- 2 months ago
Brighton Boss Huerzeler and Pascal Groß ahead of Conference League game v Tromso
Wednesday, 22nd August
Elite Football Training Centre, Lancing
Wednesday, 22nd August
Elite Football Training Centre, Lancing
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:43What do I sit?
00:44You sit in the middle.
00:45I'm going to put the mics in the middle so they pick you both up.
00:51Pascalia.
01:40I think it's perfect as Pascalia can answer this question from a player's perspective.
01:47From my perspective as a coach, I think it sets the standards regarding intensity,
01:54regarding how we want to play in possession, out of possession,
01:57how we want to end the game, how we want to play football
01:59and what is necessary to win games in the Premier League.
02:02So, therefore, I think from a coach's perspective, of course, it was a positive start.
02:07Now it's very important to understand why this one happened, why we had to start,
02:12because we were brilliant in the basic things and I think that was crucial.
02:15So, therefore, it hopefully gives the players confidence, us confidence.
02:20We faced some adversity through the pre-season, but the boys, the players, did really well.
02:26And, yeah, it was a great start.
02:27But now we're looking ahead for the next big challenge tomorrow against Schomsen.
02:32And, therefore, we have to do all the basic things again.
02:35We have to press, like we press against Villa.
02:40We have to attack the box with a special desire.
02:43I think this will be crucial.
02:45So, yeah, we're looking ahead for this game.
02:56Yeah, I think, first of all, we should really focus on this game tomorrow.
02:59That's the main thing, I think.
03:02It's a do-or-die game.
03:03We know we'll face a tough opponent with Schomsen.
03:06We had it in the first game against them.
03:08Very disciplined team, very combat, defend with a lot of players.
03:11So, therefore, we have to be ready for that.
03:13That's the only focus we have at the moment regarding team use.
03:18There are no new injury concerns.
03:21I think the other injuries, they're all known in public.
03:26You know it.
03:27So, therefore, hopefully we can perform on a highest level.
03:34Yeah, Ruta, we have to see.
03:37Here's an issue.
03:39It will be not a big issue.
03:40It's not a big issue.
03:41But, therefore, we have to go really day by day
03:44and see how far he will be.
03:46With Kadioglu, he will be definitely in the squad.
03:49So, let's see what will be with Ruta tomorrow.
03:53And also for the weekend.
03:54There we have to manage him.
03:55But there I can't say a clear schedule
03:58if he is fit for tomorrow or not.
04:12I think it's part of our identity.
04:14It's part of the club's identity.
04:18Developing young players.
04:18And I always say to the players,
04:21if we are successful as a team, the individual will shine.
04:24If we are successful as a team,
04:25there will be attention on this club.
04:28There will be attention on the individual players.
04:30So, therefore, it's the biggest dream from Carlos to play for United.
04:34He always told me about having the stream.
04:37And he deserves it.
04:38He had two great years with me.
04:42He had another year before where he got used to the Premier League.
04:45He's a great personality, a great player.
04:47And I wish him and his family all the best.
04:50It's a player like he has something special.
04:53It's his physicality.
04:54We can't replace him one-to-one.
04:56But we can replace him as a team.
04:58We can replace him with a different profile as players.
05:02For example, now, Yassim played as a six against Villa.
05:06He's a different profile.
05:07He interpreted the role differently than Carlos.
05:10So, therefore, we are there.
05:11I'm there to find solutions together with the players.
05:14And my players did it in a really good way on Sunday.
05:19So, that's another thing that will give us confidence
05:21that we are able to replace players.
05:24We are able to replace them.
05:26Maybe not one-to-one, but as a team.
05:27And that's what made us always strong in the past.
05:30You mentioned there about him having that game.
05:32He played fantastic.
05:33From a coach's perspective,
05:36you then have to be quite accepting.
05:38Not only that player, but the way that the coaches...
05:42Can I ask you, how do you make a big coach?
05:46Of course, I try to convince the players to stay.
05:51But India, like I said, it's part of this club.
05:55It's part of our identity that we will always develop young players.
05:59We always try to get young players in.
