'Graham Potter could have been sacked' - Peter Crouch praises Brighton for standing by 'top manager'

Potter was under severe pressure at the turn of the year. Brighton were perilously close to the drop and many fans were asking if Potter was right man to take the team forward.

The sacking of Chelsea manager Frank Lampard highlighted just how ruthless the Premier League can be but Brighton took a different approach.

The club were convinced their fortunes would improve and the recent change in form from Graham Potter's team has been quite remarkable.

They have 10 points from their last 12, four clean sheets in a row and they are 10 points clear of the bottom three.

"They have got a very competent manager in charge," said Crouch after the match. "He has turned it around.

"Plenty of managers would have got sacked but Brighton have stuck by a top manager. And he is now proving that.

"His team is so well organised. Whenever I have watched them this season, even the Liverpool game at home [1-1 draw], they were the better side.

"They have got some good players. Trossard I thought was fabulous and defensively they are very, very good and good in possession as well."

Brighton created the best chances at Liverpool and the margin of victory could have been greater but Steven Alzate seized the moment with his first Premier League goal in his 28th appearance 11 minutes into the second half.

Brighton have now claimed six points from their two matches against Tottenham and Liverpool.

“Fantastic result, fantastic performance," said Potter. "It had everything. We showed courage when we had the ball and when we didn’t. We defended with our lives. We limited a good team to not too many chances. We had a few ourselves.

“You have to be disciplined here. Huge credit to the players who worked so hard. I can’t speak highly enough of the character of performance – sensational.

“It’s not an easy place to get points. They’re a top team. We’re just trying our best in this league. Every game we face a huge task. It’s one for the supporters and everyone involved in the club. It’s not often a club like us come here and win.

“We were 3-1 down at Wolves at half-time at the start of the year and it wasn’t looking so good then. We made it 3-3 and we’ve been on a good run since.”