Brighton boss Graham Potter hopes Tariq Lamptey’s sending off last weekend will be “a learning experience” for the young full-back.
Lamptey, who has impressed since joining the Seagulls from Chelsea in January, was dismissed late on in last Saturday’s 2-1 win at Aston Villa after picking up two yellow cards in quick succession for challenges on John McGinn and Jack Grealish.
The 20-year-old will now sit out the home clash with Liverpool on Saturday, and Potter said ahead of the contest: “He’s disappointed to miss the game, disappointed that he got the red card.
“I think it is all a learning experience for him. As I’ve said before, he’s done a lot really, really well, and there are things that he can improve, and that’s normal for a player of his age and experience.
“But he has the right mentality and he’ll have to just bide his time, sit this one out and be ready for the next match.”
The Villa game also saw Adam Lallana come off at half-time, having teed up Danny Welbeck’s opener, and he is being assessed in the build-up to Saturday’s clash with his old club.
Lallana joined Brighton in July after six years with Liverpool, and Potter has spoken to the midfielder about the Reds as part of his preparation for the match.
“We talk a lot generally anyway, so it’s totally normal that you would chat about somewhere where he has spent six years of his career,” Potter said.
“We’ve had slight chats. He’s a player and that’s his responsibility, and my responsibility, as a coach, is to try to pick the right team and to put an idea together that gives us a chance in the game – but it would be a bit foolish of me not to use Adam as a resource I think.”
The result at Villa was a first win since September for Brighton, who are 16th in the Premier League.
Champions Liverpool, meanwhile, are currently level on points with leaders Tottenham after beating Leicester 3-0 at Anfield last weekend.
They subsequently suffered their first defeat since early October on Wednesday, when they lost 2-0 at home to Atalanta in the Champions League.
Boss Jurgen Klopp, who has expressed his unhappiness about the scheduling of Saturday’s 12.30pm kick-off at the Amex Stadium, has had a significant number of injuries to contend with in his squad.
When asked about that injury situation and if there is ever a good time to be playing a side like Liverpool, Potter said: “There’s never a good or bad time, there is just a time to play them and our time is now, and we have to play well.
“They’ve got some problems, but they’ve also got a lot of solutions and world-class players still available for them.
“They will be looking to bounce back from the disappointment from Wednesday, and build on what I thought was a fantastic performance against Leicester.
“They’re the champions, they were the champions of Europe, they’ve got an incredible manager and squad. My respect for them is huge, and whenever you play them you know you have a massive test.”
