Sami Hyypia had a raw deal from Albion.

Not in the way he was backed by the Board.

Some would argue he was given longer than he deserved last season, so bad were the results.

The Finn who launched his latest job at FC Zurich with a 3-3 home draw on Sunday could be another in the long line of fine players who could not cut it as a manager.

Hyypia was, however, let down by the Seagulls in terms of player recruitment.

Consider this team. Stockdale, Calderon, Greer, Dunk, Bennett, Ince, Forster-Caskey, Gardner, Colunga, O'Grady, Baldock. Subs: Ankergren, Hughes, Chicksen, Teixeira, McCourt, Holla, Fenelon.

Now think about this team. Stockdale, Bruno, Greer, Huenemeier, Bong, Rosenior, Kayal, Stephens, Murphy, Baldock, Hemed. Subs: Maenpaa, Dunk, Forster-Caskey, March, Ince, Zamora, Manu.

The first is the side fielded by Hyypia at the Amex against Rotherham in late October last year, when a 1-1 draw stretched the winless Championship run to ten matches.

The second is the one that might be named by Chris Hughton against the same opponents tonight, even without the suspended Kazenga LuaLua.

Spot the difference? There are no guarantees in this evening's top v bottom encounter, especially with a cussed character like Steve Evans in the other technical area.

Losing the three points earned by beating Albion 1-0 with the ineligible Farrend Rawson in the reverse fixture in April - which meant Rotherham finished below instead of above Hughton's Seagulls - will further fuel Evans' desire to cause an upset.

But there is less chance of them returning to Yorkshire with a point, or three, than there was 11 months ago.

A manager is, to a certain extent, only as good as his players.

Hughton, after the initial bounce effect of a new man in charge, ultimately struggled to keep Albion clear of danger with the squad he inherited.

Bear in mind also he had the benefit, from January, of Beram Kayal and, from February, of Dale Stephens on his return from injury.

The dramatic improvement in Albion's fortunes this season has a correlation with the transformation in recruitment.

Under David Burke they tended to put all their eggs in one basket. If the top choice for a position was not landed there was often a quality drop below.

Now under Paul Winstanley and with chief executive Paul Barber playing a key role in finalising deals, the bar has been raised again.

When Albion missed out on Iranian winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh they had viable alternatives, including eventual signing Jamie Murphy.

When, approaching the close of the transfer window, Barber travelled to Buenos Aires in pursuit of Jonathan Calleri and it became clear completing a deal for the Boca Juniors striker was bogged down by complications, the club was already in a position to swoop for Elvis Manu.

Albion appear to have spent wisely, not just for now but for the future as well in terms of potential re-sale values for many of the players they have signed for both the first team and development squads.

Meanwhile, 11 of the squad Hyypia had when Rotherham last visited have been released or loaned out, were only temporary captures or are not currently considered good enough to make the matchday 18.

That is a measure of how much Albion's recruitment improved this summer compared to last and an indication that Hyypia, for all his tactical nuances and managerial naivety at times, was working with one hand tied behind his back.