Brentford goalkeeper David Button: We're ready for challenging months ahead

Brentford goalkeeper David Button insists the Bees are ready to test their promotion credentials.

Dean Smith's side go to Brighton on Friday aiming to close the gap to the Sky Bet Championship play-off spots.

They are eight points adrift of the top six and also face play-off rivals Wolves, Derby and Sheffield Wednesday after their clash on the south coast.

Brentford have won once in their last five league games and Button recognised the importance of their next few games.

"It's going to be a big month for us. Playing teams around you, they almost become six pointers even at this stage of the season because you don't want to lose too much ground," the former Charlton man told Press Association Sport.

"We're looking forward to the challenge. It'll be an exciting end to the season.

"We know we had a slow start which after that we were always playing catch up. You do need to put a run together. The teams who do that at the business end will be the ones who be successful and ultimately having a chance of going up.

"It's very tight and probably from the teams around us to fourth or fifth are trying to make the play-offs. We're certainly one of those teams."

The 26-year-old ex-Tottenham trainee expects the fight to go the distance, after the Bees left it late before making the play-offs last term.

"We had it last season, it was out of our hands on the last day and we managed to get in. I don't see it being any different this year," he said, with Brentford beaten by Middlesbrough in the semi-finals last year.

Boss Smith is the Bees' third head coach of the season after Marinus Dijkhuizen and Lee Carsley but Button has been impressed since he joined from Walsall in November.

"We've found him to be really good, he's got great management skills and can relate to the lads on a personal level which has been important after the big changes we've had at the club," he said.

"He's been able to get everyone working on the same page which is something we've definitely needed. He's got a lot of respect form the lads for what he did at Walsall."

They are currently 10 points behind fifth-placed Brighton having sold defender James Tarkowski to Burnley on transfer deadline day.

The Seagulls could give Czech Republic international Jiri Skalak a debut after he joined from FK Mlada Boleslav.

Boss Chris Hughton told the club's official website: "It is for myself and this group of players to get our ultimate aim and keep pressure on those top teams and give ourselves an opportunity for promotion."