Graham Potter's 'really fantastic' £4.5m signing poised for long-awaited Amex Stadium debut against Southampton

Albion head coach Graham Potter hailed the impact of Moises Caicedo after the defeat at title-chasing Manchester City on Wednesday night.

Caicedo was a major plus point from what was ultimately a disappointing 3-0 loss at the Etihad Stadium.

It was the Ecuador international’s third Premier League start for Albion but the 20-year-old – who joined for £4.5m in January last year – has adapted well to life in the top flight.

He made his first Premier League start in the 2-1 win at Arsenal and backed that up with another fine midfield display in the 1-0 triumph at Spurs.

Caicedo will hope to make his home debut this Sunday as Brighton welcome Southampton to the Amex Stadium for a 2pm kick-off.

“It is some start for him,” said Potter after the Manchester City defeat. “He has been fantastic, really fantastic. It was quite tough for him tonight, as it was for us all but again he will learn from that.

“There are a lot of young players there who are taking steps and growing in the Premier League. The experience of losing is not nice but there is no shame in it because of the quality of the opponent.”

The City match was a huge learning curve for Caicedo as he was up against the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden Bernardo Silva and Gündogan.

“It not [the easiest thing to do] but he did it well,” Potter added. “In the end they are that good that they can get free and ask you so many questions.

“Manchester City is another level up for him than the two games he played. They test you more defensively you have to understand that the threat is big and you defend more than you like.”

Six points from Albion’s last three away matches leaves them 10th in the Premier League on 40 points with six matches remaining this season.

Potter’s men are on track for their highest ever Premier League finish and if they beat Southampton they will also surpass their record top flight points tally of 41.

Albion will hope to have Leandro Trossard available once more after he missed the Manchester City match due to illness. The Belgian was a notable absentee at the Etihad as he’d scored in his last two matches at Tottenham and Arsenal.

Midfielder Yves Bissouma will miss out once again as he serves the second of his two-match ban after picking up his 10th booking of the season at Tottenham.

Adam Webster could also be in line for his first start since February having recovered from calf and groin problems.