- 6 minutes ago
Brighton and Hove Albion boss Fabian Hurzeler on midweek EFL Cup defeat to Manchester City and facing same opponent again in the league this weekend
Lowry Hotel, Manchester, UK
Lowry Hotel, Manchester, UK
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00:03Happy? Good morning, good to see you, hope you're well.
00:05Have you slept?
00:08Not easy after games, but we have a good hotel, good bad,
00:13so I try to make the best out of it.
00:16Reflect a little if you can on what happened last night,
00:18because for large parts of that game you were in the ascendancy
00:22and a lot of your fans would maybe think you were going to win that game,
00:26so what's the mood in the camp this morning?
00:29I think overall, we are in general like a club,
00:33and also me as a coach, we want to focus on performance,
00:36and in the end there are so many uncontrolled builds,
00:41what you can't control regarding a result,
00:43and I think the game yesterday was a prime example for that.
00:48I think a lot of things we could control and we can control about personal duties,
00:52about how we want to tag, how we want to play football,
00:55we did a lot of things in the right manner, in the right way,
00:59and then there are certain things you can't control,
01:02the deflection from a free kick, a phase where you have to be one man down,
01:07because one player is out for treatment, so there are some things you can't control,
01:12and therefore in certain elements of the game we missed a little bit of luck,
01:16but we take plenty of positives away, we focus on the performance,
01:21and regarding the performance, I think my players, they did everything to win this game,
01:26I think when we score after the phase, when we scored the second goal,
01:31when we scored the third or maybe the fourth goal, and chances were there to do this,
01:34then the game might be different, but that football,
01:38maybe at the beginning of the season we had this luck,
01:40now we don't have this luck the last two games,
01:43but how do we get this luck back? By working hard, that's the only thing,
01:48by not feeling sorry for ourselves, by working hard to keep doing the basics right,
01:54then I'm sure the outcome will come, and it's great to have another opportunity
01:58to do that on Saturday here in Manchester to take revenge.
02:02How does last night help you for Saturday?
02:05Does it help you at all because it's different competition, different line-ups,
02:08different occasions, or can you take something from it?
02:10I think from every performance you can take something,
02:13of course there will be different players on the pitch from our side,
02:16from their side, but in the end our approach won't change,
02:21and our challenge is to make everyone better in this squad,
02:25and I thought that yesterday we saw plenty of good individual performances,
02:28that should also give the players confidence,
02:31and I think confidence always helps players to improve regarding development,
02:35and if players are improving, then the whole team will improve,
02:38so therefore we will definitely take a lot of positives away from the game,
02:43but we also know on Saturday different game, different cup,
02:47different competition, different atmosphere, different environment,
02:52but we go there to have the same approach,
02:55so regarding our approach, regarding our principle, nothing will change,
02:57and then we hope that we finish this game with a better feeling than we finished it yesterday.
03:02You're staying in Manchester rather than going home,
03:04I know you had a busy week of travelling last week,
03:07what are the pros and cons of not going back home?
03:10Because, again, I guess relaxing and recovery is good,
03:14but they're not getting home to families, it'll be a bit of both of them.
03:18Yeah, there are always pros and cons, but I think you have to see the wider picture,
03:22and in the end we have now five away games in a row,
03:25so we travelled a lot already the last few days,
03:30travelled to Jablonek, travelled back, travelled to Liverpool, travelled back,
03:33so I think when you travel too much, then you also lose a lot of energy,
03:37of course we want to give the players as much time as possible with the families,
03:42especially in these moments, I think family is the best one you can have,
03:45because spending time with the loved ones is always important,
03:49but on the other side we also try to be a family for the players,
03:53we also try to stick together in these moments,
03:56and I think it's also a big pro that we can connect with the players,
04:00that the players can connect with each other,
04:01that they are not alone in their own apartments,
04:06because I think we shouldn't underestimate that not every player has their family around,
04:10also in Brighton, there are some players who are alone,
04:13so I think there we can really build on a connection with the players,
04:17the players can speak to each other, they can analyse the game with each other,
04:20we can speak with the players, and therefore we try to make the best out of it,
04:24we try to keep focusing on the connection we want to have on and off the pitch,
04:28and we see it more as a great opportunity that everyone is here together.
04:32Injury-wise, there were players coming back after spells out,
04:36or one or two that didn't make it,
04:38can you give us a little bit of a round-up of how your squad's looking
04:41in terms of the injured players and the recovered players?
04:43Yeah, I think the positive was that Teo Matzviva had their comeback yesterday,
04:51Ferdi, Jema, also Kustulas, we rested yesterday,
04:56and we are quite convinced that there will be an option for Saturday,
05:01so these are the new information we can give regarding Pascal Stroik,
05:08he won't be an option for the weekend,
05:10but we are quite convinced that he will be back afterwards.
