Derren Howard: Luka Vuskovic's early Brighton displays stunned me – £50m Tottenham deal is a steal

I spoke to Luka Vuskovic after his first appearance at the Amex Stadium.

It was 3-0 pre-season friendly win against Serie A outfit Roma and the Croatian defender was as calm and assured in the post-match interview as he was on the pitch.

Brighton pushed hard to sign the 19-year-old Croatian from Tottenham and the £46m record transfer was completed in July.

Brighton's established defender Jan Paul van Hecke - who was entering the final year of his contract - moved in the opposite direction for around £52m.

Brighton made £6m on Tottenham deal

So if the figures are to be believed, Brighton gained around £6m and brought in an international centre back seven years younger.

Vuskovic's potential is ridiculously high. I saw him play against Roma and then Bologna in pre-season as he eased into life at Brighton alongside French centre back Olivier Boscagli.

He's still a teenager but he's 6ft 4in and has all the physical attributes required to be a Premier League centre back.

His passing is assured, he wins aerial duels and his composure and ability on the ball is also very impressive.

Brighton's opening 4-0 Premier League win against Aston Villa was all very easy for Vuskovic as Unai Emery's men gifted Albion a few goals and then had midfielder Joao Gomes sent off in the first half. It was a comfortable top flight introduction as could be.

He and the rest of the Albion defence then suffered in a topsy turvy 4-3 defeat at Chelsea as an injury hit Brighton experimented with Boscagli as a holding midfielder and Vuskovic partnered skipper Lewis Dunk at the heart of the defence.

It didn't work and the likes of Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro and Morgan Rogers had a bit of field day. I did wonder if Vuskovic would be rested/dropped for the clash against Leeds United at the Amex.

Leeds United physical test

I half expected head coach Fabian Hurzeler to go with experience against a physical Leeds team, with Boscagl returning at centre back alongside Dunk.

But I guess you don't pay almost £50m and leave the lad on the bench. It was sink or swim for time for Vuskovic.

Leeds striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin clearly fancied his chances against his youthful opponent.

The experienced attacker did his best to rough-up Vuskovic in the early stages and even cracked him with an elbow during the first half that forced the Croatian off briefly for treatment.

"I'm glad I didn't take that elbow," Dunk told me after the match when I asked him what he made of Vuskovic's display.

Dunk also said how impressed he has been with his new defensive partner since his summer arrival.

Vuskovic and Real Madrid

I was pretty much on sold of Vuskovic's ability in pre-season but after the Leeds match, I'm convinced he will develop further at Brighton and I would not be at all surprised to see him at Real Madrid in a few years time. He told me after the Roma match that La Liga is his ultimate dream.

Few teams will test you physically like Leeds did and he passed with top marks.

Emerging midfield talent Malick Yalcouye was rightly awarded man of the match after the 1-1 draw with Leeds but Vuskovic was not far behind.

He quickly recovered from Calvert-Lewin’s elbow to the nose and remained calm and composed throughout the 90 minutes.

Vuskovic is a goal threat

He even opened his account for the Seagulls as he rose highest at the far post to nod home Maxim De Cuyper's deep corner. The way he celebrated with the fans behind the goal shows he will be a real favourite while he's here.

He netted six goals in the Bundesliga last term while on loan at Hamburg and there's no reason why he shouldn't hit similar numbers with Brighton this season.

The main message to Vuskovic from within the club is to focus, concentrate and never switch off during matches. Hurzeler has stressed this a few times already to the press when asked about Vuskovic and Dunk also said the same when I spoke to him after Leeds.

“There are moments where he might switch off a little bit,” said Hurzeler after the Leeds match.

“Moments where he's not 100 per cent into the game, moments where he also has a little bit of a lack of experience, but this will come over time.

“He's so young, he plays his third Premier League match, he played against a striker who is so experienced, and that's definitely something he will learn from.

“The Premier League will educate him, we try to help him, we try to give him support, and then he can be a top player.”

I'm sure that message is being firmly drummed into him during each training session as well. That's now the challenge for Vuskovic this season.

Brighton have an upgrade

I was a fan of Van Hecke and his progress at Brighton was a real success story. But the Dutchman wanted to leave and Brighton received a very healthy fee for Van Hecke who was out of contract in 12 months time.

It's early days and Vuskovic lacks experience but the signs suggest they have an upgrade.

Brighton have signed an absolute belter from Tottenham.