Brighton appoint Fabian Hurzeler as their new head coach
Wilkommen Herr Hurzeler! Brighton have confirmed the appointment of Fabian Hurzeler as their new head coach on a three-year contract.
The 31-year-old becomes the youngest permanent manager in Premier League history. The Albion have paid a seven-figure fee to St Pauli for Hurzeler, rumoured to be anywhere between £5 million and £8 million depending on who you believe.
Personal terms were agreed with Hurzeler early in the week. Completing the deal though proved difficult due to St Pauli being tough negotiators, not wanting to give up their head coach without feeling they were getting the best deal possible.
Brighton supporters should sympathise with that from the Albion’s experience of Marc Cucurella, Graham Potter, Billy Reid, Kyle Macaulay, Bruno, Ben Roberts, Paul Winstanley, the tea lady, Moises Caicedo, Robert Sanchez, Sammy Seagull and Sam Jewell being poached by Chelsea.
Hurzeler was born in Texas to a Swiss father and a German mother working in the United States. They moved to Bavaria when Hurzeler was young. At the age of 12, he was signed by Bayern Munich and played in the same youth team as Emre Can.
During their time together at Bayern, Can predicted Hurzeler would become a great coach. After spells in the German lower leagues with B teams at Bayern, Hoffenheim and 1860 Munich, Hurzeler made the move into coaching when appointed player-manager of fifth tier side FC Pipinsried aged only 23.
Hurzeler spent five seasons with Pipinsried whilst taking his coaching badges. He showed so much potential as to be given assistant manager roles with Germany Under 18s and Under 20s whilst gaining his qualifications.
In 2020, Tim Schultz appointed Hurzeler as his number two at St Pauli. When Schultz was sacked in early December 2022, Hurzeler was placed in charge.
It was no easy gig for Hurzeler. Schultz was a St Pauli legend, having first joined the club in 2005 as a player. Schultz retired in 2012 and worked his way up the coaching ladder before becoming manager.
His sacking was therefore a controversial and unpopular decision with fans. Hurzeler had to win them over quickly. 10 wins from his first 10 games did that as St Pauli went from Bundesliga 2 relegation candidates to the brink of promotion in five months.
That form continued into 2023-24. St Pauli were unbeaten in the league in their opening 20 games through to February. Their next 14 matches returned nine wins and five defeats.
It proved just about enough to hold off the challenge of Holsten Keil, whom St Pauli pipped to the title by a single point.
Delivering promotion with a mid table budget, Hurzeler seriously outperformed the financial backing of St Pauli. A crucial ingredient for any Brighton manager in a Premier League full of American billionaires and sportswashing oil nations.
After St Pauli were confirmed as champions, Hurzeler could be found in the middle of the pitch invasion which followed. He was carried by supporters around the Millerntor, as jubilant as those fans celebrating a return to the top division of German football for the first time in 13 years.
The connection Hurzeler forged with St Pauli supporters through passion and strength of personality is remarkably similar to the relationship Roberto De Zerbi had with Brighton fans.
That is not the only similarity between Hurzeler and De Zerbi. A tactical analysis of St Pauli on the Analytics FC website called the football which swept the kult club to the Bundesliga 2 title ‘De Zerbian’.
Hurzelerball involves short, risky passes around the back line and drawing the opposition press. Once an opponent takes the bait, Hurzelerball rushes into the spaces left at breakneck speed in an attempt to overload.
A Brighton squad who thrived under De Zerbi should be well suited to Hurzeler. He also looks a good fit for the age profile of one of the most youthful squads in the Premier League.
Cynics will point to Hurzeler being only 31 as a problem. But he has spoken in the in the past about how it helps him empathise with and get the best out of younger players.
Most interesting from a Brighton point of view is that St Pauli developed a way to beat opponents who did not play into their hands by pressing.
De Zerbi was frequently beaten with a stick marked No Plan B. Brighton had no answer to teams who sat off, not playing into their hands.
It is why when DeZerbiBall did not work, it tended to go terribly wrong. Losing 5-1 to Everton, 6-1 to Aston Villa and 4-0 at Luton Town being classics of the genre.
Hurzeler’s St Pauli though hurt opponents multiple ways, leading to their stunning title win. If Hurzeler repeats the trick at Brighton, who knows how high the Seagulls can soar?
Appointing a 31-year-old with only 18 months as a professional manager under his belt in the second tier of German football is not without risk, of course.
Hurzeler can point to an impressive record at St Pauli of 55 games, 38 wins and only eight defeats. His side conceded 110 goals, conceding only 58.
The big question is can that success translate from Bundesliga 2 to Premier League? Or will the jump prove too big? Is it a gamble too far?
Tony Bloom became a multi millionaire in part through gambling. It worked when replacing Chris Hughton with Potter. It worked when appointing De Zerbi after Potter slithered off to Chelsea.
Will it work with Hurzeler? Only time will tell. But from the impact he had at St Pauli, his fiery personality and the football his team played, it looks certain to be exciting finding out.
