Simon Grayson would take a 0-0 at the Amex today.

The brutally honest Preston manager has made no secret of that as he prepares his side for an unusual sequence of five successive games against the current top four.

But he also believes Albion will cast a wary idea over his side thanks to a four-game unbeaten run which started at Bournemouth in the League Cup and, most recently, featured the result which led to Aston Villa sacking Roberto di Matteo.

There was not a lot between the teams last season as they drew 0-0 home and away.

North End had a great chance late on at the Amex after Jordan Pickford’s fine first-half save from Jamie Murphy had kept them level.

In the return, Murphy and Tomer Hemed both had goals ruled out for narrow offside decisions with the Scot looking particularly unlucky.

In fact, these teams have drawn their last four meetings 0-0 and Grayson would not turn his nose up at a repeat.

The North End boss, who once saw his Leeds side draw a 3-3 thriller at the Amex, revealed: “We have said a few times we have always played well against the big teams, both home and away.

“Chris (Hughton) has his teams very organised, disciplined and hard working. We are certainly like that.

“We would take a 0-0 because we are away from home against one of the strongest teams.

“They are at home and will want to get three points.

“We know the challenge in front of us and the players they have brought in this summer, the likes of Glenn Murray and others who have been added.

“There’s Oliver Norwood, who I know from his Huddersfield days, and they are players who are very capable of putting in some good performances. We know what to expect from them.

“But they will be looking at our performance against Aston Villa (a 2-0 win) and thinking ‘They played very well against them’ and Birmingham (2-2 away draw) a few days before that the Cardiff game (3-0 home win).

“It’s a demanding Championship, as we all keep saying, and we will look forward to it.

“I’m sure we will take a good support. They will have a good fanbase and it’s always a good atmosphere down at Brighton’s ground.”

Albion are in the thick of it with fallen Premier League sides Newcastle and Norwich while Grayson’s former club Huddersfield, for whom he signed Norwood, remain among the leading pack.

Preston play all four of those teams in the coming weeks and also have a League Cup tie against Newcastle, hence that strange “five games against the top four” situation.

There is a clear them-and-us feel to that quartet in terms of financial clout.

But Grayson believes Albion have the resources to battle it out with the parachute payment brigade.

He said: “Every manager in the Championship will tell you that you need strength in depth and that will be shown over the next few weeks with the teams we are playing against. They are probably the top four because they have got quite high budgets.

“But we’ve got strength in depth as well.”