Premier League news conferences - Leeds, Watford & Southampton

Just a reminder that there are three British clubs in European action later, and we'll be back for live text commentary:

Europa League

• Rangers v Brondby (20:00)
• West Ham v Genk (20:00)

Conference League

• Vitesse Arnhem v Tottenham Hotspur (17:45)

Watford manager Claudio Ranieri celebrated his 70th birthday on Wednesday but kept his celebrations low key after seeing his side thrashed by Liverpool last weekend, in his first game in charge.

"It wasn't a good experience," Ranieri said of the 5-0 defeat. "It wasn't good for my first match in Watford, but we have to react.

"We can go down in a match but I want the players to react immediately. We can lose but we have to react every time."

Watford head coach Claudio Ranieri is keen to offer his support to Steve Bruce and help in any way he can after going through a similar experience to the former Newcastle boss, when he was in charge of Chelsea.

The Italian left his job at Stamford Bridge after a second-placed finish and Champions League semi-final appearance.

"I haven't spoken to him, not yet, but I want to congratulate him for the 1,000 matches," Ranieri said.

"I know it will be very sad. I know what happened in this case because it happened for me in Chelsea, in Monaco and something also in Leicester. I am very close to him, so I can give support if I can."

Brighton have drawn their last three Premier League games, scoring just once, but they remain fourth in the table on goal difference and manager Graham Potter is glad to have competition for places in defence.

"We've got good competition at the back," he said. "We've got 15 points from eight matches, clearly we're doing something well. We've got three matches coming up in a week, so there will be opportunities to play and make an argument.

"There's always something you can improve," Potter added. "You go through periods where you don't score or you lose. We can improve, we can play better and we know we have work to do. We're in a good place but there's a long way to go."

Tariq Lamptey and Solly March both came off the bench for Brighton during last week's 0-0 draw at Norwich.

"Tariq responded really well," said Brighton boss Graham Potter. "He was excited to be on the pitch, he enjoyed it. He's got a lot of work to do, we just need to keep helping him get back to the Tariq Lamptey we all know.

"It's been a bit frustrating for Solly but he's trained really well and responded well. He can play in lots of positions and is an important player for us, and will be an important player for us going forward."

Brighton boss Graham Potter has also given a fitness update.

"Adam Webster's been training this week," he said. "He's had a good week. There's an outside chance he'll be available.

"Danny Welbeck and Steven Alzate are still obviously away, but everyone else is available for selection."

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Graham Potter's Brighton face Manchester City on Saturday knowing that a victory would see the Seagulls leapfrog the Premier League champions.

But far from it getting feisty on the touchline, he has joked that he hopes to get "a cuddle" from Pep Guardiola this weekend.

The pair became involved in a touchline spat last May when Brighton recovered from 2-0 down to snatch an unexpected 3-2 win against the then newly-crowned Premier League champions at the Amex Stadium.

And speaking at his pre-match press conference, Potter said: "It was the first goal. It was a poor reaction from me - an unintentional one, but still a poor one.

"Unfortunately, I'm a human being that's not perfect. I'll shake his hand and hopefully he'll give me a cuddle, but sometimes these things happen in life."

Southampton beat Burnley home and away last term but Ralph Hasenhuttl says he has been impressed by the Clarets and thinks they have become a more cultured team.

"I must say, I have changed my opinion about Burnley in the last two or three years," he said.

"In the beginning I thought they were only a team that kicked long, but if you let them play they can definitely do that. They can press high, they are very brave with their pressing this year and I think they have developed their game.

"You can see they play a bit more football. They play in a very direct and forward-orientated way, and the goals they score are typical for them. It's always good if you can do what you can do in a perfect way and this can be successful."

Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl has told his players that they need to build on their first Premier League victory of the season when they face Burnley on Saturday. A 1-0 win over Leeds lifted the Saints four points clear of the drop zone - and of Saturday's visitors to St Mary's.

"It was important to get the first one but that is not an argument to lean back now," Hasenhuttl said.

"We have to keep on going. We've got another chance with a home game now and in the next few weeks we can definitely get a few points. That's what we need after a difficult start."

PA MediaCopyright: PA Media

In what was be one of the most inevitable partings of the Premier League era, Steve Bruce lasted just 13 days after the Saudi Arabian-backed £305m takeover of the club.

With the club 19th in the table and without a win after eight games this season, fans had continued to call for Bruce's head.

But who might replace him? From the voting so far it looks like Antonio Conte and Steven Gerrard are popular choices.

