Lewis Dunk has been urged to make himself an international star for years to come after a successful debut.

But former England defender Gary Stevens says the hard part really starts now for Albion’s latest full cap.

Dunk played the full 90 minutes as England beat USA 3-0 in a Wembley friendly on Thursday.

He remains with Gareth Southgate’s squad for their Nations League decider against Croatia, although he is not expected to start.

Stevens, who made the international breakthrough only after leaving Albion, is delighted to see Dunk end the club’s 32-year wait for an England cap.

But he told The Argus: “The best players excel over a long period of time.

“I’m delighted for Lewis and for Brighton. I think it’s a great reflection of the progress the club have made.

“Lewis is an England international. Fantastic. Now he has to be there for years to come.

The Argus:

“Something like 1,400 players have ever managed to play international football for England.

“So few players manage it so it’s a hell of an achievement.

“You need some fortune to get there, maybe an injury or suspension within the squad. But Lewis has been good enough to be in their thoughts for some time.

“They have looked at him for some time and his performances have told Gareth Southgate he can do the job.”

Stevens played for England under-21s towards the end of his time as a highly-rated young defender with Albion.

But he won his seven caps after moving to Tottenham following the Seagulls’ relegation from the top-flight in 1983.

Injury problems limited his appearances both for clubs and country.

He added: “Back in my day I was the ideal guy for Bobby Robson to have on the bench for my versatility.

“Only one of my caps was a full 90 minutes.”

Southgate has confirmed that all squad members, including centre-back Joe Gomez, are fit to face Croatia.

Gomez had been suffering with an Achilles injury.

Thursday’s game was an ideal chance for less experienced players to be tried.

The “younger players” tag seems to include Dunk, even though at almost 27 he in the oldest of Albion’s four England internationals.

Southgate said: “We wanted to predominantly look at some young players, give them their heads with what was a good level of opponent to test them.

“We had a really inexperienced team out there again so they have come through and learnt a lot.”

Southgate will demand an improvement from England tomorrow.

He added: “I thought some of our attacking play in the first half-hour and last 20 minutes was really exciting. I didn’t like us without the ball as much.

“At times we pressed really well but at times the USA got through us too easily. Towards the end of the game we didn’t play with discipline.

“We were caught in transition and we were wide open. If we do that on Sunday we will lose. We will be making that point clear.

“If we want to be a top team we can’t get to 3-0 and then just play with the ball and not without it and not play with intelligence.

“If we are going to be ruthless we have to make sure we do that right the way through the game.”

It was a clear “feet on the ground” or “we’ve done nothing yet” message from Southgate.

Just the same as Stevens’ words regarding Dunk.