05:14And regarding the other players who were out for a long time,
05:18Sadoc is back on the training pitch,
05:21also Zimas, definitely Zimas after his ACL is back on the training pitch,
05:25so therefore plenty of positives,
05:28hopefully we can keep this availability now,
05:30because this will be also crucial for the next period.
05:33And finally from me, what positives do you take from your start?
05:37We're just coming up to the end of the first quarter of the season,
05:41you're tucked in nicely in third, you're scoring loads of goals,
05:44you're keeping it tight at the other end.
05:46What are you wanting from this in terms of the league?
05:50That we make process, that we create like also an atmosphere,
05:58an environment in our building, in our club,
06:00that we want to, we want to compete,
06:03we want to challenge the establishment,
06:05we want to do it in a consistent way,
06:07and not only when we're facing them,
06:08also when we're not facing them,
06:10that's definitely our expectations on ourselves,
06:13we want to focus on us, we want to keep improving the players,
06:16keep improving our style of play,
06:19and then we see what the outcome will be in the end of the season.
06:22But especially having so many games,
06:24we really focus from game to game,
06:27because I think that's so important,
06:29because every game is decided by a small margin,
06:32we saw it yesterday, we saw it in Liverpool,
06:34so I think it's very important that we try to focus on the things
06:38we can control going from game to game,
06:40and then hopefully long-term we will get the results,
06:43what we expect from ourselves and what are also our ambitions.
06:46Top four?
06:49Yeah, that's always a question,
06:50but therefore, like I said,
06:53we should be a club that has high expectations on ourselves,
06:57and we have a long-term vision,
07:01we have long-term goals,
07:03we spoke about this at the beginning of the season,
07:05but speaking about this doesn't help us to achieve these things.
07:09What helps us to achieve these things is doing the work,
07:12doing the work today, doing the work tomorrow,
07:14and then doing the work on Saturday,
07:16and these are the focus we really want to set,
07:20because that's the only thing that we can control.
07:22Long-term, we won't know what will be the outcome,
07:25but if you work hard every day,
07:27if you have the right mindset every day,
07:29then we know that we can be a good football team.
07:31We proved it, although we didn't get the results in the last games,
07:34we proved it regarding the performances,
07:36so we keep focusing on these things
07:39and try to show another good performance on Saturday,
07:41and then we see what will be the output.
07:44Have a good weekend.
07:45Thanks.
07:46Did last night change your thoughts regarding selection for Saturday?
07:52Did you see a bit that maybe you could use it on Saturday?
07:55Yeah, we saw a lot of positive, good,
07:59plenty individual performances,
08:01so that's something that we definitely take away.
08:03If we will change something in the starting XI,
08:08it also depends on if players are available or not,
08:11how they present themselves after the game yesterday,
08:15because one thing is very important,
08:18that we go there with a mentally and with a physically refreshed team,
08:23because we know that we need intensity against City,
08:26they have the best individual players in the league,
08:29and therefore you need to be tough and tight and in person to us,
08:33and therefore you need to be physically and mentally on the highest level.
08:36On City, you mentioned them there.
08:38Is this still possibly the hardest test in the Premier League away to City?
08:44Yeah, I think with Arsenal, with Liverpool at the moment,
08:48definitely the best team in the league.
08:51Spent one of the most money in the league,
08:55so of course they have also a lot of individual quality,
08:59but like I said, we also should have this confidence of,
09:03of course respecting them,
09:05because they did have a great start into the season,
09:08and especially the last years they did an incredible job,
09:12but we also should have this belief and this confidence in our qualities,
09:15that we can compete with them,
09:17and we know there will be different players on the pitch from their side,
09:21but we also know that we can compete with them,
09:24and that's our challenge to prove it to ourselves,
09:26and hopefully we sit after the game with a better feeling in the locker room
09:30than we sat yesterday.
09:32That's the main goal and that's what we're trying to go for.
09:35You have to be fearless, you have to be fearless, and that's our approach.
09:49Of course, you need to adjust to adapt certain things,
09:52you need to have huge respect for the players from City,
09:56for their start, what they're doing, for their style of play,
10:00that's great and it's always nice to watch them.
10:03But on the other side, you need to be fearless,
10:06you need to have to believe in our own approach,
10:08you need to have to believe in our style of play,
10:10in our principles and in the quality from our players.
10:13And I'm sitting here with the biggest belief into my players,
10:16with the biggest belief into everyone who's involved at game day
10:22and enjoying the trainings week because I see them working,
10:26I see how they work together,
10:28I see how much effort they put into all these trainings work,
10:31preparation, regeneration,
10:33and therefore I have a big belief that we can get something out on Saturday.
10:37And the success that Pride have had means you're playing big cup games in midweek,
10:42Thursday night games in Europe.
10:45What sort of challenge is that?
10:47There's just a lot of games and often Thursdays.
10:51What's the challenge like for you?
10:53Manage the energy from players, manage the energy from staff.
