Albion assistant Dean White has removed fears that Falkirk captain Steve Thomson has been bought to replace Dean Hammond.

The Seagulls completed the capture of Thomson last night (Mon) for an undisclosed fee on a two-and-a-half year contract, subject to a medical.

Albion's interest in the 29-year-old former Crystal Palace and Peterborough midfielder, first revealed yesterday morning on The Argus website www.theargus.co.uk, together with the capture of Shane McFaul, has increased doubts about Hammond's future.

White is adamant the Seagulls want the Glaswegian to play with, not instead of, skipper Hammond, who is still involved in a new contract wrangle with the club.

White said: "As far as I am concerned we desperately want Dean Hammond to stay. He is a good player and we see his long-term future here as our captain.

"We miss him when he is not playing. He is a big part of what we see as the future for this club and it is up to us to keep him.

"I am not sure where negotiations are at the moment - that is not my department - all we know is we want to keep Dean. He is a really big influence on the club."

Hammond announced as long ago as October his desire to agree a new deal. The 24-year-old will be entitled to a free transfer when his contract runs out at the end of the season, so there is mounting pressure on Albion to resolve the saga by securing Hammond's future or selling him before the January transfer window shuts.

White said: "We have got ourselves in that situation and we have to deal with it. It's a concern. You like to plan but these things sometimes take longer than they should for one reason or another.

"You just have to hopefully get things sorted out so that we have the people that we want here tied up."

Thomson will make his debut in place of the suspended Hammond at home to Huddersfield on Saturday.

White said: "He is captain of an SPL club, he has played down here and he has got roots down here. His wife is from London and he's had a very successful time in the SPL.

"We've had him looked at, we have seen DVD's of him and he is a decent acquisition for us. He is that good age which we haven't really got a lot of.

"He is experienced and players here are still learning. It is good to have someone experienced that they can learn off.

"He will get on the ball and pass it. He is technically very neat and tidy and he is captain, so he will obviously have something to say for himself as well. Again, that is the sort of player we want here. "Shane is someone we have brought in for the future. Steve will be more for now."

Chairman Dick Knight said: "We are delighted to sign a player of Steve's quality. Falkirk were reluctant to let him go, but we have been working on this deal for some time and are pleased to finally get our man."

Meanwhile, Hammond's three-match ban for his red card for a two-footed tackle at Oldham on Saturday will be affected by tonight's FA Cup replay between Millwall and Walsall.

If Millwall go through then Hammond will miss Saturday's home game against Huddersfield, the January 29 trip to Northampton and Crewe's visit on February 2.

If Walsall progress then their League One match against Gillingham, scheduled for January 26, will have to be rearranged and Albion will play their postponed game against Gills at Withdean on that date without their captain.

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