“We miss him” – Brighton interim head coach Chris Roberts on Dario Vidosic’s absence | OneFootball

Chris Roberts

Brighton and Hove Albion picked up three points on the road on Friday night, defeating Everton 1-0 at Goodison Park.

It is their second win and second clean sheet in succession following their 2-0 Women’s FA Cup victory over Nottingham Forest last weekend.

And interim head coach Chris Roberts said it had been a tough week for the team without Dario Vidosic, who is taking an indefinite leave of absence for private family reasons.

“Dario isn’t here – and we miss him because he’s the boss,” Roberts said to the club’s official website after the game.

“We tried to block it all out, but he’s a very good friend of mine as well as a colleague.

“He has managed to stay in touch this week. He has been supporting us from a distance. The players have been so good. Three points, a clean sheet on the road, I am so proud of them.”

Roberts has previously worked as assistant head coach at Everton, meaning the game was a return to a club he knows well.

But he said that he had been careful to try and remove the additional weight from the situation.

“I think the players saw the calmest version of me this week,” he added. “I just tried to block it all out. The way the girls responded was fantastic.

“They took so much responsibility in the way they pressed and shut off dangerous attacks.

“It is a tough place to come and it’s been a tough week for the group. To get two wins on the bounce and put in a performance like that is really special.”

Chris Roberts: Brighton controlled the game against Everton

On the game itself, Roberts said:  “For the first 25 to 30 minutes we were so good. We controlled the game. In fact, we probably scored when they were starting to build some pressure.

“Everton are a team with a lot of rotation and it was always going to be a challenging game here.

“In the second half we defended so well. We were a bit wasteful with the ball, which isn’t like us, and we will need to analyse and discuss that. We have to manage games better.

“But I don’t think they created too many clear chances and that is really pleasing. Three points, a clean sheet, I am really happy.”