Brighton manager Graham Potter is confident his players will embrace the challenge of playing at Anfield this weekend.
The Seagulls face the daunting task of taking on a Liverpool side unbeaten in their last 30 games in the Premier League.
Jurgen Klopp’s men are eight points clear at the top of the table, although were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Napoli in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Potter’s young side have already upset Tottenham and Everton this season and he hopes they will rise to the occasion on Saturday.
“We’ll have to embrace the challenge and everything it brings,” he told reporters at a press conference on Thursday.
“Teams like Barcelona will go there and they’ll tell you that it’s a big atmosphere.
“The supporters get properly behind the team – there’s a real history and tradition to it which makes it a special place. The environment can be really powerful, but that’s one of the big challenges for us to rise to.
“It’s all part of what we have to do to get a result. You have to deal with everything that surrounds the game as well as what happens out on the field.”
Brighton head to Merseyside on the back of two-goal defeats to Leicester and Manchester United, but before those losses, the Seagulls had won three of their previous four games in the division.
Potter accepts they will need an element of luck to get the better of Champions League holders Liverpool and also appreciates they will have to improve compared to recent weeks.
A boost for the 44-year-old will be the return of captain Lewis Dunk after suspension and the fact young forward Aaron Connolly is back in training after a groin injury.
“We have to play well and hope they have an off day – but we can influence that and we certainly have to be better than we have been in the last couple of weeks,” Potter added.
“I have no idea who’ll win the league and it’s hard to say in November who’ll do what, but clearly they’ve been fantastic up until this point of the season.
“Their points record over the last few years has been amazing – to maintain that and fight for the Champions League is incredible from them. I think whoever wants to win the league will have to get themselves above Liverpool.”
