Brighton & Hove Albion manager Gus Poyet has admitted that he deliberately selected the strongest side he could in terms of physicality against Middlesbrough in the Championship.

Poyet drafted in Andrew Crofts to play alongside Dean Hammond in midfield in a game Brighton went on to win 2-0.

The Uruguayan did admit that he was concerned that such a lineup might struggle for goals, but Andrea Orlandi and David Lopez Moreno scored to put Brighton firmly in playoff contention.

"Sometimes people are looking for excitement [and] speed," The Argus quotes Poyet as saying. "Today we had the strongest team we could probably play in terms of physical ability and we knew it would be very difficult for them to score.

"The side of it we were a little worried about was us getting on the score sheet. We needed David, Deano, Crofty and Andrea to pop up maybe with a goal and not leave all that job to Leonardo Ulloa. It worked out.

"The key to the whole situation was the players themselves believed this was our best team for this type of game."

Brighton are currently fifth in the Championship and face a trip to Peterborough United on Tuesday night.