Albion last night shifted their attention to other transfer targets after missing out on Alex Pritchard.

But the Seagulls are quietly seething at seeing their potentially record-breaking move for the Tottenham prospect hijacked by Norwich.

The Canaries, themselves stung by the loss of prime target Ross McCormack to Aston Villa, moved in on Pritchard when he was due to take a medical at Lancing.

It is understood Norwich opened negotiations with Tottenham as late as yesterday afternoon and will pay a fee thought to be substantially higher than that Albion had agreed over days of talks with Daniel Levy.

Albion have offered no comment on events of the last 24 hours.

They are keen to remain on good terms with the other clubs involved and Pritchard himself – despite anger at what has happened.

Paul Winstanley and his recruitment team now face a test of a revamped scouting system which identifies a group of players at any one time, studied over a period of six to eight months, rather than concentrating solely on one target.

Albion have upped their game in terms of recruitment since the window of January, 2015, and believe they are as well-placed as possible to compete in a ruthless market.