The number seven Beram Kayal wears for Albion is painfully appropriate.

The influential midfielder has battled back from his SEVENTH operation to boost the Seagulls' promotion bid.

Kayal, 28, has suffered miserable luck with injuries throughout his career.

Operating theatres in his native Israel, Scotland and England, have become almost as familiar as a football pitch.

Kayal, pointing to the No.7 on his training top, told The Argus: "The first one was with Maccabi Haifa. I missed the play-off due to an operation on my stomach.

"I moved to Celtic. The first few months were unbelievable, then I felt the same problem. It was the other side, stomach again.

"At the end of the season, against Inverness, we lost the game and the league and I broke my hand.

"The next season, on the 28th of December in the derby against Rangers, I broke my ankle and the ligaments went.

"It took me a long time to come back. It was probably the worst injury I've had. Then I broke my foot against AC Milan.

"When I came here I had an operation at the beginning of the season for a hernia. Last year from February I probably needed to stop, but I continued playing util the end of the season.

"The last one was at the end of September. It was the same ankle (right) as at Celtic, so I have broken that on the inside and outside now."

The Argus: Kayal's latest bad break came against Barnsley at the Amex (above). It ruled out the reigning player of the season until January.

He struggled to cope with the intensity of the Championship in his second game back in the league and was withdrawn at half-time by Chris Hughton at promotion rivals Huddersfield last month.

Kayal was then on the bench for seven games before Hughton recalled him at Rotherham, three days after Albion were beaten at Nottingham Forest.

He has linked back up in the middle of the park with Dale Stephens, his regular partner last season, and followed up an eyecatching display against Derby at the Amex with another strong performance at Leeds on Saturday.

Kayal said: "In the beginning it's hard, but with this last injury they said I would be back in 12 weeks. I was back in training in about nine-and-a-half.

"I didn't have the chance to play in under-23s games after being out for four months.

"Probably if I'd had two or three games there to get myself game time it would have been easier.

"Then you have to fight to get into the team as well. When I am sitting with the gaffer in his office, I say to him 'I know the situation, what is going on here', but I just tell him 'I am going to try to push to help the team.'

"So he knows the situation, I know the situation. I am not going to say anything bad about playing or not playing. The main thing for me is the team winning, it's not about me."