Percy Tau says he is not looking for a move away from Brighton & Hove Albion and wants to stay to fight for his place, adding that the club and he are on the same page.

The 27-year-old played was recalled from his loan in January after spending several seasons awaiting the proper work permit.

He may have played just three Premier League matches, with the first two coming in January, before he eventually returned to action against West Ham United on 15 May contributing an assist that earned Brighton a 1-1 draw, but Tau insists he is going nowhere.

‘I don’t think anyone is thinking of that [a loan deal] at this stage. It has been six months that I’ve been at Brighton. And if they were to loan me out, it would be based on what exactly? I didn’t play enough. I am looking to fight for my position,’ Tau was quoted by IOL.

‘We are still on the same page with the club. They still want me to stay and play. And I also want to fight for my position. You know what they say, they say you want to see the future. As things stand at the moment, we are both on agreement terms.’

Tau is back in South Africa with the season in England completed and he has now set his sights on representing South Africa at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games after he was named in their 30-man provisional squad.

The Bafana Bafana talisman sees his inclusion in the U23 set-up as a responsibility to guide the country to victory.

‘I think we’ll take the responsibility well because there’s many of us that can handle it. I am sure that there are young players that will want to take the responsibility because there are tournaments that will want them to be responsible,’ he added.

‘It’s going to be challenging because some of us don’t enjoy being leaders or always talking. But now, there’s no one and we’ll be forced to talk and lead, but we’ll see how it goes. I came home to rest but the programme is tight and there’s a lot to do.’

South Africa are in Group A of the men’s football competition after being drawn along with hosts Japan, Mexico and France.