Roberto De Zerbi insists Brighton deserve to be scrapping it out with the big boys for a European place.
And De Zerbi says their current performances should be rewarded with a place in next season’s Europa League even ahead of the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa. Brighton boss de Zerbi, whose side face Everton on Monday, said: "It's clear for everybody, we are fighting against big teams, Tottenham, Aston Villa, Liverpool, for Europe.
"At the moment we are deserving to reach the best position. We have to think not on the results, we have to be focused only on our style, our quality of play, to enjoy, to show our quality.
"We are not ready to think only about the result, because we are not used to playing for this target. The next year, I don't know.
"To think only about the result, we have to improve. At the end I don't like to think only of the result."
Brighton’s impressive form helped them beat Manchester United to put them firmly in the mix and in pole position for the Europa League. Brighton owner Tony Bloom’s dream has always been to reach Europe - and now they have a huge chance.
They have a big chance to cement their chances with another win over Everton but De Zerbi expects it to be a very different game from when they won 4-1 at Goodison Park in January.
De Zerbi, who has been struggling with illness for the past week, said: "It will be a very tough game, because they are a strong team. But we want to achieve our target.
"It's a totally different situation. When we won at Everton they were a different team. In the last part of the season the games are always more difficult."
