Former Albion defender Mark Lawrenson thinks Seagulls head-coach Graham Potter has the perfect base to build around in defence.

Albion have Tariq Lamptey, Ben White, skipper Lewis Dunk, Adam Webster, Joel Veltman, Bernardo and Dan Burn to chose from in terms of defensive options.

Lawrenson, who was a rock at the back for Albion in his playing days, says Potter has the perfect base to build around.

He said:”It is something you can build on and that is why they didn’t struggle in the end last season because defensively they were really good. Once you’ve got that in order you can start to take one or two risks further forward.

“You can’t play in the Premier League if you are shipping goals regularly, which Albion aren’t.

“Potter has got a really good base to work from in all honesty.”

Albion’s long term aim is to become a top ten side, but speaking on the Football, the Albion and Me podcast Lawrenson said they still have a way to go.

He said: “They are a couple of years off yet. Potter has done a good job, trying to play out from the back. But if you get a 15 to 20 goal striker you can move up half a dozen places in the league.

“The rest of the team is good, they are comfortable on the ball and it is a nice way of playing.”

To listen to the full episode follow the link below:

https://anchor.fm/footballthealbionandme