Brighton boss Graham Potter insists he will not “bleat” about points which have slipped away as he attempts to ease the club up the Premier League table.
The Seagulls welcome Southampton to the AMEX Stadium on Monday evening having edged their way into 16th place and four points clear of the bottom three following last weekend’s creditable 1-1 draw with champions Liverpool on the back of a 2-1 win at Aston Villa.
That represented the club’s first victory in eight attempts in all competitions and while there may be a perception that they have not received their just deserts in recent weeks, Potter is not one for looking back.
He said: “Whether it’s fair or not, it doesn’t matter. We have got the points that we have got.
“I am not going to sit here and bleat about what we could have done or not done, in football it’s about the results and you have to deal with it.
“It’s up to everyone whether the performances are on the right track – some people can’t do that and they just focus on the result. From our perspective we have done quite a lot of things well, but we always want to improve as well.
“We know points-wise, we are frustrated and we want to try and improve that. At the same time, we face an opponent every week that has got good players and wants to win and that’s why we’re in this league, to fight and take that challenge on.”
Monday’s game is the first of seven in the league inside 27 days leading up to and beyond the holiday period, including potentially pivotal clashes with Fulham and Sheffield United, two of the sides currently below them in the table.
The last two results will send Potter’s men into their busy programme in confident mood, but he will not allow himself to think too far ahead.
He said: “There are a lot of games in a short space of time. Importantly, you can’t get too down or high because there’s another game around the corner.
“If you do well you get points and it’s positive for you, but at the same time there’s a long way to go.
“You can’t predict the future, you can’t second guess what may or may not happen, you’ve just got to focus on the game that you’re going to play and put all your attention into that.”