06:01And like I said, I think these things, selling players,
06:05players will only happen if the club is successful.
06:08And I think all these players who want to make a move,
06:10they need to understand, they need to work hard for this team here.
06:13They need to commit as long as they're here for this badge.
06:16And that's crucial for me.
06:18And I think then, of course, that's natural in this business
06:22that there come bigger clubs, there come longer contracts,
06:27bigger contracts, more money, these kind of things.
06:29And that's something that we have to accept.
06:32But like I said, I wish the player all the best.
06:36And I'm also quite convinced that we have still a strong squad.
06:39We are still strong players.
06:41We will replace them in a different manner.
06:44But I'm not here.
06:46I will never complain about these things.
06:48Because there are certain things I can't control.
06:51Of course, I will fight for more players.
06:53Of course, I have a clear opinion which player should definitely stay and help us.
06:57But there are certain things I can't control as a manager.
07:00And therefore, my focus is on how good I can prepare my team
07:04regarding the next challenge.
07:06And that's the only thing that I can control.
07:08And therefore, my fully focus is on tomorrow.
07:11Together with my team, with my players,
07:13we can achieve something special.
07:15And that's my focus.
07:17Do you have a similar situation that I've ever seen in the United States?
07:22Rumours.
07:23Rumours.
07:24So, therefore, let's see what happens.
07:28Again, another example.
07:29And I can only repeat myself.
07:33Another player who benefits from the success of the team.
07:39He benefits, for example, from hard work from Pascal.
07:42Hard work from Jack Hinchwell.
07:43Hard work from all the other players.
07:44He benefits.
07:45And he knows it.
07:45So, therefore, I think it's always also important to understand, as a player,
07:50what do you have here playing for a club like Brighton?
07:54You have a club that gives you the chance.
07:56You have a club and the teammates that are really trying to push you.
08:00You have a club that is there for you also in tough moments.
08:03Like, Carlos Bleyber had so many tough moments when he was here.
08:07Also, Mette had tough moments.
08:08But we're always there for them.
08:10We always try to help them.
08:11Teammates are there for them.
08:12So, I think it's also important for the players to understand what they have here with this club.
08:17Like, how the fans are connected.
08:19How we are working together.
08:21And it's difficult to find a similar environment or a better environment for potential young players.
08:28But the same with Mette.
08:31We were successful as a team.
08:32That brings attention on him.
08:34So, let's see what happens.
08:36And if you ask me if I try to convince him to stay, yes.
08:39I try to convince him to stay.
08:40But can I control everything?
08:42No, I can't control everything.
08:44It depends on the subject in Liverpool.
08:47Do you think that maybe he's done enough that that has gone away?
08:52That he can't be playing a game changer?
08:54Let's see.
08:56Like I said, from my perspective, if Mette, he's a Brighton player.
09:01He needs to commit to this club.
09:03Because one phrase he also said to me.
09:05He knows that these rumours only come because he benefits from everything here.
09:11From how he's been worked with, from how he's been protected from everyone, how he's been developed.
09:18So, I think that's also important for him.
09:20And then in the end, we all know, everyone knows how the football business is working.
09:24So, let's see what the idea is from Liverpool.
09:28We have a clear idea how we want to go forward.
09:31But, like I said, I think we have a lot of things regarding this player in our hands.
09:37But, in the end, again, like, there's Tony, there's Paul.
09:42Together with them, we try to make the right decision.
09:57Of course, we, like I said, we try to convince these key players to stay.
10:01Definitely, like, that's my first job.
10:04But, when a player is leaving, we are there to find solutions.
10:08I'm never that guy who will be here in front of me and try to complain about anything.
10:13Like, I'm a coach who tries to find solutions together with my team, together with my players.
10:18And we showed it in an impressive way on Sunday.
10:21They were capable of doing it.
10:23Now, the thing is, like, can we do it long term?
10:25Do we have enough players to do these things long term in a consistent way?
10:28Because, in the end, consistency is the main bit for us.
10:31Consistency in this season will be crucial for us if we have another successful season or not.
