'He's going to be amazing, I promise you' - Former promotion-winning Brighton boss is fan of Fabian Hurzeler

Gus Poyet managed Brighton from 2009 to 2013. In his first full season at the club, he was able to guide the Seagulls to the Championship, after topping the League One table in 2011.

The former Chelsea and Tottenham midfielder guided Brighton to a fourth-place finish in the 2012-13 season but failed to reach the Championship play-off final after losing 2-0 on aggregate to fierce rivals Crystal Palace in the semi-finals.

Most recently, Gus Poyet was the manager of Greece's national team for just over two years, with his contract expiring in March.

In an exclusive interview, the former International manager spoke about previously meeting the new Brighton head coach.

With some pundits wondering if the Premier League’s youngest-ever permanent head coach will be able to cope, Gus believes fans will ‘love him’.

Speaking on behalf of Free Bets, Gus Poyet said: “The coach that Brighton has now is outstanding and you’re going to love him.

"I say this because I was lucky enough to meet him. I had a player who played for me when I managed Greece who was playing for St Pauli in the second division in Germany.

"I travelled to meet the player personally because I didn’t know him.

“Fabian was so good to come down to speak to me for two hours talking about football. I’m telling you now, I'm 56 years old but if that guy asked me at three o’clock in the afternoon if I wanted to play that evening. I would’ve played for him.

"It’s because it’s incredible how he understands football, how he wants to play football, how he loves football and what he did at St Pauli. I was delighted when I heard that the Brighton Chairman Tony Bloom was approaching him as the new coach.

"I’m very delighted for him. He’s going to be amazing, I promise you.”

Previously Hurzeler was the assistant manager of the Germany U20s and Germany U18s. He then moved to German side St Pauli as assistant manager. In December 2022, he was promoted to the head coach position after the club dismissed the previous manager Timo Schultz.