Chris Hughton: “I was delighted to sign those players and what that gives us now that we didn’t have before is options.
“What we have to have this season is a good enough squad to serve us in every game we play and Hatem Ben Arfa and Cheick give us something different.
“Hatem is a flair player and he is a little bit different to what we’ve got and that gives us options.
“Our squad is definitely stronger. It isn’t just about what we’ve got today or the next day, it is about coping when we’re stretched with injuries and hopefully we are better equipped to do that now.
“The spirit will be key.
“I think we are conscious that there are a lot better teams in the division than us and we’ll need to work hard to take points off everyone that we come up against.
“But we have quality as well and if we are able to keep the team spirit that we had last season, we can go a long way with that.
“I am certainly conscious that played a big part in our success last year and I think the lads are too.”