Melissa Phillips has praised the desire and belief which has taken Albion close to WSL safety.

The Seagulls are five points clear of Reading in the race to avoid the one relegation place.

They moved to that position of relative comfort with a 1-0 win over West Ham.

Kayleigh Green’s 57th-minute header secured the win and rewarded an opening to the second half which saw Albion really take charge.

As West Ham looked to build from deep, Julia Zigiotti snapped into a tackle, allowing Katie Robinson to cross for Green.

Albion boss Phillips said: “We adjusted our press slightly.

“We wanted to get pressure on their goalkeeper, specifically, in the build-up but also force them into central pockets.

“That was ultimately where the goal came from.

“But we knew the first few minutes, to play a bit more direct, to get into our attacking half and it is just mentality when you are in that part of the field.

“We really were on the front foot and that is just credit to the players as well.

“The desire, the belief was there to win it.”

Albion have let too many leads slip away this season, including in recent weeks.

But this time they offered goalkeeper Megan Walsh great protection with a defensive performance built around the impressive duo of Guro Bergsvand and Zoe Morse.

Phillips said: “We have spent a lot of time on defend-the-box shape and limiting final-third entries.

“I think we were excellent in that capacity today.”

Walsh took over in goal after Lydia Williams withdrew in the warm-up.

Phillips said: “We have been managing a niggle with Lydia and it just turned into something we wanted to be safe with in the warm-up.”

Albion, who have won both home games since their latest change of head coach, play Arsenal at the Broadfield Stadium tomorrow.