GLENN MURRAY has hailed Albion chairman Tony Bloom’s vision for the club.

And has backed him to continue the “steady” progress in his bid to make the club a top-ten side.

The appointment of up and coming head coach Graham Potter in the summer, and decision to award him a two-year contract extension taking him up until 2025 less than six months into his original deal, was seen as a statement of intent for the club’s long-term direction.

Potter has promoted under-23 products Aaron Connolly and Steven Alzate to the first team, while the Seagulls have signed younger players such as Tariq Lamptey, Neal Maupay and Leandro Trossard.

But frontman Murray, who is in his second spell with Albion, says owner Bloom’s vision for the club has been a long-time in the making.

He said: “To be fair to the chairman, it is what he has been trying to do ever since the Championship.

“Obviously the press have shown a bit more interest in the Premier League but the progress has been slow, steady and this is what he does.

“Getting rid of Chris Hughton last year and bringing in Graham Potter was quite a big decision.

“Again it is just part of the process of taking this club where he sees it going.

“He has come and said he sees it going into the top ten in the Premier League.”

Murray believes Potter is now building on firm foundations which have been laid over the last five or six years.

He said: “This hasn’t just been a thing with the gaffer over this summer.

“It has been going five or six years previously and that has what got us to this stage and will take us past this next stage.

“Hopefully, that next stage means moving higher up the division.”

Bloom’s backing for the club has been illustrated again in newly-released data which reveals Albion are just outside the top ten in negative balance when it came to the past two transfer windows.

The CIES Football Observatory has revealed Real Madrid - who paid Chelsea an initial reported 100million euros plus add-ons for Eden Hazard last summer - were 181million euros in negative balance when it came to transfers.

Premier League new boys Aston Villa were second to Real, spending 172million euros and earning just 3million, for a balance of -169million euros.

And the Seagulls are 12th in the list, having spent 88million euros and earned just 4million for a deficit of 84 million euros.