Albion are keen to get Maty Ryan on board as soon as they can ahead of the Premier League season.

But they will give him an opportunity to refresh physically and mentally after his Australia side bowed out of the Confederations Cup yesterday.

Ryan’s marathon season finally ended in a 1-1 draw for the Caltex Socceroos against Chile in Moscow.

He now embarks on life as, for now, Albion’s record signing after his £5 million switch from Valencia.

The Seagulls are aware they need to give time for Ryan to settle in a new country having spent last season in Spain and Belgium.

But they are also keen to start working with him on the training ground and boss Chris Hughton will hammer out a timetable with his new keeper as soon as possible.

Asked when they hoped to get Ryan with the squad, chief executive Paul Barber said: “As soon as possible because it is not a straightforward transfer, it is also a relocation.

“Clearly Chris will want to get him as soon as possible.

“At the same time, the guy has had a busy summer and that is something Maty and Chris will be talking about.

“He will still need a break and that is something Chris will be talking to him about.

“We want him here as soon as possible – but we want him in the right physical and mental condition.”

Ryan was involved in what, in terms of goalkeepers, might have been a preview to the opening fixture of the season at the Amex as the Aussies met Chile in their final group fixture.

His opposite number was Claudio Bravo, the Manchester City goalkeeper making his comeback after injury.

Ryan made a pair of decent saves early on, diving to his left to block a shot from Arturo Vidal and then standing up big to block from Eduardo Vargas, who it turned out was offside anyway.

Australia were ahead thanks to a near James Troisi finish by the time Ryan comfortably parried a Vargas shot from a tight angle early in the second half.

He got down to his right to hold an Alexis Sanchez effort a few minutes later But Chile levelled when Martin Rodriguez reacted first to a knockdown.

Ryan got out to spread himself in front of the scorer, whose shot flicked home off the keeper’s body and agonisingly home for the Chilean equaliser.

That was enough to kill off any qualification hopes for the Aussies, who needed to win the match by a two-goal margin.

Albion goalkeeping coach Ben Roberts spoke to Ryan ahead of signing and the club have carefully monitored their new man’s performances in Russia.

A striker and another senior goalkeeper remain priorities for the club although they are being speculatively linked with various players in assorted positions.

Barber said: “Everyone wants everything done already but fans have to realise that is not always in the interests of the parties involved.

“If you are a sought-after player, the last thing you want to do is an early deal.

“If you are a club with a sought-after player, the last thing you want to do is an early deal.

“If you are a club who want a sought-after player, the thing you most want to do is an early deal so you limit the market you are in,.

“But that is easier said than done.

“Good players who are sought after by many clubs will always have the whip hand. That is how it is in any market.

“We don’t wait until the end of the season to do our work on this.

“Some of the players we are discussing have been on our radar for two years now.

“You get the occasional deal which springs out of nowhere.

“But, in most cases, they have been tracked a long time and a huge amount of work has been done beforehand.”