It was the night which sent Albion’s fans buzzing into springtime.

The night the script, which can sometimes be gruesome in the harsh world of the Premier League, was perfect.

It was Albion’s second successive home league win over Manchester United, 35-and-a-half years on.

It was a night to bridge the club’s two golden eras as old-time matchwinner Peter Ward cheered Pascal Gross’s very modern goal.

Now the simple question for Albion fans is: Can the fact their side beat Manchester United in their most recent home league game have any relevance to what we witness on Sunday?

It was a question The Argus put to Dale Stephens ahead of United’s return.

And a theme on which he elaborated when he gave his answer.

He told The Argus: “Maybe it helps on the belief side of things but I think we have put in good performances, especially at home.

“We will look to do that throughout this season.

“It’s going to be massive for a club like ours to be strong at home.

“It is probably what kept us up last season, to be honest.

“Then, if we want to improve on what we did last year, we have got to improve on our away form as well.”

Albion ranked eighth for home results last season.

So how do they respond to their opening day reverse at Watford?

Heaven knows those who travel away realise how tough Premier League life can be.

Did the team - actually, did we all - go into Saturday feeling just a little bit comfortable about a second season of Premier League football?

Watford are not tipped to do well this season. Many predictions have them in the bottom three. But pretty much any Premier League side have enough talent to exploit an out-of-sorts opponent.

Stephens speaks on our back page today of his disappointment at the Albion performance even more than the result but he is right to refer to home form last term.

He might even have thrown in Albion’s three performances against Manchester United – home and away, league and cup.

They didn’t always get the results to go with it but they clearly preferred playing against United to, for example, the whirlwind style of Liverpool.

There could be the added factor of new faces this time.

Stephens likes the spark of Yves Bissouma and Alireza Jahanbakhsh.

The question asked was not whether he felt Albion should make line-up changes against United.

It was an enquiry as to what that duo, who look next in line to get their first starts, add to the squad.

That was the context in which Stephens was speaking as he replied: “I thought they did well (at Watford), to be honest.

“Bissouma looks a very exciting talent. He has come in with Ali and freshened things up. I am sure they will get a lot more game time this year.

“It’s exciting to have that calibre of player come in an help us.

“Biss is a good lad. He has limited English but I think it has improved already since he walked through the door.

“He’s a good character. He has got a bundle of ability and I’m sure the Brighton fans will be excited to see that this season.”

So United loom. And Jose Mourinho. The Argus understands Mourinho was in a mood to match the bright and breezy weather last time he was in Brighton.

United were based near the coast and he was rather taken by the seaside city and its surrounds as it sparkled in some early May sunshine.

That is not surprising. Over at Hove, where Sussex were playing Middlesex, the regulars said that Friday felt like the first proper day of the cricket season.

If the Hove locals were saying that, then imagine how a Portuguese who had spent the winter in Manchester would feel.

That was before the game. The clouds gathered for him that evening and he seems to have had a face like thunder of late.

He will have respect for Albion. He has to after those games last season.

Albion? They have their memories, both of 1982 and 2018.

Stephens knows the time is right not to live off them but to be inspired by them.