10:57So I think it's not only players, it's also when you have good staff around you,
11:01when you have good energy in the staff, they will make the players better.
11:04So we also try to take care of the staff members.
11:07I'm really happy to have these experts around me
11:10and these great people around me.
11:12And on the other side, we have to manage the players' energy,
11:16the players' health because availability is such a key thing
11:20if you want to play a successful season.
11:22And therefore, we know that we need everyone,
11:25everyone is involved in our journey.
11:28No matter if you're a starter at the moment or a non-starter,
11:30if you're playing regularly or not playing regularly,
11:32at the end of the season, everyone will be contributing to our success.
11:38Everyone is needed on our journey.
11:41And therefore, we try to take care of everyone.
11:43And that's our main focus, to manage it.
11:49Obviously, you've had this time in Manchester,
11:52there will be a lot of time to look at certain things from the games,
11:55but what do you do away from football when you were the players?
11:58Is there a bit of time for team bonding and things like that?
12:00Yeah, in the end, they all create human beings.
12:04And having so many different nationalities in our team,
12:07sometimes it's also a really funny thing,
12:09because they're all different characters, all different backgrounds.
12:15Speaking from their past, speaking from their experiences they made,
12:20is sometimes also a really funny thing.
12:21And that's what we try to do as well,
12:24spending not only time with players, spending time with human beings.
12:27And I think that's very important to understand the difference.
12:29Sometimes it's not about football,
12:31sometimes it's just about the person behind the player.
12:34And we try to spend time together with them.
12:36We try to, for example, have a dinner together today,
12:41where we just speak away from football, about private things,
12:46about how was your journey, what makes you becoming a player,
12:52what are your goals in your life, how was your education,
12:54all these kind of things are so important to keep building this connection.
12:57And we put a lot of emphasis on this,
13:00and that's what I just spoke about.
13:02That's another pro we have from this journey,
13:05that we can really spend no time with each other.
13:21Yeah, first of all it's important that he can fully recover
13:25and get back on his highest level.
13:28We don't want to force things, we need to give him the time he needs.
13:32We have to be patient with him,
13:34but Stefano has an incredible mindset.
13:37He has the mindset from a winner,
13:40and therefore we are looking forward to have him back in our squad.
13:45I know that he's keen on doing this as quick as possible,
13:49and we all know that he can be a really, really important player.
13:52He proved it before his injury, he proved it in a few games.
13:56There weren't a lot of minutes he played for us,
13:57but in his minutes he already showed that he can really help our team.
14:02So hopefully he can contribute to our performances as quick as possible.
14:07You left a promise David on the bench last night.
14:10What more do you need to work his way into your plans more?
14:15Adapting, adapting to the intensity, adapting to our style of play.
14:20I think we proved it or we saw it now several times with players coming from a different league,
14:27that some players adapt quicker, some players need more time.
14:31When we speak about Babis Kustulas, he needed almost six, seven months to really adapt to the style of play,
14:39to the intensity from the Premier League, and now he's there and now he's performing.
14:43So please, it's so important that we give the players time,
14:48that we are patient with the players, that we understand that the demands in the Premier League
14:54are just different than to the other leagues.
14:56Therefore, we have big confidence that at one point when Toby really adapted everything,
15:02that it can be a big impact for us.
15:04We try to give him the environment where he can be himself, where he can improve every day.
15:08But it might need a little bit more longer.
15:11And how much of a marker would it be if you could pull off a win at Manchester City this
15:16weekend?
15:18I think a big marker.
15:19So, that's the positive thing, having that many games.
15:23You can't be frustrated that long.
15:26Of course, we were all disappointed yesterday with a disappointing feeling after this game,
15:31but we can take revenge and success is the only revenge you can take.
15:37Therefore, we try to go on Saturday to be successful.
15:41It will be great for our supporters who supported us yesterday in a Wednesday night game,
15:47had a long travel.
15:48So, hopefully, we can give them the win on Saturday and then it is a good finish from a good
15:54journey for us.
15:55I was just going to ask you about the supporters, because I don't think there's a fan base at the
15:59moment
16:00who's maybe having to spend more money on away screens than at our beginning.
16:04Yeah, great supporters.
16:07Also, yesterday, how many supported us.
16:11And I also know that every supporter who can't make it will support us from home.
16:17And it's just an incredible connection we are building on.
16:21And hopefully, we can give them this win, what they deserve,
16:25because I think they spent so much time, so much money to support the players,
16:30to support us, to support the club.
16:32And in the end, they are our 12th man.
16:35In the end, they will be crucial for our success.
16:37So, yeah, hopefully, they can spend also a few days here if they don't have to work
16:42and spend some time in Manchester.
16:44And then we are all looking forward for Saturday.
16:47Thank you very much. Good luck.
16:48Thanks.
16:49Camer's off, guys, if that's all right.
16:51Can you kick off the round?
16:53Yeah, all right, that was good.
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