Dicker made 52 appearances for Brighton last season

Brighton midfielder Gary Dicker hopes playing in the Championship will help him break into the Republic of Ireland national squad.

The 25-year-old has not been capped above under-21 level.

Dicker told BBC Sussex: "I'd love to play for Ireland one day but you've got to play well for your club first.

"I watched them on Tuesday and it gives you that extra hunger to get in there. There's a few guys in the Championship so hopefully I'll get noticed more."

He added: "But at the moment I'm concentrating on doing well for Brighton and staying in the team."

The former Stockport man aims to emulate Albion striker Craig Mackail-Smith, who represented Scotland in their midweek win over Denmark.

"I saw him come on and he did well," Dicker said. "The club has come on so much since I've been here.

"It's great for Brighton to have an international and hopefully he'll stay in the Scottish squad."

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