Albion boss Sami Hyypia has called on his dressing room characters to make up for the loss of chief motivator Andrew Crofts.

The Seagulls are without Crofts again for months after he suffered serious knee damage in their last match at Watford for the second time since January.

Hyypia has revealed the former Premier League midfielder will be missed for his influence off the pitch as well as on it.

The Finn told The Argus: “He's a very good player to have around in the dressing room. Before the games he has the experience and he knows how to motivate the whole team and lift the whole team.

“Recently he had shown on the pitch as well that he was getting better form. I am not saying he played badly before but I saw a step forward and I was very happy with how he played in the last few games and then this happened, which is devastating.”

Hyypia believes there are enough voices in the camp to cope without the inspirational input from Crofts.

He said: “I think we have other players as well, not only Crofty, and it is for everyone to have the responsibility. If one is not there then the others have to step up and take the responsibility on that front as well.

“He won't be involved for a while so other players need to take charge. We have characters in the dressing room, so it's not a big problem but he was definitely from that point of view very good with the team.”

Jake Forster-Caskey, suspended for the Watford game, is likely to return in place of Crofts against Middlesbrough at the Amex on Saturday, providing Hyypia is convinced the England under-21 has not been fatigued by international duty.