encouraging results throughout October — three 1-0 wins over Wolves, Newcastle and West Ham — with the Premier League’s manager of the month award, but he knows from experience how ruthless the division can be.
Hughton had overseen three straight league wins at Newcastle eight years ago but he was sacked when they drew two and lost three of their following five fixtures.
The former Norwich boss is wary of how results can turn for the worse, even if Brighton’s progress means they look established in the Premier League.
“As quickly as you can put a run together, it can go the other way,” he said.
“We have two tough away games (Everton and Cardiff) coming up, but we’ve learned and progressed and the results show that.
“We know how valuable a win is in this division and we know how impressive three on the spin is too.
“The most pleasing thing on each of the occasions is three points. One-nils show we have a resilience in the team.
“Three wins is something we weren’t able to do last season, so that shows progress, but you can lose two or three on the spin having played at the same level.”
Asked if he would settle for another 1-0 result on Saturday at Goodison Park, he responded: “Absolutely. They are a very good side. It will be a very tough game for us.
“We went through a long period where we didn’t keep a clean sheet so I’m really delighted.
“At this moment we’re not playing as well as we could but we’re a team showing a lot of resilience.”
The influential Pascal Gross and Davy Propper remain absent through injury, but Hughton is confident both will return later this month.
Hughton added: “(Gross) is close but he’s not back in training yet. He’s done some really good rehab.”
ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Declan Warrington, Press Association Sport');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', 'cb2e3902-4467-4c40-b955-0571f9e86ce0');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football,paservice:sport:uk');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Chris Hughton not taking Brighton\u2019s winning form for granted'});