10:37And, therefore, we need to take care of every player initially.
10:40Have we enough depth in our squad?
10:41Do we have enough players who can, for example, replace this or that player?
10:45And this will be crucial to understand how strong is our depth of the squad.
10:50And if you're convinced there, then I have a big belief in our squad.
10:55Because I think we have a strong squad with good connections, with good individual quality and with good characters.
11:01And that's, for me, the most important.
11:03Like, the characters are really strong.
11:05We have their hardworking, their humble, their crown, that they know what it needs to win in the Premier League.
11:12So, players like Lewis, Chase, Pascal, also know Jack, Bart, they grow into it.
11:17They know what it needs to win in the Premier League.
11:19And I think, therefore, that's also crucial to have this balance right.
11:22And that's what I see.
11:25Pascal, I'll ask you a couple of questions.
11:27And what did you and what did the team learn from that?
11:29You guys have played against Tromsø that you can take into this couple of years.
11:35Yeah, I think we started the game well at Tromsø.
11:38But we also saw in the second half that they're really dangerous on counterattacks.
11:44We need to be careful.
11:45We need to attack, but we need to be good at rest defense as well.
11:50That will be key tomorrow.
11:52And we need to take our opportunities.
11:56We need to score.
11:57We need to be at home with our fans.
11:59It's a totally different game, totally different environment for them as well.
12:03And therefore, I'm really positive for the game tomorrow.
12:06And for so many players you do at the end of the game, how special can this be, not just
12:11for you, but also for some of the younger players that might be at the end of the game?
12:15Yeah, really special.
12:16Like the Gaffer said, tomorrow is a do-or-die game.
12:1910 games.
12:21Yeah, there's no excuses.
12:23You have to do it.
12:24And we want to do it tomorrow because last year was very hard to finish 8th in the Premier League.
12:31It's a tough league and we don't want to waste that.
12:35We in Europe, we want to qualify and give our fans another European tour, home and away.
12:43And yeah, therefore, we need to do the job tomorrow.
12:47Thank you, Fabian.
12:49And you, Simon, and Gaelin, Fabian, tell us a bit about how you were getting to your tour.
12:56Well pronounced.
12:57Well pronounced.
12:57Not that easy to pronounce it right.
12:59So, that was crucial.
13:01So, yeah, another left back, I think he proved it already in the past.
13:07Also in the World Cup, he's capable of playing on the highest level.
13:11He played in a different league with different demands.
13:14So, now it's very important how fast he can adapt to the Premier League, to the intensity of our game,
13:19how we want to play football.
13:20But I heard a lot of positive things.
13:22And like I always mention, we not only do and see the player,
13:26we do a lot of background information about how is his character.
13:29And he seems to be a really hardworking guy, very humble.
13:32So, great fit for us and hopefully he can help us immediately.
13:53Yeah, he's definitely always in my thinking and he's a natural goal scorer.
13:59So, he wants to score goals and I think that's also crucial in these kind of games.
14:04He also understands now more and more how important it is to work against the ball.
14:07And that's why I will judge him when he's on the pitch.
14:11I will always judge him how he reacts when we lose the ball,
14:14how is his body language, how hard does he work against the ball.
14:16And therefore, I think he made a really positive progress, good development regarding this and in possession.
14:24He will always have the quality to score a goal out of nowhere.
14:27I think he proved it also in his performances last season.
14:31No matter how long he played, he immediately had an impact on our game.
14:35So, therefore, when or if Gini or Dakar play, I think we have a good replacement.
14:40Yeah, okay.
14:41And, Pastor, you saw a lot of your experience being like me over the summer.
14:48How part of the Gini or Dakar play, and what sort of role do you play for now about that
14:55game?
14:59Again, like the Gini or Dakar said, that's part of the identity of the club on a personal level, of
15:06course.
15:07I met a lot of boys, I shared a dressing room for a long time, on and off the pitch.
15:13We created a lot of memories, but in football, that's how it goes, how it is.
15:19Now it's important for me to help the new guys to fit in as fast as possible,
15:26because you see in the Premier League, you don't have time,
15:30or you get punished at the start of the season if you're not ready.
