English Premier League side Brighton have appointed Fabian Hurzeler as their manager
At 31, Hurzeler becomes the youngest ever full-time boss of a Premier League team.
Hurzeler, who guided St Pauli to the Bundesliga 2 title last season by winning 20 of their 34 matches, has signed a contract until 2027.
Brighton chairman Tony Bloom said his work with St Pauli made him a “standout candidate” to replace Roberto de Zerbi, who left at the end of the season.
Hurzeler will start with the side once he receives a work permit before Brighton’s squad embarks on pre-season preparations in July.
“He has a style of play that aligns with how we want a Brighton & Hove Albion team to play and I’m confident it is one our supporters will appreciate and enjoy,” said Bloom.
Ryan Mason, then 29, was briefly Tottenham’s interim boss in 2021 and is the youngest coach to ever lead a Premier League team, but Hurzeler is the youngest to do so on a full-time basis since the division’s creation in 1992.
Hurzeler is also younger than a number of Brighton’s senior players, including James Milner, 38, Danny Welbeck, 33, and Lewis Dunk, 32.
The new Seagulls manager said he was looking forward to working for a team who are “highly ambitious”.
First-team coach Andrew Crofts and goalkeeping coach Jack Stern will remain in their positions, and Brighton say the rest of Hurzeler’s backroom staff will be confirmed “in due course”.
On Tuesday, he will learn who his first opponents as a Premier League manager will be. He will be hoping to avoid a succession of games with English football’s heavyweights to give Brighton a chance of not finding themselves on the back foot.
Managerial Appointment: Brighton Names Fabian Hurzeler Manager
