Fan Talk with Ryan Adsett: Brighton can fight for top-four finish

Ryan Adsett, Brighton fan and founder of the TSR Network and TalkSeagulls, is hoping the club can challenge for the Champions League places under Roberto De Zerbi this season.

De Zerbi fever

Roberto De Zerbi bonded with fans straight away and to have that connection so quickly, I think that's what has been the big difference [compared to Graham Potter].

He captured the fanbase early. It was lacking for a good couple of years and if you were to ask any Brighton fan, they would tell you that we are in a really good position at the moment.

I remember De Zerbi's first win against Chelsea the Amex and it was moments like that you started to believe more and more that it was going to be our year.

He said last season that he wanted the Champions League and the fans were saying, 'Well hang on a minute we need to just get Europe first.'

But that's the mentality you need to have, you should always just go for it.

Best of the best 

Last season, a lot of fans were saying we would take the Europa Conference League.

But I think with De Zerbi, the difference in mentality was, 'No, we're going to go for the Champions League because that's the ultimate prize'.

We can still get that regardless of who's above us, I don't think there's any reason not to with the team we have.

If you're going into a season thinking, 'We can't get there', then we won't be able to.

The way we play is one of the best in the country at the moment, so you've got to dream a bit.

European pedigree

This season we're going to be going for everything, whether we'll get everything, probably not, but we're going to go for it.

I look at the teams in the Europa League and I do rub my hands a little bit. I'm looking at it and thinking we could get to the latter stages.

With the potential of this young team that we've got, I believe the further the season goes on they will just get better and better.

In recent history, we've got no reason to not believe in the boys but I do think we could probably do with a few more players to strengthen the squad.

Smart business

Joao Pedro is going to be the signing that everyone's talking about and he will probably be linked with a £100million move by the end of the year. 

He's a very exciting prospect. From what I've seen of him, he just looks a class above. I've not been that impressed with a player so quickly.

And when you've also got your [James] Milners and others, it's always helpful around the training ground as much as on the pitch.

To have someone that's been at the top level before is going to be helpful for us when we're in unforeseen territory — we've never been up here before.

Caicedo conundrum

If anyone wants to do business with Brighton, you're going to have to do it in a way that Tony Bloom wants to do it because it's his assets you're dealing with.

Everybody who's watched Moises Caicedo knows his quality. He's a phenomenal player and he's only 21.

The attributes that he's got are pushing on world-class potential, so I don't think that you should be looking at anything less than what Bloom wants.

Ryan Adsett was speaking to Mitchell Fretton