Ryan eyeing European football with Brighton

Mat Ryan has backed Brighton and Hove Albion to keep up their good form and push for a European place this Premier League season.

Brighton and Hove Albion goalkeeper Mat Ryan celebrates a goal Source: Getty Images

Brighton were only promoted into the top flight last year and surprised many by escaping relegation with a 15th-placed finish. This season the Seagulls have improved and currently sit in 13th spot, only four points below seventh-placed Wolverhampton.

Brighton have only lost four matches from their first 20 league games and have beaten the likes of Manchester United and Everton, as well as drawn with Arsenal. Ryan has been a big part of the club’s success and is currently ranked sixth in the competition for saves and 15th for clean sheets.

The Socceroos goalkeeper believes the Seagulls can possibly emulate the likes of Burnley and snare European qualification.

“We just want to be as successful as we can possibly be,” Ryan told The World Game.

“Relegation is the absolute minimum that we want to avoid. Me myself, I’m very ambitious and always trying to be successful.

“As a group I feel that’s the same amongst the group, we want to be as successful a team as we can be and I believe we have the capability to be a top 10 side and finish the season in those top 10 places.

“You never know, Burnley last year achieved that Europa League spot – I don’t see why we can’t do the exact same thing. We’re very ambitious and we’re making progress to get that position to being a European team.

“I don’t see why that can’t be a realistic goal for the club.”

Ryan joined Brighton from Valencia in July 2017 and was signed by manager Chris Hughton. The 26-year-old is full of praise for the former Newcastle United and Norwich City boss who led the club into the Premier League for the first time.

“Apart from his football coaching abilities, he’s a true gentleman,” he said.

“He’s always there to help you with whatever you need or whatever reason you have. He’s such a humble man and always there if you need something.

“On the pitch I’m sure what he’s done as a manager speaks louder than anything I can praise him for. You just need to look at what he’s achieved – where he’s brought Brighton as a football club from and where they are now and what he continues to do.

“The progression just seems constant from the time he arrived here at Brighton until now. There’s a lot of people around the club who didn’t believe it would be possible for Brighton to have gotten to this level, but under his guidance and the help of the administration and everyone around him, we’ve all worked hard and sacrificed to get this club where it is.

“You get a real sense of it with the fans as well, the amount of respect they have for him. It also translates into a well-run and functioning club. There’s no better indication than on match day when they’re all behind us and everything in that instance feels we have the perfect balance as a football club.

“Hence why the club is thriving and many individuals at the club are thriving in whatever roles they may be.”

Ryan is now in the United Arab Emirates with Australia preparing for the 2019 Asian Cup. The Socceroos meet Oman in a friendly on December 30 before their tournament opener against Jordan on January 6.

The keeper is raring to get going and make history by helping Australia win back-to-back Asian crowns.

“It’s a memory I’m never going to forget – our first triumph back in Australia four years ago with the Asian Cup,” he said.

“I’m doing everything I can to replicate that this time also. I’m just so excited with all the changes that have happened and knowing Arnie (coach Graham Arnold) and what he brings to a football team and what he’s going to bring to the nation.

“There’s so much excitement looking forward to what we’re embarking on and what we’re going to achieve as a national team, we’re going to show the world what we’re capable of.”