Chris Hughton Hails the End of Brighton's Winless Streak Following Crucial Victory Against Watford

Brighton boss Chris Hughton has praised his side and hailed the end of the Seagulls' winless streak following their 1-0 victory over Watford on Saturday.

The Seagulls were seven games without a win prior to the clash against the Hornets at Amex Stadium with over 10 hours of league football without a goal from open play. However, Pascal Groß's 64th minute strike proved vital in securing three much needed points.

Hughton's side proved the better of the two across the 90 minutes but failed to make their victory more comfortable after missing a number of chances, leading the Brighton boss to encourage his team to be more clinical in the front third. 

Following the victory Hughton told Sky Sports: "It felt like a big win that today. It was a very good performance, a performance that deserved a win, more than a 1-0 scoreline. 

"Of course that [second] goal goes in, you are applying that bit more pressure on yourselves, but I thought we were very good today.

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"When you are playing against a team as good offensively as Watford, and you restrict them to minimal, half chances, it shows you have put in a very good performance defensively. The next phase is to take these games on and take our chances to make things easier for ourselves.

"The later the game goes on, you feel like you are holding on, but today I don't think we ever were. We created good chances even in the second half. It was a good all-round performance."

With trips to Chelsea and Newcastle and a visit from Bournemouth within the space of a week, Hughton was pleased with securing a victory which could act as a catalyst for the remainder of the festive period. 

He added: "It is a win we needed. We go to Chelsea on Boxing Day, and while you never know, there won't be too many people who expect us to pick up anything there.

"That being the case, it was important we got something out of the game today. We can go into that Chelsea game with that bit more confidence. We just need to make sure that in cases where we have a better chance of getting something, we put in performances like we did today."