15:34And I'm also a guy who came from a different country to the Premier League,
15:39and people helped me a lot at the beginning.
15:42So I know what is needed, and I try to help the new signings to adapt as fast as possible
15:50to the country, to the league,
15:55that I can perform on the highest level.
15:57Because I think if you feel comfortable, if you feel wanted,
16:00there's a bigger chance you can show your full potential.
16:25Yeah, probably I was, I'm not 100% sure.
16:29But yeah, it's a game, do-or-die games are different to league games,
16:33because you can't, you don't have another chance to do it again.
16:41So we just need to find the right balance between attack and defense.
16:46It's a game of 90 minutes or longer, stay calm.
16:50But also, we're at home, and we're strong, and we should really believe in ourselves.
16:56We saw on the weekend what we're capable of, we have our crowd,
16:59and we're also really confident that we go through the next month.
17:10Like I said, very disciplined team, defending with a lot of players behind the ball,
17:15good in transition.
17:16Also, they try to build up with the goalkeeper.
17:21So overall, good team in possession, out of possession.
17:24But in the end, we should also have the belief and the confidence to say,
17:29if we play our game, if we bring our intensity, our physicality on the pitch,
17:34if we have a good structure in possession, if we play simple, if we play fast,
17:39if we attack the box, well, then I think we're also a team that it's difficult to beat.
17:42And I had yesterday a fan event, and one of my messages towards everyone was like,
17:49we want to build a fortress at home.
17:50We want to be a team that it's so difficult to play against because how we play football,
17:55but because also we have a special connection towards the fans, a special atmosphere.
18:00So hopefully, like everyone who sees this press comes tomorrow to this game,
18:05creates a special atmosphere, creates a night we will never forget,
18:09and hopefully can make things possible tomorrow for them,
18:15and also for our belief and for our confidence.
18:21How different was the mood in the dressing room after the Trumso game and then after the Villa game?
18:27The mood is always better if you win football game,
18:30because that's why we train every day here.
18:33But we also know Trumso, it's a two-legged game.
18:38It's 180 minutes at least they're getting played.
18:42So it's a clean sheet away from home.
18:45We wanted more, but also you saw second half.
18:48If you're not careful, you also get punished on the European level.
18:53So therefore, it was good, but it saved us.
18:56And we took the game back to Brighton.
18:58So the mood wasn't too bad, but we knew we have to play better.
19:01We need to step up.
19:03But it was our first official game this season.
19:08Our first proper game, I would say, because friendly is always hard to judge.
19:13But then the second game at home against Villa, I think, was really impressive.
19:18The way the intensity we brought in, the way we defended, the way we attacked.
19:24Yeah, we've been obviously delighted, because in the first half,
19:28going up in the Premier League, it was really difficult.
19:32But yeah, in the end, the mood was alright after Trumso and after Villa, we did.
19:39Fabian, have you been practicing penalties?
19:43We always practice penalties.
19:46So it's a constant thing we are doing,
19:49because hopefully we qualify for Europe,
19:54then we play in four competitions.
19:55And maybe in three competitions, you need penalties.
19:58And I think that's very important to understand.
19:59Like, training penalties doesn't make sense if you only do it one day before.
20:04It's like training penalties, like you train free kicks, corners,
20:07all these kind of things.
20:08You have to do it in a consistent way.
20:09So therefore, we do it in a consistent way,
20:12and not only because of this game.
20:25Yeah, I think because I want to build,
20:29or we want to build a strong connection to the fans.
20:31And we know that, especially in tight games,
20:35in a long season with a lot of games,
20:37we need our fans, we need our supporters.
20:40And last season, especially the second part of the season,
20:42they created some unbelievable atmosphere,
20:44some very energetic atmosphere.
20:47And like I mentioned it before,
20:48we want to build this fortress where it's just difficult to beat at home.
20:52And we shouldn't be known as a,
20:54not only known as a nice club, as a well-structured club,
20:57we should also be known as a club,
20:59like, that it's just difficult to beat,
21:01because how intense we play,
21:03because how loud the stadium is,
21:04how energetic the stadium is,
21:05how the fans are behind the team.
