Graham Potter believes clubs across Europe are probably keeping an eye on Davy Propper.

Which is just one reason why Albion will be delighted to have their midfield man of few words secured on a new contract.

Propper is now on a deal until June 2023 and, Potter reckons, really enjoying his football.

Albion’s head coach is not keen on talking about what went on before he arrived at the club last summer.

But his theory that the more his team have the ball, the more it suits Propper, suggests he should be happier this season than in the previous two.

The former PSV midfielder impressed at West Ham last Saturday and Albion will look for him to unlock Watford in tomorrow’s six-pointer.

Potter told The Argus: “When he has the ball, I think he is a talented, talented midfield player.

“He is very intelligent. I think he can almost dictate the game in some ways.

“He plays in really good spaces and he looks like he is enjoying his football.

“I can’t really comment on previously to this year but, as the season has grown, I think it looks like he is enjoying his football.

“When I look at Davy Propper, he is comfortable with the ball, he can play in tight areas, makes good decisions, is intelligent.

“I think the more you have the ball, the more it suits Davy Propper.”

The Dutch international continues to dovetail with Dale Stephens in central midfield for a third successive season.

Propper got the plaudits last Saturday, partly for his sensational pass to release Leandro Trossard and then with his run and cross for Glenn Murray’s equaliser.

The latter was reminiscent of something he did against tomorrow’s opponents Watford when he set up Florin Andone to score at Vicarage Road on the first afternoon of the season.

Murray is delighted to see Propper agree new terms and has an interesting theory about the midfield pair.

He said: “Him and Dale have got a fantastic partnership.

“Sometimes one gets credit and the other one doesn’t.

“Usually the one who doesn’t get the credit is doing the hard work, the unseen work.”

Murray, himself rewarded by new terms this week, added: “It is just fantastic for the club to tie him down to a new deal.”

Previously, the midfield pair were central in quite a traditional line of four, albeit Chris Hughton going 4-4-1-1 rather than his 4-4-2 of the Championship.

The system has changed and become more fluid this term.

Stephens has said he enjoys the way the team try to play and it would also appear to suit Propper.

Even before that, a well-placed source in The Netherlands assured The Argus that Propper was one of the players discussed by Ajax last summer as they looked at potential recruits.

Potter certainly believes a few bigger clubs will be aware of what he is up to in the Albion No.24 shirt.

He said: “I don’t know but I would imagine so and not just in the Premier League but across Europe.

“He is in the Dutch side, playing in midfield in that team alongside and in front of some really good players.

“He is a talented footballer and a top professional as well.

“He is a man of few words but, when he does speak, he speaks intelligently and he works hard for his career.”

Man of few words? We can vouch for that. Jim White of TalkSPORT radio was the latest to discover as much during an interview yesterday.

But what he says tends to count.

Asked whether Propper would give views behind closed doors on tactics or how the team is playing, Potter said: “He does, not too often and he is not one for speaking so much.

“When he does, people listen to him.

“His football brain is good and he is an articulate man.”

Propper has been a mainstay for two Albion bosses but ex-Seagulls midfielder Warren Aspinall, who now offers expert analysis on every match for BBC Sussex, often says he has not been used in his best role.

He would like to see Propper in behind Murray in a No.10 berth he has filled for the Dutch.

Potter said: “I think he has played there, he has also played deeper.

“He has got that ability to be able to play anywhere in the midfield, I would say.”

The No.10 role for Albion? “That is something we have spoken about and thought about.”

It does not look like it will happen. If Albion are looking for a specialist to play just off a centre forward, they have one on the way from Argentina in the next couple of weeks.