Manchester City legend and Burnley boss' verdict on Brighton's progress

Albion host the relegation-threatened Clarets at the Amex on Saturday, looking to make it back-to-back league victories after beating Brentford 2-1 on Wednesday night.

Kompany, who led Burnley to the Championship title last season in his first campaign in charge, is a huge admirer of the Seagulls and said their progress in the last few years is something to behold.

He revealed that his last top-flight game as a player for Manchester City was the 4-1 win at the Amex in May 2019, which secured Pep Guardiola's men the title and Brighton staved off relegation by just two points.

Now, to see Albion in Europe is something Kompany is blown away by.

SEE ALSO Watch as Brighton match-winner Jack Hinshelwood laps up applause after final whistle | Roberto De Zerbi jokes Brighton youngster is the 'son' of Pascal Gross | Brighton player ratings vs Brentford: Two 9s as academy graduate stars alongside club legend

He said in his pre-match press conference: "It's funny because they [Brighton] have become one of the top sides now for me in this league. I remember playing against them in my last ever Premier League game about four years ago. The progress they have made since then is incredible.

"I think they stayed up on the last game of the season or the game before that and we [Man City] won the title. I think we had 90% of the ball or whatever and it was a game that we expected to win.

"If you look at the progress they've made since, they've managed to establish themselves in every way possible as one of the top teams in this division. That's due to many things behind the scenes as well."