The Youngest Coach in EPL History: Who is Brighton's New Manager, Fabian Huerzeler?
After a 34-year absence from top-flight football, Brighton & Hove Albion made its long-awaited return to the English Premier League in 2017. Since then, the club has steadily improved, establishing itself as a competitive force in the league.
What's unique about Brighton's time and performance in the Premier League is how they've approached the game. Unlike many newly promoted teams, the team has built a reputation for playing attractive, attacking football while maintaining a solid defense. Thanks to its exceptional scouting and recruitment system, Brighton has also become a hub for developing young talent. In fact, many pundits consider the club one of the best-run clubs in the Premier League, particularly in scouting and nurturing young talent. However, Brighton's knack for scouting and recruitment doesn't stop at finding talented young players.
Brighton’s Manager Hiring History
Brighton has developed a reputation for consistently making the right call when it comes to hiring managers. First, there was Graham Potter, who impressed everyone with his possession-based, attacking football. Then, Roberto De Zerbi took the reins, leading the team to their first-ever Europa League qualification with his progressive, high-intensity pressing style.
Now, the spotlight is on the young and relatively inexperienced Fabian Huerzeler. The seemingly inexperienced manager has stunned the football world by outplaying Manchester United to keep Brighton's perfect start to the season intact. This result betrayed several pre-match odds, taking many fans and bettors by surprise.
Now the football world is asking: who is Fabian Huerzeler? But before we dive into who the youngest coach in the history of the English Premier Leagues is, you can read more on finding the best odds for EPL matches.
Who is Brighton's New Coach?
Like many football coaches, Fabian Hürzeler's journey in football began on the field as a player. His career kicked off in 2009 when he joined Bayern Munich's youth academy, where he steadily progressed through the ranks. During this time, he also earned 21 caps for Germany at various youth levels. As he would have expected, his professional career eventually took off with the Bayern Munich second team in 2011.
Fabian Huerzeler, however, went on to have a relatively short-lived and not-so-eventful career. After leaving Bayern Munich II in 2013, he could not break into the higher levels of the game, playing instead for clubs like Hoffenheim II, 1860 Munich II, FC Pipinsried, and Eimsbütteler TV. As a 29-year-old still playing in the fourth tier of the German football league, he eventually ended his football career in 2022.
Fabian Huerzeler’s Coaching Career
Fabian Hürzeler had always envisioned a future in coaching, and it quickly became evident that he was more suited to the sidelines than the pitch. In fact, his roles at FC Pipinsried and Eimsbütteler TV were as both player and coach. He also took on the assistant manager role for Germany's U20 and U18 teams while still playing for and managing Pipinsried.
As a player-coach, Fabian led Pipinsried to promotion to the fourth division. However, they were relegated again in his penultimate season with the club. He stepped down from his player-coach role at FC Pipinsried in 2020 to take on an assistant manager role at FC St. Pauli, a club competing in the second division of the Bundesliga.
While serving as an assistant coach at FC St. Pauli, Fabian Hürzeler also took on the role of player-coach at sixth-division club Eimsbütteler TV. Under his leadership, Eimsbütteler earned promotion to the fifth division. And with St. Pauli FC, he eventually became the interim coach, when head coach Timo Schultz was dismissed after a string of poor results.
Just two weeks into his interim role, Fabian Hürzeler was appointed as the permanent head coach of FC St. Pauli. He quickly turned the team's fortunes around, delivering ten consecutive wins. As the official head coach of St. Pauli FC, Fabian Huerzeler became the youngest-ever coach in the history of German second-division football. He went on to take FC St. Pauli from the relegation zone to securing promotion to the Bundesliga.
Journey to Brighton
Fabian Hürzeler's managerial brilliance didn't escape Brighton's ever-sharp scouting eyes. After Roberto De Zerbi's departure, we could almost bet that Brighton would find another top-notch coach, but no one expected it to be such a young prodigy.
At just 31, he was brought in to replace Roberto De Zerbi, who had moved to French side Olympique Marseille. Hürzeler's appointment made him the youngest permanent head coach in Premier League history. When interviewed at his presentation, Fabian remarked that he is a young man, not a young coach. He also added that he wants to “challenge the establishment.”
With two impressive wins in his first two matches with Brighton, Fabian Hürzeler is proving to be another testament to the club's exceptional scouting and recruitment network. And as he continues in this historic role, the football world will be watching closely to see how he shapes the future of one of the Premier League's most exciting teams.
