Albion's biggest ever buy believes Micky Adams' exit will make no difference to the task facing his team at Withdean on Saturday.

Andy Ritchie reckons it will be just as tough for Oldham to get a result with Peter Taylor at the helm as it would have been with Adams still in charge.

Ritchie, in his fourth season at Boundary Park, revealed: "I don't think it has ever really occurred to me managing Brighton.

"It was a bit of a shock Micky leaving when they are doing so well, but he is in the Premiership now. I don't think it will have any effect on Brighton. They have all worked together in the last season or so and the players are exactly the same.

"We know they are a good, hard-working side. We all know about Zamora scoring goals freely and we have got to try to stop him. I have only seen him play once and I can't remember much about it, but he is quite quick and has a good eye for goal."

Albion paid Manchester United £500,000 for Ritchie back in October 1980, a record which has never been broken.

Bought to replace Peter Ward, he did not quite manage to live up to the expectations of such a fat fee and following in the footsteps of the club's legendary goalscorer.

Ritchie was leading marksman in his first full season, helping the Seagulls to their highest ever finish of 13th in the top flight.

He was involved up to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup run, so the timing of his move to Leeds in exchange for Terry Connor came as a surprise.

Little did he know that Albion would be facing his former club in the final at Wembley a couple of months later.

Ritchie left with a modest return of 26 goals in 102 games. His last appearance was ironically against Manchester United in a 1-1 League draw at Old Trafford.

"They were good times," he said. "We were in the First Division all the time I was there and were only relegated in the season I left.

"We had a good squad and Brighton was a nice place to be. They were a good set of lads. I still speak to Steve Foster every now and then, and Neil McNab and Gerry Ryan.

"I had a good rapport with the fans. I was named their player of the year in my first season, but we didn't hit the heights we probably should have with the players we had.

"We had some top class players like Mark Lawrenson, Fozzie, Neil and Jimmy Case, but we didn't seem to gel as a team.

"Jimmy Melia became caretaker, he was leaving me out of the side and I wasn't happy with the way I was being treated.

"Leeds had been on the phone. They wanted me and they had Terry Connor, so it was like a bit of a swap deal."

Ritchie had eight years as a player at Oldham, helping them to a League Cup final, an FA Cup semi-final and the Second Division championship under Joe Royle.

He applied unsuccessfully for the manager's job at Boundary Park seven years ago, but returned to the Latics as a player and assistant manager in February 1997 following a spell with Scarborough.

Ritchie, 41 next month, has steered Oldham to moderate finishes of 20th, 14th and 15th since taking over from Neil Warnock. Now, aided by investment from chairman Chris Moore, he is trying to bring the good times back to the Lancashire club.

Moore bought a 53 per cent shareholding in May and promptly awarded Ritchie a new one-year contract.

Oldham have, like Albion, already been on top of the table this season.

They arrive immediately below the Seagulls in fourth place after losing twice in a row at Bournemouth and at home to Bristol City last Saturday.