Tuesday 20 January 2015 21:00, UK
Brighton have signed Blackburn Rovers striker Leon Best on loan for the remainder of the season.
The 28-year-old striker is reunited with Brighton manager Chris Hughton, who he played under during a spell with Newcastle United before he joined Blackburn in 2012.
He is a strong, physical presence, he knows the Championship and knows the position we are in.
Best struggled to secure a place in the Blackburn side and spent the first half of this season on loan at Derby County, where he played 20 times before returning to Rovers earlier this month.
Hughton told the club's official website: "I know Leon very well, having signed him during my time at Newcastle and I am delighted to have him here.
"He is a strong, has a physical presence, knows the Championship and knows the position we are in. We wanted new faces to freshen up the squad and Leon will add competition alongside our existing strikers.
"I signed him previously at Newcastle. I know he can be a very good player and he did very well for me both in the Championship and Premier League. He also had a very good spell with Newcastle after I left the club.
"He had a good spell on loan with Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship last season, where he did very well for them, scoring a few goals to help them away from trouble.
"His time at Derby in the first half of the season didn't work as well as it might have done, but you look at the form of their team, and in particular Chris Martin’s goals, and you can see why opportunities were limited."
Best added: "Chris (Hughton) is a really good, genuine and honest man. He lets you go and play football and I’d play for him any time I could.
“He lets you enjoy the game, and, if you enjoy the game, then you’re going to play well for the team and that’s what he tries to bring out in all his players.”