21:08And therefore, I think myself, the players,
21:11we have to firstly put a lot of effort into it.
21:13And to build this connection,
21:15it's not only being here in a press conference
21:17and speaking towards fans.
21:18It's also like you need to get in touch with them.
21:20You need to spend time with them.
21:22You need to show effort regarding this.
21:24And therefore, there was another good step
21:28regarding building this connection.
21:29On top of that, for me,
21:30it's always important to understand
21:32what fans are expecting from us, from players,
21:35what they really want to see,
21:37what makes them proud to be a Seagull supporter,
21:40what makes them proud to go after they went to the stadium,
21:43into a pub and speaking about Brighton and the team.
21:46And therefore, I think you can only understand these things
21:49if you get an exchange.
21:51And therefore, I think it's crucial to do these things.
21:54And it was a really good first step.
21:56And now we keep building on this connection.
21:58Let's see what happens.
22:01Will it be as fast as you get into the last part of this time?
22:06To be fair, the pitch was good.
22:08And I don't like excuses that the pitch...
22:13Something was wrong with the pitch.
22:14The pitch was really good.
22:16It's a different kind of pitch, obviously.
22:19That's obvious.
22:20But that has nothing to do with maybe some things happened in the game.
22:25But like I said, we play at home.
22:28We have all our fans.
22:30I'm really confident.
22:31I believe in the team.
22:33And that all matters for me tomorrow.
22:36Get a job done.
22:38Be positive.
22:39And full of intensity and energy with the fans together.
22:42We want to qualify.
22:56No.
22:57So, we analysed them.
23:01We knew that exactly these things would happen.
23:04We knew that it's a very well-structured team.
23:05We know that they have a clear style of play in possession.
23:09So, there's nothing that surprised me.
23:12In the end, they had a few chances after transition.
23:17We had a couple of chances.
23:18Like, when we attack the box, we have to be more ruthless.
23:21We have to be more and more clean in the final third.
23:24But, to be honest, I think there was nothing that was unexpected.
23:29Like, we knew we'll be a tough opponent.
23:31We know that they're in the middle of the season.
23:33They're in their rhythm.
23:34They have a good physical condition.
23:37So, that's what we have to prepare for.
23:38And that's also what we will face in the second leg.
23:42One more question.
23:58The first time we played in Europe, we missed a little bit of experience.
24:02I think we could go even further.
24:06So, I think it counts.
24:08But, we have a lot of players that played on a European level.
24:12Not because the club didn't play so much there.
24:15The second time, it doesn't mean the players not played there yet.
24:18So, that's the difference.
24:19We have players that are capable of playing on that level.
24:21They played in the World Cup.
24:23They played in different teams on a European level.
24:25So, we were at the top.
24:47Now, you want to phrase it?
24:49That's up to you, Andy.
24:50Like, that's up to you and your creativity.
24:54So, I'm looking forward for this headline.
24:57Beside that, like, of course, we signed him as a central midfielder.
25:02And, you know, we added a full-back.
25:04That doesn't mean that he automatically will go Emilia in his sixth position.
25:09But, they are constant, constant thinking about, okay, what is best for the squad?
25:15What is, like, in the end, what increased the percentage of winning games?
25:19And, therefore, we're trying to make a decision regarding this.
25:23But, he wasn't in my office, clocking and saying, you know, I want to play centre mid.
25:27So, this doesn't happen.
25:56I think, yeah, I think it's a really good question.
25:58He's a really good player.
26:00He has a lot of intensity.
26:02He's very good on the ball.
26:03He can pass the ball.
26:05He has a good shot.
26:06He wants to attack.
26:08He has a desire to win games.
26:12And he also defends.
26:13And he wants to learn a lot.
26:15I think he wants to improve every day.
26:17He comes here to get better.
26:19And I saw a lot of players here who, like, left the club, maybe to bigger clubs and improved.
26:25And I think he's on a really good way.
26:29He's improving every day.
26:30And I think he's a really important player for our position.