Chris Hughton says his Albion players are no longer starstruck as they launch a big five games in the bid for Premier League survival against Everton.

Wayne Rooney and £45 million Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson are the headline acts for under-achieving Everton at the Amex on Sunday but Hughton believes his players are now comfortable keeping such illustrious company.

He said: “Remember, we started against Manchester City and with the spending they did in the summer, the names almost don’t come any bigger.

“The players came away from that thinking that we did okay, even though we lost the game.

“And the confidence booster for all the players is that we’ve been in every game, even away to Arsenal.

“There can’t be any bigger confidence booster.

“I have a group who are all still excited by the prospect of where we are and they all want to play.”

The visit of Everton, currently below Albion on goal difference, begins a sequence of matches against sides in the bottom half of the table.

The clash against Ronald Koeman’s strugglers is followed by a trip to West Ham, a home game against Southampton and a journey to Swansea.

The Seagulls then return from the next international break against Stoke at the Amex before going to Manchester United.

Hughton told The Argus: “I don’t think it’s rocket science - our best opportunities this season to get points will be against the teams that are out of the top six.

“It doesn’t mean we will and it doesn’t mean we can’t get results against the top six, but that’s the law of averages.

“When you are playing against teams outside the top six then in theory you should have a better chance.”