London Football News

Brighton boss Hughton not jealous of Fulham’s spending

Brighton boss Chris Hughton insists he does not envy Premier League managers who are given more money to spend.

Albion splashed more than £60million on new players during the summer but were outspent by Fulham, who face the Seagulls later today.

Slavisa Jokanovic’s Cottagers travel to the Amex Stadium on Saturday after recruiting 12 new players for in excess of £100m.

Hughton, however, says he does not resent rival clubs having bigger transfer budgets.

“No, not at all,” he said. “The best way always to manage is that you work at a club, you have a good relationship with the owner, the chairman, the money people at the club, and in your head you know what is right for your club.

“There can be times when a manager feels that you don’t need to spend so much. So, certainly no envy.

“You work around what is the correct way for your club and work with the players who you think are the right players.”

Fulham’s spending spree included the arrivals of defender Alfie Mawson, midfielders Jean Michael Seri and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, and striker Aleksandar Mitrovic.

The Cottagers have also secured the high-profile loan signings of Germany forward Andre Schurrle, Arsenal defender Calum Chambers, and Argentinian striker Luciano Vietto.

While Hughton has been impressed with the west London club’s recruitment, he thinks they have been forced to pay over the odds because of the inflated transfer market.

“If I looked at the spending power of Fulham and Wolves, they probably got promotion two years later than they would have liked,” he said.

“We have seen in the last two years, and in particular the last year, the fees for players have gone dramatically higher.

“We are looking at players now who two years ago or even a year ago would have been, for instance, £10m, these players are now £20m.

“I’m quite sure that, even with Fulham and Wolves’ spending, players they have bought, a year ago would have been a lot less.”




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