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has expressed sympathy for outgoing Newcastle boss Steve Bruce after he detailed the abuse he had received during his reign at St James' Park and suggested he may now walk away from the game.

"It was a very honest statement," the Austrian said. "I must say I never had such abuse in my entire managerial career and I wouldn't know how I would react to it.

"He [managed] a lot of games, he made it to 1,000, and that is unbelievable for me. It is an unbelievable number and he was a fantastic colleague, a really good guy.

"I think he can be proud of all he has done. He should look back on a very, very successful career as a manager."

Sean Dyche is asked about comments made by Atletico Madrid's England full-back Kieran Trippier in an interview with the Guardian, where he said he could yet return to play and coach under the Burnley boss.

"I don't do favourites, apart from Kieran," he said. "We had a good relationship as a manager and a player, and he was very popular here.

"Sometimes you connect with players, I have a soft spot for him. I like him a lot and know his family."

More from Burnley boss Sean Dyche: "It has been a tricky start for Southampton, they are an organised side, they worked hard to get a result last weekend and they are a good outfit."

On the fitness of Ben Mee, Matej Vydra and Charlie Taylor, Dyche adds: "We are going to have make a decision on all three. It is a three-game week so we will make a decision on them for the weekend."

On a slightly more positive note, the Burnley boss says that Dale Stephens, who is yet to play this season, is back in training.

Action Images/ReutersCopyright: Action Images/Reuters

Burnley boss Sean Dyche has also been doing his thing in front of the press today. The Clarets are one of three Premier League clubs to still register a win this season.

They travel to the south coast to face a Southampton side who claimed their first victory against Leeds last Saturday.

"There's some good work being done," Dyche said. "They [need to] stay strong and keep believing. The minimum requirement is maximum effort and these lads are putting that in.

"The key is to remind them of the performance levels produced, we are creating chances - our aim is to turn those good performances into winning performances."

Now some early team news from the Watford camp...

Forward Joshua King is in contention for Saturday's trip to Everton after missing last Saturday's 5-0 thrashing by Liverpool with a knee injury.

The former Toffees striker has returned to full training this week, but Kiko Femenia is a doubt after sustaining a knock above the hip against the Reds.

The match is likely to also come too soon for Francisco Sierralta and Christian Kabasele, with both recovering from hamstring injuries.

Action Images/ReutersCopyright: Action Images/Reuters

And finally from Marcelo Bielsa, the Leeds boss was asked what feelings he's been trying to get across to his players after losing 1-0 at Southampton last week.

He replied: "Commitment and not indifference, responsibility and not passing over your responsibilities, hope and faith before disappointment.

"There's a phrase I read not too long ago that says teams are made out of crystal. It's difficult to make them solid, and they break from one day to another. We played our best game against Watford (1-0 win) and the worst against Southampton. More than whether the opponents were better or worse, teams change frequently.

"What is it that allows a loss of form for a team to recover quickly?" he added. "The challenge for a coach in adversity is to find this type of feeling."

Action Images/ReutersCopyright: Action Images/Reuters

Asked why Leeds haven't started this season as well as last - their first back in the Premier League - boss Marcelo Bielsa replied: "The principal arguments are: the squad is too small, I already gave a response to that. Also, that there are no alternative plans in the way of playing. The way of playing is generic and it's very difficult to imagine the game in a different way.

"We try to have the ball more than the opponent. We try to take the ball from our half to theirs without putting the ball too much at risk and having possession in their half creates danger. That's part of all models.

"What can change is whether you are the protagonist or you speculate. I always choose to be the protagonist and not to speculate. I don't know if it makes sense to continue answering because I can continue giving you arguments for 10 minutes and I would be repeating things I have already said.

"But you ask me a question I have answered before. I can't invent different answers. I feel bad saying what you have heard previously. But of course, I acknowledge the last game was not just another game, we were very far from playing how we try to play."

Leeds are just one place above the relegation zone after losing 1-0 at Southampton last week and manager Marcelo Bielsa has admitted that his squad does not have enough strength in depth.

He said: "Last season, Leeds used the fewest players. They were the team who changed the fewest players for their starting XI. They were the team who ran the most in all the values.

"We suffered a lot of injuries, sometimes simultaneously and in the same position. There is evidence (that the squad needs more strength in depth)."

PA MediaCopyright: PA Media

Marcelo Bielsa also confirmed that Luke Ayling, Patrick Bamford and Junior Firpo are not going to be back in contention for the next two games.

Brazil winger Raphinha is back from international duty and has acclimatised, while Robin Koch will be out for at least a month after undergoing surgery.