It may not be next year, the year after or the year after that.

Albion could have to wait a while for promotion but Liam Rosenior is convinced he has joined a Premier League club in the making.

More a matter of when than if as far as Rosenior is concerned.

And a club with the capacity not only to reach the top-flight but to establish itself once there.

Rosenior’s upbeat version of the future in store for Albion as they step up their pre-season preparations at Crawley tonight could easily be dismissed as fanciful advertising by a new signing, motivated by winning over supporters.

Except that he has been there, done it and got a rosette or two to show for it after a protracted spell with Hull City.

Even diehard Tigers supporters were not expecting promotion when they began the 2012-13 season against Albion as long-odds outsiders in the Championship.

Rosenior, an integral part of that journey with Hull, believes Albion are equipped to better the five memorable years he had on Humberside.

The full-back helped the Tigers go up from the Championship and played for them for two seasons in the Premier League before they were relegated in May and he was released.

Although Rosenior would settle for a repeat with the Seagulls after signing a three-year deal, he reckons they are capable of not just reaching the top-flight but also staying there.

The versatile defender, 31, told The Argus: “I think the club is set up to be a Premier League club, not just a yo-yo Premier League club, but in the long-term to sustain itself in the Premier League and push on.

“I’ve got no doubts that, whether it happens in my time here or not, that within the next decade this club will be a force in English football.

“You look at the facilities, the academy, the coaching structure, the stadium, the training ground, everything is in place.

“Not just that, the club has a strong philosophy and sense of identity, which is really important.

“Hopefully, with my experience on the pitch, I can help us achieve that sooner rather than later.”

Tony Bloom’s Albion are in much better shape than Hull were when Rosenior, who also played for Fulham and Reading in the Premier League, signed for them.

He said: “I don’t think that’s in doubt. I remember when I signed for Hull they could have been in liquidation.

“If it wasn’t for the Allams, the owners of Hull, coming in and paying off I think it was something like a £30 million or £40 million tax bill the club wouldn’t have been in administration, it would have been wound up.

“There are obvious similarities with this football club. The owner here has come in, a local guy, the same as the Allams at Hull, there’s passion for the club and he wants to see the club grow and be strong and he’s invested his money into it.

“Now what we have to do at first team level is fulfil that potential and push the club forward into the Premier League. And I think with the manager’s experience and the coaches here we are ready to do that.

“If you start the season well in the Championship and have a certain degree of experience with potential, young players with energy, then anything can be achieved.”