Brighton’s Under-21 side will travel to the Valley on Wednesday night, with the Seagulls eliminated from the competition following a pair of losses to Colchester United and Gillingham.
The Addicks will need to win in order to progress to the knockout round of the EFL Trophy and Hayes expects it to be a tightly-contested fixture.
Hayes believes the Seagulls have a host of players who will one day go on to light up the Premier League in the future.
Terming Brighton one of the most forward-thinking clubs in the country, Hayes expects a lot of questions to be asked of the Addicks in terms of both technique and tactics.
Hayes believes that Brighton’s players will use the game as a platform to show what they can do to perhaps earn a loan move in January in a bid to garner more experience.
“Brighton are a good side”, Hayes said to Charlton’s official website.
“They will have players who have and will go on to play in the Premier League, there’s no doubt about that.
“They are one of the most up and coming, forward-thinking clubs in the country and we’re expecting a very difficult game.
“Both technically and tactically they will pose us some questions.
“Obviously for their players they will be using it as a platform to showcase their qualities and try and maybe get a loan move in January.”
Brighton’s Under-21 side are presently in ninth place in the Premier League 2 Division 1 table after ten games played.
